The primary duties of the offices of the Department are to plan, program, operate, manage, control, and maintain a juvenile justice system of care, rehabilitative service delivery, and security that meets the treatment needs of youth within the juvenile justice system and that is in accordance with national juvenile justice industry standards and best practices. These duties include:

1. (1) Providing services for committed and detained youth and PINS that balance the need for rehabilitation and holding youth accountable for their actions in the context of public safety;
2. (2) Facilitating and enhancing intra-District coordination of services and supports for youth in the juvenile justice system;
3. (3) Establishing and adopting best practices standards for the provision of residential, restorative, and rehabilitative services to youth in the juvenile justice system consistent with the standards of the American Correctional Association or those of another nationally accepted accrediting body;
4. (4) Employing a cadre of juvenile justice professionals who are highly skilled and experienced with the principles, goals, and the latest advancements of juvenile rehabilitation and treatment provision;
5. (5) Establishing through contracts, provider agreements, human care agreements, grants, memoranda of agreement or understanding, or other binding agreements a system of secure and community-based facilities and rehabilitative services with governmental bodies, public and private agencies, institutions, and organizations, for youth that will provide intervention, individualized assessments, continuum of services, safety, and security;
6. (6) Establishing a system that constantly reviews a youth’s individual strengths, needs, and rehabilitative progress and ensures placement within a continuum of least restrictive settings within secure facilities and the community;
7. (6A) If the child is transferred to a facility other than that indicated in the individualized rehabilitation plan, making an effort to contact the child's parent, guardian, or custodian no later than 24 hours after the change has occurred;
8. (7) Assessing the risks and needs of youth, and determining and providing the services needed for treatment for substance abuse and other services;
9. (8) Developing and maintaining a system with other governmental and private agencies to identify, locate, and retrieve youth who are under the care, custody, or supervision of the Department, who have absconded from an assigned secure governmental facility, or community shelter home, group home, residential facility, or foster care placement;
10. (9) Developing and maintaining state-of-the-art systems to monitor accountability and to enhance performance for all Department programs, services, and facilities, including monitoring the conditions of Department-contracted community facilities, including shelter homes, group homes, residential facilities, and therapeutic foster care placements, whether within or outside the District, and those facilities' obligation to provide for the health, safety, and welfare of youth;
11. (10) Developing and maintaining an ongoing training program for employees that ensures continuous development of expertise in juvenile justice service delivery;
12. (11) Taking a leadership role in the provision of training and technical assistance to non-governmental juvenile justice service providers that fosters the development of high-quality, comprehensive, cost-effective, and culturally competent delinquency prevention and juvenile rehabilitative services for the youth and their families;
13. (12) Developing and maintaining a capital improvement, licensing, and regulating program that ensures governmental and private institutions maintain up-to-date residential facilities, group homes, and shelter facilities to serve the safety, the security, and the rehabilitative needs of youth in the juvenile justice system, including by conducting regular oversight of the program and facility compliance;
14. (13) Enforcing all laws, rules, regulations, court orders, policies, and procedures necessary and appropriate to accomplish the duties of the Department;
15. (14) Conducting a behavioral health screening and assessment as required in § 2-1515.04a;
16. (15) Within 180 days after December 13, 2017, developing a manual for families of juveniles residing in secure juvenile facilities that includes, at a minimum, information on the operation of the institution or facility as it relates to families of juveniles, information on government and community resources available for families of juveniles, and information and resources available for juveniles after leaving confinement;
17. (16) Evaluating the effectiveness of rehabilitative services by collecting any available information from other District agencies on the education, employment, criminal justice, or other outcomes of persons who are either currently committed to the Department or who were committed to the Department in the previous 3 years;
18. (17) Cooperating with the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council by sharing data and allowing access to individuals under 21 years of age, to the extent otherwise permissible under the law, for the purpose of preparing the report described in section § 22-4234(b-3);

19. (18) In addition to any obligations imposed upon the Department due to its designation as a voter registration agency by § 1-1001.07(d)(1)(B):

    1. (A) If a youth committed at the Department is a qualified elector, as that term is defined in § 1-1001.02(2), registering the youth to vote, unless the youth indicates that they do not want to register;
    2. (B) Transmitting to the Board of Elections and the Council of the District of Columbia, on an annual basis, a report containing the number of youth the agency has registered to vote and the number of youth who declined to register to vote; and
    3. (C) Providing information about the importance of voting and the right of an individual currently incarcerated or with a criminal record to vote in the District, and of the importance of keeping their voter registration information, including their residence address, current and up-to-date, including upon transfer or release from the Department's custody;
20. (19) Performing validated risk and needs assessments, convening predisposition meetings, and developing, completing, and regularly updating individualized rehabilitation plans, pursuant to §§ 16-2319 and 16-2323;
21. (20) Cooperating with all reasonable requests of the District of Columbia Auditor, including by providing access to all facilities and youth confined in facilities, through unannounced and scheduled visits, subject to legitimate institutional needs based on safety considerations;
22. (21) If a child in the custody of the Department is provided with emergency medical treatment resulting from incidents, injuries, or severe illness, making an effort to contact the child's parent, guardian, or custodian within 24 hours; and
23. (22) Keeping an electronic log of all efforts made to contact the child's parent, guardian, or custodian as required by law and providing a copy of this electronic log to the child's parent, guardian, or custodian and the Chair of the Council committee with oversight of the Department upon request.

Editor's Notes

Section 601 of D.C. Law 19-141, as amended by D.C. Law 20-61, § 4112, provided that §§ 302(b)(1)(A) and (C) and 304(b)(1)(D) of D.C. Law 19-141 shall apply to public charter schools upon the inclusion of their fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan, as certified by the Chief Financial Officer to the Budget Director of the Council in a certification published by the Council in the District of Columbia Register. Section 302(b)(1)(A) of D.C. Law 19-141 added § 38-203(i)(A-i); Section 302(b)(1)(C) of D.C. Law 19-141 added § 38-203(i)(B-i); and Section 304(b)(1)(D) of D.C. Law 19-141 added 5 DCMR § A2103(c)(6).

Section 601 of D.C. Law 19-141 originally provided that the act shall apply upon the inclusion of its fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Section 601 of D.C. Law 19-141, as amended by D.C. Law 19-168, § 7004, provided that the applicability of only §§ 302(b)(1), 304, and 502(a) are contingent upon the inclusion of their fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan.

History

Apr. 12, 2005, D.C. Law 15-335, § 104, 52 DCR 2025

June 7, 2012, D.C. Law 19-141, § 504(b), 59 DCR 3083

Apr. 4, 2017, D.C. Law 21-238, § 402(b)

Dec. 13, 2017, D.C. Law 22-33, § 3103

Apr. 26, 2019, D.C. Law 22-309, § 2

Apr. 27, 2021, D.C. Law 23-277, § 3

Apr. 6, 2023, D.C. Law 24-342, § 5

Mar. 28, 2025, D.C. Law 25-321, § 3(b)

June 11, 2026, D.C. Law 26-132, § 3

Short Title

Section 4111 of D.C. Law 20-61 provided that Subtitle K of Title IV of the act may be cited as the “South Capitol Street Memorial Amendment Act of 2013”.

Emergency Legislation

For temporary (90 days) amendment of D.C. Law 19-141, § 601, see § 4112 of the Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Support Congressional Review Emergency Act of 2013 (D.C. Act 20-204, October 17, 2013, 60 DCR 15341, 20 DCSTAT 2311).

For temporary (90 days) amendment of D.C. Law 19-141, § 601, see § 4112 of the Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2013 (D.C. Act 20-130, July 30, 2013, 60 DCR 11384, 20 DCSTAT 1827).

For temporary (90 day) addition, see § 104 of Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services Establishment Congressional Review Emergency Amendment Act of 2005 (D.C. Act 16-58, March 17, 2005, 52 DCR 3182).

For temporary (90 day) addition, see § 104 of Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services Establishment Emergency Act of 2004 (D.C. Act 15-657, December 29, 2004, 52 DCR 481).

For temporary (90 days) amendment of this section, see § 3103 of Fiscal Year 2018 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2017 (D.C. Act 22-104, July 20, 2017, 64 DCR 7032).

For temporary (90 days) amendment of § 701|(a) of D.C. Law 21-238, see § 7026 of Fiscal Year 2018 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2017 (D.C. Act 22-104, July 20, 2017, 64 DCR 7032).

For temporary (90 days) amendment of this section, see § 3103 of Fiscal Year 2018 Budget Support Congressional Review Emergency Act of 2017 (D.C. Act 22-167, Oct. 24, 2017, 64 DCR 10802).

For temporary (90 days) amendment of § 701|(a) of D.C. Law 21-238, see § 7026 of Fiscal Year 2018 Budget Support Congressional Review Emergency Act of 2017 (D.C. Act 22-167, Oct. 24, 2017, 64 DCR 10802).

Effect of Amendments

D.C. Law 19-141 deleted “and” from the end of par. (12), substituted “; and” for a period the end of par. (13), and added par. (14).

Section References

This section is referenced in § 2-1515.05.

Applicability

Applicability of D.C. Law 21-238: § 701 of D.C. Law 21-238 provided that the change made to this section by § 402(b) of D.C. Law 21-238 is subject to the inclusion of the law’s fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Therefore that amendment has not been implemented.

Section 7026 of D.C. Law 22-33 amended § 701(a) of D.C. Law 21-238, removing the applicability restriction impacting this section. Therefore the changes made to this section by D.C. Law 21-238 have been implemented.

Applicability of D.C. Law 25-321: § 7 of D.C. Law 25-321 provided that the amendment to this section by § 3(b) of D.C. Law 25-321 is subject to the inclusion of the law’s fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Therefore that amendment has not been implemented.