AN ACT to create and enact a new section to chapter 54-23.3 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to use of local jails or correctional facilities for inmates sentenced to the physical custody of the department of corrections and rehabilitation.
HB 1344 creates a new section of North Dakota law governing what happens when the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation cannot immediately accept an inmate who has been sentenced to its physical custody. If the department is beyond capacity and denies or cannot provide admission within seven days after notice of the judgment of conviction, the department may place the inmate in a local jail or correctional facility and negotiate the terms of that arrangement with the facility.
The bill also establishes payment rules for those interim placements. When admission is delayed beyond seven days, the department must pay the contracted rate starting from the date it was first notified of the judgment and placement. Any agreement under the new section must include a minimum daily per-inmate rate, including medical costs, and payment begins the day after the department receives notice from the district court and continues until the inmate is admitted to state custody.
This bill amends chapter 54-23.3 of the North Dakota Century Code by authorizing the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to use local jails or correctional facilities as overflow placements when state custody is unavailable. It shifts financial responsibility to the department for inmates awaiting transfer, requires negotiated contracts with local facilities, and specifically requires the contract rate to cover daily housing and medical costs. The practical effect is to formalize and fund short-term county or local detention of state-sentenced inmates when the state system is at capacity.
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the House 90-0 and the Senate 46-0, with only a small number of absences in each chamber. No committee transcripts or recorded debate were provided, suggesting there was little visible opposition or public dispute around the measure.
No specific points of contention are reflected in the available record. The main policy issue implicit in the bill is who bears the cost and responsibility when the state prison system cannot accept an inmate immediately: the bill places that burden on the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and requires payment to local facilities. Any concern would likely center on reimbursement rates, medical-cost coverage, and the seven-day trigger for state payment, but no opposing arguments are documented in the materials provided.