COMMISSION BRIEFS

Board OKs money for Coroner’s Office

Mason County commissioners approved $10,640.64 for the purchase of a new body lift, storage rack and walk-in cooler storage boards for the Mason County Coroner.

County inmates to be housed at Nisqually center

Mason County commissioners approved a jail services agreement at Tuesday’s meeting that will pay $130 per inmate per day to house inmates of Mason County in the Nisqually Detention and Corrections Center operated by the Nisqually tribe.

Chief Deputy of Corrections Kevin Hanson said jail staffing “has turned into a crisis,” according to the information packet.

Hanson asked the commissioners to support the funding agreement, saying it’s needed to send 20 inmates to other facilities.

“Until employees can be hired to fill the vacancies, we are strategizing how to safely and constitutionally run the jail while keeping the community safe, with severely reduced staffing,” Hanson wrote in the request.

Under the agreement, the tribe will have the right to refuse prisoners if they do not meet medical or other criteria for booking or if admitting the prisoner would result in crowding.

The agreement is for five years and started Oct. 1.

Jail peer-support program approved

The Mason County Jail Peer Support Program received money for a two-year contract to provide recovery support services in coordination with current MOUD (medications for opioid use disorder) program inmates in custody. The program is paid by treatment sales tax money, according to the information packet.

Diversion program expanded

A Health Care Authority contract for expansion of a Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion program received $935,000 from the commissioners.

The program diverts people engaged in low-level drug and prostitution crimes away from jail.

The money will allow intensive case management that should reduce arrests, time spent in custody and recidivism for program participants, and also reduce use of emergency services, according to the information packet.

The program manager will ensure at least 350 referrals of new, previously referred or previously discharged participants and admit at least the minimum required to maintain a caseload of at least 45 active participants per case manager by June 30, 2025, the information packet states.

National Estuary Program money dispersed

Commissioners approved $57,480 in National Estuary Program money from Mason Conservation District for use in public outreach and education related to property maintenance and water quality.

Mason County Environmental Health will conduct two community meetings annually over three years, targeting North Bay and Oakland Bay, according to the information packet.