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Corrections seeks $65 million for transitional facilities; Grand Forks expansion and jail rentals discussed as overflow strategy
Summary
Department budget testimony described a $65 million executive request for transitional facilities (up from a $24 million base), ongoing negotiations over Grand Forks staffing and IT, and plans to rent county jail beds as an interim overflow solution while the state pursues longer-term capacity.
The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation told the Appropriations - Human Resources Division that the transitional facilities budget proposal carries a base level of roughly $24,000,000 and an executive recommendation near $65,000,000, an increase the department said reflects expanded transitional programming, contracted housing and county jail payments. "Transitional facilities includes ... the Missouri River Correctional Center," a department presenter said when introducing the line item.
Department staff described a package tied to Grand Forks expansion planning that included requests for staff and IT/equipment. The department said it submitted 31.5 full-time-equivalent (FTE) positions for Grand Forks; the Senate reduced that to 10 FTE in its draft, leaving 10 in the current projection. The department further described a large decision-package entry for contract or county-jail beds, which it grouped in the materials at roughly $16,000,000 for county-jail rentals or overflow housing.
Officials told the committee they are still negotiating operations and technology for the Grand Forks site and said some IT dollars in the request reflect a worst-case assumption while negotiations continue. A department speaker said those dollars may fall as negotiations with the Grand Forks entity and NDIT clarify which technology is already present and which will be provided by local partners.
Committee members asked about immediate bed availability. The department said the executive budget counted 88 man-camp beds for MRCC (Missouri River Correctional Center) but that a used-equipment vendor sold some available units, leaving 72 beds available instead of 88. The department described rented county-jail beds as likely to be used to manage population growth through the biennium while a permanent solution is developed.
Cost and capacity metrics were discussed. A department representative said that for fiscal 2024 the combined average cost to house a resident across department facilities was about $54,000 per year (approximately $148 per day). For county jails the packet shows a proposed contract rate of $100 per day in year one and $105 in year two; the department told the committee some counties are requesting roughly $115 per day.
Lance Anderson, Warden of Transitional Facilities, explained how the contract centers and BTCs differ from county jails: transitional facilities provide case managers, treatment services and a greater level of reentry programming; county jails primarily provide a bed and basic services. Anderson said each transitional resident is assigned a case manager with caseloads near 20 people who assist with budgets, scheduling, housing searches and connecting residents to treatment, employment and parole. "Housing is number 1 barrier," Anderson said, describing housing as the largest obstacle for people leaving secure care.
Officials told the committee they will provide a more detailed statewide overflow plan and a line-item breakdown for the committee; the department said it hoped to circulate a clearer summary by the end of the week. Committee members asked the department to include per-bed and per-day cost breakdowns and to clarify which costs in the Grand Forks package are one-time IT/equipment purchases versus recurring operating expenses.
Why this matters: committee members said that increasing reliance on county jails without programming could reduce access to case management and treatment that transitional facilities provide. Department witnesses agreed that jail space functions differently from transitional centers and emphasized the department’s interest in preserving reentry programming where possible while managing short-term capacity needs.
Ending: Department staff said they will deliver an updated overflow plan, bed availability numbers and a clearer cost breakdown to the committee in the coming days and continue negotiations around Grand Forks operations and technology.
