"Nearly $100 million in state funding that’s supposed to be spent on programs to keep Los Angeles County kids out of trouble with the law is instead stuck in the Probation Department."...."For at least a decade, money allocated to counties under the Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Act, signed into law in 2000, trickled too slowly or not at all to L.A. community groups offering approved programs." - Los Angeles Times
This money is for our kids.
This issue is not a new problem. LA County Probation has been under-spending its Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Funds for at least a decade. Despite great efforts by advocates and watchdogs to bring attention to this issue, the County has neglected to take the necessary steps to really solve this issue.
One frequently mentioned obstacle is government bureaucracy-- data analysis, reporting, sharing of information. "The Probation Department and L.A. County administration are lumbering bureaucracies so caught up in details that they sometimes lose sight of their missions." [1] While that may be true, this has not stopped the state from distributing crime prevention funds to nonprofits and county agencies through other models in the past. These models, if followed, could ensure appropriate spending and accountability for those agencies that receive funds. By following the lead of pre-existing and effective models, funds can finally begin to contribute to public safety and youth wellbeing.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Please call on the Board of Supervisors to ensure appropriate use of tax payer dollars. Insist these funds get transferred to the Department of Youth Development and get contracted out to community based services promptly, to fulfil the promise of Youth Justice Reimagined. Youth Justice Reimagined is a county-adopted plan to implement youth justice based on what research finds is most effective.
Hilda Solis - District 1: 213-974-1111; [email protected]
Holly Mitchell - District 2: 213-974-2222; [email protected]
Lindsay Horvath - District 3: 213-974-3333; [email protected]
Janice Hahn - District 4: 213-974-4444; [email protected]
Kathryn Barger - District 5: 213-974-5555; [email protected]
Don't know what Supervisorial District you live in? Find out here.