ACTION ALERT! Tell Obama to Restore Juvenile Justice Budget!

MCCOY is concerned about the impact President Obama's proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2012 has on the protection and care of our nation’s most vulnerable youth. Read this position statement from the Burns Institute for Juvenile Justice Fairness and Equity for details on how the proposed budget will jeopardize youth.

For more than 35 years, the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA) has provided states with federal standards and supports for improving juvenile justice and delinquency prevention practices.

The proposed FY 2012 budget calls for a restructuring of federal juvenile justice funding to the states that will not only decrease overall funding to juvenile justice programs but will also jeopardize ongoing state efforts to achieve and sustain compliance with the JJDPA.

The restructuring undermines the historic purpose and intent of the JJDPA, which provides core protections for children in the juvenile justice system that:

• Increase fairness by requiring states to take steps to reduce racial and ethnic disparities;


• Protect children from the dangers of adult jails and lockups; and


• Keep status offenders out of locked custody.

MCCOY supports a Call to Action issued by The Burns Institute for Juvenile Justice Fairness and Equity. Burns and MCCOY urge all Champions for Youth to sign the petition or write a letter to the President or the Department of Justice.