Boulder’s economic outlook took a boost last week as the Montana Legislature finalized passage of a bill to provide $500,000 for community development, extend some operations at the Montana Developmental Center for up to two years, and establish a 12-bed intensive behavior center.
HB 387 cleared its final hurdle Tuesday, April 25, with a 98-2 third reading vote by the House and 33-16 by the Senate. Sponsored by Rep. Kirk Wagoner, R-Montana City, and Sen. Edie McClafferty, D-Butte, the bill authorizes turning the existing Assessment and Stabilization Unit at the MDC into an intensive behavior center (IBC) for up to 12 clients ordered into the facility for a maximum of 90 days per commitment.
The bill specifies the service is to be at Boulder and contains no termination date. When the governor’s MDC Transition Planning and Advisory Council endorsed that recommendation a year ago, state officials said it would require a full time equivalent (FTE) staff of about 70. The plan also called for adding treatment services in the current Building 104. The $500,000 economic enhancement fund and the extension of MDC operations were also part of the recommendations by the council to the governor.
