Early in this legislative session, Governor Dennis Daugaard signed into law Senate Bill 70, a comprehensive criminal justice overhaul designed to keep nonviolent offenders and addicts out of prison. That bill directed about $3.4 million of general funds to the program that offers supervision and counseling to offenders in the community. Last Friday the legislature dedicated an additional $650,000 and 13 full-time employee positions to the initiative.
Bureau of Finance and Management director Jason Dilges says the added funds will provide seven employees for the Unified Judicial System, four employees for Social Services, and two workers for the Attorney General’s Office.
“There’ll be some court service officers. There’ll also be individuals that will be providing behavioral health services and making sure that those individuals receive those safety nets to ensure that they get on the road to being healthy and reformed,” Dilges says.
The extra help at the Attorney General’s Office will notify crime victims of the activities and whereabouts of the offenders.
Attorney General Marty Jackley says the Statewide Automated Victim Information Notification, or SAVIN program, has been developed nationally, but the state will save money by creating its own system of notification over the next couple of years.
“When a defendant that may be of a concern to them is released on bond, or comes off of parole or probation… they are notified of that, as well as important court hearing dates such as sentencings and trials,” Jackley says.
The SAVIN program is part of the comprehensive reform package. Jackley says in addition to the general fund amount of $500,000, another $150,000 comes from a consumer settlement.
“And then the hope is that some of the local governments and the counties that will want to participate in this program—because it can save them additional resources— will be a part of that,” he says.
The funding for the criminal justice initiative was approved by the Joint Appropriations Committee during its daylong consideration of 59 bill amendments. Most of the amendments were not approved. The House and Senate did approve the legislature’s recommended Fiscal Year 2014 budget Friday night.