State of Colorado's Juvenile Accountability Block Grant Program

The Juvenile Accountability Block Grant Program (JABG) Program is authorized under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 3796ee). The goal of the JABG program is to reduce juvenile offending through accountability-based programs focused on both the juvenile offender and the juvenile justice system. The objective is to ensure that States and Territories are addressing the specified purpose areas and receiving information on best practices from OJJDP. JABG funds are allocated to States and Territories based on each State's relative population of youth under the age of 18. The underlying premise of juvenile accountability programming is that young people who violate the law should be held accountable for their actions through the swift, consistent application of graduated sanctions that are proportionate to the offenses, both as a matter of basic justice and as a way to combat juvenile delinquency and improve the quality of life in the nation's communities.

Colorado's Division of Criminal Justice has prioritized purpose area 11, in order to fund accountability-based programs, to proactively reduce recidivism among juveniles in the early stages of youth development. Beginning with the JABG FY 09 sub-grant solicitation, sub-grantees became eligible for up to three years of funding contingent upon the availability of federal funds and the sub-grantee's performance. The JABG FY 11 sub-grant solicitation will support the third and final year of a three year commitment. The funds will be limited to supporting accountability-based programming that includes Juvenile Diversion and graduated sanction programs that provide intervention and treatment services to juvenile offenders in accordance with the type of offense and overall criminal track record. Data collection forms have been developed for sub-grantees to submit performance measure information on a quarterly basis. NCA/NCF