Receive and file the Inmate Welfare Fund Annual Report for 2023-24. (No general fund impact) (Lopez/Davis)

Receive and file the Inmate Welfare Fund Annual Report for fiscal year 2023-24.

History
 
In Fiscal Year 2001-02, the Inmate Welfare Trust was transferred to a separate fund and a new accounting unit was created within the Sheriff's Office budget in order to comply with General Accounting Standards Board publication number 34. This Inmate Welfare Trust fund receives revenue from the commission on the sale of commissary items to the inmates, and a commission percentage on the inmates’ telephone usage paid directly by the servicing phone company. These monies are deposited in a restricted fund (Fund 2194, Cost Center 134025) and are administered and expended by the Sheriff primarily for the benefit, education, and welfare of the inmates incarcerated at the Yolo County Monroe and Leinberger detention facilities as follows:

It is the hope that by offering such services and items, inmates can re-enter the community with useable life and employment skills, helping to break the recidivism cycle. 
 
Penal Code Section 4025 (d) specifies that an itemized report of these expenditures shall be submitted annually to the Board of Supervisors. The Sheriff's Office is submitting the attached report in compliance.
 
Report
 
The attached report shows the year-end status of the Inmate Welfare Fund for Fiscal Year 2023-24. The estimated year-end balance is $417,635, an increase of 15% since Fiscal Year 2022-23. This increase can be attributed to upgrades to the Inmate Communications System, which stabilized comission revenues. The fund is still in good financial condition. 
 

Future Program Goals
 
Keeping the Inmate Welfare Fund in good financial condition will be vital to ensuring the Sheriff’s Office will be able to continue to provide educational services to the in-custody population in the future. The completion of the Monroe Detention Center remodel and the current redesign of the Leinberger facility has created an opportunity for expanded inmate welfare programming. The Sheriff’s Office’s goal is to design a comprehensive, collaborative, and expansive in-custody treatment curriculum that will address a multitude of criminological risk factors and follow the core principles of the Risk-Needs-Responsivity (RNR) model. Having an evidence-based in-custody program is one of the Sheriff’s Office long term goals and part of the County’s 2020-2025 strategic plan.
 
In June 2024, Keefe Group LLC was selected as the preferred vendor to provide commissary services at the detention facilities after a Request for Proposals Process. On June 25, 2024, the Board of Supervisors approved the Agreement with Keefe. Commission rates will remain unchanging at 38% through June 30, 2027.

Data source for the attached chart is the Department of Financial Services Income Statement and Trial Balance reports as of June 30 annually. Purchasing has reviewed and approved all contracts for professional and specialized services provided under the Inmate Welfare Program.  County Counsel has also approved all contracts for professional services.  Eide Bailly LLP performed an external audit of the inmate welfare fund covering the time period of July 1, 2018 through January 31, 2022. No significant findings were discovered.