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Board flags state pretrial fee restriction and potential budget shortfall for services
Summary
During certification review the board learned a pretrial statute appears to bar charging pretrial service fees unless a person has a prior conviction and is not indigent. Members warned this could substantially reduce program revenue and asked staff to draft proposed language and outreach to state officials.
Board members raised a regulatory issue March 5 after a site‑certification review flagged language in the pretrial statute that may bar collecting fees from people on pretrial supervision unless they have a prior conviction and are not indigent.
Staff member Vicky summarized the certification findings: reviewers "scoured" program documents and identified a pretrial statutory provision that, as interpreted in the review, would preclude assessing fees from certain pretrial participants. She and other staff warned the board that losing that revenue could be "huge" for operations because grants do not cover total costs.
Members discussed remedies including adjusting the county’s fee structure (one‑time vs. monthly fees) and recommending legislative change. One board member suggested drafting a communication to state leaders and the county commissioner to highlight the issue and request clarification or an amendment to the statute.
Separately, the group discussed constraints on placing people on home detention because of local housing availability and site‑distance restrictions (members noted a 1,000‑foot restriction around certain facilities that can limit housing options). Staff said they will prepare a draft policy and circulate proposed language for board feedback.
Next steps: staff will draft proposed policy language, quantify the potential fiscal impact of the fee restriction, and prepare a letter or briefing to state officials and local commissioners for the board’s review.
