37.27.506    CHEMICAL DEPENDENCY EDUCATION COURSES: GENERAL EDUCATIONAL COURSE REQUIREMENTS

(1) This program is for persons convicted of a DUI/per se/UDD or misdemeanor dangerous drug offense and sentenced under 61-8-410 , 61-8-732 , or Title 45, chapter 9 or 10, MCA, to complete an alcohol or other dangerous drugs information course provided by a state approved program and which may include alcohol or drug treatment or both in accordance with state approved placement criteria and provided by a certified chemical dependency counselor.

(2) The ACT program is a three part process which includes:

(a) Assessment, which is the evaluation component utilized to identify chemical use patterns of DUI/per se/UDD offenders and to make appropriate recommendations for education and/or treatment. Misdemeanor dangerous drug offenders may complete the assessment with the ACT program or a state approved treatment program which offers an MDD education program.

(b) Course, which is an educational component based on the curriculum contained and explained in ARM 37.27.516 and further defined in the ACT course curriculum manual. The manual may be obtained from the Department of Transportation, Traffic Safety Bureau, 2701 Prospect Avenue, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, MT 59620-1001. Misdemeanor dangerous drug offenders must complete a specific drug education course equivalent in hours to the ACT curriculum. The course will be based on the ACT curriculum but must contain specific information on misdemeanor drug laws. The MDD course may be combined with or held separately from the DUI course. If more than eight MDD clients are enrolled at one time on a consistent basis, it is recommended that the courses be offered separately.

(c) Treatment, which is defined in 53-24-103 , MCA. Standards for treatment are required by 53-24-208 , MCA, and ARM 37.27.101 through 37.27.136. The need for treatment services must be documented and verified through assessment and state approved patient placement procedures. Treatment may be provided by the treatment program conducting the ACT program or through a referral to another treatment program.

(i) First DUI/per se/UDD offenders assessed as chemically dependent, all second and subsequent DUI/per se/UDD offenders and MDD offenders ordered by the court must complete all three components of the ACT program. The treatment provided must be at a level appropriate to the offender's alcohol/drug problem, based upon patient placement criteria as defined in ARM 37.27.120.

(3) To complete the ACT program, the offender:

(a) must enroll by the date specified by the sentencing court. If no date is specified, then within 10 days of the ACT program's receipt of the court referral notice;

(b) must start the course process within 30 days of the program's receipt of the court referral notice; and

(c) must complete the program in a minimum of 30 days from the date of enrollment, but no longer than 90 days from the date of enrollment. An exception to the 30-day minimum may be granted by the department based only on justified geographical considerations. The ACT program will notify the sentencing courts in all cases of failure to comply and the sentencing court may notify the drivers control bureau.

History: Sec. 53-24-204, 53-24-208 and 53-24-209, MCA; IMP, Sec. 45-9-208, 45-10-108, 61-8-410, 61-8-714, 61-8-722 and 61-8-732, MCA; NEW, 1985 MAR p. 2011, Eff. 12/27/85; AMD, 1987 MAR p. 2383, Eff. 12/25/87; AMD, 1990 MAR p. 737, Eff. 4/13/90; AMD, 1996 MAR p. 1312, Eff. 5/10/96; AMD, 1998 MAR p. 351, Eff. 1/30/98; TRANS, from DOC, 1998 MAR p. 1502.