Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Juvenile Justice System Act of 2022”.
Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Juvenile Justice System Act of 2022
A BILL
To allow Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Program assistance be used to reduce racial and ethnic disparities, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Findings
Congress finds the following:
Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, and other youth of color are overrepresented in the juvenile justice system and receive harsher consequences than White youth.
Reducing reliance on incarceration and providing evidence-based, trauma-informed, and linguistically and culturally responsive support and services to youth who come in contact with the juvenile justice system is a key goal of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (34 U.S.C. 11101 et seq.).
Addressing racial and ethnic disparities in the juvenile justice system requires accurate data regarding youth of color who come into contact with the juvenile justice system, including data that can be disaggregated by race, and ethnicity.
Youth of color and their families with lived experience interacting with the juvenile justice system can provide important insight, analysis, and solutions regarding how to recognize and address racial disparities in the juvenile justice system.
Sec. 3 Definition of racial and ethnic disparity
In general— Section 103 of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (34 U.S.C. 11103) is amended by striking paragraph (41) and inserting the following:
“(41) the term racial and ethnic disparity means—
“(A) that Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, and other youth of color are involved at a decision point in the juvenile justice system at disproportionately higher rates than White youth at that decision point;
“(B) that the percentage of Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, and other youth of color at any decision point is higher than the percentage of youth of color in the general population;
“(C) that Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, and other youth of color experience more severe outcomes at any decision point than similarly situated White youth; or
“(D) that Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, and other youth of color are detained and removed from their homes when less restrictive alternatives would be more effective;”
Technical and conforming amendment— Section 251(a)(1)(B)(viii) of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (34 U.S.C. 11161(a)(1)(B)(viii)) is amended by striking “members of minority groups” and inserting “Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, and other youth of color”.
Sec. 4 Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Program State plans
In general— Section 223(a) of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (34 U.S.C. 11133(a)) is amended—
in paragraph (3)(A)(v), by striking “of someone” and inserting “of a youth representative of the population in detention and secure confinement”;
in paragraph (7)(B)—
in clause (viii), by striking “and” at the end;
by redesignating clause (ix) as clause (x); and
by inserting after clause (viii) the following:
“(ix) a plan to implement systems for identifying and recording youth data disaggregated by race and ethnicity; and”
in paragraph (9)—
in subparagraph (V), by striking “and” at the end;
in subparagraph (W), by adding “and” at the end; and
by inserting after subparagraph (W) the following:
“(X) programs seeking to reduce racial and ethnic disparities at any decision point, such as at the point of arrest, referral to court, diversion, secure detention, judicial waiver to adult criminal court, case petitioning, delinquency finding or adjudication, probation, or residential placement, including secure confinement, including prevention, diversion, and community supervision, and other programs that provide linguistically and culturally responsive support and services to youth;”
in paragraph (15)—
in subparagraph (A), by inserting “and youth representative of the population in detention and secure confinement who have been or are currently under the jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system or, if not feasible and in appropriate circumstances, parents or guardians of a Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, or other youth of color who has been or is currently under the jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system” after “educational system”;
in subparagraph (B) by striking “and” at the end;
in subparagraph (C), by adding “and” at the end; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(D) reporting on measurable progress on the work plan described in subparagraph (C) for the prior year;”
in paragraph (22)—
in subparagraph (B), by striking “and” at the end;
in subparagraph (C), adding “and” at the end; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(D) promote opportunity for community-based providers serving youth in communities with higher than average racial and ethnic disparities at any decision point in the juvenile justice system in the State, compared with other communities in the same State;”
Guidance for collection of data— Section 223 of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (34 U.S.C. 11133) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(h) Guidance for collection of data—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Juvenile Justice System Act of 2022, the Administrator shall, in consultation with the United States Commission on Civil Rights and the Director of the Census Bureau, develop guidance for States with respect to a uniform standard for the collection and reporting of disaggregated and cross-referenced data on race and ethnicity under this section to assist States in implementing subsection (a)(15).”