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County to conditionally merge pretrial and restorative justice programs; commissioners expect savings
Summary
A program lead proposed merging pretrial and restorative justice services to shift staff and reduce costs; commissioners conditionally approved the merger pending confirmation of corrections budget reductions at an upcoming budget meeting.
Trish, the presenter for restorative justice, asked commissioners to approve merging the county's pretrial services with the restorative justice program. She presented projected labor costs and said that leaving both programs as currently structured would cost about $3.37 million in 2026, while a merged model would cost roughly $2.35 million, producing an estimated one‑year savings of about $137,627.
Trish explained that the merger would move a part‑time position and eliminate one full‑time position (the full‑time role was reported as vacant). The savings would be achieved by transferring budgeted funds from corrections to the restorative justice budget; commissioners requested that the corrections budget reflect the corresponding reductions and that the delegation be informed.
Commissioners expressed conditional support and asked staff to confirm the wage and FTE changes and to align the savings with corrections' line items on Saturday when the budget is reviewed. The chair and commissioners did not finalize the change at this meeting; they gave conditional approval subject to Saturday's budget reconciliation.
Next steps: staff to confirm FTE changes and ensure the corrections budget shows the corresponding reductions before the merger is finalized.
