Juvenile Corrections requests radio upgrades, $300,000 to cover higher substance-use treatment costs

The Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections requested a mix of one‑time and ongoing funding on Tuesday as it outlined rising costs for residential substance‑use treatment, an equipment upgrade for facility radios and an internal IT reorganization.

Noah Peterson, a budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee that the agency is asking for a $380,000 one‑time purchase from the Juvenile Corrections Endowment Income Fund “to replace and upgrade radio equipment across all 3 juvenile corrections facilities.” Peterson said a key feature of the upgraded radios is a “man down functionality that alerts staff to the location of an employee who is in need of assistance.”

Director Ashley Dowell said the radios would bring the Lewiston, Nampa and St. Anthony facilities to the same level of safety technology. “We have an amazing, passionate, dedicated staff,” Dowell said, adding that equipment that can signal staff location is a priority for institutional safety.

The department also requested a $300,000 ongoing appropriation from the general fund to…