Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support the bill before us today because it allows states and localities to develop programs on juvenile justice, according to the needs of their own communities. It is a credit to Crime Subcommittee Chairman Lamar Smith and Ranking Member Bobby Scott that we were able to improve this bill with an amendment I offered in Committee. The amendment requires a strong assessment component to any program funded by this bill.
My amendment requires all applicants to provide information up front detailing how they will evaluate the success of their program. It requires an assessment to be undertaken at appropriate intervals (each year). These assessment will be submitted by the states or localities to the Department of Justice. The Attorney General could waive this requirement if an assessment would not be practical (i.e. building a facility) or if an assessment requirement would prove to be cost prohibitive. From these assessments, the Attorney General would submit a report to Congress on the progress of funded programs. The funding for these assessments comes out of their existing grant money, but I'm sure you would agree that is it important to be able to identify any unsuccessful program.
As a former federal prosecutor, I have seen the successes and failures of programs designed to improve the juvenile justice system. It is critical that we evaluate programs we fund to ensure their effectiveness in achieving their stated goals.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill. And I again want to commend the Leadership of both parties for bringing this bill before us today.