Shaquita Ogletree
CWLA has joined a number of organizations signing onto a letter urging Congress to reauthorize H.R. 494, The Tiffany Joslyn Juvenile Accountability Block Grant (JABG) Program. The letter circulated by the National Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Coalition (NJJDPC) and can be read here.
The JABG program reduces juvenile offending through a range of graduated sanctions that holds the juvenile justice system and the youth accountable for the offenses. Funding for JABG is important in helping states to update the current research and practices that are grounded in positive youth development, trauma-informed, prevention and intervention, and evidence-based.
The Juvenile Justice Accountability Block Grant was last funded in 2013 and federal support for juvenile justice in general has seen a 50% decrease over the past decade. The coalition is requesting for JABG to be funded at $30 million for the next five years.