Bonner County reviews court budgets; discusses bailiff training, drug-testing move and law-library costs

Bonner County commissioners heard a budget overview from First Judicial District staff on court operations on Oct. 11, during which administrators said the district court budget as presented is essentially budget‑neutral while the drug court’s separate budget projects a reduced net expenditure.

"When you look at both of these budgets, the bottom line is, however, that there is a decreased cost for spending in both budget items," said Lisa Cheesper, trial court administrator for the First Judicial District. She said the district court budget as presented shows a net decrease of $611 and the drug court budget a projected reduction of $3,052.

The presentation and subsequent discussion focused on several line items that drove proposed increases or decreases. Travel and training costs rose in the draft budget primarily for bailiff certification and instructor continuing education, and drug testing costs moved because drug court is changing testing locations. Cheesper said the change in drug testing location is the subject of a forthcoming memorandum of understanding with Tamarack.

Commissioner 1 pressed for more detail on the travel line, asking whether the county could provide in‑house training or share resources with other county departments to stretch limited dollars. "If we can break down into line items, what is wanting to be supported with those, the travel and education costs, then let's figure — let's see if we can provide more in house and then stretch those dollars to get them some of the specialized training that we can offer locally," the commissioner said.

Cheesper said bailiffs estimated roughly $5,000 would be a minimum to send one instructor to a certification class for firearm, taser, CPR or first‑aid instructor renewals; she also said there are four instructors identified for those specialty areas. Commissioners and staff discussed exploring county partners including EMS, the sheriff’s office and neighboring counties to reduce travel and vendor costs and to expand local training offerings.

On facilities, Cheesper described a pending resolution currently with the county auditor that, if approved, would remove a $10,100 courthouse repairs and maintenance increase from the budget and instead fund the work by resolution. She said available unanticipated state revenue totaled $44,681, and that the resolution request would be $10,100. Cheesper said the resolution includes two components: updates to chemical/biological/respiratory (CBR) first‑aid items in the courthouse estimated at $4,350 and a proposed front‑door lockdown/security update estimated at $5,745.74. She said if the resolution does not pass the county could pursue a second resolution covering a portion of that work.

The law library subscription drew extended discussion after staff noted Westlaw charges had exceeded the budget and that the courts’ Westlaw subscription appears costlier than LexisNexis. Cheesper said the budget line showed 125% of its allocation had been used and that staff had asked Bill Wilson in the prosecutor’s office to obtain a LexisNexis quote. "There are some differences, but I don't know that there are differences at the rate difference in cost," Cheesper said. Commissioners were told the difference between the two providers could be roughly $30,000 annually based on the quote comparison that the prosecutor’s office was pursuing.

Commissioner 2 noted some prosecutors and newer attorneys prefer Westlaw for certain specialty searches, but commissioners and staff discussed whether fewer licenses or a pared down Westlaw package could meet county needs while reducing cost. Cheesper said Bill Wilson had asked Westlaw for a reduction and was told Westlaw would reduce pricing by about 1 percent.

Other procedural items mentioned during the workshop: the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) is planning a rollout of a new remote‑hearing platform to replace the county’s paid Zoom use; the state public defender will pick up psychosexual evaluation costs for certain clients, reducing that district court line item; and the county will follow up with judges on law‑library subscription needs at a district‑wide judges’ meeting scheduled later in the week.

Staff committed to follow‑up: provide itemized training line items for bailiff travel and education, confirm whether the sheriff’s office or EMS can provide certain instruction locally, circulate the pending resolution language and cost breakout to the commissioners, and report back after the judges’ discussion on Westlaw/LexisNexis. Cheesper said she would send commissioners an email summarizing judges’ guidance on law‑library needs.

No formal motions or votes were taken during the workshop. The commissioners recessed after the discussion and the meeting was adjourned.