“Public safety is an issue that government is supposed to take care of,” said Rep. Darrell Bolz, R-Caldwell, who helped write the budget for IDOC. The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee (JFAC) approved the budget Monday.

Most other state agencies that receive taxpayer dollars from the general fund have seen spending cuts or only slight increases. IDOC Director Brent Reinke said that he’s very grateful that lawmakers and the governor approved of the budget increase for his department.

Bolz said a key concern is that the prison population could swell during the next year, which could burst IDOC’s budget. He said lawmakers are hoping that new programs like the Correctional Alternative Placement Program (CAPP), a new 90-day drug and substance abuse treatment facility for men, can keep the number of offenders in the correctional system down. If it doesn’t, lawmakers would need to add money into the prison budget next year.

“It’s not a good way to do business, but it’s the way we do it,” Bolz said about adding funding to IDOC in the middle of the budget year. This year, lawmakers added $1.1 million to the budget to house additional inmates.

Much of the budget for IDOC is difficult for lawmakers to change, since it’s tied up in private contracts with outside companies. CAPP, the Idaho Correctional Center, and medical services for all offenders are handled by private contractors. There’s less flexibility in setting those budgets, but IDOC says it’s cheaper to house offenders in the private facilities than it is in state-run prisons.

Sen. Nicole LeFavour, D-Boise, said the rise in private contract costs eats into the rest of the budget for IDOC, which includes education and treatment programs. She singled out some issues in the medical services contract, which has led to lawsuits against IDOC. “In seeking the lowest bidder, it’s always a bit of a concern and it can get us into a bit of trouble,” LeFavour said.

LeFavour’s vote against IDOC’s medical services spending was the lone “no” vote in JFAC on the entire IDOC budget.

Reinke said IDOC is currently asking for an analysis of the medical services lawsuit, which is in a federal court.

The other reason for the increase in state funding is the end of $2 million in federal stimulus money for the prison system. Bolz and Rep. Maxine Bell, R-Jerome, said necessity led budget writers to replace state money with stimulus money last year, and that in the next budget, more state money will go back to prisons.

The increased budget for offenders won’t let IDOC end its furloughs for state workers, including prison guards. Reinke said it’s unfortunate the agency can’t end furloughs. He’s said the unpaid days off has contributed to a 28 percent turnover rate among some correctional officers.

The Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC) would get $3.1 million more in the current budget and an additional $3.3 million in the next budget year, which starts in July. Much of that added money would go to existing contracts for prisons and prisoners’ medical needs.

“The realities are still the realities,” IDOC Director Brent Reinke said. “When the governor gives us his recommendations, that becomes our budget.” Reinke said he’s also looking into finding additional sources of funding for IDOC.

Reinke had asked for more funding to end unpaid furlough days for IDOC staff, including prison guards. The budget adds $2 million from the general fund to replace one-time federal stimulus money, but not an additional $1.8 million million for furlough relief.

Reinke said furloughs will still be in the mix for IDOC staff. In a public opinion in December, Reinke said unpaid days off for staff is causing the department to leave important work stations unmanned and increasing turnover among staff.

State lawmakers that lead committees that oversee IDOC say the governor’s budget is responsible, given Idaho’s economy. “I think it’s very realistic under the circumstances,” said Rep. Rich Wills, R-Glenns Ferry, who called the budget lean and austere.

“We can’t continue to cut corrections and continue to do the right thing with our prisons,” said Sen. Denton Darrington, R-Declo.

Both Darrington and Wills also praised efforts by IDOC to lower the state’s prison population and recidivism rate for released offenders. Reinke has touted such efforts, including the Correctional Alternative Placement Program (CAPP), a new prison near Boise that offers a 90-day drug treatment program and partnering with the state court system on mental health and drug courts.

“We are doing a pretty job of controlling our prison population — better than we’ve ever done in the past,” Darrington said.

Much of the next budget for IDOC will go to private contracts. CAPP, the Idaho Correctional Center (ICC), which is another private private prison near Boise, and the medical services will cost $7.8 million more next year, making up $62 million of IDOC’s proposed $175.8 million total budget.

Reinke said ICC could also face more scrutiny from lawmakers in the next legislative session. The American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho is suing the company running the private prison, alleging carnage and suffering among prisoners.

“There have been some questions,” Reinke said about ICC and the lawsuit. “We expect more questions as we get into the legislative session.”

CAPP, located south of Boise, is run by the privately-owned Management and Training Corporation (MTC), which built the facility and has a five-year contract with the state.  The Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC) pays MTC approximately $10 million a year to run CAPP.  The average cost per inmate is less than at state-run prisons, and the men receive more training in drug and alcohol treatment than is available at other facilities.

Three of the first 25 inmates at CAPP discussed their first week at the facility.  Nathan Reidle said that he and other inmates appreciate being in the new building.

CAPP will run two eight-hour shifts of classroom education and other treatment programs, spanning from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.  Daniel Vasquez said the eight hours of programming are more than sitting at a desk and taking notes.

Kyle McGinnis said the 90-day program would offer him a new opportunity to learn new life strategies.

All three inmates shared what offenses, and what problems with drugs and alcohol, landed them in IDOC custody and CAPP.

Offenders can come to CAPP either after breaking the terms of their probation and parole, or through a retained jurisidiction program, when a judge suspends their sentence.  By going through the retained jurisdiction program, which also includes a 180-day program and soon a 270-day program, offenders can spend less time in correctional facilities, which could save the state millions of dollars each year.

After finishing the program, the men will be sent back into the community.  Vasquez said the true test of whether the treatment program at CAPP is successful for offenders will be in six or eight months, when the men have had a chance to re-enter society, but hopefully not their old addictions.

McGinnis said that when he completes the program, he’d like to be a mentor to others going through similar problems with alcohol and drugs.

Shane Evans, IDOC’s education and treatment division chief, said the department is looking to start a similar treatment program for women at the South Boise Women’s Correctional Center.  He said IDOC has the space to run a program for 60 women, but would need to hire more staff, which is difficult given the state’s fiscal situation.  Lawmakers may need to find several million more dollars in the current budget to pay for CAPP and other IDOC spending.

The governor was joined by several executive officials and members of other branches of government at the formal opening of the Correctional Alternative Placement Program (CAPP) south of Boise Tuesday.  The minimum security prison will run a 90-day rehabilitation program for 400 inmates.  The opening of the facility had been delayed for months due to cost concerns, though the Idaho Department of Correction and some lawmakers say the facility should end up saving taxpayers money while helping offenders addicted to drugs.

Otter said he hopes CAPP will make a difference, and that the majority of offenders in Idaho’s prison system have drug abuse problems.

Before cutting the ribbon, Otter acknowledged the cost concerns that contributed to the delays in opening CAPP.

A private company, Management & Training Corporation (MTC), built the $50 million prison and holds a five-year contract to operate the facility at a cost to the state of approximately $10 million a year.  The budget approved by lawmakers earlier this year includes close to $4 million for CAPP, but the corrections department can shift funds in other parts of its budget to pay MTC.  Rep. Darrell Bolz, R-Caldwell, who helped put together the corrections budget, said lawmakers may need to add more money to the corrections budget in the next year, but that CAPP is a good facility that needed to open.

Department of Correction Director Brent Reinke said that treatment options including CAPP should save the state millions within the next four year.

Reinke said that CAPP is a good use of state money, and should assist people who need help with drug and alcohol addiction.

CAPP will be Idaho’s second privately-run prison.  The other prison, the neighboring Idaho Correctional Center (ICC), is currently facing a lawsuit from the ACLU over allegations of prisoner abuse.  The ACLU recently agreed not to include the corrections department in the lawsuit, which will continue against the Correctional Corporation of America, which runs ICC.

Reinke also said he has no concerns with a private company running the facility.

Other state agencies that work with Idaho’s prison population are also supportive of CAPP and the corrections department’s emphasis on rehabilitating offenders.  Idaho Supreme Court Justice Daniel Eismann said CAPP is part of treatment options that judges have recommended for past several years.

Olivia Craven, the executive director of the Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole, said she thinks CAPP could help reduce parole violations by 40 percent by helping offenders not fall back into a life of drug use.

The new facility could also ease social services for non-offenders.  Department of Health and Welfare (DHW) Director Richard Armstrong said that drug treatment programs have long waiting lists, and that shifting some criminal offenders to CAPP could help DHW programs treat those that haven’t committed a crime.

The correction department said that 32 inmates who will do food service and janitorial work at CAPP, and aren’t part of the drug treatment programs, will move into the prison on July 6.  Shortly after that, the department will transfer 20 to 25 inmates a week into the facility for the 90-day treatment program.  Offenders in the program will undergo 40 hours of training each week.  Once it reaches full capacity, CAPP should serve 1,600 offenders a year.  MTC will also employ 90 workers at the prison.

The new prison’s opening has been pushed back several times, though it’s now on track to begin housing inmates in July.  Part of the reason for delays were concerns over finding enough money to pay for the program.  The financial situation is still murky.  Idaho lawmakers approved close to $4 million for the Correctional Alternative Program (CAPP) in the next budget, which begins in July, though the Idaho Department of Corrections (IDOC) originally requested $8.5 million to run CAPP.  However, IDOC has lump sum authority to decide how to spend all $166 million that lawmakers approved for the department, which could help keep CAPP open.  “We can move funds up and down in our agency,” said Brent Reinke, IDOC director.

CAPP is a 432-bed facility located south of Boise, near several other prisons.  When it’s up and running, 25 inmates will come to CAPP each week for a 90-day treatment program for drug abuse and cognitive issues.  CAPP differs from other Idaho prisons because the inmates will have eight hours of classroom programming every day to sort out their issues and meet other requirements imposed by a judge or parole board.

A ribbon-cutting for the $50-million CAPP is scheduled for June 27.  Inmates who will work at the facility are set to move in July 6, according to Reinke, and 25 new inmates should join CAPP starting in the third week of July.

Understanding the CAPP model

“Nowhere else in the Idaho prison system do you sit in classrooms eight hours a day,” said CAPP’s warden, Brian Finn.  He works for the private prisons company Management & Training Corporation (MTC), which built and operates the facility under a contract with the Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC).  Finn said six hours of the class time is IDOC’s standard programming, while two hours is developed by MTC.  CAPP will also have a separate track of programming for inmates who are addicted to methamphetamine.

Reinke said CAPP should help inmates and the state’s budget for prisons.  “It’s going to help keep our inmate population down,” he said.  A three-month, program-intensive sentence at CAPP would be less than a typical drug offense or parole violation, which comes with an average 27-month sentence.  IDOC would welcome a reduction in its offender population — state prisons are at 99 percent capacity, with several dozen offenders currently in overflow at county jails and the prospect of sending inmates to prisons in other states, which is costly and can disrupt inmates’ rehabilitation.

“We’re maxed out,” IDOC spokesman Jeff Ray told IdahoReporter.com.  “We’re running out of beds.”

The new prison’s opening has been pushed back several times, though it’s now on track to begin housing inmates in July.  Part of the reason for delays were concerns over finding enough money to pay for the program.  The financial situation is still murky.  Idaho lawmakers approved close to $4 million for CAPP in the next budget, which begins in July, though IDOC originally requested $8.5 million to run CAPP.  However, IDOC has lump sum authority to decide how to spend all $166 million that lawmakers approved for the department, which could help keep CAPP open.  “We can move funds up and down in our agency,” Reinke said.

Over several years, the department projects the shorter-sentence, therapy-focused CAPP will save millions by reducing the inmate population and lowering the recidivism rate, meaning offenders won’t commit crimes after they are released.  “The challenge that we have in Idaho is that two-thirds of our prison growth happens at the backdoor, people that initially come to prison and then come back and do life on the installment plan,” Reinke said.  IDOC estimates that in three years’ time, it could save $8 million a year by lowering the prison population thanks to CAPP and a similar treatment program, a nine-month therapeutic community rider program.

Opening a new correctional facility aimed at treatment during an economic downturn isn’t common.  A May report by Stateline.org said that Kansas and Oklahoma were among states that were reducing treatment programs, while other states, including Oregon, were meeting shrinking budgets by releasing inmates early.  IDOC said the state could save $5 million by immediately releasing 250 prisoners.  The Legislature, which would have to approve that early release, never considered the plan.  IDOC is projecting a 4 percent growth in its prison population in each of the next three years, so that savings would not be permanent.

“In most prisons, when budget cuts come down, the treatment is the first thing to because it’s security, security, security,” Finn said.  “That’s the primary thing.  Here, we’re trying to change lives through substance abuse treatment programs.”

CAPP built to control costs of staffing

The CAPP building is located several miles south of Boise, and is directly south of the Idaho Correctional Center (ICC), the state’s only other privately-run prison.  MTC, not the state, paid to build the facility, and the company will sell it back to the state in 20 years for $1.  The state has a five-year, non-negotiable contract with MTC to run CAPP’s programming and security.  “I would hope that we’re here for 20 years,” Finn said.  “I’d hate to be leasing my house out to somebody else who’s running the house.”

The layout of the new minimum-security facility is designed for more efficient staffing than most state prisons.  IDOC came under fire during an audit by the Legislature’s Office of Performance Evaluations, which found that the layout of many current state prisons is inefficient and requires too many guards to maintain safety.  When the report was released, Sen. Elliot Werk, D-Boise, said Idaho was hemorrhaging money on its prison system because of the inefficiencies and staffing needs.  In a written response, Gov. Butch Otter said he wouldn’t consider building new state prisons due to low tax revenues.

Rows of tables at CAPP

Inmate housing at the single-story building is broken up into four pods capable of holding 108 inmates each that include bunk beds, bathrooms, tables for dining, and doors to outdoor recreation space.  Eight classrooms and two computer rooms are steps away from the living areas.  The four-pod layout has a central watch point with security cameras.  Finn said one guard could conceivably watch all 432 inmates from that post.  MTC will employ 82 workers, including 16 substance abuse counselors.

CAPP also has medical facilities as well as 10 individual segregation cells for inmates who misbehave.  “We don’t expect anybody to be back here for any length of time because this program is based on them sitting in class, not segregation,” Finn said.  “If you’re in segregation, you’re not sticking with your program and you probably need to get back in front of a judge.”

One of the segregation cells at CAPP

Of the 432 male inmates at CAPP, 32 won’t be part of the treatment program, and will do custodial or kitchen work and stay for a year.  “They’re inmates, just assigned to janitorial (work) just like they do at all the other prisons,” Finn said.  “If I didn’t have them, I’d have to pull people out of substance abuse class.”  Inmates at other prisons can have personal televisions, so Finn said he’s enticing other inmates to transfer to CAPP by paying them a higher wage than other prisons pay.

The delays in opening CAPP have caused some logistical problems for Finn, but those costs won’t be borne by Idaho taxpayers.  “It’s been tough,” he said.  “I hired staff in January so I’ve got a payroll to make.  If I don’t have an inmate, I don’t have income.”  Once CAPP opens, the state will pay MTC $43 a day per inmate, plus medical expenses, to run the facility.  That rate is lower than the state average of $57 per day per inmate.

Ray said the recent fines stemming from inadequate medical care issued to ICC don’t raise concerns for IDOC about medical treatment for inmates at CAPP, since different private correctional companies run the facilities.  ICC, run by Corrections Corporation of America, is also the subject of lawsuits related to prison abuse and violence.

IDOC hoping to reduce repeat offenders

People who violate the terms of their parole will be the first group to undergo CAPP’s 90-day program.  The state is still working out its system for how judges will sentence new offenders and probation violators to CAPP or other treatment programs.  Both Reinke and Patti Tobias, the administrator of Idaho courts, said the courts are excited by the new option.  “District judges have long advocated for this,” Tobias told IdahoReporter.com.  “They are very excited to have this sentencing alternative.  They believe it will work to reduce recidivism and be more cost-effective.”  Reinke said a plan for discretionary placement of inmates in CAPP should be in place in 2011.

The corrections department believes that, besides the heavy emphasis on education and overcoming substance abuse, CAPP and other sentencing alternatives will help reduce recidivism by separating offenders who are trying to get a handle on their drug addiction from the rest of the prison population.  Reinke said people seeking treatment shouldn’t be exposed to a rougher element.  “The cream never rises to the top in that particular setting,” he said.

Reinke is convinced that CAPP will lower the number of repeat offenders based in part on the results of IDOC’s therapeutic community program currently operating at South Idaho Correctional Institution (SICI).  The 100-bed program, similar to CAPP, for offenders in the last few months of their prison sentence has a lower recidivism rate.  SICI warden Randy Blades said that’s because the inmates form a community and start holding each other accountable for the treatment and educational progress.  “I talk with them before they leave, and they get it,” he said.  “They want to be productive.”  Inmates in SICI’s therapeutic community program have a full slate of programming, and are the first inmates to bed and earliest to rise at SICI.

IDOC will soon have three distinct treatment programs that Reinke likes to call a trio of options.  Besides the 90-day CAPP, there is a 120-day traditional rider retained jurisdiction program for substance abusers and those with education and under-employment issues, and a new 270-day therapeutic community rider for higher risk inmates with more elevated criminal or substance abuse issues.  The 270-day program should be available starting in September.

Reinke said the trio of options will help inmates and the state prison system by getting them released on parole when they are eligible.  “We need to have the right inmate in the right bed at the right time, so that when they come up on their parole date, they’re much more apt to be released,” he said.  “It is definitely a balancing act.”  A separate OPE audit found that the state wasted several million in avoidable delays by not providing inmates will all the programming they needed to be released close to their parole date.

Female offenders, which make up 10 percent of Idaho’s prison population, are only eligible for the 120- and 270-day programs.  Reinke said he has asked lawmakers for funding for a similar CAPP facility near the Pocatello Women’s Correctional Center.  “Generally, it will take two to three years to get that funded,” he said.

“At this time, a release in inmates is not an option,” said Rep. Darrell Bolz, R-Caldwell. He worked on the IDOC budget that the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee approved Wednesday. IDOC Director Brent Reinke had said that releasing 250 inmates immediately could save the state $5 million. Idaho currently has 7,422 inmates in state and private prisons. Current projections show that rising to almost 7,700 by May 2011.

“The fact that we’re at capacity now makes it really difficult,” Reinke said about the proposed budget.

About half of the corrections budget is going to contracts with private companies that the state can’t reduce during difficult economic times. “That makes 44 percent of the total budget, and they’re basically fixed,” said Sen. Bert Brackett, R-Rogerson. “That means any holdbacks have to come out of the remaining budget.”

Contracts with the private Idaho Correctional Center in Boise will see a 3 percent increase in the next budget year. Reinke said that contract can’t change, but that private facilities are cheaper that state prisons. “Their contract rates are so low,” he said. It costs the state $40 per day for an inmate in a private prison, and $57 per day in a state prison. Reinke said IDOC is currently bidding out a new contract for inmates’ medical services, which should save the state money.

Another area of savings will be delaying the opening of new private Correctional Alternative Placement Program (CAPP) facility in Boise. The 400-bed facility specializing in 90-day substance abuse treatment is billed as a cheaper alternative to housing inmates. It was initially scheduled to open in May, then delayed six weeks until mid-June. On Friday, JFAC moved to push that opening back to September. “There’s not a year’s worth of funding,” Reinke said. “I don’t know if we can make it by September.”

Sen. Nicole LeFavour, D-Boise, spoke against pushing back the opening of CAPP. She said a lack of treatment options is a big obstacle to releasing inmates on parole on time. “The delay of this, I do worry, will only further that problem, and make it less likely that we will release inmates on time,” she said. “A lack of investment in this area will probably cost us more in the long run.” A report from the Legislature’s Office of Performance Evaluations released Feb. 25 said there are some slowdowns in Idaho’s parole process.

“A delay in education and treatment for inmates can be a delaying factor in parole,” said Rep. Shirley Ringo, D-Moscow.

State prisons would see a $6 million reduction, community corrections a $1.3 million reduction, and the Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole a $135,000 reduction in the next budget set by JFAC, which starts July 1. Those would be on top of the holdbacks prisons are seeing in the current budget. Private prisons would increase $485,000, costs for placing inmates in county prisons and prisons in Texas and Oklahoma would rise $2.7 million. With the delays, costs for running CAPP would still increase $2.8 million. Bolz said even with the reductions, it’s likely that lawmakers will need to come back next year and find $2 million to $5 million in additional revenues for prisons. He called the budget set by JFAC a “target budget,” that would see some changes in the 2011 legislative session.