Dane County’s 2013 budget designates $68.15 million to the County Sheriff’s Department for programs that could improve efficiency in the county’s criminal justice programs.
Dane County Executive Joe Parisi has included funding to add staff to the county’s electronic monitoring program, create a new program to help inmates find jobs, and reallocate space in the Public Safety Building for more jail beds, according to a statement from County Executive spokesperson Casey Slaughter Becker.
Parisi said in the statement he aims to “address the root causes of incarceration, repeat offenses and more efficient use of space” through these programs funded in the 2013 budget.
Forty percent of the county’s budget, $80,000, will be used to expand the Pathfinder program, which reduces the number of individuals in jail by placing inmates in a long-term treatment program.
“By increasing beds in the Pathfinder program we will continue to address the core addiction issues many entering the criminal justice suffer from,” Sheriff Dave Mahoney said in a statement.
