September 16, 2021

Both chambers of the Legislature adjourned before 9 p.m. last Friday night, bringing an end to the 2021 session. Following is an update on major bills of interest or concern for the Administration of Justice policy area that are now among the 800+ bills awaiting action by Governor Gavin Newsom. CSAC staff will continue to monitor and advocate for County priorities during the signing period, which ends October 10, 2021.

July 8, 2021

Late last week, California Attorney General Rob Bonta released four annual reports — as well as 10 new data dashboards — that provide the public with statewide data on criminal justice statistics in California. The reports, as well as the data behind each report, are available on OpenJustice, a data-driven initiative that works to increase access to criminal justice data and support the development of public policy.

July 1, 2021

April 8, 2021

April 1, 2021

The Board of State and Community Corrections Board will meet on April 8, 2021, at 10:00 am. The Board Meeting will be live-streamed: To view the live stream, visit the BSCC website homepage 10-15 minutes before the scheduled start time.

March 18, 2021

The Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) is hosting a virtual Stakeholder Input Session on March 22, 2021, from 4 – 6 p.m. The session will focus on the development of the $9.6 M Request for Application (RFA) for the Youth Programs and Facilities Grant Program portion of SB 823 (Chapter 337, Statutes of 2020).

March 4, 2021

In partnership with the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (MHSOAC), the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center will be hosting a series of online workshops in March & April for county teams interested in implementing/improving screening and assessment for behavioral health needs in jails. The first session, Identifying Goals and Tools for Behavioral Health Screening, will be held on Wednesday, March 10 from 12:00-2:30 pm.

February 4, 2021

January 28, 2021

This is a reminder that the deadline to submit applications to the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) for the federal Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) Program is Monday, February 1, 2021. This non-competitive application makes $41,763,011 available to interested counties for approaches that prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus.

January 21, 2021

January 7, 2021

The California Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board (Board) recently announced the release of its fourth annual report on racial and identity profiling in policing in the state as required under the Racial and Identity Profiling Act of 2015 (RIPA). Each year, the Board examines topics of importance to the community and law enforcement to make recommendations with the goal of effecting positive change and ultimately improving relationships and trust between law enforcement and the community.

November 5, 2020

Governor Newsom announced a seventh and final round of Project Homekey awards last Thursday, totaling $81.4 million. The final round includes $129.6 million to nine applicants for 17 projects totaling 982 units. To date, more than $835.6 million has been awarded to 48 jurisdictions for 93 projects totaling 6,055 units. The average per-unit cost to Homekey is $138,512.

The seventh round of awards includes projects in these 4 county led efforts:

October 29, 2020

Governor Newsom met the September 30 deadline to take action on measures approved by the Legislature and delivered to his desk. To keep counties informed of new laws that impact them, CSAC will be publishing a series of articles to spotlight those laws in each policy area. This week, the Administration of Justice policy area provides information on new laws affecting criminal justice fees, courts, probation, police reform and the realignment of the Division of Juvenile Justice.

October 15, 2020

October 1, 2020

BSCC Launches Public Comment for Federal JAG Spending Priorities

As part of its three-year strategic planning effort, the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) is launching a months-long public input process that will help establish priorities for 2022-2025 grant funding for the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant.

September 3, 2020

The Administration of Justice policy committee advocated on a number of bills this legislative session. Here are some highlights from the end of session.

AB 1007 (Jones-Sawyer): Local Government Financing: juvenile justice:

July 23, 2020

July 2, 2020

In response to increasing court pressure and the growing number of COVID-19 cases in state prisons, this week the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) will begin a new early release process. Similar to the last round of early releases, this new program will include several “public safety screens” which exclude offenders:

June 4, 2020

June 4, 2020

A Judicial Council working group of 23 volunteer judges and court executives released a 75-page resource guide to assist the state’s trial courts with their pandemic continuity of operations, while providing a safe environment for court users, staff, and justice partners. 

May 21, 2020

May 15, 2020

As previously shared in the April 2 CSAC Bulletin, the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) released a Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) solicitation on March 30, 2020. The CESF program provides funding to states, local units of government, and tribes to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus.