COR-RFI-2023-0446JN_Overview.docx

OVERVIEW

General description of our business

· The Montana Department of Corrections (MDOC) is the third largest department in Montana state government, with direct and contracted services touching every community in Big Sky Country. From supporting and empowering victims of crime; to ensuring our incarcerated population is prepared to re-enter society successfully; to offering treatment and community reentry step-down programs; to providing support to offenders under community supervision; our work is wide, varied and conducted with the utmost compassion and professionalism. Our commitment is to provide and support evidence-based programming in all aspects of our work as we strive to reduce recidivism and disrupt the cycle of incarceration.

Outline of our challenge; what we hope to learn

· MDOC seeks to identify the current and potential provider landscape for community correction programs and services. Additionally, after twenty years of significant changes in correctional practices, perspectives, and programming, MDOC also seeks to better understand what programs and services community correction providers are able to provide and where.

1.0 PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

A. Prerelease Centers Pursuant to 53-1-203, MCA, the State of Montana Department of Corrections (MDOC) shall contract with private, nonprofit Montana corporations or local or tribal governments to establish or maintain prerelease centers (PRCs). Currently, MDOC contracts with five entities to provide PRC services in six urban areas in Montana for approximately 900 offenders. MDOC’s current contracts will expire in June 2025. MDOC is seeking contractors to provide PRC services throughout Montana.

B. Target Population PRCs are used by MDOC to provide targeted services to offenders committed to MDOC or those reentering the community from prison. Additionally, offenders may be referred to PRCs in response to violation(s) of the conditions of community supervision (probation, parole, conditional release). Offenders in PRCs are generally considered inmates in the custody of MDOC, but some offenders may be on community supervision under the supervision of an MDOC Probation & Parole Officer (PO).

Currently, MDOC’s providers house between 40 and nearly 200 offenders per site. Some facilities provide services to a single gender, while others provide services to both male and female offenders.

C. PRC Structure PRCs are residential programs in which the offender lives temporarily at the facility for a period generally up to 6 months. The program has an identified phase system, which offenders progress through based on identified milestones related to length of time in the program and task completion.

Offenders in a PRC are generally expected to maintain employment in the community and may leave the PRC for employment purposes or to access community-based behavioral health services, recreational activities, or personal care. All travel out of the facility is according to a pre-approved schedule and compliance is monitored by PRC staff.

PRCs provide a number of security functions, including regular and random drug testing, schedule verification, financial management, and offender and property searches, to ensure the safety of the offender, the facility as a whole, and the public.

PRCs use a behavior management system based on rewards and punishers to encourage prosocial behavior by offenders. Minor violations may be addressed by facility staff, while major violations are referred to MDOC for review and response.

Offenders in PRCs are generally responsible for management of their own healthcare. PRCs may offer some in-house services, but PRC offenders should have health insurance, either via Medicaid, their employer, or the marketplace, and generally access healthcare providers in the community.

D. PRC Services A PRC provides a structured program aimed at addressing an offender’s criminogenic risk areas in order to reduce their risk of recidivism. Additionally, PRCs provide or connect offenders with services which meet Court-ordered conditions of Judgments or Board of Pardons or Parole (BOPP)-ordered conditions of parole.

Each offender is assessed at intake to the program using an MDOC-identified risk assessment and secondary assessments which target specific offender needs. Using the results of the assessments, as well as supplemental information related to each offender, PRC staff work with the offender to develop an individualized case/treatment plan which identifies the offenders risk areas and prioritizes which areas will be addressed during the offender’s stay in the program.

Services may be provided on-site or in the community via PRC staff or community-based providers. Services may be provided at MDOC’s expense as part of the contract or at the offender’s expense.

In accordance with statute, MDOC has adopted the University of Cincinnati’s Corrections Institute’s (UCCI’s) Correctional Program Checklist (CPC) to evaluate the effectiveness of PRC programs. All PRC providers must participate in this evaluation process.

E. Specialized Programs Some PRCs provide program tracks for specialized populations, including sexual or violent offenders, veterans, or those with severe mental illness, or to provide specific job training or certification, such as a culinary arts program.

F. Objectives and Goals MDOC is seeking to maintain its current population capacity and seeking information about the capacity for expansion of services throughout Montana.

a. MDOC is committed to public safety. MDOC is seeking providers able to provide residential services which address criminogenic risk, while providing appropriate supervision of offenders both in the facility and the community.

b. MDOC recognizes the importance of an offender being able to return to their community and support system. MDOC is seeking to expand PRC services to additional communities in Montana and is open to consideration of facilities of all capacity levels.

c. MDOC is committed to evidence-based practices (EBP) in programming and treatment for offenders. Services must align with EBP for correctional programs as measured by the CPC.

d. MDOC recognizes the importance of educational and vocational opportunities in supporting an offender’s success. MDOC is seeking providers able to provide or connect offenders with identified educational institutions or vocational training programs.

e. MDOC is committed to providing services to all of the offenders in our custody or under our supervision. MDOC is seeking providers who will provide services to address the varied needs of our population, including:

i. Sexual or violent offenders

ii. Those with behavioral health treatment needs

iii. Those with medical needs or in need of specialized treatment or accommodations, including medication-assisted treatment, the elderly, the disabled, pregnant offenders, etc.

f. MDOC recognizes the importance of stable, safe housing for offenders in supporting their success in the community. MDOC is seeking PRC providers who are either able to provide transitional housing upon their release or have established formal relationships with transitional or permanent housing providers.

g. MDOC is committed to data-driven decision-making in supporting offender success and good stewardship of state funds. MDOC is seeking providers who are committed to collecting and providing the data necessary to demonstrate positive offender outcomes because of their program.

2.0 RFI RESPONSE INSTRUCTIONS

The State is asking all interested parties to submit a response to these questions:

1. Please provide a general description of your organization, including an overview of the services provided, population served, current staff resources, and current/past clientele.

2. Please list the communities in Montana in which you are able to or interested in providing PRC services.

3. By community:

a. Please describe the proposed physical location for the PRC. Please note that, for purposes of this RFI, a proposed physical location does not yet need to have gone through an official siting process.

b. Please list the site capacity, by gender.

4. Please describe your organization’s ability to provide service to these specialized populations:

i. Sexual Offenders

ii. Violent Offenders, including those convicted of domestic violence

iii. Offenders with behavioral health needs, including substance use disorder and mental health treatment needs, as well as management of medication-assisted treatment

iv. Offenders with medical conditions which require specialized treatment or accommodation

v. Elderly offenders

vi. Veterans

vii. Native Americans

viii. Other populations

5. Please describe your organization’s ability to provide specialized vocational or job-related training or certification, including any formal relationships with industry groups or apprenticeship programs.

6. Please describe your organization’s:

a. Current capacity to provide transitional housing to offenders after release from a potential PRC program.

b. Current or proposed formal relationships with transitional or permanent housing providers.

7. Please describe your organization’s proposed plan for delivery of treatment and programming, including:

a. Types of services

b. Identified curriculum, by service type

c. Delivery personnel, including necessary credentials and whether the proposed services would be delivered by staff, subcontractor, or referral to a community-based provider

8. Please describe your organization’s current data collection and outcome tracking & measurement systems and capabilities, to include any current tracking/calculation of recidivism.