Idaho
Idaho Legislature selects watchdog analyst to head Office of Performance Evaluations • Idaho Capital Sun
A Boise native who worked for more than a decade as an Idaho state government watchdog analyst is now leading the agency.
Ryan Langrill, the new director of the Idaho Office of Performance Evaluations, told the Idaho Capital Sun that there’s nothing quite like the work he gets to do.
“What other job do you get to do a new deep dive every year, if not more often?” Langrill told the Idaho Capital Sun in an interview. He said “it seems like we’re sort of in between this, like, investigative journalist and management consultant role.”
Langrill served as the agency’s interim director since July, after the agency’s previous director of 21-years, Rakesh Mohan, retired.
On Nov. 7, the Idaho Legislative Council officially named Langrill as director of the Office of Performance Evaluations.
At the meeting, Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder, R-Boise, said the committee received applications from across the U.S. in its national search.
“But the committee, when it came right down to it, felt like we have the best qualified person to do that already in house,” Winder said.
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How he got started in government watchdog work
Langrill started his career on a route toward academia, earning a PhD and master’s degree in economics from George Mason University, as well as a bachelor’s degree in history in economics from Gonzaga University, based in Spokane.
But soon, he realized that he didn’t have as much passion for teaching.
He started searching for jobs back home in Boise, where his wife returned to while he worked in Atlanta.
When he found a job posting at the Idaho Office of Performance Evaluations, he saw it as an opportunity to do what he loves: applied research.
“This seems like that, and it seems very practical. Like, ‘Oh — it is research that is directly being used to improve the governance of the state of Idaho,’” Langrill recalled.
And he’s stayed ever since. He worked as an evaluator for the agency for over a decade, leading 14 projects.
Report on mental illness facility found issues. Then conditions transformed.
Langrill told the Sun that the most memorable report that he’s worked on at the agency was a 2019 report on a mental illness facility in Nampa called the Southwest Idaho Treatment Center, which found a “culture of constant crisis.”
But in 2023, when Langrill briefed lawmakers on the agency’s follow-up report, he reported that conditions had improved.
“It’s been a big transformation. And the report was not the whole reason for that, but I think it was part of that,” Langrill told the Sun. He said “that’s been the most concrete observed outcome I’ve seen from our work.”
As part of the initial report on the Southwest Idaho Treatment Center, he told the Sun he embedded himself at the center for much of one year, was trained on its direct care process and restraint program, and became certified with its nonviolent crisis intervention team.
Being there helped him understand the culture, and to “diagnose” what wasn’t working, he said.
His plans as Idaho watchdog agency director
Langrill said his principles are fundamentally the same as the agency’s previous director: Rigor, credibility and independence.
“We need to do a really good job of understanding — if we’re evaluating a program, not just understanding what the role of the state employees are in it, but what is the experience of the people receiving services and the people on the other side of things?” Langrill said.
And he knows that the Office of Performance Evaluations fills a critical role in state government, as one of the tools for the Idaho Legislature see how “government is actually working,” including how the executive branch, laws passed, and money doled out actually function.
“It’s hard for 105 part-time legislators to do that on their own,” Langrill said. But, he said, “if they need a deep dive to understand what’s happening, we are — I think — a great tool for that.”
“That’s how I see the role of the office. And so we provide understanding, and then we provide accountability, if we find that the implementation of programs is not in line with good practices or legislative intent,” he said.
During the legislative session, Langrill said he hopes to spend more time in the Idaho State Capitol.
Part of that time could be spent synthesizing more of the office’s in-depth work on complex issues, like he did with the Idaho Medicaid Managed Care Task Force in 2023. The Office of Performance Evaluations already presents its reports to the Idaho Legislature’s Joint Legislative Oversight Committee, which requests reports from the agency. And the agency presents to relevant committees.
“But are there opportunities for us to take what we’ve learned from a whole stable of reports and say, ‘Hey, we have, we have some findings that may inform this conversation,’” Langrill said.
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Idaho
Idaho Behavioral Health Council releases state mental health four-year plan • Idaho Capital Sun
The Idaho Behavioral Health Council on Tuesday published its latest strategic plan to strengthen Idaho’s mental health care system.
Detailing recommendations through 2028, the council’s new plan — available online — outlines 11 priorities for Idaho’s behavioral health system.
The recommendations include: bolstering Idaho’s behavioral health workforce, improving foster care services, making sure that people who enter and leave the criminal justice system receive continual care, and supporting people exposed to on-the-job trauma, like first responders.
Past recommendations by the Idaho Behavioral Health Council have “helped establish local behavioral health centers, improve crisis response, and provide local treatment options for youth receiving psychiatric care in other states,” council co-chair and administrative director of courts for the Idaho Judicial Branch Sara Omundson said in a news release.
Over several months, the council developed the new plan, which the council says reflects public input from Idahoans.
Sponsors are set up to work on the approved priority recommendations. But the council invites anyone interested in helping to contact the Idaho Behavioral Health Council’s project manager.
The 11 recommendations were winnowed down from a list of 30. But the council’s report included the other 19 ideas, hoping that other Idaho groups would work on them.
“Meaningful change for Idahoans does not come overnight. It requires continued work and dedication from all who can influence our system,” said Jared Larsen, council co-chair and legislative and regulatory affairs chief for the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. “We invite all professionals and policymakers in our state to contribute however they can.”
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Renewable energy development company rPlus Energies has finalised a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with distribution company Idaho Power for its 125MW Pleasant Valley Solar 2 facility located in Ada County of Idaho, US.
This facility is a continuation of the 200MW Pleasant Valley Solar 1 project currently under construction. Idaho Power also holds a PPA for the 200MW Pleasant Valley Solar 1 with rPlus Energies, making Pleasant Valley Solar the largest contracted solar facility within the Idaho Power system.
Both projects will supply renewable energy to Idaho Power’s grid and support Meta, a technology company, to operate its data centre in Kuna, Idaho, using 100% renewable energy.
Meta clean and renewable energy global head Urvi Parekh said: “We’re excited to expand our work with Idaho Power and rPlus Energies to add new renewable energy to the Idaho grid with Pleasant Valley Solar 2. Efforts like these are important as we continue to support our operations with 100% clean and renewable energy.”
The Pleasant Valley Solar project is part of Idaho Power’s Clean Energy Your Way – Construction Program. This initiative offers businesses a pathway to achieve their sustainability and carbon emission reduction targets.
rPlus Energies president and CEO Luigi Resta said: “We’re excited to be partnering again with Idaho Power and Meta on Pleasant Valley Solar 2.
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“Strong partnerships make all stages of development and construction smoother, and we certainly have that with these two. We look forward to breaking ground in the coming months and contributing another significant project to Idaho’s renewable energy landscape.”
Pleasant Valley Solar 2 is expected to provide economic benefits to the local community. The project plans to work with numerous local vendors, enhancing revenue in the region, and is anticipated to create approximately 200 construction-related jobs.
Pleasant Valley Solar 1, which is now primarily owned by Matrix Renewables, is expected to commence commercial operations in early 2025.
The key investors and commercial partners of Pleasant Valley Solar 1 have raised $123,000 for the Local First and Energy First scholarships. These funds aid Ada County students attending Boise State University and the College of Western Idaho.
The initiative to support education and workforce development is expected to continue with the development of Pleasant Valley Solar 2.
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