[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 26 (Thursday, February 29, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1456-S1458]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LEAHY (for himself and Mr. Simon):
  S. 1582. A bill to reauthorize the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act and 
the Missing Children's Assistance Act, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.


                      Reauthorization Legislation

 Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, today I am joining with Senator 
Simon to introduce a bill reauthorizing a number of worthwhile programs 
that serve young people and their families in Vermont and across the 
country. In particular, I am referring to the Runaway and Homeless 
Youth Act, the Missing Children's Assistance Act, and related programs, 
whose authorizations are expiring later this year.
  A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of meeting with Frances Dodd, 
coordinator of the Vermont Coalition of Runaway and Homeless Youth 
programs. The Vermont Coalition is a community-based network comprised 
of eight member programs that provide crisis response, emergency 
shelter, counseling, and other services to troubled youth throughout 
nine Vermont counties. This meeting also included a number of young 
Vermonters who knew first-hand the value of providing shelters and 
support for young people facing difficult times. I came away from that 
meeting more convinced than ever that the Federal assistance provided 
by the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act continues to make an important 
difference in the lives of our young people and to play a critical role 
in reuniting families.
  Those who provide services pursuant to these programs and those who 
are the beneficiaries of those services are far too important to be 
left hanging. In a Congress in which the budget and appropriations 
processes have given way to short-lived spending authority, they all 
deserve the reassurance of reauthorization and a commitment to funding. 
Only then will our State youth service bureaus and other shelter and 
service providers be able to plan, design and implement the local 
programs necessary to make the goals of the act a reality.
  In 1974, Congress passed the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act as title 
III of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act. The 
inclusion of the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act in this legislation 
recognized that young people who were effectively homeless were in need 
of shelter, guidance and supervision, rather than punishment, and 
should be united with their families wherever possible.
  Since 1974, the programs that make up the Runaway and Homeless Youth 
Act have evolved to meet the complex problems faced by our young 
people, their families and our communities. Over the last decade, as a 
nation, we have witnessed an increase in teen pregnancy rates, drug and 
alcohol abuse beginning as early as grade school, child physical and 
sexual abuse, and a soaring youth suicide rate.
  Today, the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act encompasses basic center 
grants, the transitional living program and drug abuse prevention 
program. These programs are vital to meeting the needs of troubled 
youth in rural Vermont and across the Nation. While the actual numbers 
of young people who run away or become homeless in rural areas might be 
small in comparison to that of large cities, emergency shelter and 
other services must still be accessible. It is an unfortunate reality 
that urban and rural youth can experience family conflict, and physical 
or sexual abuse.
  The majority of these programs in my home State are coordinated 
through the Vermont Coalition. Young people find these services through 
friends and family as well as through referrals by police and our court 
diversion program.
  Our Vermont programs and services have been very successful. Last 
year, for example 87 percent of runaways returned home or to a positive 
living situation after receiving services. Only 7 percent of those 
served in 1995 had new State social service cases open and less than 1 
percent ended up in police custody. Since 1993, there has been a 42-
percent increase in the total number of youths served by Vermont's 
programs. In 1995, these programs reached over 700 young people and 
over 1000 family members.
  Two years ago, the Vermont Coalition was awarded a Federal rural 
demonstration grant to assist counties that lack adequate services for 
runaway youth in developing responsive programs. Through this grant, 
the Vermont Coalition was able to identify underserved counties, draw 
upon the expertise of its many programs and help develop programs for 
three additional Vermont counties in which services are now emerging.
  Since 1989, the transitional living program, which was developed by 
my colleague, Senator Simon, has filled a gap in the needs of older 
youth to help them make the transition to independent living 
situations. I know how hard Senator Simon worked on creating this 
important program and I look forward to working with him now to 
continue it.
  The programs we seek to reauthorize include those directed at young 
people who have had some kind of alcohol or other drug problem. The 
isolation in rural areas can lead to serious substance abuse problems. 
It is difficult to reach young people in rural areas and it is 
difficult for them to find the services they need. In Vermont, these 
drug abuse prevention programs provide essential outreach services. 

[[Page S1457]]

  Providing these types of community-based services to runaway and 
homeless youth seems to me to make good economic sense. We need only 
compare the cost of these programs to other services often needed by 
young people experiencing serious family conflict and associated social 
difficulties. Neglecting the needs of runaway and homeless youth and 
their families would have staggering economic implications. In Vermont, 
the average cost of services to youth by the Vermont Coalition of 
Runaway Youth Programs is $1,895. Compare this with $18,392, the 
average annual cost of maintaining someone in State custody through the 
social services department; the $50,000 it would cost to place someone 
in a substance abuse treatment facility; or the $60,000 a year it costs 
to incarcerate someone.
  I receive letters from parents whose families have been kept together 
with the assistance of runaway and homeless programs as well as from 
young people who have been helped by these services. In one, a mother 
wrote of a program in the Northeast Kingdom:

       My teenage daughter ran away this spring. I feel fortunate 
     to have been able to call upon the [Northeast Kingdom Youth 
     Services] programs. I credit the quick, compassionate 
     response by [the] on-call worker, with keeping my daughter 
     out of state custody. Careful, immediate intervention was the 
     key in helping my daughter feel comfortable about remaining 
     at home. [Your] ongoing efforts to mediate issues which 
     continue to arise have kept our family together.

  These service providers are being challenged as never before with an 
increasingly complex set of problems affecting young people and their 
families. Now is not the time to abandon them. There is consensus among 
services providers that young people seeking services and their 
families are increasingly more troubled--as evidenced by reports of 
family violence, substance abuse and the effects of an array of 
economic pressures. These services may well be the key to breaking 
through the isolation of street youth, their mistrust of adults, and 
their reluctance to get involved with public or private providers.
  Among the other critical programs reauthorized by our bill is the 
Missing Children's Assistance Act. Since its initial passage in 1984, 
we have made real progress on the tragedy of missing and exploited 
children. A national coordinated effort has proved essential in facing 
these problems. I understand that in Vermont alone there have been more 
than 30 cases of missing children resolved. Those children and their 
families know the value of this program.
  This month, Senator Thompson has begun a series of hearings before 
the subcommittee on Youth Violence. I look forward to working with him 
and with Senator Biden, the ranking member on the subcommittee and on 
the Judiciary Committee, and our other colleagues in connection with 
these matters. In addition to the critical role that Senator Biden is 
playing, Senator Kennedy and Senator Kohl have long been supporters of 
the juvenile justice and delinquency prevention programs. Senator 
Specter has been actively involved in these matters for more than a 
decade, formerly chaired the Juvenile Justice Subcommittee and 
currently chairs the Appropriations Subcommittee with jurisdiction over 
many of these programs.
  In light of the ongoing hearings and in deference to our colleagues 
who lead the subcommittee, we have chosen not to include the title II 
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act programs in this 
reauthorization bill at this time. I understand that our colleagues, 
the administration, State program officers, the Ad Hoc Coalition on 
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and other groups are all 
currently developing proposals for the reauthorization of the Juvenile 
Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act. We look forward to 
consideration of those proposals and to working together to continue 
the bipartisan traditional that has always attended this program. While 
we all need to work together to address the rise in serious, violent 
juvenile crime and the need to enhance public safety, I believe that we 
can do so while still preserving the essential elements of the act.
  The Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act has helped foster 
strides nationwide through a series of funded mandates. Throughout the 
United States, the number of violations of the deinstitutionalization 
mandate for status offenders and non-offenders has been reduced from 
171,581 to 3,146 among the participating States. In 1994, 55 States and 
territories participated in the program and only three received reduced 
funding because of compliance issues.
  Over a decade ago, the Vermont General Assembly established the 
Children and Family Council for Prevention programs, which is the 
designated State advisory group that monitors and distributes our funds 
under the title II block grant. The Vermont co-chairs of the council, 
Ken Schatz and Pamela Smith, and its other members encourage community 
involvement in the development of effective prevention programs that 
promote the health and increase the self-reliance of Vermont children 
and families. I look forward to working closely with the council on the 
reauthorization of the title II programs.
  In June 1993, the council used Federal assistance under the act to 
sponsor a youthful offender study project. The ensuing report 
recommended the development of a youthful offender program, which won 
the endorsement of the Vermont Department of Corrections and the 
Department of Social Rehabilitative Services. The council is now 
funding projects with Federal assistance to implement this 
recommendation.
  In 1994, the council developed Vermont's 3-year plan for the formula 
grant monies by identifying State priority areas. The largest portion 
of juvenile justice and delinquency prevention funding is a State block 
grant program, not a one-size-fits-all solution. In Vermont, the 
priorities are violent family functioning, the lack of treatment 
resources for violent youthful offenders and the need to improve the 
juvenile justice system. Over the last decade, Vermont has seen a 
substantial increase in reported violence against women and children. 
The council's plan allowed it to target this problem. The decrease in 
substantial cases of child abuse last year signals that the State's 
prevention efforts are making a difference.
  Using its Federal assistance, Vermont has made great progress in 
improving the juvenile justice system in recent years. These funds 
enable Vermont to replicate initiatives that are working across the 
State. Typically, the Federal funding is leveraged with State and 
private funds to support these efforts. Vermont's formula grant has 
gone to support such projects as community-based treatment, court 
diversion, diversity training, pilot programs on juvenile restitution, 
its Families First program, its Caring Communities program and teen 
centers where young people can gather in a safe, supervised environment 
for socializing, group activities and educational events. One Vermont 
youthful offender noted:

       The Diversion program works. The board's faith in me gave 
     me something to live up to and gave me confidence. They 
     trusted me at a time when almost all the trust I ever had was 
     gone, and they gave me one extra chance and that one extra 
     bit of trust that I needed.

  Through the programs which make up the Juvenile Justice and 
Delinquency Prevention Act, the Federal response to the problems of our 
youth has become comprehensive and collaborative. The Federal technical 
and financial resources have enabled States to undertake a number of 
system-wide improvements. The bill that we are introducing today 
recognizes the importance of a nonpunitive system for vulnerable youth.
  In my view, the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act and the other Juvenile 
Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act programs are working in Vermont 
and ought to be continued. Given the short time left in this Congress, 
I believe that changes proposed to the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention Act will have to be those around which a consensus can be 
obtained very quickly if we are to meet our goal of reauthorizing it 
before the end of the year.
 Mr. SIMON. Mr. President, this is the year that the Juvenile 
Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act needs to be reauthorized. This 
important act has vastly improved our handling of juveniles in our 
criminal justice system, and has provided funding for services to some 
of the most vulnerable young people in our society. 

[[Page S1458]]

  Today, Senator Leahy and I are introducing a bill to reauthorize the 
runaway and homeless youth sections of the act. Although I feel 
strongly that the entire Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 
Act should be reauthorized, I understand that Senators Thompson and 
Biden, chairman and ranking member of the Juvenile Violence 
Subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee, are holding hearings on 
the rest of the act. I applaud their work to examine these issues and 
construct a reauthorization plan, however I want to introduce this bill 
because the runaway and homeless youth parts of the act are 
particularly important to me.
  In 1988, I held a hearing in Chicago on the problem of homeless 
youth. As a result of that hearing, I sponsored the Transitional Living 
Program. The Transitional Living Program was designed to fill a gap in 
the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act. The basic centers part of the act 
provides grants to community centers which provide temporary shelter 
and services to runaways while they try to reunite with their families 
or are placed in a foster home. Unfortunately, as I discovered during 
my 1988 hearing, many young people never return to their family homes, 
largely because of neglect and abuse, but are too old to be placed with 
a foster family. These young people were not being adequately served by 
the temporary shelters which help so many others.
  The Transitional Living Program awards new-start grants to community 
projects which provide longer-term residential services to older 
homeless youth ages 16 through 21. Nonprofit, community-based grantees 
teach these young people independent living skills to prepare them to 
live on their own. Young people live in host family homes, group 
houses, or in supervised apartments, and receive guidance from 
counselors to help them make the transition to independent living. The 
goal of this program is to help these young people live productive, 
self-sufficient lives, and prevent future dependency on social 
services. The total annual appropriations for this program has been 
approximately $12 million. That investment has assisted countless young 
people who otherwise would have found themselves on the street with no 
one to provide the support and resources they need to live 
independently.
  In 1988, a third component of the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act was 
also added. This Drug Abuse Prevention Program [DAPP] for runaway and 
homeless youth was initiated because of the recognition that drugs play 
a large role in these young people's lives. Their difficult living 
situations make them particularly vulnerable to the dangers of drug 
use, and such drug use severely hinders efforts to improve their 
circumstances. As anyone working in this field will testify, drug 
prevention and treatment are an essential element of any efforts to 
help runaway and homeless youth. Unfortunately, this DAPP component of 
the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, along with a companion DAPP program 
for youth gangs, was not reauthorized last year and did not receive any 
funding this year. This bill recognizes the destructive role of illicit 
drug use in these young people's lives, and reauthorizes both of these 
essential programs.
  Finally, this bill reauthorizes the National Center for Missing and 
Exploited Children. This center, created in 1984, provides important 
services to the thousands of families who face the devastating, 
mysterious loss of a child. The center operates a toll-free number to 
gather tips about missing children, coordinates Federal, State and 
local efforts to locate missing children, serves as a clearinghouse of 
information on successful service and research efforts, provides grants 
to local agencies for research and service efforts and conducts a 
regular survey on the number of missing children. This center has 
helped us as a nation understand the scope of this problem and has 
helped families locate missing children. Unfortunately, the problem of 
missing children continues, as President Clinton recognized on January 
19, 1996, when he signed an order instructing Federal agencies to post 
missing-children posters in Federal buildings. The National Center for 
Missing and Exploited Children performs an essential function and 
should be reauthorized.
  Mr. President, this bill should not be considered a substitute for a 
complete reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention Act. I support the efforts of Senators Thompson, and Biden, 
and look forward to working with them to reauthorize the act. However, 
Senator Leahy and I agree that the runaway and homeless youth part of 
the act provide essential support for a most vulnerable group of young 
people. Our bill is meant to highlight our support for these programs 
and our belief that they should be reauthorized.
                                 ______