Montana Department of Corrections is closing the Montana State Prison’s chemical dependency treatment center that recently opened in the old Treasure State Boot Camp facility at the prison. The 2019 Legislature decided to close the chemical dependency treatment center and open a new sex offender program, rationalizing the state could use available beds for chemical dependency treatment in contract facilities owned by CCCS Inc. The State of Montana is utilizing a treatment intervention plan developed by Volunteers of America for the University of Cincinnati.
Volunteers of America (VOA) is a faith-based non-profit organization founded in 1896 that provides affordable housing and other assistance services primarily to low-income people throughout the United States. Headquartered in Alexandria VA, the organization includes 32 affiliates and serves approximately 1.5 million people each year in 46 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. In addition to those in need of affordable housing, VOA assists veterans, low-income seniors, children and families, the homeless, those with intellectual disabilities, those recovering from addiction, and the formerly incarcerated. Volunteers of America are more than a nonprofit organization. They are a ministry of service that includes nearly 16,000 paid, professional employees. This organization is not required to file an annual return with the IRS because it is a church.
The curriculum designed by VOA and utilized by the Montana Department of Corrections consists of 80 sessions for 1.5 years. Blue Cross Blue Shield, an insurance company, Medical Policy #3.01.17 requires the sex offender treatment program must meet the following requirements: treatment programs consist of 104 sessions for 2 years. The insurance company has stronger requirements than the State of Montana Department of Corrections for sex offender treatment. But wait...there's more. There is about 500 sex offenders incarcerated at Montana State Prison. The old Treasure State Boot Camp facility has 60 beds. It will take 12 YEARS to put all the sex offenders through the program. A sex offender going in to the prison today will have to wait 12 YEARS to get in to the program.
Montana Department of Corrections Deputy Director Cynthia Wolken expressed her excitement in the new treatment program. I’m a little less excited about it.
According to Representative Ryan Lynch, a Butte Democrat, this recent legislative decision was well-vetted by the Montana legislators. CCCS Inc, a Butte private prison contractor, owns the contract beds the State of Montana will use for the drug and alcohol addiction treatment program for the Montana State Prison. Let’s look at some facts about CCCS Inc the legislators may not know.
CCCS Inc is the parent of another company called Montana Behavioral Health Inc. The board members of CCCS Inc include Mike Thatcher, Don Peoples and Perry Hawbaker. Board members of Montana Behavioral Health include Mike Thatcher, Don Peoples and Perry Hawbaker. Montana Behavioral Health filed Federal Form 990 wherein they stated that CCCS Inc pays all expenses for Montana Behavioral Health. Montana Behavioral Health listed assets of $2,047,233.00 for land owned in Deer Lodge County. This land was intended for the purpose of private contract beds for drug and alcohol treatment owned by parent company CCCS Inc and hidden under the name of Montana Behavioral Health Inc. CCCS Inc purchased land under the cover name of Montana Behavioral Health, appraised at just over 2 million dollars. But wait...there's more. CCCS Inc was unable to pay the taxes for the land purchased under their cover name of Montana Behavioral Health and the taxes were bought up by an out of state company called the Wayne S. Hansen Trust out of Oakland, California for under $100,000.00. CCCS Inc, a failing company, lost their investment of 2 million dollars because they couldn't pay property taxes.
The well-vetted legislators are now planning on sending prisoners from the Montana State Prison to a failing company, CCCS Inc, for drug and alcohol treatment to open a sex offender treatment center that will take a prisoner 12 years from today to get into the program. I guess the legislators weren’t quite as well-vetted as they thought. Thank you, Representative Ryan Lynch from Butte.
The State of Montana is literally banking on a failed company, CCCS Inc, that is unable to pay property taxes, to provide drug and alcohol treatment to Montana State Prisoners. The ship is sinking… Mayday Mayday and the State of Montana band plays on.
How excited are we now, Cynthia Wolken?