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Lincoln County approves DUI Task Force annual plan and budget as local DUI data remain high
Summary
The board approved the DUI Task Force plan and a $17,220 2025–26 budget. Coordinator Cindy Filler cited statewide and local data through 2023 — including 2,366 DUI-related citations and blood-sample results showing alcohol in about 69% of submitted samples — and said funds come from reinstatement-fee distributions and unallocated funds from counties without active task forces.
Cindy Filler, coordinator for the Lincoln County DUI Task Force, presented the group’s annual plan and a proposed 2025–26 budget of $17,220 and reviewed recent DUI data used to justify the program’s activities.
"From the citations that they issued in 2023 ... 2,366 citations were related to DUI," Filler said, summarizing Montana Highway Patrol data included in the task force report. She told commissioners that of 3,73 blood samples submitted to the crime lab in 2023 (reporting in the presentation), about 69% were positive for alcohol and that many samples showed alcohol and drugs together; she said methamphetamine and fentanyl continue to appear in testing.
Filler explained how task-force funding is allocated: a $200 license-reinstatement fee paid after suspension is distributed to counties; counties without active task forces accumulate funds that are redistributed. Lincoln County reported accumulated task-force funds of about $29,778 and an average annual distribution of roughly $8,330. The proposed budget draws on those funds and an unallocated amount from other counties to reach the $17,220 total.
Commissioners moved and approved the plan and budget, and staff will submit the approved plan to the state as the next required step for formal state approval. Commissioners and presenters discussed limits of available historical court data and welcomed recent unification of lower- and district-court systems that may improve future reporting.
Filler said the task force emphasizes awareness, education and enforcement and noted continuing concerns about young drivers and repeat offenders. The board voted to accept the plan and budget and directed staff to provide signatures so the county can meet state submission requirements.
