Ballots for a $2.5 million Lake County jail levy request will be mailed Jan. 8.

The Lake County commissioners are seeking a mill levy increase for jail and courtroom expansions, along with better treatment options to handle an ever-increasing number of offenders.

Commissioner Gale Decker explained the levy request is in two parts. One request is for up to $1.5 million per year for 20 years to pay off the loan the county would secure to construct a new detention facility, which is estimated to cost up to $15 million before interest.

The other request is for up to $1 million per year for 20 years for additional operating expenses for an expanded facility. This would include more staff, meals, mental health evaluations, and other costs.

If the levy passes, property owners can expect a tax increase of approximately $50.40 per $100,000 of property value per year for 20 years.

The commissioners held several public meetings throughout the county, giving a slide presentation explaining the ongoing difficulties with the current detention facility.

According to Lake County election administrator Katie Harding, ballots are only mailed out to voters with currently active status. All others eligible to vote may register and vote in person at the elections office in the courthouse in Polson, up to and including election day on, Jan. 28. Signed envelopes with ballots must be received in the elections office by 8 p.m. Jan. 28 to be counted, no matter when they are postmarked, she said.

According to a presentation given last fall, as of 2017 Lake County had the highest rate in Montana of drug offenses and violent crimes per 1,000 people and ranked in the top six for rates of partner/family member assault, burglary, and other property crimes.

The commissioners said the county has suffered a great increase of criminal cases, driven primarily by methamphetamine use.

The current jail was built in the 1970s, with an addition built in 1997. It holds 43 to 46 inmates, depending on the type of offender.

At any given time, Lake County pays Flathead County $84 per person per day to house about a dozen inmates in the Flathead County detention center, due to lack of space in Lake County’s jail.

The number of women incarcerated has increased significantly. They now make up about one-third of the population. The existing facility does not adequately house women separately, and is not compliant with other current standards and space requirements.

Many building elements pose safety and security risks for staff, and there is a lack of adequate evidence storage, among other problems, the presentation noted. Increased office and courtroom space also are needed to handle the increased number of cases.

The goal of the new facility would be to house up to 100 inmates with up-to-date design standards, more staff and an increased focus on mental health care.

“Mental-health needs are a big component of the people that are being arrested,” said Commissioner Bill Barron, a former Lake County Sheriff.

County courts do what they can to implement alternatives to jail. Drug court, work details, and pre-trial monitoring are currently available options.

In addition to an expanded jail facility, the commissioners want to establish other jail diversion and mental-health programs and increase monitoring devices for those who are released.

“We want to be able to do things that make the community safer,” Barron said. “There has to be a positive effect on crime in the community.”