Policy Synthesis

Risk Assessment and Reduction: GDC Policy on Risk-Needs Assessments, Programming Assignments, Evidence-Based Practices, and Progress Measurement

Synthesized from 30 SOPs · 18 directly cited · updated May 2, 2026

The Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) uses the Next Generation Assessment (NGA), an automated actuarial tool, as the backbone of its risk-needs assessment, security classification, and program planning processes for all offenders under its supervision. NGA results drive individualized Program Plans that target criminogenic needs and feed into housing decisions, treatment referrals, and performance incentive credits. Multiple overlapping SOPs — spanning counseling, classification, mental health, substance abuse, education, and reentry — collectively define how GDC identifies risk, assigns programming, applies evidence-based practices, and measures progress toward recidivism reduction.

Overview

The Georgia Department of Corrections' approach to risk assessment and reduction is built around a single automated instrument — the Next Generation Assessment (NGA) — which feeds into virtually every downstream decision about programming, housing, treatment, and release preparation. The foundational policy is SOP 107.04 (Risk and Needs Assessment), but the NGA and its outputs are explicitly referenced across at least a dozen other SOPs, from security classification (SOP 220.02) to mental health levels of care (SOP 508.16) to the Evidence Based Prison Program (SOP 214.04). This page describes what GDC policy requires at each stage of the risk-assessment-to-programming pipeline.

The Next Generation Assessment (NGA): What It Is and Who It Covers

SOP 107.04 defines the NGA as "an automated, actuarial assessment of risks and needs created for and used on the Georgia correctional population (offenders and high-risk probationers) that produces risks, needs, and responsivity scores." The same definition is repeated verbatim in SOP 508.44 (Integrated Treatment Facilities) and SOP 214.04 (Evidence Based Prison Program), and a functionally identical definition appears in SOP 220.03 (Classification Committee) and SOP 108.01 (Education Programs Administration). The repetition across divisions signals that the NGA is the department-wide standard for offender assessment.

Coverage: SOP 107.04 states that "upon entry of sentence data into SCRIBE, all offenders sentenced to supervision by the GDC will receive an automated NGA." The NGA updates automatically each night based on information entered into SCRIBE daily. There is no exemption for any custody level, facility type, or sentence length — the automated assessment runs for everyone.

Dual purpose: The NGA serves two distinct but related functions. First, it determines criminogenic needs for program planning. Second, it drives the Security Classification instrument described in SOP 220.02, which uses the NGA to recommend a security level of close, medium, or minimum. The same algorithm thus informs both rehabilitative programming and housing restriction.

Criminogenic Needs Targeted by the NGA

SOP 107.04 defines Criminogenic Needs as "major risk factors for recidivism, which include substance use history, lack of education, lack of work skills, poor employment history, antisocial attitudes, peer interactions, as well as other factors identified by research that create criminogenic (crime-producing) behavior that must be addressed in the Program Plan."

For facilities designated as substance use disorder programs, SOP 107.04 further requires that the range of primary treatment services include, at a minimum: offender diagnosis; identified problem areas; individual treatment objectives; treatment goals; counseling needs; a drug education plan; relapse prevention and management; culturally sensitive treatment objectives; self-help groups; prerelease and transitional service needs; and coordination with community supervision and treatment staff during the prerelease phase.

The Program Plan: Automatic Generation and Mandatory Review

SOP 107.04 states that "the Program Plan is automatically developed by the NGA and in the SCRIBE programs module." The plan addresses needs identified by the NGA and includes programming recommendations. Critically, the NGA and Program Plan are visible not only to GDC counselors but also to the Department of Community Supervision and the State Board of Pardons and Paroles, making it a shared record across supervising agencies.

Quarterly review is mandatory. SOP 107.04 requires that the assigned counselor review the Program Plan in SCRIBE with "progress toward established goals/tasks, or lack thereof, appropriately noted" at minimum every quarter. A review is also required upon receipt of a new caseload assignment. The plan must be manually modified when an offender transfers to a facility offering programs not available at the prior assignment, or when new information would "substantially change the needs established in the existing case plan (e.g., newly disclosed substance abuse history, change in medical or mental health status)."

SOP 107.01 (Purpose and Objectives — Access to Counseling Services and Programs) requires facilities to annually assess the offender population's counseling needs and ensure appropriate programs are available. Counselors are required to use the Data Assessment Plan (DAP) format for documenting contacts, which includes the offender's disposition and attitude, assessed program needs, how the session relates to overall treatment goals, and where the offender is in their Stage of Change.

Security Classification and the NGA

SOP 220.02 (Security Classification) makes explicit that the NGA is the Security Classification Instrument: "Upon placement into the custody of GDC, the Security Classification Instrument, Next Generation Assessment (NGA), generates a security level in SCRIBE for each offender." The Warden/Superintendent or designee must review and approve the system-generated level. If they disagree, they may submit an Override request through SCRIBE with documented justification; Central Office has final authority.

SOP 220.03 (Classification Committee) builds on this, requiring that classification committees consider program needs, Special Needs (including ADA, medical, mental health, and educational needs), and custody level together. "Special Needs" is defined to include offenders with "a high risk of re-offending with a history of aggressive and sexually assaultive behavior as assessed by the NGA or another qualified professional."

Evidence-Based Practices in Programming

GDC policy repeatedly invokes evidence-based practices across multiple program types:

SOP 107.01 requires that evidence-based assessments sanctioned by the Department be used and that programs incorporate cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing.
SOP 107.11 (Residential Substance Abuse Treatment Programs) describes RSAT as "a progressive, modified therapeutic community that incorporates cognitive-behavioral skill-building, and focuses on pro-social and pro-sober recovery." RSAT targets "high risk, high needs offenders with a history of substance abuse."
SOP 508.44 (Integrated Treatment Facilities) requires that offenders admitted to ITFs have a documented serious substance use disorder score of 9 or above on the NGA and a mental illness. ITFs provide a therapeutic community model with four treatment phases over nine months.
SOP 508.23 (Specialized Mental Health Treatment Units) requires that SMHTUs use "evidence-based interventions, focused on the clinical needs of identified offenders," delivered by multidisciplinary teams, with incentive-based programming to develop pro-social behaviors.
SOP 214.04 (Evidence Based Prison Program) establishes two-year Evidence Based Prison (EBP) facilities that use the NGA to determine programming, combine peer mentoring with structured programs such as Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT), and measure criminal thinking changes using the TCU Criminal Thinking Scales (TCU-CTS).
SOP 107.14 (Office of Reentry Services Audit Process) requires that the Inmate Services Division conduct Georgia Program Assessment Inventories (GPAI) — defined as evaluations measuring "compliance to evidence-based principles that are proven at reducing recidivism" — at all applicable facilities at least every two years.

Mental Health Risk Assessment and Treatment Planning

For offenders with mental health needs, a parallel assessment and planning structure operates alongside the NGA-driven Program Plan. SOP 508.15 (Mental Health Evaluations) requires that all referrals from the Mental Health Reception Screening process be assigned to a Qualified Mental Health Professional (QMHP) for evaluation, and that the outcome determines a mental health classification level entered into SCRIBE. SOP 508.16 (Mental Health Levels of Care) establishes four levels (I–IV) ranging from no services needed to crisis stabilization, with distinct admission criteria, contact frequency, and treatment planning requirements at each level.

SOP 508.21 (Treatment Plans) requires that all offenders receiving mental health services have a current Individualized Treatment Plan (ITP) written by their primary care provider. Timelines vary: in non-diagnostic facilities, a Comprehensive Treatment Plan (CTP) must be completed within 30 days of placement on the mental health caseload. In diagnostic facilities, the ITP governs for up to 60 days, with a CTP required at 60 days for offenders who remain. Treatment Plan Reviews are required every six months (or four months for higher levels of care). Treatment plans must be signed by both the offender and treatment team members.

SOP 508.24 (Psychotropic Medication Use Management) explicitly prohibits using psychotropic medications for disciplinary purposes, requiring that prescribing be "clinically indicated as one facet of a program of therapy." This directly links medication management to the broader treatment planning framework.

Substance Abuse Assessment and RSAT Eligibility

SOP 107.11 and SOP 508.44 both address how NGA scores gate entry into intensive treatment programs. SOP 508.44 specifies that ITF admission requires an NGA score of 9 or above on the substance use disorder scale plus a diagnosed mental illness. SOP 107.11 describes RSAT as targeting "high risk, high needs offenders" without specifying a minimum NGA score threshold, creating a gap relative to ITF specificity (see Gaps section below).

Progress Measurement and Incentives

GDC policy connects program participation to tangible sentence-reduction benefits through SOP 214.02 (Performance Incentive Credit Program). Eligible offenders can accumulate up to 12 months credit off their length of stay by completing educational and/or vocational programming, treatment programs, work details, and demonstrating good behavior. A PIC Oversight Team — including representatives from the Office of Reentry Services, Vocational/Educational Services, Facility Operations, and the Parole Board — meets monthly to review the program's integrity.

SOP 107.13 (Program and Treatment Completion Certificate) establishes a formal credential documenting an offender's program participation, treatment completion, education, vocational training, and work history during their current incarceration. Eligibility requires: Mental Health Level 3 or below; no serious violent felony conviction (as defined in O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1); no active ICE detainer; no new crimes during current incarceration; no High or Greater disciplinary action within 12 months of release; and no refusal or disciplinary withdrawal from programs within 12 months of release.

SOP 503.02 (Reentry Pre and Post-Release Planning) anchors reentry preparation to the risk-reduction framework by requiring reentry planning to begin at initial reception and continue through release, including referrals to Reentry Assessment Centers and the TOPPSTEP employment program in collaboration with the Georgia Department of Labor.

Audit and Quality Assurance

SOP 107.14 establishes the oversight mechanism for program fidelity. The Inmate Services Division must conduct Audits, Quality Assurance Evaluations, fidelity checks, GPAIs, and site visits at least every two years at all state, private, and county prisons, probation detention centers, and transitional centers. GDC contractors meet with designated administrators at least annually. Facilities receiving Critical findings must submit a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) within 30 days. Quality Assurance Evaluations specifically assess whether programs are "delivered in the manner in which [they were] designed," address classroom control, documentation completeness, and offender participation.

The In-House Transitional Center and Pre-Release Assessment

SOP 211.06 (In-House Transitional Center Dorms) describes a pre-release program targeting offenders within 6–18 months of release. This SOP references the COMPAS assessment (Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions) as the case-planning tool, alongside the Texas Christian University Drug Screen (TCUDS) for substance abuse screening. This differs from the NGA-centric approach described in the department's more recent policies and represents an older policy framework that has not been updated to align with the NGA standard (see Gaps section).

Key Findings

SOP 107.04 requires that all offenders sentenced to GDC supervision receive an automated Next Generation Assessment (NGA) upon entry of sentence data into SCRIBE, with nightly automatic updates — there are no exemptions by facility type, custody level, or sentence length.
The NGA simultaneously drives two distinct outputs: an individualized Program Plan targeting criminogenic needs (SOP 107.04) and a Security Classification level of close, medium, or minimum custody (SOP 220.02), with the same algorithm governing both rehabilitative and restrictive decisions.
SOP 107.04 mandates quarterly counselor review of each offender's Program Plan in SCRIBE, with documented progress or lack thereof, and requires manual plan modification when an offender transfers to a new facility or when new information substantially changes identified needs.
SOP 508.44 sets a specific NGA threshold for Integrated Treatment Facility admission — a score of 9 or above on the substance use disorder scale plus a diagnosed mental illness — while SOP 107.11's RSAT eligibility criteria describe 'high risk, high needs offenders' without specifying a minimum NGA score, creating an inconsistency in how numerical risk thresholds are applied across residential treatment programs.
SOP 508.21 requires Comprehensive Treatment Plans to be completed within 30 days of mental health caseload placement in non-diagnostic facilities and within 60 days in diagnostic facilities, with Treatment Plan Reviews required every six months, and plans must be signed by both the offender and the treatment team.
SOP 214.02 allows eligible offenders to accumulate up to 12 months of Performance Incentive Credit toward earlier release by completing educational, vocational, and treatment programs, with a joint PIC Oversight Team including the Parole Board meeting monthly to review program integrity.
SOP 107.13 establishes a Program and Treatment Completion Certificate as a formal reentry credential, but excludes offenders convicted of serious violent felonies under O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1, those with a High or Greater disciplinary action within 12 months of release, and those who refused or were disciplinarily withdrawn from programs within 12 months of release.
SOP 107.14 requires the Inmate Services Division to conduct Georgia Program Assessment Inventories — which measure 'compliance to evidence-based principles that are proven at reducing recidivism' — at all applicable facilities at least every two years, with Corrective Action Plans required within 30 days of Critical findings.
SOP 508.24 explicitly prohibits prescribing psychotropic medications for disciplinary purposes, requiring that all such prescribing be 'clinically indicated as one facet of a program of therapy,' directly linking medication management to individualized treatment planning under SOP 508.21.
SOP 211.06 (In-House Transitional Center Dorms), an older policy, references the COMPAS assessment tool for case planning rather than the NGA used in all current department-wide assessment policies, indicating a policy alignment gap in pre-release programming.

Gaps & Conflicts

Where SOPs contradict each other, leave standards ambiguous, or fail to address something the broader policy framework would suggest they should.

Assessment tool inconsistency: SOP 211.06 (In-House Transitional Center Dorms, effective 2015) references the COMPAS assessment for case planning and the TCUDS for substance abuse screening, while all current department-wide assessment policies (SOP 107.04, SOP 220.02, SOP 220.03, SOP 214.04, SOP 108.01) mandate the NGA. GDC policy does not clarify whether ITC programs have been updated to use the NGA or whether COMPAS remains in use, creating ambiguity about which tool governs pre-release program assignments.
NGA score threshold gap: SOP 508.44 specifies a minimum NGA score of 9 on the substance use disorder scale for ITF admission, but SOP 107.11 (RSAT) uses qualitative language ('high risk, high needs offenders') without a specific NGA score threshold. It is unclear whether RSAT eligibility is governed by a numeric NGA cutoff or by counselor judgment, and no SOP reconciles this difference.
Dual-function conflict in the NGA: The NGA simultaneously generates both a criminogenic needs profile for treatment programming (SOP 107.04) and a security classification level (SOP 220.02). No SOP addresses what happens when a high-needs treatment profile conflicts with a high-security classification — e.g., when an offender's criminogenic needs indicate intensive substance abuse programming but their security level precludes access to that programming.
Mental health treatment plan timelines vs. short-term detainee carve-out: SOP 508.21 exempts RSAT and probation detention center detainees with 90 days or fewer to serve from Comprehensive Treatment Plan requirements, using only the Initial Treatment Plan. This creates a different standard of planning documentation for a subset of the population in residential treatment, and the policy is silent on how this interacts with NGA-driven Program Plan review requirements under SOP 107.04.
Program completion certificate exclusions: SOP 107.13 bars offenders convicted of serious violent felonies (O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1) from receiving the Program and Treatment Completion Certificate entirely, regardless of program participation. No SOP provides an alternative mechanism for documenting programming achievements for this population for reentry purposes.
Override authority and NGA: SOP 220.02 allows Wardens to submit Override requests to change the NGA-generated security level, with Central Office holding final authority. However, no SOP specifies whether a security Override that raises an offender's custody level must also trigger a review or modification of the NGA-driven Program Plan under SOP 107.04, leaving a potential gap in program plan updates following classification changes.
Transitional center mental health clearance gap: SOP 508.34 (Clearance for Transitional Programs) bars any offender with a mental health Level IV or higher from transitional center placement and any offender who has had an attempted suicide, self-mutilation, or assault within the past 12 months — but no SOP specifies how these exclusion criteria interact with the NGA-driven Program Plan, which may recommend transitional placement for an offender who is clinically excluded.