NORCOR might halt juvenile detention amid budget shortfall

THE DALLES — Confronting projections that show mounting deficits and long-deferred expenses, the Wasco County Board of Commissioners spent much of its Feb. 18 meeting examining the financial future of the Northern Oregon Regional Correctional Facility (NORCOR) and weighing scenarios that range from new revenue to closing its juvenile wing.

Commissioners heard a detailed presentation from NORCOR Business Manager Nichole Biechler and interim Finance Director Monica Morris outlining the findings of a financial and operational assessment commissioned last spring.

The assessment, conducted by a Colorado-based corrections consulting firm, evaluated NORCOR’s adult and juvenile operations, staffing, shared services and long-term finances.

“The goal of this team was solvency, sustainability for NORCOR,” Morris told the board. “What does NORCOR need to be sustainable?”

What caused the budget shortfall?

NORCOR is a regional jail and juvenile detention facility serving Wasco, Hood River, Sherman and Gilliam counties. According to board documents, which only reported four months of admissions and release data in 2025, the facility processed about 785 adult jail admissions and 805 releases over those four months, reflecting a steady flow of bookings.

Juvenile detention numbers are much smaller, with monthly admissions ranging from eight to 22 youth in the months reported, and an average daily population generally between four and eight youth.

Like many small, regional correctional systems, NORCOR relies on a combination of county contributions and contracts for outside bed space to balance its budget.

Personnel costs account for roughly 68% of NORCOR’s $13 million annual budget, Morris said, amounting to around $9 million in staffing alone. Medical and mental health services represent more than half of its $3 million shared services budget. Morris and Biechler emphasized that this has been an extremely tight margin.

“NORCOR has continued to operate at the bare minimum,” Biechler said. “We have not included plans for contingency. We’ve not included plans for capital.”

Some of the shortfall could have been prevented by consistent contribution increases from each of the counties, rather than many stretches of time where the contributions remained flat, according to Commissioner Jeff Justesen, who worked in youth detention in Wasco County for 32 years and previously managed NORCOR’s juvenile department.

“Had the counties just built in a 3-4% increase over the years from the beginning of NORCOR, we would have had adequate funding to maintain services through,” he said, describing the sudden increases over time as “hard for the counties to absorb.”

NORCOR also reduced its revenue in 2020 after canceling a federal contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). While in previous years the contract had brought an annual $820,000 in 2019-2020 and $914,000 in 2018-2019, the final year the contract was $268,000 for 2020-2021.

Hood River County Commissioner Ed Weathers, a NORCOR board member, said via Zoom that the NORCOR board intended for this multi-scenario analysis process to include public feedback.

“I think this is a healthy process and exercise to try to find some solutions to what is a real challenge for the four partner counties,” he said.

Scenario 1: Maintain current services, find new money

Under the first scenario, NORCOR would maintain both adult and juvenile services at current levels, including programming and staffing, and rely on new revenue to close projected gaps. Using budgeted (rather than historical or actual) expenditures, the model shows NORCOR would need approximately $1.7 million in additional funds in fiscal year 2026–27, rising to nearly $2.25 million within three years.

Those projections assume county partner contributions continue at current levels with a 5% annual increase. They also assume full staffing, not the vacancy-driven savings that have recently helped NORCOR end some years appearing more balanced.

County Administrator Tyler Stone questioned whether basing projections on budget rather than actual spending overstated the problem.

Morris and Biechler defended the approach, arguing that budgets reflect real operational needs, even if one-off grants and vacancies have temporarily mitigated cost in recent years.

Stone asked if there were other expenses that can be cut. “So it doesn’t include removing all of the ‘nice to have’ programs,” Stone said, looking at the budget. “You know, the mental health counseling, the 30, 60, 90 day programs — all of that kind of stuff to getting back to just what the core services are — and that is incarceration of folks.”

Biechler answered that reducing some services is not off the table, but many services are required by law and shared with other facilities and organizations in the region.

Scenario 2: Close juvenile, keep county funding

The second scenario models closing the juvenile detention facility but keeping county partner contributions at current levels.

On paper, this produces a healthier balance sheet. By removing juvenile operational costs while retaining revenue, NORCOR’s finances stabilize under the projection. But commissioners and staff quickly noted the scenario is largely theoretical.

Counties would still be legally responsible for juvenile detention. Eliminating the local facility would mean paying for placements elsewhere, likely at higher per-day rates and with transportation costs.

Biechler pointed to progress in juvenile programming, including expanded partnerships with local schools. “We have had eight graduates in the last two years, which is outstanding for NORCOR,” she said. “I don’t want to see that go away.”

Commissioners also acknowledged that other Oregon counties are wrestling with similar decisions, as juvenile detention costs often exceed adult incarceration costs on a per-person basis.

Additionally, NORCOR board documents show that the juvenile detention facility is a not just a local hub, but a regional one, housing youth not only from the four member counties but also from 17 counties across eastern and central Oregon, two counties in Washington, and from the Warm Springs reservation through the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Scenario 2.5: Close juvenile, slash budget

Recognizing that counties might not continue paying the same amount if juvenile services end, the team developed a third variation: remove both juvenile operations and the portion of county funding allocated to them.

Under that model, NORCOR still faces deficits approaching $1 million annually because adult operations alone do not cover their full cost.

The scenario also raises operational questions: who maintains the building, who handles records, and how are shared services like IT, HR and finance restructured?

Scenario 3: Contract out shared services

This scenario explores outsourcing medical, administrative and other shared services to private vendors. Morris said this proved the most expensive option.

“Medical immediately went up half a million dollars,” she said, based on contract pricing comparisons.

While some administrative functions, such as IT or certain finance tasks, might be partially outsourced, contracting core services like medical and facilities maintenance would likely increase costs.

No easy path

Throughout the discussion, commissioners signaled caution and a need for further analysis.

Justesen encouraged commissioners to individually meet with county juvenile and law enforcement leadership, noting the long history of discussion around maintaining juvenile detention. Commissioner Hege, the NORCOR board chair, acknowledged the complexity of the decision and the need for coordination among partner counties.

“We need input from them,” he said.

For now, Wasco County commissioners did not endorse a specific path, instead signaling further review and inter-county discussions. You can attend a public NORCOR board meeting in person or online. For more information visit www.norcor.co/norcor-board.

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