Judge affirms rejection of expansion

SANDPOINT - A district judge is sticking by an earlier ruling that Bonner County's plan to construct a juvenile detention facility without voter consent is unconstitutional.

Judge Charles Hosack ruled against the county's proposal to build a new juvenile lockup and a work-release center in September. Under the proposal, Rocky Mountain Corrections would construct the facilities at the sheriff's complex and lease them back to the county with an option to buy.

The Idaho Constitution prohibits local governments from taking on debts which extend beyond a single fiscal year without voter permission.

The county, however, argued that the annual lease payments for the $12 million expansion plan were affordable and non-appropriation clauses enabled the county to withdraw from the agreements at any time.

But Hosack, who was asked to confirm the legality of the plan, ruled that if the county bailed out of the agreement, it would lose title to county land for the balance of a 30-year lease, which would clash with a state mandate requiring counties to provide housing for adult inmates.

The county set aside the work-release center component of the project and asked the court to reconsider its ruling on the juvenile facility, which would replace a substandard detention center. The county disputed Hosack's finding that the county would lose title to the land.

The county maintained that it could lose title to the improvements on its land, but not the land itself.

But Hosack ruled on Dec. 9 that in either event the county would lose access to the property for an extended period of time, which would create an unconstitutional liability unless voters consent to the proposal.

"The Court finds that the transfer of title of improvements located on County property creates a 'lien' against that parcel of real property," Hosack said in the five-page ruling.

Hosack further ruled that the county failed to demonstrate the non-appropriation clauses operate substantially similar to a year-to-year lease agreement, which is permissible under Idaho law.

The county can either appeal the ruling, walk away from the plan or put it to a vote.

County commission Chairman Lewis Rich could not be reached on Friday and did not return messages seeking comment.