BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2716
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Date of Hearing: April 25, 2000
Counsel: Gregory Pagan
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Carl Washington, Chair
AB 2716 (Bock) - As Amended: April 24, 2000
SUMMARY : Establishes the Homicide Prevention and Victim
Services Fund, to be administered by the Office of Criminal
Justice Planning (OCJP), for the purpose of awarding grants to
cities and counties to supplement violence prevention and victim
services programs. Specifically, this bill :
1)Establishes the Homicide Prevention and Victim Services Fund
in the State Treasury, to be administered by the OCJP, in
consultation with the Superintendent of Public Instruction,
the Board of Corrections, and the Director of the Department
of Health Services (DHS).
2)Provides that cities and counties may apply for a grant from
the fund, and the application shall include a description of
the victim services and violence prevention programs that
exist, and an evaluation of their effectiveness.
3)States that in awarding grants from the fund, the OCJP shall
give priority to programs which provide the following services
in the most effective manner:
a)Domestic violence prevention programs, as specified.
b)School-based violence prevention programs, as specified.
c)Juvenile offender programs, as specified.
d)Parolee programs, as specified.
e)Mental health programs, as specified.
4)Provides that in evaluating the effectiveness of the above
programs, OCJP may consider the following factors:
a)Whether the program resulted in a significant decrease in
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the number of violent crimes in the jurisdiction of the
applicant, county or city.
b)Whether the program received matching funds from a local
government.
c)Whether in the opinion of the OCJP, the program is well
administered.
d)Whether the program has been subject to a credible
evaluation, and found to be successful and cost-effective.
5)Limits the maximum amount that the OCJP may award to 65% of
the annual program cost.
6)Provides that cities and counties shall use the funds awarded
solely for the purposes of homicide prevention and victim
services, grants may be combined to jointly develop programs,
and prohibits funds awarded from being used to replace moneys
that support existing programs.
7)Requires the OCJP to spend 10% of the money from the fund to
evaluate the effectiveness of violence prevention and victim
services programs in California, and to support the
development of a coordinated and cost-effective approach to
violence prevention and victim services on a statewide and
regional basis.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Appropriates funds from the Victim-Witness Assistance Fund to
be made available to OCJP for distributions to any public or
private non-profit agency for the assistance of victims and
witnesses. (Penal Code Section 13835.2.)
2)Establishes within the State Treasury the Victim Witness
Assistance Fund, and provides that funds appropriated thereto
shall be dispensed to the OCJP for the purposes of funding
victim and witness assistance centers, and rape victim
counseling centers. (Penal Code Section 13835.7.)
3)Requires the OCJP to provide grants to proposed and existing
local rape, child sexual exploitation, and child sexual abuse
victim counseling centers and prevention programs. (Penal
Code Section 13837.)
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4)Authorizes the OCJP to allocate and award funds to communities
developing and providing ongoing citizen involvement and crime
resistance programs according to specified criteria. (Penal
Code Section 13843.)
5)Establishes the High Technology Theft Apprehension and
Prosecution Program, a public-private administrative body
under the auspices of the OCJP for the distribution of funding
to develop regional high-technology crime units in California
law enforcement agencies. (Penal Code Section 13848 et seq.)
6)Establishes within the OCJP a program of financial, training,
and technical assistance for local law enforcement, called the
California Career Criminal Apprehension Program. (Penal Code
Section 13851.)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement . According to the author, "Funding and
oversight of homicide prevention and victim services programs
directed by cities and counties are fragmented across
departments and agencies. Current statewide violence
prevention and victim services programs need to be evaluated
to determine the most successful and cost-effective programs
to guide state and private funding agencies toward the most
effective expenditure of available funds. There is no
statewide, or even regionally coordinated approach to violence
prevention, and victim services programs.
"AB 2716 would establish the California Homicide Prevention and
Victim Services Act to be funded through the annual budget.
Cities and counties may apply for a grant to pay up to 65% of
the cost of violence prevention and victim services programs
that are the most effective. These programs would include
domestic violence prevention programs, juvenile offender
programs, school based violence prevention programs, and
parolee and mental health programs. This bill establishes
guidelines to determine if the program is successful,
well-administered, and cost-effective.
"To prevent fragmentation among jurisdictions, OCJP will work in
consultation with the Superintendent of Public Instruction,
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the Board of Corrections, and the State Director of DHS.
Cities and counties must implement the program within five
years of initial receipt of the funds and may combine grants
received. The fund may not be used to replace moneys that
support existing programs or caseloads, nor to fund programs
that ceased to operate after January 1, 1997. Ten percent of
the fund will support the evaluation of program effectiveness;
development of a coordinated and cost-effective statewide and
regional approach to violence prevention."
2)Arguments in Support .
Friends Committee on Legislation states, "AB 2716 establishes a
homicide prevention and victim services fund. The fund will
support local programs that show an ability to reduce violence
and its effects in the community?.
"Evidence is accumulating that most violence can be prevented.
Programs exist that promote civility and reduce violence in
homes, schools, work-places, and neighborhoods. There are
also programs that provide valuable recovery assistance for
people who have been traumatized by a crime, to minimize the
chances that victims will become offenders. The cost of many
of these programs is quite low, because they rely largely on
volunteers and neighborhood leadership. However, without some
official oversight and funding, gaps in coverage tend to
persist, and there is a tendency for the neighborhoods that
most need program coverage to be served at the lowest levels.
"AB 2716 provides an important link in the statewide network of
official encouragement and financial backing to replicate the
most effective homicide prevention and trauma recovery
programs in areas that are not now served."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Child, Youth, and Family Coalition
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Opposition
None on File
AB 2716
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Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744