Update on the Use of Juvenile Justice Millage Funds
October, 2004

In November, 2002, voters approved a 5-year 6/10 mill special property tax millage for the treatment and detention of delinquent and disturbed youth. The proceeds of this millage ($3.6 million in 2004) have provided the opportunity for stabilizing and expanding programming for delinquent juveniles in Ingham County while other parts of the county government have been faced with program reductions and hiring freezes.

 Actions taken by the Board of Commissioners and the Family Court Division of the Circuit Court since the beginning of 2003 include:

  • Adding  staff and security equipment at the Youth Center to bring it into compliance with state certification standards;

  • Implementing a standardized risk assessment tool for all delinquent juveniles being detained by the court;

  • Creating an Aftercare Unit to monitor and assist delinquent juveniles returning home from residential placements outside of the community;

  • Increasing the capacity of the short term residential program at Camp Highfields  from 9 to 24;

  • Authorizing a 16 bed increase in the capacity for local residential placements primarily for females;

  • Restructuring and expanding  the Highfield Youth Attention Program, a short-term placement program; and

  • Increasing from 16 to 30 the number of juveniles placed in other residential settings when local alternatives are not available.

 One of the significant  impacts of  the use of these funds has been a substantial reduction in overcrowding at the Ingham County Youth Center, the county's 24 bed juvenile detention facility. In August of this year, the Michigan Family Independence Agency renewed the license for the Ingham County Youth Center, citing “substantial compliance with applicable licensing statutes and administrative procedures.” Renewal of the facility's license had been withheld since 2000 due to chronic overcrowding. Since that time, county and court officials have reduced the overcrowding by increased monitoring and by utilizing other alternative placements. Board Chairperson Victor Celentino attributed approval of the special juvenile justice millage  to being able to reduce the overcrowding. Chairperson Victor Celentino stated that “The availability of badly needed funds is giving us the ability to provide for more capacity and better placement options for delinquent juveniles.”

 According to Commissioner Weatherwax-Grant, Chairperson of the Board's Judiciary Committee, further program expansions will occur once the County and Court are able to fully analyze data coming from the standardized risk assessments. “Determining how to best detain and treat delinquent juveniles in a community based system takes time, and we are making significant progress. At the same time, steps have been taken to address the most critical of the present problems. We were very pleased to see that overcrowding has been reduced and that FIA has renewed the license for the Youth Center.”