[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 45 (Wednesday, April 16, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3286-S3288]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KOHL (for himself and Mr. Cochran):

  S. 596. A bill to authorize the Administrator of the Office of 
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the Department of 
Justice to make grants to States and units of local government to 
assist in providing secure facilities for violent and serious chronic 
juvenile offenders, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.


                    JUVENILE CORRECTIONS ACT OF 1997

  Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Juvenile Corrections 
Act of 1997, which I am proud to sponsor with my friend and colleague, 
Senator Cochran. The act dedicates approximately 10 percent of the 1994 
Crime Act's adult prison resources to the construction and operation of 
State and local juvenile corrections facilities.
  Juvenile violence, as we all know, is at the heart of the crime 
problem in America. Every 5 minutes a child is arrested for a violent 
crime in the United States; every 2 hours a child dies of a

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gunshot wound. Unfortunately, there is good reason to believe that this 
problem may get worse before it gets better. Demographics tell us that 
between now and the year 2000, the number of children between the ages 
of 14 to 7 will increase by more than 1 million. The likely result: a 
serious increase in the number of violent juvenile offenders in the 
coming years--above already unacceptable levels.
  Despite this state of affairs, the Federal Government has treated 
juvenile corrections as the poor stepchild of the Federal anticrime 
effort. The 1994 Crime Act contained billions of dollars for policing 
and adult prisons at the State and local level, but no significant 
program to help States alleviate the increasing burdens on their 
juvenile corrections systems.
  These burdens are real and substantial, Mr. President. Department of 
Justice surveys have indicated that many juvenile corrections 
facilities nationwide are seriously overcrowded and understaffed--in 
short, bursting at the seams. As a result of the increasing number of 
14 to 17 year olds we highlighted above, we will probably see even 
worse overcrowding in the future.
  Mr. President, the consequences of overcrowding should trouble us 
all. In part due to the combination of overcrowding and understaffing, 
juvenile offenders attacked detention facility staff 8,000 times in 
1993. In countless U.S. cities, juvenile offenders who require 
detention are nonetheless released into the community because of a lack 
of space. And finally, it is clear that overcrowding breeds violence 
and ever more violent juvenile offenders who, when eventually released, 
are much more dangerous to society than when they were first 
institutionalized.
  For all these reasons, we introduce today the Juvenile Corrections 
Act. Our legislation provides crucial assistance--over $790 million in 
funding over 3 years--to State and local governments for the 
construction, expansion, and operation of juvenile corrections 
facilities and programs. And, I should note, the Act has no impact on 
the deficit, as it draws its funding from the $10 billion adult 
corrections component of the 1994 Crime Act.
  Mr. President, we cannot afford to turn a blind eye to the juvenile 
corrections problem. So I hope my colleagues will join with me and 
Senator Cochran to enact the Juvenile Corrections Act. In light of the 
spiraling juvenile violence problem, we believe it makes good sense to 
dedicate roughly 10 percent of the Crime Act's adult prison resources 
to State and local juvenile corrections.
  I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the legislation be printed in 
the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 596

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Juvenile Corrections Act of 
     1997''.

     SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR FACILITIES FOR VIOLENT AND SERIOUS CHRONIC 
                   JUVENILE OFFENDERS.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section--
       (1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of 
     the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of 
     the Department of Justice;
       (2) the term ``combination'' has the same meaning as in 
     section 103 of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
     Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5603);
       (3) the term ``juvenile delinquency program'' has the same 
     meaning as in section 103 of the Juvenile Justice and 
     Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5603);
       (4) the term ``qualifying State'' means a State that has 
     submitted, or a State in which an eligible unit of local 
     government has submitted, a grant application that meets the 
     requirements of subsections (c) and (e);
       (5) the terms ``secure detention facility'' and ``secure 
     correctional facility'' have the same meanings as in section 
     103 of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 
     1974 (42 U.S.C. 5603);
       (6) the term ``State'' means a State, the District of 
     Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States 
     Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern 
     Mariana Islands; and
       (7) the term ``unit of local government'' has the same 
     meaning as in section 103 of the Juvenile Justice and 
     Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5603).
       (b) Authorization of Grants.--The Administrator may make 
     grants to States and units of local government, or 
     combinations thereof, to assist them in planning, 
     establishing, and operating secure detention facilities, 
     secure correctional facilities, and other facilities and 
     programs for violent juveniles and serious chronic juvenile 
     offenders who are accused of or who have been adjudicated as 
     having committed one or more offenses.
       (c) Applications.--
       (1) In general.--The chief executive officer of a State or 
     unit of local government that seeks to receive a grant under 
     this section shall submit to the Administrator an 
     application, in such form and in such manner as the 
     Administrator may prescribe.
       (2) Contents.--Each application submitted under paragraph 
     (1) shall--
       (A) provide assurances that each facility or program funded 
     with a grant under this section will provide appropriate 
     educational and vocational training and substance abuse 
     treatment for juvenile offenders; and
       (B) provide assurances that each facility or program funded 
     with a grant under this section will afford juvenile 
     offenders intensive post-release supervision and services.
       (d) Minimum Amount.--Of the total amount made available 
     under subsection (g) to carry out this section in any fiscal 
     year--
       (1) except as provided in paragraph (2), each qualifying 
     State, together with units of local government within the 
     State, shall be allocated not less than 1.0 percent; and
       (2) the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, 
     and the Northern Mariana Islands shall each be allocated 0.2 
     percent.
       (e) Performance Evaluation.--
       (1) Evaluation components.--
       (A) In general.--Each facility or program funded with a 
     grant under this section shall contain an evaluation 
     component developed pursuant to guidelines established by the 
     Administrator.
       (B) Outcome measures.--Each evaluation required by this 
     subsection shall include outcome measures that can be used to 
     determine the effectiveness of each program funded with grant 
     under this section, including the effectiveness of the 
     program in comparison with other juvenile delinquency 
     programs in reducing the incidence of recidivism, and other 
     outcome measures.
       (2) Periodic review and reports.--
       (A) Review.--The Administrator shall review the performance 
     of each recipient of a grant under this section.
       (B) Reports.--The Administrator may require a grant 
     recipient to submit to the Office of Juvenile Justice and 
     Delinquency Prevention of the Department of Justice the 
     results of the evaluations required under paragraph (1) and 
     such other data and information as may be reasonably 
     necessary to carry out the Administrator's responsibilities 
     under this section.
       (f) Technical Assistance and Training.--The Administrator 
     shall provide technical assistance and training to each 
     recipient of a grant under this section to assist those 
     recipients in achieving the purposes of this section.
       (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section--
       (1) $252,700,000 for fiscal year 1998;
       (2) $266,000,000 for fiscal year 1999; and
       (3) $275,310,000 for fiscal year 2000.

     SEC. 3. COMPENSATING REDUCTION OF AUTHORIZATION OF 
                   APPROPRIATIONS.

       Section 20108(a)(1) of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
     Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13708(a)(1)) is amended by 
     striking subparagraphs (C) through (E) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(C) $2,274,300,000 for fiscal year 1998;
       ``(D) $2,394,000,000 for fiscal year 1999; and
       ``(E) $2,477,790,000 for fiscal year 2000.''.

     SEC. 4. REPORT ON ACCOUNTABILITY AND PERFORMANCE MEASURES IN 
                   JUVENILE CORRECTIONS PROGRAMS.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall, after 
     consultation with the National Institute of Justice and other 
     appropriate governmental and nongovernmental organizations, 
     submit to Congress a report regarding the possible use of 
     performance-based criteria in evaluating and improving the 
     effectiveness of juvenile delinquency programs.
       (b) Contents.--The report required under this section shall 
     include an analysis of--
       (1) the range of performance-based measures that might be 
     utilized as evaluation criteria, including measures of 
     recidivism among juveniles who have been incarcerated in a 
     secure correctional facility or a secure detention facility, 
     or who have participated in a juvenile delinquency program;
       (2) the feasibility of linking Federal juvenile corrections 
     funding to the satisfaction of performance-based criteria by 
     grantees (including the use of a Federal matching mechanism 
     under which the share of Federal funding would vary in 
     relation to the performance of a facility or program);
       (3) whether, and to what extent, the data necessary for the 
     Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the 
     Department of Justice to utilize performance-based criteria 
     in its administration of juvenile delinquency programs are 
     collected and reported nationally; and
       (4) the estimated cost and feasibility of establishing 
     minimal, uniform data collection and reporting standards 
     nationwide that would allow for the use of performance-based 
     criteria in evaluating secure correctional facilities, secure 
     detention facilities, and juvenile delinquency programs and 
     in administering amounts appropriated for Federal juvenile 
     delinquency programs.

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