BILL NUMBER: AB 1387 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 27, 2011
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 25, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Solorio
FEBRUARY 18, 2011
An act to add Section 3054.5 to the Penal Code, relating to
parole.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1387, as amended, Solorio. Rebuilding Communities and
Rebuilding Lives Act of 2011.
Existing law, until January 1, 2011, required the Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation to establish a pilot program in
Alameda County for parolees returning to Alameda County to conduct
needs-based assessments of the individual parolees, as specified.
This bill would require the California Emergency Management
Agency, subject to an appropriation of funds, to establish a Youthful
Offender Reentry (Cal-Yor) (Cal-YOR)
competitive grant program specifically targeting offenders who will
be between 16 and 23 years of age upon their release from a local
county juvenile facility, the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation's Division of Juvenile Facilities, probation, or
parole to assist in community reintegration upon release, as
specified. The reentry programs would include construction training,
academic services, counseling, and tracking of graduates after
completion of the program. The bill would require the agency to
maintain statistical information related to the reentry programs, as
specified.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 3054.5 is added to the Penal Code, to read:
3054.5. (a) This section shall be known as the Rebuilding
Communities and Rebuilding Lives Act of 2011.
(b) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) Recidivism rates of youthful offenders in California are
unacceptably high.
(2) Relevant studies show that access to education and job
training programs can play a significant role in reducing recidivism
rates especially if enrollment takes place immediately upon release
from incarceration.
(3) The California Emergency Management Agency debuted the
California Youthful Offender Reentry competitive grant program in
2011 and utilized appropriate federal funding to support this
program.
(4) The Legislature intends to continue this program contingent
upon appropriate funding.
(c)
3054.5. (a) (1) The California Emergency
Management Agency, to the extent funds are appropriated for the
purpose of this section, shall establish a Youthful Offender Reentry
(Cal-Yor) (Cal-YOR) competitive grant
program specifically targeting offenders who will be between 16 and
23 years of age upon their release from a local county juvenile
facility, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's Division
of Juvenile Facilities, probation, or parole.
(2) Grantees shall preenroll eligible youths into eligible
community programs, as defined in this section. Priority shall be
given to programs that have existed for at least one year prior to
the effective date of this section and to those eligible community
programs that have operated at any time in the previous three years.
(3) Each grantee shall officially enroll each youthful offender
into its program no more than 72 hours after release from a described
local or state facility. Participation of an eligible youth in any
eligible community program shall commence no more than 72 hours after
release, parole, or discharge from a facility operated by the
department or the local entity. Enrollment and participation are
subject to the approval of each program or local entity.
(d)
(b) For purposes of this section, an "eligible
community program" means, at a minimum, a program that provides all
of the following:
(1) Integrated education and job training services and activities
on an equally divided basis, with 50 percent of participants' time
spent in classroom-based instruction, counseling, and leadership
development instruction, and 50 percent of participants' time spent
in experiential job training.
(A) The education component described in this paragraph shall
include basic skills instruction, secondary education services, and
other activities designed to lead to the attainment of a high school
diploma or its equivalent. The curriculum for this component shall
include math, language arts, vocational education, life skills
training, social studies related to the cultural and community
history of the participants, and leadership skills.
(B) Bilingual services shall be available for individuals with
limited English proficiency , and an English
learning curriculum shall be provided where feasible and appropriate.
(C) A program shall have a goal of a minimum teacher-to-student
ratio of one teacher for every 18 students.
(D) The job training component described in paragraph (1) shall
involve work experience and skills training apprenticeships related
to construction and rehabilitation activities as described
in paragraph (4).
(2) Assistance in attaining postsecondary education and in
obtaining financial aid shall be made available to participants prior
to graduation from the program.
(3) Counseling services designed to assist participants in
positively participating in society, including all of the following,
as necessary:
(A) Outreach, assessment, and orientation.
(B) Individual and peer counseling.
(C) Life skills training.
(D) Drug and alcohol abuse education and prevention.
(E) Referral to appropriate drug rehabilitation, medical, mental
health, legal, housing, and other community services and resources. A
program shall have a goal of a minimum counselor-to-participant
ratio of one counselor for every 28 participants.
(4) Acquisition, rehabilitation, acquisition and rehabilitation,
or construction of housing and related facilities to be used for the
purpose of providing home ownership for disadvantaged persons,
residential housing for homeless individuals and very low income
families, or transitional housing for persons who are homeless, ill,
deinstitutionalized, or who have disabilities or special needs.
(5) Leadership development training that provides participants
with meaningful opportunities to develop leadership skills, including
decisionmaking, problem solving, and negotiating. A program shall
encourage participants to develop strong peer group ties that support
their mutual pursuit of skills and values.
(e)
(c) Each eligible community program shall work
cooperatively with local probation and parole offices to ensure
appropriate oversight of any eligible youth who enrolls and
participates in the program for the duration of the eligible youth's
participation and term of probation or parole. Eligible community
programs shall meet the requirements described in Article 4
(commencing with Section 9800) of Chapter 2 of Part 1 of Division 3
of the Unemployment Insurance Code.
(f)
(d) For purposes of this section, an "eligible youth"
means a person between 16 and 23 years of age, who is economically
disadvantaged, as defined in Section 12511 of Title 42 of the United
States Code, and who is under the custody and control of the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile
Facilities or a county.
(g)
(e) Priority for enrollment shall be given to eligible
youths whom the department or local entity has determined to be gang
affiliated, or who have an immediate family member who has been
identified as gang affiliated.
(h)
(f) The California Emergency Management Agency shall
maintain statistical information on the success of this program,
including, but not limited to, the number of eligible youths served
and the rate of return to custody for those eligible youths who
enroll and participate in an eligible community program. This
information shall be provided to the Legislature upon request.