Wis. Stat. § 48.526 — WI Code / Chapter 48 / Section 48.526
Community youth and family aids.
Status: in_force

(1) Procedures. The department shall develop procedures for the implementation of this section and standards for the development and delivery of community-based juvenile delinquency-related services, as defined in s. 46.011 (1c) , and shall provide consultation and technical assistance to aid counties in the implementation and delivery of those services. The department shall establish information systems and monitoring and evaluation procedures to report periodically to the governor and legislature on the statewide impact of this section.

(2) Receipt of funds.

(a) All funds to counties under this section shall be allocated to county departments under ss. 46.215 , 46.22 and 46.23 subject to ss. 48.569 (2) and 49.325 . No reimbursement may be made to any multicounty department until the counties that established the department have drawn up a detailed contractual agreement, approved by the secretary, setting forth the plans for joint sponsorship.

(b) Uniform fees collected or received by counties under s. 49.32 (1) for services provided under this section shall be applied to cover the cost of the services.

(c) All funds to counties under this section shall be used to purchase or provide community-based juvenile delinquency-related services, as defined in s. 46.011 (1c) , and to purchase juvenile correctional services, as defined in s. 46.011 (1p) , except that no funds to counties under this section may be used for purposes of land purchase, building construction, or maintenance of buildings under s. 46.17 , 46.175 , or 301.37 , for reimbursement of costs under s. 938.209 , for city lockups, or for reimbursement of care costs in temporary shelter care under s. 938.22 . Funds to counties under this section may be used for reimbursement of costs of program services, including basic care and supervision costs, in juvenile detention facilities and secured residential care centers for children and youth.

(2m) Public participation process. In determining the use of funds under this section, county departments under ss. 46.215 , 46.22 and 46.23 shall assess needs using an open public participation process that involves representatives of those receiving services.

(3) Grants-in-aid.

(a) Receipt of funds under this subsection is contingent upon use of the public participation process required under sub. (2m) .

(c) Within the limits of the appropriations under s. 20.437 (1) (cj) , (o) , and (q) , the department shall allocate funds to each county for services under this section.

(dm) The department may carry forward for a county from one calendar year to another funds allocated under this subsection that are not spent or encumbered. The amount that the department may carry forward for a county under this paragraph may not exceed 5 percent of the amount allocated to the county for the 12-month period ending December 31. The funds carried forward under this paragraph do not affect a county’s base allocation.

(e) The department may carry forward $500,000 or 10 percent of its funds allocated under this subsection and not encumbered or carried forward under par. (dm) by counties by December 31, whichever is greater, to the next 2 calendar years. The department may transfer moneys from or within s. 20.437 (1) (cj) or (q) to accomplish this purpose. The department may allocate these transferred moneys to counties with persistently high rates of juvenile arrests for serious offenses during the next 2 calendar years to improve community-based juvenile delinquency-related services, as defined in s. 46.011 (1c) . The allocation does not affect a county’s base allocation.

(em) The department may carry forward any emergency funds allocated under sub. (7) (e) and not encumbered or carried forward under par. (dm) by December 31 to the next 2 calendar years. The department may transfer moneys from or within s. 20.437 (1) (cj) or (q) to accomplish this purpose. The department may allocate these transferred moneys to counties that are eligible for emergency payments under sub. (7) (e) . The allocation does not affect a county’s base allocation.

(6) Performance standards.

(a) The department shall develop criteria as provided in par. (b) to assist the legislature in allocating funding, excluding funding for base allocations, from the appropriations under s. 20.437 (1) (cj) , (o) , and (q) for purposes described in this section.

(b) The criteria developed under par. (a) shall include performance standards criteria to be used to determine whether counties are successfully diverting juveniles from juvenile correctional facilities and secured residential care centers for children and youth to less restrictive community programs and are successfully rehabilitating juveniles who are adjudged delinquent. Counties shall provide information requested by the department in order to apply the criteria and assess their performances.

(7) Allocations of funds. Within the limits of the availability of the appropriations under s. 20.437 (1) (cj) , (o) , and (q) , the department shall allocate funds for community youth and family aids for the period beginning on July 1, 2021, and ending on June 30, 2023, for the 2023 fiscal biennium, and for the 2025 fiscal biennium, as provided in this subsection to county departments under ss. 46.215 , 46.22 , and 46.23 as follows:

(a) For community youth and family aids under this section, amounts not to exceed $47,740,750 for the last 6 months of 2025, $95,481,500 for 2026, and $47,740,750 for the first 6 months of 2027.

(b) Of the amounts specified in par. (a) , the department shall allocate $2,000,000 for the last 6 months of 2025, $4,000,000 for 2026, and $2,000,000 for the first 6 months of 2027 to counties based on each of the following factors weighted equally:

1. Each county’s proportion of the total statewide juvenile population for the most recent year for which that information is available.

2. Each county’s proportion of the total Part I juvenile arrests reported statewide under the uniform crime reporting system of the department of justice during the most recent 3-year period for which that information is available.

3. Each county’s proportion of the number of juveniles statewide who are placed in a juvenile correctional facility or a secured residential care center for children and youth during the most recent 3-year period for which that information is available.

(bm) Of the amounts specified in par. (a) , the department shall allocate $6,250,000 for the last 6 months of 2025, $12,500,000 for 2026, and $6,250,000 for the first 6 months of 2027 to counties based on each county’s proportion of the number of juveniles statewide who are placed in a juvenile correctional facility or a secured residential care center for children and youth during the most recent 3-year period for which that information is available.

(c) Of the amounts specified in par. (a) , the department shall allocate $1,053,200 for the last 6 months of 2025, $2,106,500 for 2026, and $1,053,300 for the first 6 months of 2027 to counties based on each of the factors specified in par. (b) 1. to 3. weighted equally, except that no county may receive an allocation under this paragraph that is less than 93 percent nor more than 115 percent of the amount that the county would have received under this paragraph if the allocation had been distributed only on the basis of the factor specified in par. (b) 3.

(e) For emergencies related to community youth and family aids under this section, amounts not to exceed $125,000 for the last 6 months of 2025, $250,000 for 2026, and $125,000 for the first 6 months of 2027. A county is eligible for payments under this paragraph only if it has a population of not more than 45,000.

(h) For counties that are purchasing community supervision services under s. 938.533 (2) , $1,062,400 in the last 6 months of 2025, $2,124,800 in 2026, and $1,062,400 in the first 6 months of 2027 for the provision of community supervision services for juveniles from that county. In distributing funds to counties under this paragraph, the department shall distribute to each county the full amount of the charges for the services purchased by that county, except that if the amounts available under this paragraph are insufficient to distribute that full amount, the department shall distribute those available amounts to each county that purchases community supervision services based on the ratio that the charges to that county for those services bear to the total charges to all counties that purchase those services.

(8) Alcohol and other drug abuse treatment. From the amount of the allocations specified in sub. (7) (a) , the department shall allocate $666,700 in the last 6 months of 2025, $1,333,400 in 2026, and $666,700 in the first 6 months of 2027 for alcohol and other drug abuse treatment programs.

History: 2015 a. 55 ss. 1676 to 1678 , 4256 to 4263 , 4276 to 4278 , 4280 , 4282 , 4284 , 4286 , 4288 , 4290 , 4292 , 4294 ; Stats. 2015 s. 48.526; 2017 a. 185 ; 2019 a. 9 ; 2021 a. 58 ; 2023 a. 19 ; 2025 a. 15 .