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Interstate Compact for Juveniles

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Issue: Interstate Compact for Juveniles

Impact:

Judicial sentencing decisions with interstate implications will have to comply with the Compact’s requirements and the rules promulgated by the Interstate ommission. Failure to do so risks subjecting a state to sanctions.

Position:

No formal position

Summary:

 The Interstate Compact for Juveniles was modeled after the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision with similar implications for courts. COSCA had a representative, Mike Buenger, participating in the drafting of this Compact. The final language of the new Compact was released in June 2002.
The new Compact significantly updates the 48-year-old mechanism for tracking and supervising juveniles that move across state borders. The new Compact provides enhanced accountability, enforcement, visibility and communication and seeks to update a crucial tool for ensuring public safety and preserving child welfare.
Primary changes to the original 1955 Juvenile Compact include:

• The establishment of an independent operating authority to administer ongoing compact activity, including a provision for staff support.

• Gubernatorial appointment representations of all member states on a national governing commission which meets annually to elect the compact operating authority members, and to attend to general business and rule making procedures.

• Rule making authority, provision for significant sanctions to support essential compact operations.

• Mandatory funding mechanism sufficient to support essential compact operations (staffing, data collection, training/education, etc.)

• Compel collection of standardized information.

Status:

The Interstate Compact for Juveniles has been adopted by thirty-six states – AL, AK, AR, AZ, CO, CT, DE, FL, ID, IL, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MI, MO, MT, NV, NJ, NM, NC, ND, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WV, WI, and WY. The Compact became effective and binding upon legislative enactment of the Compact in the thirty-fifth state. Like the Interstate Compact on the Supervision of Adult Offenders, a Commission is empowered to adopt rules and regulations to implement the Compact. The first organizational meeting of the Commission was held December 15-17, 2008. CCJ and COSCA will be invited to be an ex officio member of the Commission.