Bill Text: CA AB8 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Division of Juvenile Justice: facilities: closures.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-02-01 - Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution. From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB8 Detail]
Download: California-2011-AB8-Introduced.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 8 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Huber
DECEMBER 6, 2010
An act relating to juvenile justice, and declaring the urgency
thereof, to take effect immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 8, as introduced, Huber. Division of Juvenile Justice:
facilities: closures.
Existing law establishes within the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, under the Chief Deputy Secretary for Juvenile
Justice, the Division of Juvenile Facilities, the Division of
Juvenile Programs, and the Division of Juvenile Parole Operations,
which operate the statewide system governing wards of the court and
other persons committed to the department, and the detention,
rehabilitation, probation, and parole thereof. Existing law states
that the establishment, organization, jurisdiction, powers, duties,
responsibilities, and functions of the former Youth Authority are
continued in the Division of Juvenile Facilities.
This bill would prohibit the Division of Juvenile Facilities from
closing any youth correctional facility for a period of 6 months from
the effective date of this bill. The bill would state that it is
expected that ongoing activity levels at each division facility shall
equal activity levels in place immediately prior to October 20,
2010, and that the number of employees also be maintained at those
levels during this period, as specified.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.
Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has announced
plans to close the Preston Youth Correctional Facility.
(2) The process by which the Preston Youth Correctional Facility
was chosen to be shut down remains unclear despite numerous public
hearings. Answers are needed before the closure can be allowed to
continue.
(3) The Preston Youth Correctional Facility is routinely cited as
an example for other facilities and their staff to follow regarding
how to properly rehabilitate and manage the youth offender
population.
(4) The Preston Youth Correctional Facility is the most compliant
with the consent decree issued in Farrell v. Cate. As detailed in the
department's August 10, 2010, Farrell v. Cate Quarterly Compliance
Report, the Preston Youth Correctional Facility's 90.9-percent
compliance rate with Farrell v. Cate-related audit items is the
highest compliance level of any facility within the Division of
Juvenile Facilities.
(5) Closure of the Preston Youth Correctional Facility will also
require the termination of the Ward Incentive Program, which is a
major component in Farrell v. Cate compliance. Terminating this
program will push the state backwards rather than forward with
Farrell v. Cate compliance.
(6) The Preston Youth Correctional Facility is the only facility
to provide an open environment for rehabilitation and offers programs
that other facilities do not provide.
(7) The James A. Wieden High School at the Preston Youth
Correctional Facility has a 90-percent graduation rate, which is
higher than the graduation rate at any other division facility.
(8) Officials from the division have testified that the closure of
the Preston Youth Correctional Facility will not provide any
immediate cost savings.
(9) In addition to losing a successful youth correctional
facility, the economic impact on the City of Ione and to the County
of Amador will be significant. The county has already suffered
numerous large business closures. With the department being the
largest employer in the county, the closure of the Preston Youth
Correctional Facility will be devastating.
(b) In light of the transfer of many juveniles to county custody,
the Legislature is mindful that there is a need for the Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Facilities to
downsize in order to meet the needs of a smaller population and
budget constraints. Accordingly, it is the intent of the Legislature
to shed light on the decisions being made within the department and
the division to ensure an orderly downsizing of the remaining
facilities and to provide information on how to best serve a
dwindling juvenile offender population.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature to put an immediate halt
to the closing of any youth correctional facility, including the
Preston Youth Correctional Facility in the City of Ione, by the
department or the division until the process and procedures that the
department and division are using for downsizing the remaining
facilities have been made clear and have been scrutinized. If the
Preston Youth Correctional Facility or any other facility is slated
for closure, it shall be after a transparent and open process that
addresses the economic impact of the closure. Each facility shall be
analyzed for closure, and the analysis shall identify the benefits
and risks to the wards, the public, and the local community.
SEC. 2. (a) The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation,
Division of Juvenile Facilities shall not close any youth
correctional facility during the six-month period following the
effective date of this act.
(b) It is expected that during the period specified in subdivision
(a), ongoing activity levels at each division facility shall equal
the activity levels that were in place immediately prior to October
20, 2010, when the department announced its plans to close the
Preston Youth Correctional Facility, and that the number of wardens,
teachers, officers, administrators, support staff, and other
employees needed to run the facilities and programs shall likewise be
maintained at those levels during that period. Wards shall not be
transferred from a facility for the purpose of decreasing population
levels at that facility.
SEC. 3. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has announced
plans to close the Preston Youth Correctional Facility in the City of
Ione. Closure of this facility will impact the state's Farrell v.
Cate compliance and will be devastating to the economy of Amador
County. Time is needed to address the economic impact of the closure
and to identify what factors were considered by the department in
reaching its decision.
