CHAPTER
16. Office of Youth Development and Diversion Pilot Program
18997.
(a) The State Department of Social Services, in collaboration with the State Department of Public Health Health, shall establish and oversee a three-year pilot program known as the Office of Youth Development and Diversion (OYDD) Pilot Program. (b) The department shall award grants pursuant to the program to eligible counties to establish a local OYDD. The local OYDD shall be administered by the county public health department or the county health services department.
(c) The goals of the program shall include all of the following:
(1) To ensure that a pilot county’s children and youth are healthy, ready to learn, and successful in school, and live in stable, safe, and supported families and communities.
(2) To ensure that a pilot county is family friendly and supports the family unit.
(3) To focus on the prevention of public health problems and on supporting and enhancing the strengths of children, youth, and their families.
(4) To complement a pilot county’s community development efforts.
(5) To strengthen a community-based network of services in a pilot county.
(6) To ensure that children and youth with the highest needs receive maximum benefit and that equity is a guiding principle of the funding process.
(7) To distribute funds based on best practices and successful and innovative models in order to ensure maximum impact.
(8) To the maximum extent feasible, to distribute funds equitably among services for all age groups, from infancy to transition age.
(9) To ensure children are provided with gender responsive, culturally relevant, and trauma-informed services.
(10) To
strengthen collaboration around shared outcomes among all service providers for children, youth, and their families, including collaboration among public agencies and nonprofit organizations.
(11) To fill gaps in services for youth and leverage other resources whenever feasible.
18997.1.
For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:(a) “Evidence-based practice” means a practice with an emphasis on achieving measurable outcomes that ensure that the services provided and the resources used are effective. Evidence-based practices involve using research-based and scientific studies to identify interventions that reliably produce significant reductions in recidivism when correctly applied to offender populations through the use of the following four principles of effective
intervention:
(1) Risk Principle, which focuses attention on the crucial question of who is being served and targets services for higher risk offenders.
(2) Need Principle, which requires that priority be given to addressing known criminogenic risks and factors to determine what programs will be most effective.
(3) Treatment Principle, which conveys the importance of using behavioral treatment approaches to achieve the best possible outcomes and requires attention to the question of how programs are delivered.
(4) Fidelity Principle, which draws attention to how effectively programs are delivered and reiterates the necessity that programs be
implemented as designed.
(b) “Health and wellness” means physical, social, and mental well-being.
(c) “High rate” means a rate that exceeds the state average.
(d) “Pilot program” means a program implemented on a temporary and limited basis in order to test and evaluate the effectiveness of the program, develop new techniques, or gather information.
(e) “Promising practice” means a program or practice that has some research demonstrating its effectiveness but does not meet the full criteria for an evidence-based designation.
(f) “Target populations” includes children, teens, and transition-age
youth who are homeless or in danger of homelessness, have dropped out of high school, have a disability or other special needs, including substance abuse and mental health needs, have low-income parents, are undocumented, are new immigrants or English learners, are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, or intersex (“LGBTQQI”), or at risk of entering or transitioning from the foster care, juvenile justice, or criminal justice systems.
(g) “Transition-age youth” means individuals who are 18 to 25 years of age.
(h) “Trauma-informed” means an approach that involves an understanding of adverse childhood experiences and responses to symptoms of chronic interpersonal trauma and traumatic stress across the lifespan of an
individual.
18997.2.
(a) Interested counties shall apply to the department in order to participate in the OYDD Pilot Program. The department shall select up to five counties to participate in the OYDD Pilot Program, including one pilot project in southern California, one pilot project in northern California, and one pilot project in central California. Program.(b) A pilot project
program shall be operated in a county that has identified high rates of juvenile and transition-age youth arrests or counties with high rates of racial or ethnic disparities in juvenile and transition-age youth arrests.
(c) Local stakeholders shall express interest in and demonstrate commitment to hosting a pilot project program site.
18997.3.
(a) The department shall be responsible for administration, oversight, and accountability of the pilot program.(b) The department, in collaboration with the State Department of Public Health and other partner agencies, shall perform all of the following duties:
(1) Provide guidance to pilot counties, including guidance regarding available federal, state, and local funds for the purposes of braiding and matching funds.
(2) Support data collection and analysis to identify target populations with the highest need and to measure program outcomes
and impact.
(3) Track funding allocations and disbursements in accordance with the pilot program timelines.
(c) Upon completion of the three-year pilot program, the department shall post on its internet website a report of the grantees, projects, and outcomes, including all of the information submitted to the department pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section
18997.4 by a county public health department or a county health services department.
18997.4.
(a) Funding for a county public health department or a county health services department overseeing a local OYDD shall be limited to the following:(1) Administration of the local OYDD and evaluation of the OYDD goals and services.
(2) Technical assistance and capacity building for service providers and community-based partners providing services to youth through the local OYDD.
(b) Funds shall be used by an OYDD to support new program activities or to augment existing funds that expand current program activities. Funds shall not replace
any federal, state, or local funds that have been appropriated for the same purpose.
(c) Funds shall be disbursed from the local OYDD to community-based organizations that are nongovernmental and not law enforcement agencies to deliver services in underserved communities with high rates of juvenile arrests.
(d) The county public health department or the county health services department shall submit data relating to the effectiveness of the pilot program to the department. Information may include, but is not limited to, any of the following:
(1) Reductions in law enforcement responses to incidents involving children and transition-age youth, reductions in court caseloads and processing, reductions in the number of days that children
and transition-age youth spent in detention, reductions in the placement of minors in congregate care, reductions in school and placement disruptions, and reductions in facility staff turnover.
(2) Improvement in the health and wellness of children and transition-age youth, school and community stability, educational attainment, and employment opportunities.
(3) Projected state and local cost savings as a result of the diversion programming.
18997.5.
(a) A county public health department or a county health services department that is overseeing a local OYDD shall adhere to the following timelines:(1) Within the first six months, the county shall do all of the following:
(A) Appoint or hire staff to administer and operate the pilot program.
(B) Engage a multisector stakeholder advisory body, including representation from youth and caregivers.
(C) Establish a multidisciplinary team that shall meet periodically to review and
discuss the implementation, practices, and impact of the program. The team shall include, but not be limited to, representatives from the following:
(i) County board of supervisors.
(ii) Community-based organizations.
(iii) Local law enforcement.
(iv) County health and human services department.
(v) Youth advocacy groups.
(vi) School districts.
(vii) County public health department.
(viii) County probation
department.
(D) In consultation with the county probation department, identify local capacity and opportunities for youth development and diversion services.
(2) Within the first 18 months, the county public health department or the county health services department shall do all of the following:
(A) Establish an oversight entity.
(B) Develop a centralized referral system.
(C) Identify county and external funding sources for community-based diversion programming.
(D) Update the county’s environmental scan and conduct a countywide
assessment to determine the level of readiness among law enforcement agencies.
(E) Based on the level of readiness and local needs assessment, identify law enforcement agencies for initial expansion or development of diversion.
(F) Establish contracts with community-based providers for youth development and diversion services.
(3) Within the first 24 months, the county public health department or the county health services department shall do all of the following:
(A) Identify the final cohorts of law enforcement agencies and community-based partners for implementation.
(B) Identify needs for
capacity building among law enforcement and community-based partners.
(C) Provide technical assistance and training for law enforcement and community-based partners.
(D) Use assessment and evaluation results to facilitate data-driven decisionmaking and system improvement.
(E) Convene diversion practitioners and other stakeholders countywide to communicate progress and identify priorities.
(F) Use assessment and evaluation results to facilitate data-driven decisionmaking.
(G) Convene diversion practitioners and other stakeholders countywide to communicate progress and identify priorities.
(4) A local OYDD pilot program shall be fully implemented and operational not later than 24 months after funds are received by the county.
(b) The three-year pilot program timeline commences once funds are received by the county public health department or by the county health services department.
18997.6.
(a) A county public health department or a county health services department that is overseeing a local OYDD shall provide grants to community-based organizations for services that are community based and located in communities of local jurisdictions with the highest need, as identified by stakeholders and other entities listed in subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 18997.5.(b) Services shall be evidence-based or promising practices that are trauma-informed, culturally relevant, and developmentally appropriate diversion programs and alternatives to arrest, incarceration, and formal involvement with the juvenile and criminal
justice systems.
(c) Services may include, but are not limited to, any of the following:
(1) Educational services, including academic, tutoring, and college readiness services.
(2) Mentoring services.
(3) Behavioral health services.
(4) Mental health services.
(5) Recreational, cultural, and after school programs.
(6) Health services, including prevention, education, and behavioral and mental health services.
(7) Vocational training, job placement, and employment, including apprenticeships.
(8) Youth empowerment and leadership development.
(9) Youth violence prevention programs.
(10) Family and parent support services.
(11) Driver’s education programs.
(12) Support for collaboration among grantees to enhance service delivery and provider capacity building, as well as for community development efforts.
(13) Restorative justice services.
(d) Grant money shall not be used for
services provided by a police department or other law enforcement agency, a court, the district attorney’s office, the public defender’s office, or the city attorney’s office. Grant money shall not be used for detention or probation services mandated by state or federal law.