1-1     By:  Ramsay (Senate Sponsor - Staples)               H.C.R. No. 254
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 7, 2001;
 1-3     May 7, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal
 1-4     Justice; May 11, 2001, reported favorably by the following vote:
 1-5     Yeas 5, Nays 1; May 11, 2001, sent to printer.)
 1-6                         HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-7           WHEREAS, The traditional response to instances of criminal
 1-8     behavior has been to subject the offender to a variety of
 1-9     sanctions, including adjudication, probation, detention, and
1-10     incarceration; while these approaches may also serve as a deterrent
1-11     to future crime, they generally respond to criminal behavior after
1-12     the fact and do little to break the vicious cycle of crime; and
1-13           WHEREAS, The state's growing prison population, including an
1-14     increasing number of new commitments to Texas Youth Commission
1-15     facilities, and the rising costs associated with serving those
1-16     populations under state supervision, have heightened awareness of
1-17     the need to explore alternative, less costly, but effective
1-18     approaches, such as prevention and early intervention services that
1-19     aim to divert certain youth away from criminal activity; and
1-20           WHEREAS, In its interim report to the 77th Legislature, the
1-21     House Committee on County Affairs illustrated the value of such an
1-22     approach in its finding that a majority  of the youth who have
1-23     received early intervention services through the Department of
1-24     Protective and Regulatory Services have experienced positive
1-25     outcomes such as increases in TAAS test scores; and
1-26           WHEREAS, The cost of failing to provide appropriate
1-27     interventions may be inferred from research by the National
1-28     Institute of Justice indicating that abused and neglected children
1-29     are 53 percent more likely to be arrested as juveniles and 38
1-30     percent more likely to be arrested as adults when compared to
1-31     children who have not been abused or neglected; and
1-32           WHEREAS, The committee mindfully acknowledges the interim
1-33     testimony given by witnesses that expressed frustration with the
1-34     lack of coordination between state and local government entities
1-35     and community-based service organizations in delivering prevention
1-36     and early intervention services, with 17 state agencies providing
1-37     funding for at least 34 at-risk programs; and
1-38           WHEREAS, The legislature has duly recognized the important
1-39     role that prevention and early intervention services play in
1-40     targeting at-risk behaviors and other factors that lead to child
1-41     abuse, drug use, delinquency, running away, truancy, and dropping
1-42     out of school; and
1-43           WHEREAS, In 1999, legislation was enacted that created the
1-44     prevention and early intervention services division within the
1-45     department to consolidate the programs and services that target
1-46     children and their families who are susceptible to at-risk
1-47     behaviors; and
1-48           WHEREAS, The consolidation of prevention and early
1-49     intervention services within the jurisdiction of a single state
1-50     agency will help deliver a unified system of services that local
1-51     entities can use to meet the specific, individual needs of an
1-52     at-risk child and, at the same time, maximize federal, state, and
1-53     local resources; and
1-54           WHEREAS, In keeping with its interim charge to study the
1-55     coordination of services for at-risk youth at the local level, the
1-56     House Committee on County Affairs recommends in its report to the
1-57     77th Legislature that additional efforts be made in nonurban areas
1-58     to build a comprehensive and cohesive system for delivering
1-59     prevention and early intervention services to youth at risk of
1-60     future criminality; now, therefore, be it
1-61           RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas
1-62     hereby direct the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services,
1-63     in conjunction with the United Ways of Texas, to coordinate all
1-64     appropriate state agency resources with those of interested
 2-1     community groups in Hunt, Gray, Duval, Wichita, Titus, Williamson,
 2-2     and Blanco counties, to assess the needs of those communities and
 2-3     to ensure a continuum of prevention and early intervention services
 2-4     to youth who are at risk of entering the criminal justice system;
 2-5     and, be it further
 2-6           RESOLVED, That in developing plans to provide such services
 2-7     in nonurban areas, the department seek partnerships with the Texas
 2-8     Municipal League, the Texas Association of Counties, Texas A&M
 2-9     Agriculture Extension offices, the Texas Youth Commission, the
2-10     Councils of Governments in those areas, the criminal justice
2-11     division and the Texas Commission on Volunteerism and Community
2-12     Service in the Office of the Governor, the Justices of the Peace
2-13     and Constables Association, and faith-based groups in the local
2-14     communities as well as local youth; and, be it further
2-15           RESOLVED, That the department submit a full report of its
2-16     findings and recommendations to the Office of the Governor, and to
2-17     the 78th Texas Legislature before it convenes in January 2003; and,
2-18     be it further
2-19           RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official
2-20     copy of this resolution to the executive director of the Department
2-21     of Protective and Regulatory Services and to the chair of the Board
2-22     of Protective and Regulatory Services.
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