Disproportionate Minority Contact

Overview

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) is a leader in efforts to reduce the overrepresentation of minority youth in the Nation's juvenile justice system. Funding through OJJDP's Formula Grants program (Title II) helps states address juvenile delinquency and supports improvements to the juvenile justice system. The funds also help states address the core requirements of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act: deinstitutionalization of status offenders, separation of juveniles from adult inmates, removal of juveniles from adult jails and lockups, and efforts designed to reduce disproportionate minority contact (DMC) with the juvenile justice system.

Beginning in fiscal year 2019, OJJDP's State Relations and Assistance Division implemented a streamlined Title II application process that simplified DMC data collection requirements. We have narrowed the number of contact points for which reporting is required from nine contact points to the five that research supports as the most critical. In addition, OJJDP will now be asking states to identify how they define success with their DMC reduction efforts and to evaluate the outcome of their DMC plans to assess what impact they had, if any, on disproportionality.

Core Requirement of JJDP Act

In the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Act of 2002, Congress required that States participating in the Formula Grants Program "address juvenile delinquency prevention efforts and system improvement efforts designed to reduce, without establishing or requiring numerical standards or quotas, the disproportionate number of juvenile members of minority groups, who come into contact with the juvenile justice system" (see section 223(a)(22)).

Each State must report on its progress in its comprehensive JJDP 3-year plan and subsequent plan updates (in compliance with Section 223(a)(22)). OJJDP reviews the plan updates annually. Any State that fails to address the overrepresentation of minority youth in juvenile justice system contact stands to lose 20 percent of its Formula Grants allocation for the year.

In December 2018 the Juvenile Justice Reform Act of 2018 (JJRA) was signed into law reauthorizing and substantially amending the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Act of 1974 (JJDP Act). OJJDP will work with states to implement the new requirements.

Access more information on Compliance with the Core Requirements of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act including a redlined version of the JJDP Act with JJRA amendments.

Training and Technical Assistance

Requests for training and technical assistance (TTA) may be submitted through OJJDP's TTA360 system. TTA360 is a centralized TTA request system that allows you to submit a request to any of OJJDP's TTA grantee providers. You may create and manage your own TTA360 account, and view progress on your requests in real time. Please note that the request should be requested at least 60 days before the assistance is required.

Contacts

Find contact information for the Juvenile Justice Specialist and, if applicable, the DMC Coordinator for each state/territory on the OJJDP State Support webpages.