Circuit court manager asks Oakland County to provide emergency funding to keep adult treatment court at current size

The Oakland County Public Health & Safety Committee approved a request for supplemental funding to support the Adult Treatment Court program after the courtbusiness manager warned that partner grant cuts could force a reduction in services.

Chris Bujak, the circuit and probate court business manager, told the committee the program has averaged about 103 to 110 active participants, recently graduated 22 people and remains in steady growth. He said Oakland Community Health Network (OCHN) lost grant funding that previously offset liaison support, leaving the court with staffing gaps and new costs for those services.

Bujak described the program as a county cost-saver. "Our current rate over the jail ... it's about a $168 a day," he said when outlining comparative incarceration costs, and he estimated that without the program the county could face roughly $6,000,000 in incarceration expenses for current participants. Bujak asked for emergency supplemental funding to avoid reducing program size while longer-term budget solutions are pursued.

Committee members voted to approve the supplemental funding motion (recorded in the transcript as 5 yeas, 0 nays). Bujak said the court would continue to seek additional support from the State Court Administrative Office at midyear and would work with fiscal partners to identify sustainable funding for the next budget cycle.

The committee did not record any public-comment objections on the funding request. The action preserves the court's current intake capacity while staff continue fiscal planning.