Idaho corrections seeks ongoing funding for Recidiviz, transparency tools and training

The Joint Finance Preparations Committee on Feb. 4 heard a request from the Idaho Department of Correction for ongoing funding to maintain and expand several Management Services functions, including a data partnership with the nonprofit Recidiviz, subscriptions that give residents digital access to court materials and improve public‑records responsiveness, and training equipment for correctional staff.

Department budget analyst Noah Peterson told the committee the Management Services Division, which houses administration, fiscal, facilities and placement staff, carries 37 full‑time positions and is seeking several ongoing and one‑time appropriations tied to office operations, IT replacement and program software. Director Josh Tewalt and analysts highlighted Recidiviz — a nonprofit that aggregates disparate corrections data — and a transparency package that includes GovQA (public‑records management), LexisNexis (legal content) and an access‑to‑courts database.

Committee members pressed the agency for measurable results and cost‑benefit data. “As far as hard data, that’s not something I have with me,” Noah Peterson said when Senator Cook asked for ROI on the Recidiviz work. Director Josh Tewalt told the committee Recidiviz “is probably the most transformative partnership we’ve entered into” and said the tool aggregates data across legacy systems, automates case triage for probation and parole officers, and provides dashboards leadership can use to compare outcomes and prioritize supervision. Tewalt offered to provide committee members the dashboards the agency uses.

Why it matters: the agency is asking the Legislature to move from one‑time federal or grant funding toward ongoing general‑fund support for services that have previously been paid with non‑general funds. Committee members repeatedly asked whether federal or philanthropic seed funds would continue to cover future costs and whether the state would be left to carry subscription expenses.

Key details presented to the committee - Recidiviz history: agency representatives said Recidiviz provided earlier, largely one‑time, appropriations in FY2021 and FY2023 (about $1.5 million total, paid primarily with federal funds) to build tools used in probation and parole. The current request is for ongoing funding to sustain and expand the platform’s use inside prisons. Director Tewalt said every dollar the agency spends is leveraged by private philanthropic dollars through Recidiviz, increasing the effective resources available. - Transparency software: the request includes ongoing subscriptions and some one‑time implementation costs for multiple tools: GovQA (public‑records case management, about $58,700 ongoing), LexisNexis (court research access, about $69,700 ongoing), upgrades to the agency’s offender management system (Atlas customization, cited at about $250,000 ongoing) and an access‑to‑courts (ATC) database (roughly $90,000 total, split between ongoing and one‑time implementation costs). The agency says the ATC work is intended to provide constitutionally required access to court information and reduce staff time spent on paralegal tasks. - Training and equipment: a one‑time request for 16 training mannequins (CPR, first aid and other drills) and a light‑duty vehicle for the training center; IT replacement and desktop/laptop refreshes were also included as governor‑recommended items.

Discussion and concerns Senators and representatives asked for tangible performance metrics and cautioned about creating recurring general‑fund obligations that began as federal or philanthropic projects. Senator Cook asked explicitly for ROI data; Peterson said he did not have hard performance data on hand but would work with the agency to obtain it. Representative Tanner and others requested committee access to dashboards and sample reports showing case‑triage outcomes and officer‑level comparisons.

The director emphasized data control and privacy protections: Recidiviz pulls data from agency systems under data‑sharing agreements, he said, and the nonprofit pairs state contributions with philanthropic funding to multiply resources.

What was not decided The committee heard the requests and asked for additional information; no formal vote or appropriation was taken at the hearing.

Sources and evidence excerpts from the hearing “Noah Peterson, budget policy analyst, said management services houses administration, fiscal and placement staff and outlined requested software and replacement items.” — committee slide remarks “‘It’s probably the most transformative partnership we’ve entered into as an agency…’ Director Josh Tewalt on Recidiviz.” — Director Josh Tewalt

Ending: agency staff offered to provide the committee dashboards, usage metrics and additional cost details for Recidiviz and the transparency tools. Committee members requested tangible ROI and procurement comparisons before any recurring general‑fund commitment.