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"Increasing Capacity for Community Corrections" is the theme of the 2010 ICCA Public Policy Forum, March 22-24, 2010 at the DoubleTree Hotel. Hill staff, agency representatives and advocates will be on hand for in-depth discussions of pending legislation, emerging issues and Federal initiatives. The meeting opens with a welcome reception and ends with organized visits to elected officials on Capitol Hill. Come make a difference! POST YOUR RESUME FOR FREE The ICCA website offers a Career Center where you can post your resume at no cost. Potential employers post available positions from time to time and can peruse your resume while you check on job openings. Simple! Free! PLAN YOUR HOLIDAY TRAVEL See that flashy icon on the ICCA homepage? Click through that portal to travel, shopping and more that saves you money while you contribute painlessly to ICCA and its programs. MEMBERSHIP SURVEY ICCA is querying its members about what they want, need and expect from ICCA as an organization, and now we want to know what potential (and former!) members are thinking, too! Please take a moment to fill out the simple electronic survey and help guide our future planning. Thank you! SECOND CHANCE APPROPRIATIONS PASSED On Thursday, November 5, 2009, the U.S. Senate approved an appropriations bill for the Department of Justice for fiscal year 2010 (H.R. 2847) that provides $64 million for prisoner reentry, including $50 million for Second Chance Act programs and $14 million for reentry initiatives in the federal Bureau of Prisons. The version of the bill that passed the House of Representatives in June provides $114 million for prisoner reentry, including $100 million for Second Chance Act programs. The Senate appropriations bill also provides $10 million for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA), while the House version provides $12 million. A conference committee including members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees will now meet to resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill. YOUTH PROMISE ACT PASSES JUDICIARY H.R. 1064, the Youth PROMISE Act, passed the House Judiciary Committee by a vote of 17-14 on Tuesday, December 2, without weakening amendments. The bill will now go the full House. SENATE HEALTH REFORM BILL PASSES FIRST VOTE Senate Democrats unveiled their healthcare reform legislation late Wednesday night. The bill would cost $849 billion over the first 10 years, cut the deficit by $127 billion over the same period, and expand health coverage to 31 million currently uninsured Americans. The Senate bill maintains strong substance use disorder and mental health provisions from the HELP and Finance Committee bills. The Senate overcame its first hurdle as Democratic leadership was able to secure the 60 votes needed to proceed with the legislation. Formal debate of the bill will begin after the Thanksgiving break. Once the Senate passes its healthcare bill, the legislation will have to be melded with the bill passed by the House two weeks ago, and passed a final time by both the House and Senate before it can be signed into law by the President. It looks increasingly unlikely that a bill will be on the President's desk before the end of the year. JUSTICE REINVESTMENT ACT Senator Whitehouse and Representative Schiff introduced the Criminal Justice Reinvestment Act. The bill is numbered S 2772 for the Senate and HR 4080 for the House; they are identical bills. The Act would provide grants to state and local governments to design and advance data-driven, consensus-based strategies to reduce corrections spending and increase public safety. The Criminal Justice Reinvestment Act of 2009 builds on the justice reinvestment work done by the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center in Texas, Kansas, Vermont, Rhode Island and seven other states. HEARING ON REDUCING RECIDIVISM On November 5, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs held a hearing on "The First Line of Defense: Reducing Recidivism at the Local Level." Witness testimony from Stefan Lobuglio, Director of the Montgomery County, Maryland, Pre-Release Center recommended a federal role to assist in developing our infrastructure of community correction beds. This is the subject of ICCA's proposed Community Corrections Act of 2009.
U.S. SENTENCING COMMISSION HEARINGS The U.S. Sentencing Commission has been holding regional hearings. Federal Bureau of Prisons Director Harley Lappin provided testimony on November 20 at the hearing in Austin, Texas. (Read more testimony in the newspaper article from Texas under "News from Around the World" below.) OJP HOSTS COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS MEETING Assistant Attorney General Laurie Robinson welcomed a diverse group of 75 advocates, agency representatives, foundation officers, and others in attendance for an afternoon meeting of the National Community Corrections Committee on December 2. In keeping with its mission as "to provide a forum for the discussion of community corrections issues of national importance," the NCCC meeting featured Mike Thomas, Council of State Governments, presenting on the subject of Justice Reinvestment. ICCA Executive Director Jane Browning serves on the NCCC Steering Committee. DAVIS TO SEEK RE-ELECTION After filing candidacy papers to run for re-election as well as Cook County board president, Democratic Rep. Danny Davis said today he will seek re-election, the Associated Press reported. Davis had been wavering between the two races, saying he wanted to know who would be on the ballot before he made a decision. The seven-term lawmaker waited until today -- the deadline to drop out of one of the races. Davis said he decided to seek re-election because he and three other black candidates running in the Cook County race would have competed for the same base of voters. "I always said that if there were four candidates coming from the same political base, that it mitigated against one of those individuals being successful," Davis said. Many of the Democrats who filed to run for the 7th District seat in anticipation of Davis' departure are expected to step aside. LAURIE ROBINSON CONFIRMED TO HEAD OJP The Senate has confirmed Laurie Robinson to be Assistant Attorney General over the Office of Justice Programs (OJP). Robinson's three priorities for OJP include enhanced partnership with the field, a commitment to decisions based in science, and ensuring OJP is a good steward of federal taxpayer dollars. She spoke of her commitment to set up a "what works clearinghouse" to help inform practitioners in the field about best practices and evidence-based approaches to preventing and reducing crime. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted unanimously to send her nomination to the full Senate for confirmation. ICCA provided a letter of support for Robinson's appointment. BJA LAUNCHES TRAINING INSTITUTE BJA is now making available training and technical assistance through its new National Training and Technical Assistance Center (NTTAC). Assistance is available to criminal justice agencies and organizations to improve their capacity to address the myriad of challenges they face. Eligible recipients include law enforcement, courts, corrections, providers of substance abuse and mental health services to individuals involved in the criminal justice system, justice information sharing professionals, and crime prevention specialists. BJA's training and technical assistance program is not a grant or funding program. Rather, it is aimed at imparting skills, knowledge, and information that target specific needs and issues of the criminal justice community. Contact the NTTAC at bja.ntta@fvtc.edu, via fax at 202–347–5614, or by calling 202–347–5610 or 1–888–347–5610. MISSISSIPPI AG ISSUES OPINION ON PRISON CENSUS State Attorney General Mike Moore opined that "Inmates under the jurisdiction of the Mississippi Department of Corrections ... are not deemed "residents" of that county or locality, as incarceration cannot be viewed as a voluntary abandonment of residency in one locale in favor of residency in the facility or jail. For purposes of the Census, these individuals should have been counted in their actual place of residence. Such inmates should not be used in determining the population of county supervisor districts for redistricting purposes by virtue of their temporary presence in a detention facility or jail in the county, unless their actual place of residence is also in the county." The opinion counters Census Bureau practice. COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS PERFORMANCE INCENTIVES California passed a law in October 2009 establishing a Community Corrections Performance Incentives Fund. The fund rewards counties that succeed in reducing the rate of adult probationers sent to prison with a portion of the incarceration costs avoided by the state-40 or 45 percent, depending on how the given county's probation failure rate compares to the overall rate statewide. The grants to the counties are to be used for evidence-based community corrections practices and programs, such as intensive probation supervision, risk and needs assessments, and intermediate sanctions. The bill also includes a provision for performance measurement, requiring counties to use at least five percent of what is refunded to them to evaluate the effectiveness of their recidivism reduction programs. In addition, as part of the budget that passed in August, the state has directed $45 million in federal stimulus funds to probation agencies in order to "prime the pump" for recidivism reduction efforts. ILLINOIS EXPANDS COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS In August, Illinois Governor Quinn signed the Crime Reduction Act of 2009 which launched a new initiative to direct state funds toward expanding local supervision of offenders who would otherwise be incarcerated by the state. Adult Redeploy Illinois is modeled after the state's juvenile justice Redeploy Illinois system, and requires counties participating to pledge a 25% reduction in the number of eligible non-violent offenders committed to state facilities. A state oversight board will develop a formula for allotting funds to local jurisdictions for evidence-based community corrections in lieu of incarceration. These funds will serve as incentives for counties to keep otherwise prison-bound offenders under their supervision and to increase the success rate of probationers and parolees overall. The bill also calls for the development of a performance measurement system for each county that uses key indicators (such as recidivism, rate of revocations, successful completion of substance abuse treatment programs, and payment of victim restitution) to annually evaluate its success. SCHIRALDI TAKES OVER NEW YORK PROBATION Vincent N. Schiraldi, a strong advocate of less restrictive detention for juvenile offenders in his role as director of the D.C. Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services, is leaving his post to head New York City's probation department. Schiraldi was the founder of the D.C.-based Justice Policy Institute. PRISONS FOUNDATION GETS STIMULUS GRANT The stimulus grant to the Prisons Foundation will be used to strengthen the annual From-Prison-to-The-Stage Show at the Kennedy Center and the Prison Art Gallery at 1600 K Street N.W., in Washington, D.C. An article about the project appeared in The Washington Post. The Prisons Foundation supports the creation of art behind prison walls and sells prisoner's art to the public. NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP ON ALCOHOL MISUSE AND CRIME The National Partnership on Alcohol Misuse and Crime held its quarterly meeting at the offices of the PEW Foundation on November 10th. ICCA is a Partner in this coalition. The agenda featured an array of presentations of various relevant topics, including: Alcohol Misuse and Crime: Update on Federal Reporting from Michael D. Sinclair, Acting Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics; Therapeutic Jurisprudence and Risk Management by The Honorable Linda Chezem, Judge, Indiana Court of Appeals (Ret.) and Professor, Purdue University; The Principles of Accountability and Contingency Management Stephen Wing, Associate Administrator for Alcohol Prevention and Treatment Policy, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; and Supervision (Pre-Trial Release, Probation, and Parole) by Adam Gelb of the PEW Foundation, with Carl Wicklund, Executive Director, American Probation and Parole Association and Thomas Beauclair, Deputy Director, National Institute of Corrections SUPPORTIVE HOUSING AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE The Corporation for Supportive Housing sponsored a day-long "Forum and Dialogue" on supportive housing and criminal justice in Arlington, Virginia on November 5th. The agenda featured The meeting featured remarks by Deborah DeSantis, President and CEO of CSH; Dr. Fred Osher, Director of Health Systems and Services Policy at the Council of State Governments; David Rosa, Program Director at St. Leonard's Ministries; Justice Evelyn Stratton, Ohio Supreme Court, Dr. James McGuire, Department of Veterans Affairs; Ken Robertson, SAMHSA/CSAT, and Julius DuPree, U.S. Department of Justice. DIGNITY IN SCHOOLS CAMPAIGN Over 180 organizations from across the country, including the International Institute for Restorative Practices, have signed on to support the Dignity in Schools Campaign National Resolution for Ending School Pushout, a call to action for our school systems to end harsh discipline policies and law enforcement tactics that push too many young people out of school each year. The resolution calls for schools to implement positive alternatives that protect the human rights of young people and keep students in school, including "evidence-based discipline policies and practices, such as Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and restorative practices." WEED AND SEED PROGRAM CCDO will award grants, subject to the availability of appropriated funds, to communities to participate in the Weed and Seed Communities Competitive Program. The Weed and Seed initiative comprises a community-based, comprehensive multi-agency approach to law enforcement, crime prevention, and neighborhood restoration. It is designed for communities with persistent high levels of serious violent crime and corresponding social problems. Weed and Seed Communities must be developed in partnership with the local U.S. Attorney's Office and local organizations to reduce crime and improve the quality of life in a community, primarily through leveraging public and private resources. SAMHSA 2010 OFFENDER REENTRY GRANTS The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2010 for Offender Reentry Program grants. The purpose of this program is to expand and/or enhance substance abuse treatment and related recovery and reentry services to sentenced juvenile and adult offenders returning to the community from incarceration for criminal/juvenile offenses. SAMHSA expects that a total of $39.6 million in funding will be available for the three year project period. Eligible applicants are domestic public and private nonprofit entities. Deadline: February 2, 2010. Contact: kenneth.robertson@samhsa.hhs.gov . SAMHSA 2010 TREATMENT CAPACITY GRANTS The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2010 for grants to Expand Substance Abuse Treatment Capacity in Targeted Areas of Need - Local Recovery-Oriented Systems of Care. This program is designed to foster the development and utilization of local recovery-oriented systems of care to address gaps in treatment capacity by supporting person-centered and self-directed approaches for substance abuse (including alcohol and drug) treatment and recovery services in communities with serious drug problems. SAMHSA expects that a total of $14.4 million in funding will be available for the three year project period. Eligible applicants are domestic public and private nonprofits. Contact: linda.kaplan@samhsa.hhs.gov. PEER-TO-PEER RECOVERY SUPPORT SERVICES The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) announces the availability of FY 2010 funds for grants to deliver peer-to-peer recovery support services that help prevent relapse and promote sustained recovery from alcohol and drug use disorders. Successful applicants will provide peer-to-peer recovery support services that are responsive to community needs and strengths, and will carry out a performance assessment of these services. RCSP is intended to support peer leaders from the recovery community in providing recovery support services to people in recovery and their family members, and to foster the growth of communities of recovery that will help individuals and families, achieve and sustain long-term recovery. Deadline: February 10, 2010 TIPS ON WRITING A WINNING PROPOSAL Take some tips from experts in an article that SAMHSA offers giving advice on how to write a winning grant proposal. VETERANS INCARCERATED AND IGNORED Roughly 200,000 US veterans are in prison or jail, many of them there because of substance abuse or mental health issues, according to a new report, "Healing a Broken System: Veterans Battling Addiction and Incarceration." The report outlines the problem and suggests reforms that could ease the plight of American soldiers returning from the war zone and trying to make the transition back to civilian society. According to the report, 140,000 vets were in prison in 2004, with tens of thousands more serving time in jails. Nearly half (46%) of vets doing time in federal prison were incarcerated for drug offenses, while 15% of those in state prison were, including 5.6% doing time for simple possession. Three out five (61%) of incarcerated vets met the criteria for substance dependence or abuse. The Annie E. Casey Foundation has issued a policy brief calling for "Responsible Government." The subject of the report is fatherhood. CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION SYSTEMS The Bureau of Justice Statistics published in October, 2009, its "Survey of State Criminal History Information Systems, 2008." This report (105 pages) is based upon the results from a survey conducted of the administrators of the State criminal history record repositories in March–June 2009. Fifty-six jurisdictions were surveyed, CRACK THE DISPARITY NEWSLETTER The Crack the Disparity Coalition has published the fall edition of its quarterly newsletter. Offering insight and updates on the push toward legislative reform of the crack cocaine sentencing disparity, articles in this edition highlight the upcoming Dec. 2 call-in day, review legislation introduced in the House and Senate, and feature advocacy efforts and support from the Administration and conservatives. This newsletter is designed to keep advocates updated on news and events related to eliminating the crack cocaine disparity and the harsh mandatory minimums for low-level crack cocaine offenses. www.crackthedisparity.com/Newsletter5 OFFENDERS ON DAY REPORTING
CSOSA media at http://media.csosa.gov offers a new radio program highlighting day reporting programs. The show interviews Walter Hagins, Program Manager of the Day Reporting Center for the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA) in Washington, D.C. Also interviewed were two offenders currently assigned to the Day Reporting Center . We did not use the names of offenders for this program. The Day Reporting Center provides an alternative to incarceration for technical violations such as not gaining employment or missing appointments with staff. Offenders are referred to the Center when they do not comply with the terms of parole or probation. MENTORING GUIDE Public/Private Ventures has published a "Mentoring Former Prisoners: A Guide for Reentry Programs." Few social programs have attempted to provide high-risk adults—and, particularly, former prisoners—with mentors. And thus there are few resources that offer practical advice and recommendations for mentoring this population, given its distinct needs, assets and challenges. While much remains to be tested and learned, this manual draws on the experience of the 11 sites involved in P/PV'sReady4Work prisoner reentry demonstration, as well as established best practices in the mentoring field, to provide guidelines for practitioners who are interested in developing a mentoring program to support former prisoners and enhance the effectiveness of other reentry services, such as employment and case management services. SUPERVISING STALKING OFFENDERS WEBINAR The Stalking Resource Center, in partnership with the Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women, will host a Webinar on Supervising Offenders Who Stalk on December 8, 2009 at 2:00 p.m. EST. This is the first in a series of two Webinar on the topic. Subjects addressed in this Webinar will include Dynamics of stalking; Connection of stalking to other crimes; and the role of community corrections officers in addressing stalking behavior. This training will be restricted to 100 participants. Submit your application to participate. NIC LIVE SATELLITE BROADCAST "Locking Up H1N1: CDC and Criminal Justice Join Forces," a live satellite broadcast December 9, 2009, 12 noon – 3:00 p.m. EST. All agencies that register will be accepted. If your agency does not have its own satellite dish, check to see if a local college, federal prison, or hotel in your area has a downlinked meeting room. If you cannot find a local site or need information on viewing the broadcast using the Internet, please contact NIC for assistance. Register online MI TRAINING IN NEW YORK "Motivational Interviewing Peparing People for Behavior Change: Theory and Skill Building" will be held on March 22, 23 & 24, 2010, at the Hotel Beacon in New York City. This training seminar has open enrollment, it is open to 30 participants. It yields 18 clock hours certified by NY State OASAS and a certificate of course completion will be awarded to all participants. Included is the practice of highly effective evidence based motivational interviewing skills, strategies and theory, the Miller and Rollnick model; the Stages of Change (Prochaska & DiClemente); compatible Cognitive Behavioral therapy strategies; and interventions and other pertinent topics and skills. ORIENTATION FOR NEW CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERS The National Institute of Corrections, the National Association of Probation Executives, and the Correctional Management Institute of Texas Present: Orientation for New Probation and Parole Chief Executive Officers, February 14-19, 2010 at Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, Texas. Executives in probation and parole agencies who were appointed within the past year and who have full responsibility for the operational aspects of community corrections agencies that supervise offenders in the community; including chief probation officers, directors of state probation and parole departments, directors of state parole supervision, and directors of public sector community corrections, including state, county or local agencies. BLENDING ADDICTION TREATMENT AND PRACTICE The National Institute on Drug Abuse presents this year's Blending Conference, "Evidence-Based Treatment and Prevention in Diverse Populations" to be held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, April 22-23, 2010. YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE Youth Development and Outcomes 2010 will be held February 8-10 in Arlington, VA. The training will focus on improving youth development through positive youth program outcomes. You can expect to learn how to: Focus on youth development initiatives in social media, entrepreneurship and leadership to promote positive outcomes; Implement strategies to win grants and comply with key federal financial standards for reporting and implementation; Develop performance measures that increase results for your organization; and Define your programs mission and outcome goals. PRISONER'S FAMILY CONFERENCE Don't miss the Early Bird Registration Deadline, December 15th, for the 2ND Annual National Prisoner's Family Conference, to be held February 25 & 26, 2010, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Orlando, Florida. The conference is a Project of Community SOLUTIONS of El Paso. For more information, go to www.solutionsforelpaso.org District of Columbia: Drug Courts for Only a Few District of Columbia: Tracking Sex Offenders Florida: Diversion for Those with Mental Illness Florida: Looking to Texas for Answers Idaho: Inmate on Inmate Rape Conviction Idaho: Law Enforcement Training on Mental Illness Massachusetts: Crime Records Legislation Massachusetts: Parole Drug Offenders New Jersey: Prison Rehabilitation Bills New York: Flexibility vs. Equity in Sentencing New York: Rush to Expungement New York: Supreme Court Considers Age Factor New York: Supreme Court on Criminal Justice Ohio: Babies Behind Bars Oregon: Postcards Only Scotland: Prison Population Rising South Africa: Prison Theater Texas: Smart Justice at Sentencing Commission Hearing
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