Effectiveness of contracted community corrections programs in reducing recidivism : Department of Corrections

2020·1.5 MB·English

by  Montana. Legislature. Legislative Audit Division

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Effectiveness of
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Reducing Recidivism
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18P-05
Performance Audits
Legislative Audit
Performance audits conducted by the Legislative Audit Division
Committee
are designed to assess state government operations. From the
Representatives audit work, a determination is made as to whether agencies and
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LEGISLATIVE AUDIT DIVISION

Angus Maciver, Legislative Auditor Deputy Legislative Auditors:
Deborah F. Butler, Legal Counsel Cindy Jorgenson
Joe Murray
June 2020
The Legislative Audit Committee
of the Montana State Legislature:
This is our performance audit of contracted community corrections programs around
Montana managed by the Programs and Facilities Bureau within the Department of
Corrections.
This report provides the Legislature information about the management of contracted
community corrections programs and how offenders are placed in them. This report
includes recommendations for improving how the department oversees and evaluates
these programs. A written response from the department is included at the end of the
report.
We wish to express our appreciation to Department of Corrections officials and staff
and contractor personnel for their cooperation and assistance during the audit.
Respectfully submitted,
/s/ Angus Maciver
Angus Maciver
Legislative Auditor
Room 160 • State Capitol Building • PO Box 201705 • Helena, MT • 59620-1705
Phone [phone] • FAX [phone] • E-Mail [email protected]

i
Table of Contents
Figures and Tables ....................................................................................................................iii
Appointed and Administrative Officials ..................................................................................iv
Report Summary ...................................................................................................................S-1
CHAPTER I – INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND ����������������������������������������������������������������������1
Introduction ..............................................................................................................................1
Types of Community Corrections Programs ............................................................................1
Offender’s Sentence Dictates Who Decides Placement .....................................................4
Audit Scope ...............................................................................................................................6
Scope Limitation ...............................................................................................................6
Audit Objectives and Methodologies ........................................................................................7
Issue for Further Study ..............................................................................................................8
Report Contents ........................................................................................................................9
CHAPTER II – CONTRACT MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING ���������������������������������������������11
Introduction ............................................................................................................................11
Contract History and Background ..........................................................................................11
Decreased Communication With Contractors Has Impacted Contract Management ...........12
State Contracting Policy and Best Practices Were Not Followed for the Community
Corrections Contracts .............................................................................................................13
The Department Paid More Than $2 Million for Services at a Prerelease Without a
Written Contract .............................................................................................................13
Community Corrections Contract Amendments Were Not Timely and Were Signed
Out of Order ...................................................................................................................14
The Department Expanded a Treatment Contract Without Public Notice ....................14
The Department Paid Two Treatment Programs Over $400,000 for Empty Bed Space
and Financing-Related Support to Meet Contract Requirements ...................................15
Community Corrections Contracts Are Not Sufficiently Monitored .....................................16
The Department Should Consistently Address Findings From
Quality Assurance Audits ...............................................................................................16
Community Corrections Contractors Are Not Evaluated for Satisfactory Performance .17
Lengthy Contract Terms Limit the Ability of the Department to Make Changes to
Community Corrections Programs .........................................................................................18
The Model for Contracted Community Corrections Is Different in Other States ..................20
CHAPTER III – ENSURING APPROPRIATE OFFENDER PLACEMENT ���������������������������������������23
Introduction ............................................................................................................................23
Placement of Offenders in Community Corrections Programs ..............................................23
Assessing Risk and Need .................................................................................................23
The Screening Process .....................................................................................................25
More Offenders Referred to Shorter Treatment Programs ......................................................26
Least Restrictive Placement First Has Had Unintended Consequences ..................................27
The Department Cannot Verify Community Corrections Services Are Focused on the Right
Offenders ................................................................................................................................28
Many Offenders Were Missing Risk Assessment Information in OMIS ........................28
Not All Programs Were Focused on Higher Risk Offenders ..........................................30
Offender Risk Is Not Driving the Placement Process .....................................................31
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ii Montana Legislative Audit Division
The Department Does Not Have Electronic Data for Examining Offender Treatment
Needs .............................................................................................................................31
The Department Does Not Analyze Placement Data .....................................................32
Other States Use Data to Assess Offender Placement .....................................................32
Substance Use Disorder Evaluations Are Not Conducted Consistently ..................................33
The Substance Use Disorder Evaluation Process Is Not Standardized ............................34
Other States Have Standardized Substance Use Disorder Evaluations ............................34
Pre-Authorization for Sexual and Violent Offenders Is Not Always Timely ...........................35
CHAPTER IV– MEASURING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS
PROGRAMS �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������37
Introduction ............................................................................................................................37
Residents Had Mixed Perceptions of the Effectiveness of Community Corrections
Programs .................................................................................................................................37
The Contracted Community Corrections Programs Reduced Risk for Some Recidivism ......38
Context for Understanding Our Results .................................................................................41
Community Corrections Contractors Assess the Effectiveness of Their Programs in Varying
Ways ........................................................................................................................................43
The Department Is Evaluating Whether Programs Are Evidence-Based ................................43
Other States Are Moving Toward Evaluating Effectiveness Based on Offender Outcomes ....44
The Department Does Not Assess Effectiveness Based on Outcomes ............................45
DEPARTMENT RESPONSE
Department of Corrections ...................................................................................................A-1
iii
Figures and Tables
Figures
Figure 1 Community Corrections Programs and Operators ................................................................3
Figure 2 Sentence Types in 2018 ..........................................................................................................5
Figure 3 Levels of Care (American Society of Addiction Medicine) ...................................................24
Figure 4 Placements in Treatment Programs From 2016 to 2018 .......................................................27
Figure 5 Risk Assessments in OMIS ..................................................................................................29
Figure 6 Risk Level By Program in 2018 ............................................................................................30
Figure 7 Reduction in Risk for Recidivism Events .............................................................................40
Tables
Table 1 Costs and Bed Space for Community Corrections Programs ................................................4
Table 2 Bonds in Community Corrections Contracts ......................................................................19
Table 3 Results of Recidivism Studies ...............................................................................................42
Table 4 FY2015 Recidivism and Return Rates..................................................................................46
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iv Montana Legislative Audit Division
Appointed and Administrative Officials
Department of Director’s Office
Corrections
Reginald Michael, Director
Cynthia Wolken, Deputy Director
Kurt Aughney, Quality Assurance Office Director
Colleen Ambrose, Legal Services Bureau Chief
Megan Coy, Programs & Facilities Bureau Chief
Administrative Services Division
John Daugherty, Administrator
Pat Schlauch, Contracts & Budget Bureau Chief
Jonathan Straughn, Computer Information Systems Manager
Rob Kersch, Database Administrator
report suMMary S-1
perforManCe auDit 18p-05 June 2020
Montana LegisLative audit division
Effectiveness of Contracted Community
Corrections Programs in
Reducing Recidivism
M D C
ontana epartMent of orreCtions
B
ackground
We estimated the contracted community corrections
programs reduced the risk of violations and return to jail
The Department of by 14 percent. However, the Department of Corrections
Corrections entered into (department) does not use offender outcome data to
evaluate whether these programs reduce recidivism.
12 contracts for community
The department needs to better ensure community
corrections programs
corrections programs are focused on offenders with the
between 2005 and 2010,
highest risk and clinical need to most effectively reduce
many of which were 20-year recidivism. The department needs to improve how it
contracts. These contracts manages these contracts. Among other issues, it has
paid over $400,000 for empty bed space and financing-
were for assessment and
related support at two methamphetamine treatment
sanction centers, treatment
centers in the last two years.
programs, and prerelease
centers, which among them KEY FINDINGS:
The department did not always follow state contracting policy or best
serve more than 1,600
practices for its community corrections contracts. As one example, the
offenders. These programs
department did not maintain a written contract for one of the contracted
provide various services to programs for close to two years. Additionally, because of legislative and
offenders, such as treatment department changes to offender placement processes, the department paid
for empty bed space at two methamphetamine treatment programs.
for substance use disorder,
career and life skills, and
The department did not sufficiently evaluate the performance of its
other programming. community corrections contractors. The department does not have clear
standards for evaluating community corrections contractor performance.
Agency: As a result, the department has continued contracts without evaluating
contractor performance.
Department of Corrections
Director:
Lengthy contract terms for community corrections programs limit
Reginald Michael the ability of the department to make changes. Many of the contracts
Division: for community corrections have 20-year terms that allowed contractors to
secure financing for facilities. While permitted in statute, these are much
Programs and Facilities
longer contracts than in other states, and much longer than most state
Bureau
contracts in Montana.
Division FTE:
7.5 The department should use offender data to ensure offenders are
matched to the appropriate community corrections services. The
Division Budget:
department does not sufficiently ensure community corrections services
$52.9 million
are focused on offenders with the highest risk and need. When services are
not focused on the right offenders, the department may not be effectively
Value of Community reducing recidivism.
Corrections Contracts:
$43.9 million in FY2019
(continued on back)
For the full report or more RECOMMENDATIONS:
S-2
In this report, we issued the following recommendations:
information, contact the
To the department: 7
Legislative Audit Division.
To the legislature: 0
leg.mt.gov/lad recommendation #1 (page 16):
Procurement, contracting, and grants management
The department should better follow state contracting policy and best
Room 160, State Capitol practices in several areas, including maintaining written contracts,
PO Box 201705 amending contracts in a timely manner, signing contracts last,
providing public notice when expanding treatment contracts, and
Helena, Montana 59620
avoiding paying for empty bed space at community corrections
[phone]
programs.
Department response: Partially Concur
The mission of the
recommendation #2 (page 18):
Legislative Audit Division
Procurement, contracting, and grants management
is to increase public trust The department should improve the monitoring of community
in state government by corrections contracts by developing standards for following up on
findings from quality assurance audits and for regularly evaluating
reporting timely and accurate
the performance of community corrections contractors.
information about agency
Department response: Concur
operations, technology, and
finances to the Legislature recommendation #3 (page 21):
Procurement, contracting, and grants management
and the citizens of Montana.
The department should limit future community corrections contracts
to seven years or fewer and should seek legislation to limit the terms
of these contracts.
Department response: Partially Concur
To report fraud, waste, or
abuse: recommendation #4 (page 33):
Management and operational effectiveness
The department should develop processes to ensure offender
Online
recidivism risk and clinical need drive decisions about placement in
www.Montanafraud.gov
community corrections programs. The department should also collect
data that will allow it to broadly ensure offenders are being matched
Email to community corrections programs appropriately.
Department response: Concur
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recommendation #5 (page 35):
Call Management and operational effectiveness
The department should standardize substance use disorder evaluations
(Statewide)
of offenders referred to community corrections programs.
(800)-222-4446 or
Department response: Partially Concur
(Helena)
recommendation #6 (page 36):
(406)-444-4446
Management and operational effectiveness
The department needs to ensure pre-authorizations for the conditional
Text release of sexual and violent offenders are conducted within established
[phone] timelines.
Department response: Concur
recommendation #7 (page 47):
Management and operational effectiveness
The department should measure the effectiveness of contracted
community corrections programs based on offender outcome data.
Department response: Partially Concur