IDAHO

Due in part to the overall increase of the general population, Idaho has experienced tremendous growth in its prison population and a corresponding increase in the number of adult and juvenile offenders being released back into the community. This growth, coupled with budgetary constraints, has resulted in the state prison system operating at 104 percent of capacity. Given the cost of adding new prison beds, Idaho has identified a number of goals to improve prisoner reentry. These include the following:

• Enhance public safety by equipping each offender with the skills necessary to successfully reintegrate into society;
• Improve the effectiveness of existing community resources by fostering linkages and accessing currently provided services;
• Establish formalized strategic partnerships among state, local and private entities for supporting successful reentry; and
• nsure program sustainability and accountability and the implementation of research-based practices.

Related Links:

• State Project Update

• Editorial on Lessons Learned
  by Megan Ronk, Idaho Prisoner Reentry Team Leader, Criminal Justice Policy Advisor
  Office of Governor Kempthorne, Boise, Idaho

• Prisoner Reentry in Idaho. (pdf)
  A report commissioned by NGA and produced by The Urban Institute that highlights state trends in reentry including maps of what reentry looks like in the state.

IDAHO
NGA Prisoner Reentry Policy Academy
July 22nd, 2004

This document was prepared by members of Idaho's Prisoner Reentry Policy Academy team. It represents their current course of action, but should not be viewed as a final plan. Rather, this document is designed to highlight where Idaho is in an ongoing strategic planning process.

Problem Statement
Due in part to the overall increase of the general population in Idaho, the State is experiencing tremendous growth in its prison population and a corresponding increase in the number of adult and juvenile offenders being released back into the community. History has shown that many of those who are released from an institutional setting eventually return to the correctional system.

To complicate matters even further, the increase in the need for prison beds and community supervision is occurring during a time when the State of Idaho - like most other states in the nation - is experiencing challenges with our state's fiscal situation, resulting in a series of holdbacks and budget consolidation. As a consequence of the aforementioned, the state prison system is currently operating at 104% of operating capacity.

Without the ability to substantially increase prison beds within the State, it becomes imperative that both the Idaho Department of Correction and Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections, through the reentry process, ensure that adult and juvenile offenders are prepared for release and have access to continuity of care upon release. Through reentry efforts, the State of Idaho has identified gaps in treatment services both within our institutions and in our communities. Idaho's National Governors Association (NGA) policy academy team is identifying and recruiting other state and private service providers who have the expertise to deliver treatment services that will reduce offender risk to themselves and to communities.

Idaho's Initiative Goals
The State of Idaho recognizes the need for a seamless transition system from correctional facilities to communities. The NGA policy academy has provided an excellent opportunity for the State to continue its work in the area of offender reentry.

There is a clear understanding within the State that the criminal justice system cannot deal with the issue of offender reentry alone. In fact, the need exists to include other partners such as community-based providers, local governments, the education community and faith-based organizations.

The Idaho Departments of Correction and Juvenile Corrections together have received a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice to implement the Serious, Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI). As part of this grant, the two state Departments have developed and articulated goals and objectives for the implementation of a successful reentry program. The NGA academy has provided Idaho with an opportunity and format to bring new partners into this reentry initiative process.

As a participant in the NGA Prisoner Reentry Academy, Idaho has identified the following goals:

• Enhance public safety by equipping each offender with the skills necessary to successfully reintegrate into society;
• Improve the effectiveness of existing community resources by fostering linkages and accessing currently provided services;
• Establish formalized strategic partnerships among state, local and private entities for supporting successful reentry;
• Ensure program sustainability and accountability and the implementation of research-based practices.
• Ultimately, we hope to identify the barriers and gaps in service throughout our statewide system including access to treatment programs, affordable housing, educational programs and employment opportunities.

The Role of the Governor
Governor Dirk Kempthorne is committed to developing a long-term, systematic transition program for adult and juvenile offenders that will improve their lives and their chance for success upon release. The Governor has made the preparation of offenders for successful reentry into the community a priority of his Administration.

Governor Kempthorne has committed the resources of his office, in addition to those of his relevant state agencies, to work with other public and private partners in achieving this goal.

This initiative, if successfully implemented, will lead to fewer crimes and fewer victims of crime. Without a doubt, failure to address this issue will mean that more of the state's scarce financial resources will be utilized for the cost of incarceration and will prevent the Governor from funding his other priorities such as education and healthcare.

For the past several years, Governor Kempthorne has made mention of the need for such efforts in his State of the State Addresses. The Governor and Idaho State Legislature have appropriated resources over the past few years (even in the current economic downturn) toward the development of effective substance abuse and education programs within the state's correctional institutions and outside the prison walls through enhanced community-based treatment and drug courts.

In fiscal year 2004, financial resources were devoted for transition housing and treatment for offenders on probation or parole. Additional resources have been allocated to fund upgraded positions to further refine the case management process that occurs when offenders enter into the correction system to ensure that an offender receives appropriate programming prior to release.

Interdisciplinary Efforts
Through our participation in the NGA academy process, we have begun the process of bringing together state systems including corrections, welfare, workforce, health, housing and law enforcement.

Currently, we have several MOA/MOUs that have been established:

• MOA between Vocational Rehabilitation and the Department of Correction that places counselors in our prison system to qualify eligible offenders prior to release;
• MOA between Vocational Rehabilitation and Department of Correction that places a counselor in the institutions and in the field to provide service for SVORI participants;
• MOA with Correctional Industries that provides work opportunities to SVORI participants;
• MOA with Boise State University that places an education counselor in the institution and in the field for SVORI participants;
• MOA with the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare for substance abuse treatment services that can be accessed immediately upon release from the institution;
• MOA with private treatment providers both in institutions and in the community for delivering substance abuse and cognitive behavioral programs.

We also have several MOA/MOUs that are under negotiation:

• An MOU with Vocational Rehabilitation to place faith-based mentors in institutions to work with qualified offenders;
• MOA with Healthy Families Nampa to provide mentors to offenders while incarcerated and in the community that will assist with familial relationships;
• MOA with Idaho Department of Health and Welfare that will allow access to client records that have commonality with the corrections system.

In addition, through our participation in the NGA academy, Idaho is in the process of working with other public and private service systems to promote public safety and strong families, address workforce and health issues and build upon other initiatives that we already have in place. In cooperation with the aforementioned MOUs and our participation in SVORI, the State of Idaho has used Legislative appropriated monies to:

• Provide sex offender treatment in the institution that prepares offenders for treatment in the community - a contracted private provider is currently in place;
• Mental health services request for proposals (RFP) to deliver mental health services to the offenders leaving prison as need is identified. This service will function as a bridge until they can access traditional mental health services;
• Family reunification RFP for family group counseling for offenders going back to their families after prison;
• Substance abuse RFP, to augment current RFP with Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, for substance abuse treatment aftercare for offenders leaving prison.

In February 2004, we convened a forum of public and private stakeholders to assist our Idaho team in developing new policies and protocols for addressing reentry needs as they relate to healthcare, education, housing, workforce and benefit issues. In the near future, we hope to reconvene this larger group to develop a series of recommendations that we can present to Governor Kempthorne for his consideration.

What changes have occurred or will occur on account of the initiative?
Without a doubt, the State of Idaho's population and rural nature have resulted in unique challenges and solutions to our reentry initiative efforts. We believe our approach to successfully preparing offenders for reentry can serve as a model to other states - particularly small, rural states - throughout the nation.

There are several examples of changes that have occurred through Idaho's participation in this initiative that we would like to highlight:

• Idaho has placed reentry parole officers in every judicial district of the state that work with offenders before they leave the prison system on parole;
• Institution case managers concentrate on case planning with the offender so that they receive programs, based on an assessment, that prepares them to parole;
• Case managers in the institutions have someone they can contact, the reentry parole officer, to assist in identifying programs to be completed in prison and to be accessed upon parole;
• An effort to provide programs to the short-term committed offender (0-9 months) that begin in prison and are completed in the community;
• A written agreement with the Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole to make further efforts to cooperate and collaborate;
• The state has received a technical assistance grant to improve mental health services in our institutions and in the community.

July 2004

Editorial on Lessons Learned
by Megan Ronk
Idaho Prisoner Reentry Team Leader and Criminal Justice Policy Advisor
Office of Governor Kempthorne, Boise, Idaho

Through Idaho's participation in the National Governors Association Prisoner Reentry Policy Academy, Idaho has had the opportunity to further address a critical need and function of state government. Without a doubt, failure to develop a long-term, systematic transition program for adult and juvenile offenders will mean that more of Idaho's limited financial resources will be utilized for the cost of incarceration and will prevent Governor Kempthorne from funding other priorities, such as education and healthcare.

As the team leader for Idaho, I can attest that we have made great progress in developing a seamless process for properly preparing adult and juvenile offenders as they reintegrate into communities across the state.

Although I believe the Idaho Department of Correction (DOC) and Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections intuitively knew that communication was a critical component of ensuring a successful transition, our participation in the NGA policy academy has reinforced this fact. There are so many agencies, people and personalities that are critical in surrounding an offender with a full complement of services, which creates many opportunities for problems with sharing information. During the past twelve months, we have uncovered numerous examples of communication failures that we have been able to rectify:

• Other state agency, in some cases, did not fully recognize that they inevitably served many of the same clients as DOC and DJC; thus, they had a vested interest in ensuring the success of reentry;
• DOC and the Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole experienced a strained relationship due to misunderstanding and lack of communication;
• Institution case managers were not aware that they could utilize district parole officers as a resource for case and release planning;
• Assessment did not drive case managers' case planning efforts;
• Faith-based services had not been sought out to fill the gaps in services the DOC and DJC have been unable to provide;
• DOC was resistant to having outside agencies - faith-based groups and private providers - enter the prisons to deliver programs and services due in part to security concerns.

All of the aforementioned are currently being targeted for improvement through the NGA policy academy process and vast improvements are already being realized.

In fact, I have been truly optimistic by the quantity and quality of changes that we have been able to pursue thus far. I am confident that much of this can be contributed to the small, rural nature of our state. While other states involved in the NGA academy process may find challenges in working through their respective bureaucracies, we have a relatively small system that is able to react quickly and adapt to change.

We are also unique among other academy participants in that we are working with both juvenile and adult offender populations. Ultimately, it is our belief that you can't expect to be successful with adult offenders if you don't first address the needs of our juvenile population.

Through our participation in the policy academy, Idaho has been able to take advantage of the resources offered by NGA, the Urban Institute and the Council of State Governments. We truly appreciate the opportunity to develop a plan that will serve as a model to the rest of the nation.

July 2004