Consequences in Sentencing for Young Offenders Act

Summary: Consequences in Sentencing for Young Offenders Act - Revises provisions of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 regarding grants for correctional facilities (under the violent offender incarceration and truth in sentencing incentive grant program).  Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to States to construct, develop, expand, modify, operate, or improve adult and juvenile correctional facilities.  Directs the Attorney General:  (1) in making allocations, to give preference to States that provide assurances that they have in effect graduated sanctions for the State's juvenile justice system; and (2) from a portion of any funds made available under such grant program that are not allocated to an eligible State, to make truth in sentencing incentive grants for the construction, development, expansion, modification, operation, or improvement of juvenile facilities to States that provide assurances to the Attorney General that they have graduated sanctions in effect. 
Authorizes a State, or States organized as a multi-State compact, to opt to use any Federal grant money allocated for adult correctional facilities to construct, develop, expand, modify, operate, or improve youth correctional facilities which provide the State with a range of dispositional options and promote reduced recidivism.  Sets forth eligibility requirements.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Consequences in Sentencing for Young 
Offenders Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The juvenile justice system in this country is built 
        around an outdated philosophy that places the goal of 
        rehabilitation above community safety concerns.
            (2) Violent juvenile crime is increasing at a rate that is 
        double that for adults, and few juveniles are held accountable 
        for their offenses.
            (3) Many juvenile justice programs do not collect data or 
        analyze whether sanctions or treatment programs now in use are 
        effective in reducing recidivism.
            (4) The Federal Government should encourage the States to 
        pursue new juvenile justice policies that emphasize community 
        safety, individual accountability, work, restitution to 
        victims, parental involvement, and zero-tolerance for repeated 
        criminal acts.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of the Act are as follows:
            (1) To provide States with an incentive to establish a 
        system of graduated sanctions for juvenile delinquents with 
        sentencing options ranging from restitution and community 
        service to youth correctional facilities to remand to adult 
        court for older violent juvenile offenders. If a juvenile 
        continues to commit offenses, he or she will move up a ladder 
        of increasing consequences.
            (2) To promote parental involvement and responsibility in 
        the juvenile justice system.
            (3) To provide incentives for States to develop periodic 
        evaluations of the effectiveness of their juvenile justice 
        systems in keeping communities safe and working to reduce rates 
        of juvenile recidivism.

SEC. 3. GRANTS FOR CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES.

    The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 is 
amended--
            (1) in section 20101(a), by inserting ``adult and 
        juvenile'' before ``correctional facilities'' each place it 
        appears;
            (2) in section 20103(b)(2), by adding at the end: ``In 
        making allocations under this paragraph, the Attorney General 
        shall give a preference to States that provide assurances to 
        the Attorney General that such States have in effect graduated 
        sanctions for the State's juvenile justice system.''; and
            (3) in section 20102(b)(2), by striking ``shall transfer'' 
        and all that follows through ``paragraph (1).'' and inserting 
        ``shall--
                    ``(A) make grants from a portion, determined by the 
                Attorney General, of any funds made available to carry 
                out this section that are not allocated to an eligible 
                State under paragraph (1), to a State or States that 
                provide assurances to the Attorney General that such 
                State or States have in effect graduated sanctions, for 
                the construction, development, expansion, modification, 
                operation, or improvement of juvenile facilities; and
                    ``(B) transfer to the funds to be allocated under 
                section 20103(b)(1) any remainder of the funds so made 
                available but not allocated under paragraph (1) or used 
                for grants under subparagraph (A).''

SEC. 4. OPTIONAL USE OF GRANTS FOR CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES.

    (a) Use of Grant Money.--A State, or States organized as multi-
State compact, may opt to use any Federal grant money allocated to such 
State or States for adult correctional facilities to construct, 
develop, expand, modify, operate, or improve youth correctional 
facilities, such as secure youth correctional facilities, youth 
academies, juvenile boot camps, and restitution centers, which provide 
the State with a range of dispositional options and promote reduced 
recidivism.
    (b) Eligibility.--To be eligible to opt to use grant money in the 
manner provided in subsection (a), the State or States shall submit an 
application to the Attorney General which includes, at a minimum--
            (1) assurances that--
                    (A) the State or States has established or is in 
                the process of establishing a system of graduated 
                sanctions for the State's juvenile justice system in 
                which the State bases dispositions for juveniles on a 
                scale of increasingly severe sanctions for the 
                commission of a repeat offense, particularly if the 
                subsequent offense committed by such juvenile is of 
                similar or greater seriousness or if a court 
                dispositional order for a delinquent act is violated;
                    (B) such dispositions should, to the extent 
                practicable, require the juvenile delinquent to 
                compensate victims for losses and compensates the 
                juvenile justice authorities for supervision costs;
            (2) assurances that the State or States imposes a sanction 
        on each juvenile adjudicated delinquent;
            (3) assurances that the State or States requires that a 
        State court concur in allowing a juvenile to be sent to a 
        diversionary program in lieu of juvenile court proceedings;
            (4) assurances that the State or States has programs that 
        address the need for effective bindover systems or for the 
        prosecution as adults of juveniles, 15 years of age or older, 
        who are charged with a crime of violence as defined in section 
        16 of title 18, United States Code;
            (5) assurances that where practicable and appropriate, the 
        State or States requires parents to participate in meeting the 
        dispositional requirements imposed on the juvenile by the 
        court;
            (6) assurances that the State or States has consulted with 
        any units of local government responsible for youth secure 
        facilities in setting priorities for construction, development, 
        expansion and modification, operation or improvement of 
        juvenile facilities, and to the extent practicable, ensures 
        that the needs of entities currently administering juvenile 
        facilities are addressed; and
            (7) assurances that the State or States have in place or 
        are putting in place systems to provide objective evaluations 
        of State and local juvenile justice systems to determine such 
        systems' effectiveness in protecting the community, reducing 
        recidivism, and ensuring compliance with dispositions.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    Section 20108 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act 
of 1994 is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ```youth academy' means a residential facility that 
        provides basic education, rehabilitation services, job skills 
        training and apprenticeship programs to young offenders.
            ```restitution center' means a residential facility with an 
        intensive program of accountability centered activities that 
        provide a needed community service.
            ```juvenile boot camps' means a residential facility or 
        program based on a military basic training model that includes 
        extensive discipline, physical work, physical exercise, and 
        military drill.
            ```secure youth correctional facility' means a facility 
        that provides the highest level of security and direct 
        supervision for juvenile offenders.
            ```youth correctional facility' means any public or private 
        residential facility which--
                    ``(A) includes construction fixtures de-signed to 
                physically restrict the movements and activities of 
juveniles held in lawful custody; and
                    ``(B) is used for the placement, after adjudication 
                and disposition, for any juvenile who has been adjusted 
                as having committed on offense, or any juvenile tried 
                and convicted of a crime as an adult.
            ```sanctions' means a penalty for a delinquent act that 
        ensures accountability and may range from community service and 
        restitution requirements to incarceration in a secure youth 
        correctional facility, and, to the extent practicable, that 
        ensures compensation to victims for losses and compensation to 
        the juvenile justice authorities for supervision costs.
            ```offense' means an act by a juvenile that would be 
        considered a crime if it were committed by an adult.
            ```delinquent act' has the same meaning as the term 
        offense.
            ```graduated sanctions' means that--
                    ``(A) the State or States has established or is in 
                the process of establishing a system of sanctions for 
                the State's juvenile justice system in which the State 
                bases dispositions for juveniles on a scale of 
                increasingly severe sanctions for the commission of a 
                repeat offense, particularly if the subsequent offense 
                committed by such juvenile is of similar or greater 
                seriousness or if a court dispositional order for a 
                delinquent act is violated;
                    ``(B) such dispositions should, to the extent 
                practicable, require the juvenile delinquent to 
                compensate victims for losses and compensates the 
                juvenile justice authorities for supervision costs;
                    ``(C) the State or States imposes a sanction on 
                each juvenile adjudicated delinquent;
                    ``(D) the State or States requires that a State 
                court concur in allowing a juvenile to be sent to a 
                diversionary program in lieu of juvenile court 
                proceedings;
                    ``(E) the State or States has programs that address 
                the need for effective bindover systems or for the 
                prosecution as adults of juveniles, 15 years of age or 
                older, who are charged with a crime of violence as 
                defined in section 16 of title 18, United States Code;
                    ``(F) where practicable and appropriate, the State 
                or States requires parents to participate in meeting 
                the dispositional requirements imposed on the juvenile 
                by the court;
                    ``(G) the State or States has consulted with any 
                units of local government responsible for youth secure 
                facilities in setting priorities for construction, 
                development, expansion and modification, operation or 
                improvement of juvenile facilities, and to the extent 
                practicable, ensures that the needs of entities 
                currently administering juvenile facilities are 
                addressed; and
                    ``(H) the State or States have in place or are 
                putting in place systems to provide objective 
                evaluations of State and local juvenile justice systems 
                to determine such systems' effectiveness in protecting 
                the community, reducing recidivism, and ensuring 
                compliance with dispositions.'';''.