House Appropriations Committee Approves ’21 Funding for DOJ Programs

July 15, 2020

The House Appropriations Committee approved on Tuesday the fiscal year (FY) 2021 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies funding bill on July 14 along party lines. The bill funds various state and local law enforcement assistance grant programs within the Department of Justice, such as the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (JMHCP), the Justice Reinvestment Initiative, and the Second Chance Act. The bill provides the following:

  • $43 million for the JMHCP, authorized under the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act and reauthorized under the 21st Century Cures Act. These funds ensure that criminal justice and mental health systems throughout the country have the money they need to serve some of the nation’s most vulnerable people. The law funds mental health courts, mental health and substance use disorder treatment for people in the criminal justice system, community reentry services, and local law enforcement training to help officers identify and improve their responses to people who have mental health needs. To date, grants awarded under this program have funded more than 200 mental health courts and other court-based initiatives, supported over 125 law enforcement agencies, and provided a total of 531 grants to 49 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and American Samoa.
  • $30 million for Justice Reinvestment, a data-driven approach that helps states reduce corrections and related criminal justice spending and reinvest savings in strategies to improve public safety. In recent years, more than 35 states have used a Justice Reinvestment approach to develop policies to slow overall prison growth, and for some states, reduce the total prison population. States have reported cumulative savings and averted costs of more than $1.1 billion while also investing hundreds of millions in effective supervision and treatment programs to make communities safer. These have included efforts to improve community supervision, expand community-based treatment and services, create grants to support local law enforcement, enhance victims’ services, and more.
  • $100 million for the Second Chance Act, which was reauthorized as part of the landmark First Step Act. Since its enactment, recipients of Second Chance grants have worked to improve outcomes for people returning to their communities from prisons and jails, providing vital services—including employment training and assistance, substance use disorder treatment, education, housing, family programming, mentoring, and victims’ support. There have been more than 900 grants awarded in 49 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories, allowing jurisdictions to develop, improve, and expand reentry programs and policies. Second Chance grantees have served more than 164,000 participants since 2009.

In addition to the programs above, the funding bill includes $400 million to address policing reform in the wake of the nationwide protests over police misconduct.

The House of Representative could vote on the bill later this month. Senate appropriators have yet to act on any of their funding bills for FY2021.

Here’s a breakdown of key provisions in the bill:

Policing Reform and Racial Justice

Anti-Opioid Abuse

Bureau of Prisons

Other Justice Grant Programs

About the Author


Image for:
Former Director of Governmental Affairs, Finance, Operations, and Administration
Jamal Nelson cultivated and maintained relationships with members of Congress and the administration and acted as a liaison to various coalitions and groups to effectively implement the legislative priorities of the CSG Justice Center. Before joining the CSG Justice Center
...
in 2009, Jamal served as deputy director of intergovernmental affairs at the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he worked on international trade issues. Jamal received his BS in political science from Southern Connecticut State University. 
Read More
  • You might also be interested in