Bill Text: NJ S1417 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Transfers Juvenile Justice Commission to in, but not of, Department of Children and Families.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-02-11 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee [S1417 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-S1417-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator SANDRA B. CUNNINGHAM
District 31 (Hudson)
Senator RAYMOND J. LESNIAK
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Transfers Juvenile Justice Commission to in, but not of, Department of Children and Families.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning juvenile justice and amending and supplementing P.L.1995, c.284.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. (New section) The Legislature finds and declares:
a. Current research in the provision of services to juvenile offenders finds that preventative and community-based programs help to effectively reduce juvenile crime and recidivism rates, and the country's juvenile justice systems are being reorganized based on the principles of protection, treatment, and rehabilitation while embracing the equally important ideas of accountability and public safety;
b. In 2006, the State established the Department of Children and Families to specifically address the needs of children who may be abused or neglected or in need of behavioral health or other specialized services;
c. It is, therefore, in the best interest of the State to further consolidate services for children under one State department and to transfer the Juvenile Justice Commission from in, but not of, the Department of Law and Public Safety, to in, but not of, the Department of Children and Families;
d. This transfer of the Juvenile Justice Commission will enable the State to better provide evidence-based treatment services that will: hold youth accountable for their actions; ensure the public's safety from crime; reduce recidivism rates; and lower the financial cost to treat and rehabilitate youth in the juvenile justice system; and
e. In order to ensure that the juvenile justice system is effective in meeting these goals, the operation of the Juvenile Justice Commission shall be based on the following beliefs and principles:
(1) Therapeutic jurisprudence and restorative justice, rather than punishment and isolation shall be the basis for the system;
(2) The safety of children under the care and custody of the Juvenile Justice Commission, and the community at large, shall be stressed;
(3) Children under the care and custody of the commission shall be treated as valued individuals and potentially productive members of society, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation;
(4) Children under the care and custody of the commission shall receive individualized treatment and case management services specific to a child's needs and circumstances;
(5) Intensive group, individual, and family counseling shall be an integral part of the treatment provided to all children in the State's juvenile detention facilities, not just those diagnosed with a mental illness; and
(6) The development and enhancement of appropriate services for the prevention of delinquency shall be encouraged through community partnerships.
2. Section 1 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-169) is amended to read as follows
1. [The] For the purposes of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-169 et seq.), the Legislature finds and declares:
a. The public safety requires reform of the juvenile justice system;
b. Juvenile arrests for murder, robbery, aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and aggravated assault have increased 38 percent between 1988 and 1993 and New Jersey ranks near the top nationally in the number of juvenile arrests for serious violent crimes;
c. Juvenile crime has become a leading cause of injury and death among young people;
d. Currently, preventive, deterrent and rehabilitative services and sanctions for juveniles are the responsibility of no less than three State departments: The Department of Law and Public Safety deals with county prosecutors and local police and implements prevention programs; the Department of Corrections operates the New Jersey Training School for Boys and the Juvenile Medium Security Facility, and its Bureau of Parole supervises juvenile parolees; and the Department of [Human Services] Children and Families operates residential and day programs in facilities for juveniles adjudicated delinquent;
e. The division of responsibility for the juvenile justice population and the limitations on resources available to meet ever-increasing demands for services provided by the Departments of [Human Services] Children and Families and Corrections have prevented the departments from maximizing efforts to meet the special needs of the juvenile justice population;
f. The juvenile justice system lacks services and sanctions short of incarceration, particularly in urban areas and for that reason, many juveniles are not held accountable until they have committed a series of increasingly serious criminal acts;
g. The special needs of juveniles can be addressed through services and sanctions provided at the county and local level;
h. The need to protect the public from criminal acts by juvenile offenders requires a comprehensive program and concerted action of governmental agencies and private organizations at the State, county and local level that permit effective response and avoid waste of scarce resources;
i. (1) The comprehensive program should provide a range of services and sanctions for juveniles sufficient to protect the public through prevention; early intervention; and a range of meaningful sanctions that ensure accountability, provide training, education, treatment and, when necessary, confinement followed by community supervision that is adequate to protect the public and promote successful reintegration into the community;
(2) Consistent with the need to protect the public, services and sanctions for juveniles shall provide balanced attention to the protection of the community, the imposition of accountability for offenses committed, fostering interaction and dialogue between the offender, victim and community and the development of competencies to enable juvenile offenders to become responsible and productive members of the community.
j. The most efficient and effective use of available resources requires fixing responsibility for the comprehensive program in a single State agency and providing incentives to encourage the development and provision of appropriate services and sanctions at the county and local level; and
k. It is, therefore, necessary to establish a Juvenile Justice Commission responsible for operating State services and sanctions for juveniles involved in the juvenile justice system and responsible for developing a Statewide plan for effective provision of juvenile justice services and sanctions at the State, county and local level; to establish a State/Community Partnership Grant Program through which the State will provide incentives to county and local governments to encourage the provision of services and sanctions for juveniles adjudicated or charged as delinquent and programs for the prevention of juvenile delinquency, and to establish county youth services commissions responsible for planning and implementing the Partnership at the local level.
(cf: P.L.2001, c.408, s.7)
3. Section 2 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-170) is amended to read as follows:
2. a. A Juvenile Justice Commission is established in, but not of, the Department of [Law and Public Safety] Children and Families. The commission is allocated to the Department of [Law and Public Safety] Children and Families for the purpose of complying with Article V, Section IV, paragraph 1 of the New Jersey Constitution. The [Attorney General] Commissioner of Children and Families shall be the request officer for the commission within the meaning of section 6 of article 3 of P.L.1944, c.112 (C.52:27B-15) and shall exercise that authority and other administrative functions, powers and duties consistent with the provisions of this act.
b. The commission shall consist of an executive director, an executive board, an advisory council and such facilities, officers, employees and organizational units as provided herein or as otherwise necessary to performance of the commission's duties and responsibilities.
c. The executive director shall be appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate and shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor during the Governor's term of office and until a successor is appointed and qualified.
d. The executive board shall consist of the following members: The [Attorney General] Commissioner of Children and Families, who shall serve as chair of the executive board; the Attorney General and the Commissioner of Corrections [and the Commissioner of Children and Families], who shall serve as vice-chairs of the executive board; the Commissioner of Education; the chair of the Juvenile Justice Commission advisory council, established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-172); and two members who serve as chairs of a county youth services commission, established pursuant to P.L.1995, c.282 (C.52:17B-180), to be appointed by the Governor to serve at the Governor's pleasure. The Administrative Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts is invited to participate on the executive board, subject to the approval of the Supreme Court. A member of the executive board may name a designee who shall have the authority to act for the member. Members of the executive board shall serve without compensation for their services to the commission. The executive board shall meet at least quarterly and at such other times as designated by the chair. Except with respect to matters concerning distribution of funds to counties, four members of the executive board shall constitute a quorum to transact business of the executive board and action of the executive board shall require an affirmative vote of four members. A member of the executive board who is also a member of a county youth services commission shall not participate in matters concerning distribution of funds to counties; in these matters, three members of the executive board shall constitute a quorum to transact business and an action of the executive board shall require an affirmative vote of three members.
e. The commission shall have the following powers, duties and responsibilities:
(1) To specify qualifications for and to employ, within the limits of available appropriations and subject to the provisions of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-169 et seq.) and Title 11A of the New Jersey Statutes, such staff as are necessary to accomplish the work of the commission or as are needed for the proper performance of the functions and duties of the commission, including but not limited to:
(a) The number of deputy directors, assistant directors, superintendents, assistant superintendents and other assistants who shall be in the unclassified service and shall be deemed confidential employees for the purposes of the "New Jersey Employer-Employee Relations Act," P.L.1941, c.100 (C.34:13A-1 et seq.); and
(b) Juvenile corrections officers;
(2) To utilize such staff of the Department of [Law and Public Safety] Children and Families as the [Attorney General] commissioner, within the limits of available appropriations, may make available to the commission;
(3) To organize the work of the commission in appropriate bureaus and other organization units;
(4) To enter into contracts and agreements with State, county and municipal governmental agencies and with private entities for the purpose of providing services and sanctions for juveniles adjudicated or charged as delinquent and programs for prevention of juvenile delinquency;
5) To contract for the services of professional and technical personnel and consultants as necessary to fulfill the statutory responsibilities of the commission;
(6) To establish minimum standards for the care, treatment, government and discipline of juveniles confined pending, or as a result of, an adjudication of delinquency;
(7) To assume the custody and care of all juveniles committed by court order, law, classification, regulation or contract to the custody of the commission or transferred to the custody of the commission pursuant to section 8 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-76);
(8) To manage and operate all State secure juvenile facilities which shall include the New Jersey Training School for Boys created pursuant to R.S.30:1-7 and transferred to the Commissioner of Corrections pursuant to section 8 of P.L.1976, c.98 (C.30:1B-8) and the Juvenile Medium Security Facility created pursuant to R.S.30:1-7 and both transferred to the commission pursuant to section 8 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-176) and shall include any other secure juvenile facility established by the commission in the future;
(9) To manage and operate all State juvenile facilities or juvenile programs for juveniles adjudicated delinquent which shall include facilities and programs transferred to the commission pursuant to section 8 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-176) or established or contracted for in the future by the commission;
(10) To prepare a State Juvenile Justice Master Plan every third year which identifies facilities, sanctions and services available for juveniles adjudicated or charged as delinquent and juvenile delinquency prevention programs and which identifies additional needs based upon the extent and nature of juvenile delinquency and the adequacy and effectiveness of available facilities, services, sanctions and programs;
(12) To administer the State/Community Partnership Grant Program established pursuant to P.L.1995, c.283 (C.52:17B-179);
(13) To accept from any governmental department or agency, public or private body or any other source, grants or contributions to be used in exercising its power, and in meeting its duties and responsibilities;
(14) To formulate and adopt standards and rules for the efficient conduct of the work of the commission, the facilities, services, sanctions and programs within its jurisdiction, and its officers and employees;
(15) To provide for the development of the facilities, services, sanctions and programs within its jurisdiction and to promote the integration of State, county and local facilities, sanctions, services and programs, including probation and parole;
(16) To institute, or cause to be instituted, such legal proceedings or processes as may be necessary to enforce properly and give effect to any of its powers or duties including the authority to compel by subpoena, subject to the sanction for contempt of subpoena issued by a court, attendance and production of records;
(17) To provide for the timely and efficient collection and analysis of data regarding the juvenile justice system to insure the continuing review and evaluation of services, policies and procedures;
(18) To receive and classify juveniles committed to the custody of the commission;
(19) To supervise compliance with conditions of parole;
(20) To establish appropriate dispositions of juveniles for whom parole has been revoked;
(21) To perform such other functions as may be prescribed by law; and
(22) To promulgate, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations necessary to implement and effectuate the purposes of this act.
(cf: P.L.2006, c.47, s.192)
4. Section 3 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-171) is amended to read as follows:
3. The functions, powers, duties and authority of the commission are allocated as follows:
a. The following shall be vested in the executive board and may not be delegated:
(1) Formulation of the policy and direction of the work of the commission to meet the purposes of this act;
(2) Approval of the organization of the work of the commission including establishment of appropriate subdivisions;
(3) Approval of the State Juvenile Justice Master Plan;
(4) Approval of the commission's budget for submission by the [Attorney General] Commissioner of Children and Families as request officer;
(5) Promulgation of all rules and regulations;
(6) Designation of an acting executive director to serve in the absence of the executive director, or, in the event of a vacancy in that office;
(7) Establishment of education and training requirements for juvenile corrections officers and other specialists that may be required for supervision of programs for juveniles under the custody or care of the commission following adjudication of delinquency or release from incarceration; and
(8) Establishing with the Supreme Court a mechanism for coordinating juvenile justice matters.
b. The executive director shall be responsible for the following:
(1) The supervision and management of each secure juvenile facility, juvenile facility and program operated by the commission and, except as provided in paragraph (3) of this subsection with respect to appointment of superintendents, the designation of the chief executive officer for each facility or program who shall be responsible to the executive director for the efficient, economical and proper operation of the facility and who shall exercise the authority to consent to treatment pursuant to sections 2 and 4 of P.L.1969, c.181 (C.30:4-7.2 and 30:4-7.4);
(2) The immediate supervision of the work of the commission and the day to day exercise and performance of the commission's functions, powers, duties and authority;
(3) With the approval of the executive board, the appointment of all deputy directors and superintendents.
c. All functions, powers, duties and authority of the commission set forth in subsection e. of section 2 of P.L.1995, c.284 (C.52:17B-170) not specifically allocated to the executive board or to the executive director shall reside in the executive board but may be delegated to the executive director at the discretion of the executive board.
(cf: P.L.1995, c.284, s.3)
5. (New section) Whenever in any law, rule regulation, order, contract, lease, document, judicial, or administrative proceeding or otherwise, reference is made to the Juvenile Justice Commission, established in, but not of, the Department of Law and Public Safety, the same shall mean and refer to the Juvenile Justice Commission established in, but not of, the Department of Children and Families pursuant to P.L., c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
6. (New section) All of the functions, powers and duties of the Juvenile Justice Commission established in, but not of, the Department of Law and Public Safety, and the power to receive, allocate, expend, and authorize the expenditure of federal moneys available to any juvenile adjudicated delinquent, or serving a term of incarceration in a county detention facility pursuant to section 24 of P.L.1982, c.77 (C.2A:4A-43), are hereby transferred and assigned to, assumed by, and devolved upon the Juvenile Justice Commission established in, but not of, the Department of Children and Families pursuant to P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill), in accordance with the "State Agency Transfer Act," P.L.1971, c.375 (C.52:14D-1 et seq.).
To effectuate such transfer there shall also be transferred such officers and employees as are necessary, all appropriations or reappropriations, to the extent of remaining unexpended or unencumbered balances thereof, whether allocated or unallocated and whether obligated or unobligated, and all necessary books, papers, records and property.
All rules, regulations, acts, determinations and decisions in force at the time of such transfer and proceedings or other such matters undertaken, commenced or pending by or before the Juvenile Justice Commission established in, but not of, the Department of Law and Public Safety at the time of such transfer shall continue in force and effect until duly modified, abrogated or completed by the Juvenile Justice Commission established in, but not of, the Department of Children and Families.
7. This act shall take effect on the 180th day of enactment, but the Executive Director of the Juvenile Justice Commission and the Commissioner of Children and Families may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
Current research finds that preventative and community-based programs help to effectively reduce juvenile crime and recidivism rates, and the country's juvenile justice systems are being reorganized based on the principles of protection, treatment, and rehabilitation while embracing the equally important ideas of accountability and public safety.
To ensure that services for children are consolidated under one State agency, whose focus is to meet the needs of children who may be abused or neglected or in need of behavioral health or other specialized services, this bill, therefore, transfers the Juvenile Justice Commission from in, but not of, the Department of Law and Public Safety to in, but not of, the Department of Children and Families.
The transfer will enable the State to better provide evidence-based treatment services to juvenile offenders, and to create a juvenile justice system based on the following beliefs and principles:
● Therapeutic jurisprudence and restorative justice, rather than punishment and isolation shall be the basis for the system;
● The safety of children under the care and custody of the Juvenile Justice Commission, and the community at large, shall be stressed;
● Children under the care and custody of the commission shall be treated as valued individuals and potentially productive members of society, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation;
● Children under the care and custody of the commission shall receive individualized treatment and case management services specific to a child's needs and circumstances;
● Intensive group, individual, and family counseling shall be an integral part of the treatment provided to all children in the State's juvenile detention facilities, not just those diagnosed with a mental illness; and
● The development and enhancement of appropriate services for the prevention of delinquency shall be encouraged through community partnerships.
The bill also changes certain references from the Department of Human Services to the Department of Children and Families to reflect the changes in responsibilities between the two departments as a result of the creation of the Department of Children and Families in 2006.
