Beaver County to receive more than $396,000 for probation services initiatives

Garret Roberts, Beaver County Times
·2 min read

BEAVER — Local probation services are once again receiving a state grant, allowing them to continue their programs across the Beaver Valley.

Beaver County's Probation Services was recently selected as a recipient for funding from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, which awarded the area's program over $396,000. These funds will support programs intended to return non-violent criminal offenders to the community through supervision and substance use treatments.

"The impact that it will have, fortunately for us, is that it has kept our drug and alcohol providers and our mental health providers very, very busy," said Ian Thomson, director of Beaver County's Probation Services. "This grant money helps fund their programs and the individuals that are unable to pay for it."

According to Thomson, this year's funding is similar to previous amounts received from the state, with a slight bonus coming from unexpended funds from other areas. The state funding was broken down into the following initiatives:

  • $282,501 in continuing County Adult Probation and Parole Grant funds, which are used to improve the delivery of probation and parole services

  • $94,967 in Intermediate Punishment Treatment Funds to Beaver County Commissioners for County Probation with Restrictive Sanctions

  • $18,600 for additional use, coming from unexpended County Intermediate Punishment funds

"It's wonderful for our county, and for these individuals that are sentenced and can't pay, so it doesn't put them any further in debt," Thomson said.

With the additional funds provided this year, partners to the probation services will be eligible for more funding and support. Some of these partners include known nonprofits in the area, such as TRAILS Ministries, ABC Associates and Beaver County Behavioral Health. Another beneficiary is Richard McNutt, who has practiced therapy with the county in various roles over the years.

"The funding specifically comes through the state and through us," Thomson said. "So, we keep these organizations busy by identifying defendants that aren't able to pay for drug and alcohol evaluation, defendants that aren't able to pay for their electronic monitor that they may have been put on, in lieu of going to jail."

Rep. Rob Matzie, D-16, Harmony Township, also noted that these grants and programs are reducing taxes in some areas and keeping families together.

“Programs like these save taxpayer dollars on incarceration, while giving people a second chance to overcome substance use disorders, return to their families and rejoin the community,” Matzie said.

In addition to the funding for Beaver County, it was also announced that Allegheny County will receive over $4 million in PCCD funding to support child victims, bolster services for recovering mothers with newborns, improve probation services, strengthen programs that prevent juvenile delinquency and enhance local police resources.

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Beaver County receives grant for probation services initiatives