Are Tri-Cities leaders ready to negotiate juvenile offender services deal?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Benton and Franklin make progress after Franklin sought abrupt exit from juvenile pact.
- Benton warns separation could cost $1.5M and jeopardize 31 county juvenile services jobs.
- Franklin projects $2.5M annual savings by moving youths to Martin Hall.
Tri-Cities leaders may be closer to reaching an agreement on ending a bi-county juvenile services contract.
Last week, Benton County’s attorneys filed a lawsuit against neighboring Franklin County after commissioners attempted to abruptly exit the 10-year contract and begin moving juvenile offenders to a facility two hours away from the Tri-Cities in Medical Lake.
The lawsuit asked a Yakima County Superior Court judge to bar Franklin from making any changes until an exit agreement could be negotiated, according to court documents.
Without an orderly separation, Benton County is at risk of having to cover up to $1.5 million in additional funding, and the jobs of dozens of employees are in danger.
Benton Franklin Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Stam refused to approve the change in December, telling Franklin leaders they needed to work with Benton to minimize the impact to youth in the system.
She described the scope of the changes as “essentially a de-funding of Juvenile Justice entirely.”
But Franklin County commissioners already had budgeted for 2026 using the anticipated savings. Benton County has a two-year budget cycle, meaning the money for 2026 was already allocated and contracted.
Stam’s order meant that until something is worked out, or one county gets a favorable ruling, the juveniles cannot be moved to Martin Hall.
On Wednesday, Franklin commissioners vote to enter mediation with Benton County. The details of the decision were not immediately available.
What’s at stake?
If Franklin County pulls out of the contract without giving time for Benton to prepare, Benton believes it would need to cover $1.5 million in unanticipated costs, according to court documents.
The roughly 70 juvenile services workers serve both counties, but are Benton County employees. The counties used to rotate funding each year, but as benefit packages became less comparable, Benton County took the employees under its umbrella.
Franklin pays a percentage based on usage, that comes out to about $200,000 per month for one-third of the offenders.
If the counties separate, Benton believes it would jeopardize the jobs of as many as 31 employees. Some of the employees are protected by unions, which could further expose Benton County to unfair labor practices complaints and legal liability.
The new 10-year contract was signed in 2023 and amended in 2024. It requires at least a six-month notice to separate, if Benton County did not have adequate space for three consecutive months.
There have been no issues with space at the Kennewick facility. Benton County is entering the last phase of a $21 million renovation of the campus.
Martin Hall, which already serves 10 northeastern Washington counties, is only marginally larger than the Benton County facility.
During a November review of bi-county contracts, Benton County commissioners decided to leave the juvenile services contract untouched because it still had eight years left and there had been no discussion about separation.
There had been tension between the two counties over juvenile services for several months, after a series of lawsuits related to alleged abuses at state-run facilities led Benton to reevaluate its contracts to ensure the counties were sharing legal liability. But the two counties had seemingly worked that out.
Benton leaders indicated they would be open to discussing the matter if Franklin County brought it up in the future.
The contract review discussion was prompted by Franklin abruptly ending their bi-county human services partnership. The counties have since come to an agreement allowing for a transition period before ending the partnership later this year.
Benton only found out about the juvenile separation when Franklin leaders attempted to notify the Superior Court of their decision to move offenders to Martin Hall at the beginning of the year.
Despite multiple letters from the Superior Court telling Franklin in early December to work out a separation plan and requesting more information, Franklin commissioners still voted to move forward.
How much would Franklin save?
Franklin County leaders believe the switch could save them about $2.5 million a year. Their tentative contract with Martin Hall will cost only $500,000 for transportation and housing.
That number is based on a set number of reserved beds at $250 each per day. It includes the cost of Martin Hall staff transporting offenders, according to public documents.
The money used for juvenile services is funded by a special purpose sales tax though, which means its uses are limited.
While they haven’t discussed the plan in public, Franklin commissioners could feasibly pay more juvenile justice-related positions directly from the tax which would free up general fund monies.
Franklin leaders have indicated they could also use the savings to build their own facility.
Safety concerns
Benton County Jail Chief Robert Guerrero told the Tri-City Herald that he worries families will have a harder time seeing their children, and they may not get the same quality of social services.
He’s also concerned about the policies for information sharing in order to keep young people safe. Currently, the Benton Franklin Juvenile Justice Center works with local law enforcement to ensure teens who may be involved with gangs aren’t put in a position that could endanger them.
The center tracks known associates, others named in court documents, gang information and more to ensure they are keeping rival gang members separated.
“I wish we had something like that in the adult system,” he said.
They’ve also instituted mental health and counseling programs. The facility offers dialectal behavioral therapy, which helps patients better understand their emotions, behaviors and how to manage both.
“It teaches them some skills that they carry when they get released, the youth that go to the state facilities take that with them,” Guerrero said. “We’re looking at expanding it throughout the facility a little bit more.”
While Martin Hall does have its own school, there is going to be better continuity in the Tri-Cities with Kennewick School District teachers working with students, say officials.
Local partners and caseworkers are also able to continue working with offenders when they are released.
This story was originally published January 14, 2026 at 4:49 PM.
