Delinquency Prevention

The Formula Grants Program is authorized under the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Act of 1974, as amended. The purpose of this program is to support state and local delinquency prevention and intervention efforts and juvenile justice system improvements. Program areas may include: planning and administration; state advisory group allocation; compliance monitoring; disproportionate minority contact; juvenile justice issues for Native American Indian tribes; prevention of substance abuse by juveniles; prevention of serious and violent crimes by juveniles; prevention of juvenile gang involvement and illegal youth gang activities; prevention of delinquent acts and identification of youth at risk of delinquency; and improvement of juvenile justice system operations, policies, and procedures including establishing a system of graduated sanctions, treatment programs, and aftercare.

The primary focus of the projects/programs targeted with the assistance of the 2012 Formula Grant allocations in Rhode Island will continue to be improvement of the RI juvenile justice system's ability to respond to juvenile offending behaviors quickly and effectively. With the substantial reduction in federal grant program dollars some of the elements of past plans have had to be adjusted to accommodate declining funding revenue. The populations to be served include at-risk youth statewide between the ages of 7 to 17 years. With no county system of government in RI, all programming must encompass and take into account the various cities and towns with all of their unique demographics. The RI Family Court (Purpose Area 07) is an essential element in RI's plan, with the Juvenile Drug Court providing targeted services to specific areas of need. As in previous years, compliance with the core requirements of the JJDPA (Purpose Area 06) continues to be a primary focus. Additionally, RI's JDAI/Casey Foundation project has been partnering with the DMC (Purpose Area 10) initiative, with initially positive results. Finally, funding will be provided for Native American programs Purpose Area 22). NCA/NCF