Government Relations

1. We serve as the Washington representative for our members in the nation’s capitol—to advance state-identified needs and concerns in the arena of juvenile justice;
   
   
2. We create and distribute policy education resources and timely information for state-based juvenile justice practitioners, advisors and advocates;
   
   
3. We support an active Government Relations Committee composed of CJJ members—including members of State Advisory Groups, Juvenile Justice Specialists and others—who track, analyze and craft positions for the consideration of the National Steering Committee, and inform members of Congress of CJJ’s positions on federal legislation, in keeping with CJJ’s mission and goals.
   

• To assist and inform the development of state and national policy and legislation in juvenile justice matters pertaining to the states;
  
  
• To provide a mechanism to work more closely with the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and its Administrator, within the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, as well as with members of Congress who are charged with oversight and direction of OJJDP.
  

1. Appropriations: Ensuring that federal juvenile justice appropriations to the states provide for the development, implementation and sustainability of optimal juvenile justice and delinquency prevention systems and practices in all U.S. states, territories and the District of Columbia, as well as in local jurisdictions.
   
   
2. Broadly Educating about the Value of the Federal JJDPA: Central to CJJ’s mission is to strengthen and refine the strategic impact of the state advisory system under the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), especially with regard to core roles of the State Advisory Groups on Juvenile Justice (SAGs):
   

• developing and implementing State 3-Year Plans;
  
  
• optimal use of the federal funds for system improvements, and family- and community-connected services and support for children and youth involved with the courts;
  
  
• monitoring, and more importantly, supporting compliance with the federal core requirements (Jail Removal, Sight and Sound Separation, Deinstitutionalization of Status Offenders, and Disproportionate Minority Contact).