Great news!
Probation & Parole positions reinstated

16 new positions for Montana State Prison too

2007 Legislature – Thanks to hard work by our MEA-MFT lobbyists, MEA-MFT members who contacted legislators, and our Work That Matters campaign, it looks like our probation & parole officer members will get some much-needed help.

Governor Schweitzer’s original budget called for 37 additional probation & parole officers statewide.

These officers keep our communities safe by supervising criminals released from prison. Some officers have caseloads of over 100, making it nearly impossible to track all the offenders under their supervision. These officers need more help!

House Republicans then replaced the Dept. of Corrections budget with House Bill 806, which cut the new probation and parole positions in half.

In response, MEA-MFT once again activated our Work That Matters campaign. Our Work That Matters newspaper ad showed how cuts to the Corrections budget will affect public safety. The ad featured MEA-MFT member Debbie Willis, a probation & parole officer in Eastern Montana.

It worked. On March 28, the additional probation & parole positions were reinstated. This is a great victory!

MEA-MFT also helped win 16 new positions at Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge, another chronically understaffed area of the Corrections Department.