Glenn County Divides Re-Entry Funds

Officials from Glenn County have divided up money that is available to assist in the re-entry of the state’s prison inmates. Some in the county think that it might not be enough though. There was $340,000 given to the county for implementing supervisory and other programs that are outlined in Assembly Bill 109, which took effect back on October 1, 2011. County officials said that the realignment program is designed to reduce the amount of prisons that are overcrowded in the county.

The budget for law enforcement when it comes to implementing the program includes $229,000 for probation officers, $37,000 for a correctional officer and $2,000 that will be split between the Orland and the Willows police departments. These departments will assist with overtime during inter-agency operations.

The majority of the funding for the county will be set aside for supervising those who are on probation but there has been $63,000 set aside for local agencies to aid in housing, special assistance, rehabilitation programs and education.

“About 85 percent of these folks have some substance abuse issues, either alcohol or drugs,” said Scott Gruendl, Glenn County Human Resources director. “About one-third have serious mental health issues.”

There are 37 state prisoners who have been released that Glenn County has to supervise. The county is expecting another 45 “non-violent, non-serious, and non-serious sexual offenders” before the year comes to an end. Gruendl said that the number of supervised people in the county will lower over time because the general population will only include new offenders.

On Tuesday, the Glenn County Board of Supervisors approved a memorandum of understanding that links the Probation Department and the Glenn County Human Resource Agency for the provision of non-law enforcement services.

For case management, special needs assistance, housing assistance and innovation development, human resources will receive $40,000, according to Gruendl.

In support of an adult program charter school for those looking to earn a high school diploma, the Glenn County Office of Education will be issued $15,000. This program is for an actual high school diploma, not the general education equivalent.

Outreach services will receive around $1,000.

For the successful implementation of AB 109 and AB 117, the rehabilitation of people within the program will be necessary, according to Gruendl. The two bills were designed in the hopes of shutting the revolving door of low-level prisoners going in and out of prisons in the state.

Gruendl also said that the state allocation might not be enough for AB 109 but he might have other funding sources to aid in the rehabilitation efforts with the prisoners in the program. Glenn County is also looking to start a one-stop day center for reporting and other services that will meet the needs of the population that will be affected by the prison realignment.