SANDPOINT —  Bonner County Justice Services will continue to house juveniles from Lincoln County, Mont., as well as Boundary County, at an increased daily rate to meet statewide fee standards. 

Bonner County commissioners unanimously approved the contracts during Tuesday’s business meeting.  

“Part of our foundational conversation was: It should not cost Bonner County taxpayers to house another entity's juveniles,” Commissioner Brian Domke said.  

According to a special meeting Aug. 5, Justice Service director Ron Stultz said that a cross-state survey indicated that Bonner County was “way below” what other entities were charging to house juveniles. The analysis prompted Stultz to adjust the fees for Bonner County.  

At the August meeting, officials agreed to charge Lincoln County and the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho $250 per day per juvenile, an increase from $125. It was also agreed that Boundary County would pay $225 per day per juvenile, an increase from $125.  

The department accepts juveniles from all three municipalities, but an increase for Lincoln and Boundary counties was approved at Tuesday’s business meeting.  

The increase in fees will also be used to cover underlying infrastructure and risk costs associated with out-of-county users.  

Boundary County will see a lower fee increase than Lincoln County and the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho because the entity is already a contributing partner in the tax system, and because of the collaborative efforts between Bonner and Boundary counties when working with juveniles and other applicable clients. Stultz noted that Boundary County provides free technology training to help keep juveniles safe.  

“We collaborate on, probably, a weekly basis because we have kids that get in trouble down here, then move to Boundary County, or vice versa. And so, we collaborate pretty closely with Boundary County,” Stultz said. 

The contracts will be in effect until Sept. 30, 2028.  

Bonner County accepts juveniles from surrounding municipalities to provide continued support and supervision across the geographical area, where Boundary County doesn’t have a juvenile detention facility, and Lincoln County and the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho don’t have secure juvenile bed space.