An interim Legislative committee is looking at the 24-7 sobriety program, and focusing on the fees charged for the program.
It’s designed to keep people out of jail. Those sentenced to the program have the option of getting tested twice a day in person, or wearing a leg bracelet.
Ed Helfrich is with the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and is the 24-7 program coordinator. He told the interim Judiciary committee the program has been very successful, and has kept people out of jail after a DUI arrest.
"I've talked to several officers from agencies that have had numerous people say how much the program has saved them, saved their lives and saved their marriages," Helfrich told the Committee. "When it's running well, it works very well."
But the program was the subject of a complaint by Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner – not about how the program worked. Donnell Presky, with the North Dakota Association of Counties, told the committee one of the judges in Cass County routinely waived the fees for some defendants, shifting the cost to the county.
"As counties are now capped at three percent growth, every buck matters," Presky told the Committee. "And the shift of additional costs to the counties really needs to be minimized."
Presky said some suggestions were made during the Legislative session, including having the state pick up the costs if a judge waives the fees.
"Currently, if a judge does waive fees, there's no way for a sheriff agency to seek reimbursement," Presky said. "So the cost for that participant now comes from the sheriff's budget - something they didn't budget for."
Presky said in Burleigh County, more than $125,000 per year is spent on running the 24-7 program.
The Committee will continue discussing the matter, and looking at options.
