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The North Dakota Emergency Commission, led by Governor Kelly Armstrong, furthered the modernization state corrections Thursday, unanimously approving $105,000 to expand real-time GPS monitoring to all residents of transitional facilities, per a press release.
The move expands a pilot program launched in October that monitors 300 “inmate status” individuals to relieve pressure on the state’s overburdened prison and jail systems. With the contingency funds approved Thursday, GPS monitoring will also be required by external organizations through the parole board and courts.
DOCR Director Colby Braun and Governor Armstrong say that ND’s correctional facilities are currently at a breaking point, with the male prison population at capacity since 2023, with that number continuing to climb. Currently, more than 420 sentenced individuals are being housed in county jails because there is no room in state prisons, according to the press release.
The release also pointed to cost efficiency; using GPS to monitor people in the community is cheaper than the state’s $148 per-day cost for a prison bed. The real-time tracking lets the DOCR verify that individuals are at their approved job sites or treatment centers. Braun said that without this technology, many lower-risk people would likely occupy expensive jail beds, straining county budgets. Armstrong said “this change will make our communities safer and save taxpayers’ money… by reducing recidivism and avoiding the need to build more jails.”
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