SECTION 67 - N120 - DEPARTMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE

67.1. (DJJ: Meal Ticket Revenue) The revenue generated from sale of meal tickets by the Department of Juvenile Justice shall be retained and carried forward into the current fiscal year by the agency and expended for the operation of the agencys cafeterias and food service programs.

67.2. (DJJ: Interstate Compact Revenue) The revenue returned to the Interstate Compact Program shall be retained and carried forward into the current fiscal year by the agency and expended for the operation of the program.

67.3. (DJJ: Childrens Projects Revenue) Funds generated from the projects undertaken by children under the supervision of the Department of Juvenile Justice may be retained by the department and utilized for the benefit of those children. Such funds may be carried forward into the following fiscal year.

67.4. (DJJ: Instructional Salaries) The certified instructional personnel of the Department of Juvenile Justice shall receive a percentage increase in their annual salary for the current fiscal year equal to the percentage allocated to the instructional personnel throughout the State.

67.5. (DJJ: Reimbursements for Expenditures) The Department of Juvenile Justice may retain for general operating purposes any reimbursement of funds for expenses incurred in a prior fiscal year.

67.6. (DJJ: Juvenile Arbitration/Community Advocacy Program) The amount appropriated and authorized in this section for the Juvenile Arbitration Program shall be retained and expended by the Department of Juvenile Justice for the purpose of providing juvenile arbitration services through the sixteen Judicial Circuit Solicitors offices in the state and used to fund necessary administrative and personnel costs for the programs.

The Department of Juvenile Justice shall contract with Solicitors to administer the Juvenile Arbitration Program and disburse up to $60,000 per Judicial Circuit based on services rendered. The amount payable to Solicitors may vary based on consistent adherence to established statewide program guidelines to assess program performance.

The $250,000 appropriated for the Community Advocacy Program in the first Judicial Circuit, will be used to fund necessary administrative and personnel costs for this status offender diversion program. The Department of Juvenile Justice shall monitor and provide support to this program.

All unexpended funds may be retained and carried forward from the prior fiscal year to be used for the same purposes.

67.7. (DJJ: Sale of Real Property) After receiving approval from the Department of Administration or State Fiscal Accountability Authority, for the sale of property, the department is authorized to retain revenues associated with the sale of department-owned real property and may expend these funds on capital improvements reviewed by the Joint Bond Review Committee and approved by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority.

67.8. (DJJ: Sale of Timber) The Department of Juvenile Justice is hereby authorized to sell mature trees and other timber suitable for commercial purposes from lands owned by the department. Prior to such sales, the director shall consult with the State Forester to determine economic and environmental feasibility and to obtain approval for such sales. Funds derived from timber sales shall be retained and utilized for family support services after setting aside a reasonable amount, as determined by the State Forester, for reforestation of the lands from which the trees and timber are sold.

67.9. (DJJ: Drug Free Workplace) The critical mission of the Department of Juvenile Justice requires a safe and drug free work environment. In order to accomplish this, the department may conduct and pay for the cost of pre-employment drug testing and random employee drug testing. The department is authorized to expend funds in order to provide or procure these services.

67.10. (DJJ: Definition of Juveniles) The Department of Juvenile Justice is authorized to place juveniles in marine and wilderness programs or other community residence programs operated by nongovernmental entities. Juveniles receiving services in these community residence programs must either be referred to such a program by the Family Court as a condition of probation, released to such a program by the Board of Juvenile Parole, or voluntarily agree to be assigned and released to such a program by the Department of Juvenile Justice.

67.11. (DJJ: Adult Education - GED) Juveniles committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice who have been enrolled in, but not yet completed, a GED educational program while at the department, at the discretion of the local school district, upon release from the department shall be allowed to enroll in either the juveniles local school districts regular education program, in their appropriate grade placement, or allowed to enroll in that districts or countys adult education program. If enrolled in an adult education program, the juveniles eligibility for taking the GED shall be based upon the regulations promulgated by the Department of Education for youth who are confined in, or under the custody of, the Department of Juvenile Justice.

67.12. (DJJ: Local District Effort) Upon commitment or confinement to a Department of Juvenile Justice facility, the school district in which that child resides shall pay an amount equivalent to the statewide average of the local base student cost (thirty percent), multiplied by the appropriate pupil weighting set forth in Section 59-20-40, for instructional services provided to out-of-district students to the Department of Juvenile Justice for the time period in which the child is committed or confined to a department facility. EFA funding for school districts is provided for a one hundred eighty day school year. The billing provided by the department shall be calculated by dividing the local base student cost by two hundred twenty-five days to determine the daily rate. The department shall notify the school district in writing within forty-five calendar days that a student from the nonresident district is receiving education services pursuant to this provision. The notice shall also contain the students name, date of birth, disabling condition if available, and dates of service.

The invoice shall be paid within sixty days of billing, provided the department has provided a copy of the invoice to both the superintendent and the finance office of the school district being invoiced. Should the school district fail to pay the invoice within sixty days, the department can seek relief from the Department of Education. The Department of Education shall withhold EFA funding equal to the billing from the district refusing to pay and submit the funding (equal to the invoice) to the department. If adequate funding is not received, the department shall have the flexibility to use funds from other programmatic areas to maintain an appropriate level of service.

67.13. (DJJ: Early Release Authorization) In order to avoid unconstitutional levels of overcrowding and other unconstitutional conditions from occurring in facilities operated by the department and in residential programs operated for the department, the number of children housed in residential placements (either committed to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice or who are under the departments supervision) shall not exceed the number of beds available to the department to house them. Should appropriation reductions necessitate that the department close any additional facility, program, or housing unit it operates, or to be unable to fund any additional residential program operated for its benefit, the department is authorized and empowered to release from its residential placements sufficient numbers of children committed to its custody or supervision for a status offense, a misdemeanor offense, other than Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature and Assault with Intent to Kill, or for violation of probation/contempt of a status offense or a misdemeanor offense, other than Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature and Assault with Intent to Kill, so that the number of children in its custody or under its supervision and placed in these residential placements does not exceed the number of housing units/beds available to properly house those children. No child adjudicated delinquent for a violent crime as defined in Section 16-1-60 of the 1976 Code, a felony offense as defined in Section 16-1-90 of the 1976 Code, or a sexual offense shall be released pursuant to this proviso.

67.14. (DJJ: Raise the Age) The department must use carry forward funds to implement Act 268 of 2016 by contracting in the current fiscal year with local child-serving non-profit organizations and Judicial Circuit Solicitors offices for community-based diversion and intervention services. The department shall give preference to multi-agency and organizational collaborations that include stakeholders from the Family Court, Department of Education, Public Defenders Offices, the Department of Mental Health, the Department of Social Services, and community based non-profits that utilize best practices.