GRAND FORKS – Grand Forks County commissioners voted Tuesday to reject a final contract from the state Department of Corrections, saying the county needs to focus on housing its and its partners’ inmates instead of leasing space to the state.

The most recent version of the DOCR’s proposed agreement, in which the county would lease some beds at the Grand Forks County Correctional Center to the agency, addressed concerns from commissioners about releasing non-residents into the county after serving their sentences. The commission on Sept. 2 rejected a previous version of the contract for that reason.

State’s Attorney Haley Wamstad said on Tuesday the new version includes new language to address and provide a solution to those concerns.

“The update was that they would return them to the ar

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