To: Sonoma County Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): Probation Department
Staff Name and Phone Number: David Koch, 565-2732
Vote Requirement: 4/5th
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Increased Supervision of Individuals with DUI Offenses
End
Recommended Action:
Recommended action
A) Authorize the Chief Probation Officer to approve a professional services agreement accepting $220,000 from the California Office of Traffic Safety for the term October 1, 2022, through September 30, 2023, and to continue year-to-year agreements thereafter. Under this agreement, the Probation Department will increase supervision of individuals with DUI offenses. (Majority)
B) Adopt a Resolution increasing revenue and expenditure appropriations in the FY 22-23 Probation Department Adult Field Supervision budget by $165,000. (4/5th Vote Required)
C) Adopt a Resolution transferring 1.0 FTE Deputy Probation Officer III vacant position allocation from Probation’s Juvenile Supervision section to Adult Field Supervision section to support the grant program. (Majority)
(4/5th Vote Required)
end
Executive Summary:
With funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, California’s Office of Traffic Safety administers a grant program targeting the state’s most pressing roadway dangers, among them drunk driving. The Probation Department submitted a proposal to expand DUI programming and won a one-year award to fund a Probation Officer III, who will fill an existing vacant and unfunded position allocation, which will be transferred from the Juvenile Supervision section to the Adult Field Supervision section in order to support this grant program. This position will increase the Department’s capacity to conduct field supervision, substance use testing, and enforcement of court orders for individuals with DUI offenses, which in turn should increase public safety.
This report requests approval to enter an agreement with the California Office of Traffic Safety and to increase the Probation Department’s FY 22-23 budget accordingly.
Discussion:
Introduction
Alcohol-impaired driving remains one of the biggest threats to public safety and well-being on roadways, with some 30% of all traffic deaths in California being alcohol-related. According to California Office of Traffic Safety data, alcohol-involved crashes injured or killed 426 individuals in Sonoma County in 2019 (the latest date for which published data are available), a worse-than-average result compared to other California counties on a population-adjusted basis. Sonoma County also ranked worse than average for alcohol-involved crashes in previous years, indicating a persistent safety risk on our roads.
Some of the most dangerous drivers are probationers having multiple or felony DUI offenses. Such probationers require close monitoring, which is best accomplished by placement on a relatively small caseload to ensure that they receive intensive supervision and needed rehabilitative services.
Currently, the Department provides intensive, DUI-specific programming to high-risk misdemeanant DUI probationers. However, many felony DUI probationers do not receive DUI-specific programming.
Office of Traffic Safety Grant
To increase the level of programming and supervision available for individuals with DUIs, the California Office of Traffic Safety, with funding from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, administers a grant program. In January 2022, the Sonoma County Probation Department submitted an ambitious proposal to revamp our DUI program so that all probationers with DUI offenses would receive a broad array of DUI-focused rehabilitative services, including Sonoma County’s DUI Treatment Court program, a court-supervised, comprehensive outpatient treatment program for non-violent offenders.
In July 2022, the Office of Traffic Safety tentatively awarded $220,000 to Sonoma County, amounting to 27% of the $810,049 that Probation proposed. While this award will not fund the service expansion originally envisioned, it will support one fulltime Deputy Probation Officer III, who will provide closer supervision of DUI probationers than would otherwise have been possible. Supervision will include unannounced home calls and regular office visits to ensure that probationers comply with their court- and program-ordered terms and conditions. During home calls, the officer will test program participants for alcohol consumption, and confirm that participants are residing in an atmosphere that promotes sobriety. Probationers not residing in sober living conditions could be offered options such as transitional housing at one of the Probation’s six sober living facilities. During office visits, probation officers will test program participants for alcohol, discuss program obligations, and provide referrals for services such as substance abuse counseling, career training, health services, and community service.
Any necessary sanctions will be administered according to a systematic sanction matrix. The matrix ensures fair and equitable treatment of program participants and fosters valuable research into the efficacy of the various sanctions vis-à-vis the corresponding violations.
Conclusion
Although the current award funds only one year of service, the Office of Traffic Safety routinely re-issues awards to agencies that fulfill their grant obligations. Therefore, Probation anticipates receiving a similar level of funding in future years. Accordingly, this report requests delegated authority to enter an agreement with the Office of Traffic Safety in FFY 22-23, as well as in future fiscal years should additional funding be awarded, providing there are no material changes to the agreed-upon services.
The Department currently has only one probation officer dedicated to DUI offenses, who supervises 45 individuals with misdemeanant offenses. The Department supervises an additional 156 individuals with felony DUI offenses; such individuals are distributed among many different probation officers and do not receive the DUI-specific programming afforded to misdemeanants. While the current award does not fully satisfy Department needs, it will increase capacity to supervise and rehabilitate felony probationers at risk for driving intoxicated, with the overarching goal of reducing DUI-related injuries and fatalities.
Strategic Plan:
N/A
Prior Board Actions:
None
Fiscal Summary
|
Expenditures |
FY 22-23 Adopted |
FY23-24 Projected |
FY 24-25 Projected |
|
Budgeted Expenses |
0 |
$55,000 |
0 |
|
Additional Appropriation Requested |
$165,000 |
|
|
|
Total Expenditures |
$165,000 |
$55,000 |
0 |
|
Funding Sources |
|
|
|
|
General Fund/WA GF |
|
|
|
|
State/Federal |
$165,000 |
$55,000 |
0 |
|
Fees/Other |
|
|
|
|
Use of Fund Balance |
|
|
|
|
Contingencies |
|
|
|
|
Total Sources |
$165,000 |
$55,000 |
0 |
Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
The Office of Traffic Safety award will fully cover salary and benefits for 1.0 FTE Probation Officer III. The Probation Department will cover associated services and supplies costs, such as ISD charges, vehicles, and alcohol monitoring, within its existing budget. The grant also includes $17,642 for indirect costs, which will offset staff time needed to administer the grant and complete reporting requirements. Based on the Federal Fiscal Year (October 2022-September 2023), this funding spans two County Fiscal Years. Future awards will be similarly incorporated into the Consolidated Budget Adjustment process annually. There is no local match requirement.
|
Staffing Impacts: |
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|
|
Position Title (Payroll Classification) |
Monthly Salary Range (A-I Step) |
Additions (Number) |
Deletions (Number) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
No net impact. The Department will repurpose an existing vacant and unfunded Probation Officer III position in the Juvenile division by moving it to the Adult division.
Attachments:
Budget Allocation Resolution
Position Allocation Resolution
Office of Traffic Safety-Probation Agreement
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
N/A