The Tri-County Regional Community Corrections Board met at the Polk County Justice Center on Monday morning.
After the Call to Order by Warren Strandell, Polk County Chair, the meeting began with the approval of the July Meeting Minutes. The monthly Statistical Report Review of all departments for the month of July was distributed and reviewed by the board. Executive Director Andrew Larson reported that the current population at the Correction Center was 137. Larson also noted that the daily average of inmates for the month of July was 143, with 119 being men and 24 women. It was also reported that the top violations among the inmates were parole violations, DUI, and Failure to Appear.
The board heard updates on Personnel Issues from Director Larson, who reported that there were three new appointments, two full-time and one part-time Corrections Officer. There were also five resignations: two Juvenile Custody Officers, two Corrections Officers, and one Probation Agent. Also up for approval was a new appointment withdrawal for a full-time Correction Officer and a promotion for Kelsey Delisle, Senior Probation Agent. The motion to approve all Personnel Issues for August was passed unanimously.
Staffing at the Red River Valley Juvenile Center was a Personnel Issue that was further discussed during the meeting. “Unfortunately, it has been something we have really been experiencing intermittently at the Juvenile Center ever since we opened back in March 2023; I think all told, we have been able to have both sides, our non-secure and our secure side open for maybe a grand total of 5 months,” said Larson.
Larson added that it’s not just the Juvenile Center. It is the jail as well. “Any of these sorts of positions that are kind of these 24/7, weekends, nights, they are a challenge, not only locally but across the state,” said Larson, who remains optimistic about being able to staff the facilities, adding that it takes time. “We just got a lot of new staff, and so new staff takes time to kind of grow and develop and get comfortable with it; I think we are making progress,” says Larson. Larson also pointed out that it’s important to note that it is not just the Red River Valley Juvenile Center that is facing staffing issues. It is state-wide.
The board went over the recent FCC (Federal Communications Commission’s Ruling on Rate Caps for Jail Phone and Video Calls. The FCC voted on July 18 to cap the rates on phone and video calls for incarcerated people and their families. This will affect the Tri-County Corrections Center and actually comes as quite a surprise. “That is something that was not on our radar at all; we were a little bit taken aback when the email came through,” says Larson. It was explained that revenue is generated for the Tri-County Correction Center through their phone service provider, and with the new ruling, the majority of that revenue will be eliminated. Larson shared with the board that some of the content that inmates use on tablets, such as renting movies, music, or books, will still generate revenue, but the primary source of revenue is phone calls. Although a timeline has not been set for implementation of this ruling. “Don’t know the exact time frames yet, but were kind of planning for 2025 to not see any revenue coming out of that, and for us, that’s about $80,000 in revenue that will be lost,” said Larson.
The board moved on to approve the following
-Polk County Opioid Funding – to be used for Reaching Rural Program and its services
-Literacy Minnesota ABE Technology Services
-MN Counties Computer Cooperative Agreement Renewal
Approval of July 2024 Invoices followed, and the meeting was closed for a special session, Re-Opened, and Adjourned.
Tags: