Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Carlos G. Bolanos, Sheriff
Subject: Annual Report on the Inmate Welfare Trust Fund
RECOMMENDATION:
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Accept the report on the Inmate Welfare Trust Fund for the period of July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2019.
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BACKGROUND:
California Penal Code 4025 provides for the administration of an Inmate Welfare Fund (IWF) and requires that an itemized report of IWF activity be submitted annually to the Board of Supervisors. The IWF may only be used primarily for the benefit, education, and welfare of the inmates, and maintenance of correctional facilities. This includes the cost of operating programs to benefit the inmates, including, but not limited to, education, drug and alcohol treatment, welfare, library, accounting, and other programs deemed appropriate by the Sheriff.
California Penal Code 4025 also provides that the Sheriff may operate a commissary in the jails, and that profits shall be deposited into the IWF. Additionally, any refund, rebate, or commission received from a telephone company for inmates’ use of telephones shall also be deposited into the IWF.
An independent financial audit of the Inmate Welfare Fund is completed annually.
DISCUSSION:
The commission from sales of commissary items wholly funds the IWF and is used to pay for a variety of in-custody programs and rehabilitative support services. The Inmate Welfare Trust Fund Committee, formed by the Sheriff’s Office, is responsible for safeguarding the funds, controlling expenditures, and approving the annual budget. As of September 2018, the Sheriff’s Office entered into a contract with Keefe Commissary Network, LLC to provide commissary services in Maguire Correctional Facility and Maple Street Correctional Center.
The FY 2018-19 Inmate Welfare Trust Fund Report reflects gross revenue of $971,287, and includes commission from commissary sales through Keefe Commissary, interest earned, and revenues from other sources. Disbursements total $638,137 and include all operating expenses. The difference between revenue and expenditures was a surplus of $333,150. This year-end operating surplus was added to the beginning fund balance, for a closing fund balance of $1,565,833, as of June 30, 2019.
In July 2018, the Sheriff’s Office ceased collection of commissions from inmate telephone services. Additionally, as of July 2020, the Sheriff’s Office ceased collection of commissions from inmate commissary services. The Sheriff’s Office is currently in the process of winding-down the Inmate Welfare Trust Fund as the Sheriff's Office will no longer be generating the commission revenues that supplied the Fund.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with accepting the Inmate Welfare Trust Fund report.