Title

Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee

Intro

The Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee (JJAC) provides leadership and support in setting a vision for juvenile justice in Minnesota that is informed by evidence-based practices, multi-disciplinary experience and input from the diverse communities of Minnesota.

JJAC serves Minnesota youth by:

Advising the Governor and Legislature about issues, trends and practices related to Minnesota’s youth justice system.
Developing a strategic three-year plan for allocating resources to meet emerging needs of youth in Minnesota.
Promoting best practices in youth justice programming.

Widgets

About JJAC

The Minnesota Department of Children, Families, and Youth (DCYF) serves as the Designated State Agency for JJAC.

JJAC members are appointed by the Governor's Office and represent a variety of perspectives, including youth ages 14-20, education, law enforcement, judiciary, community-based services, out-of-school time activities, violence interruption, and government leadership.

State of Minnesota youth-serving agencies provide ex officio members to JJAC. While not voting members of JJAC, they provide valuable expertise in their respective fields.

Important Note: The Inspection and Enforcement Unit at the Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) assists YSO's JJDPA compliance coordinator by conducting compliance inspections at DOC-licensed facilities. These inspectors may attend JJAC meetings to report their findings and progress.

Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act

JJAC is responsible for Minnesota’s compliance with the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA).

Four core requirements of the JJDPA protect youth involved in the juvenile justice system:

De-institutionalization of Status Offenders
- Juveniles charged with status offenses must not be placed in secure detention. A status offense is an offense that would not be deemed criminal if committed by an adult (such as truancy, running away, tobacco and alcohol use).
Sight and Sound Separation of Juvenile and Adults in Secure Custody
- States must ensure youth charged with a delinquent offense who are detained or confined in an adult jail or lockup do not have verbal or visual contact with adults also in secure custody.
Removal of Juveniles from Adult Jails and Lockups
- States must ensure no youth is detained or confined in a jail or lockup intended for adult offenders beyond specified time limits: six hours within in Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) counties and 24 hours in all other counties.
Ethnic and Racial Disparities
- States are required to put forth efforts to reduce the proportion of BIPOC at all points along the juvenile justice system.

Join JJAC

For further information about joining the committee, visit the Secretary of State for open appointments.

2025 Meeting Schedule

Funding

Grants Awarded

Federal Title II Funds

Federal Title II funds are authorized under the federal Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act and allocated to each state. They are awarded and monitored by a state advisory group - JJAC in Minnesota.

The goal is to prevent or divert youth involvement in the juvenile justice system and to eliminate or minimize ethnic and racial disparities. The target population is youth under the age of 18 (and their families), who have had contact with the juvenile justice system or who are at risk of having contact with the juvenile justice system.

Allowable activities include:

Strategies to reduce ethnic and racial disparities.
Coordinated community services that support at risk youth and families.
Services specifically designed for target populations such as youth of color, young women, homeless youth and children who are at risk of offending.
Services that target youth whose present behavior places them at risk of future delinquent activity

Learn more about Title II Formula Grants Program.

Native American Pass-Through Funding

JJAC allocates the Native American Pass-Through funding, which is based on the population of Native Americans within the state. Tribes with a police department are eligible. Contact staff for questions about eligibility.

Plans and Priorities

Guides and best practice documents

Juvenile Diversion Guidebook: While diversion continues to emerge as an important practice in the juvenile justice field, these inconsistencies in what constitutes “diversion” call for clarification. This Guidebook was created to offer juvenile justice practitioners a roadmap for addressing these inconsistencies.
JJAC's Ethnic and Racial Disparities Reduction Model: Identifies key characteristics that must remain central to any effort aimed at reducing the disparate treatment of Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and Asian youth

Minnesota Statistical Analysis Center (SAC)

The Minnesota Statistical Analysis Center (SAC) collects juvenile justice data and analyzes trends affecting Minnesota youth. Juvenile justice data published by the SAC:

Reports

Juvenile Diversions in Minnesota: This report gathers information about county attorney level juvenile diversion programs.
This report contains summary tables of information gathered during interviews with at least one diversion provider in all 87 counties, including information on diversion program eligibility, completion requirements, numbers served, educational components, legal protections and other aspects of service delivery. This report is modeled after the MacArthur Foundation’s Models for Change Initiative: Juvenile Diversion Guidebook which outlines 16 steps for planning diversion programs.
The degree to which Minnesota utilizes best practices in diversion programming is explored and recommendations are made to improve the quality and consistency of diversion across jurisdictions.
Council on Crime and Justice Report on Juvenile Records: The Council and Crime and Justice has created this report to provide a detailed description of how Minnesota juvenile records are created, maintained, and accessed; it describes when juvenile records are public and when they are private; and it both identifies and defines the many collateral consequences – legal disabilities and practical barriers – that an individual with a juvenile record may face as they grow into adulthood. The report was created with input from professionals in the field, and funded by the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act through the Minnesota Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee and Minnesota Department of Public Safety Office of Justice Programs.

National organizations

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) is our federal grantor. OJJDP provides national leadership, coordination, and resources to prevent and respond to juvenile delinquency and victimization.

The Coalition for Juvenile Justice (CJJ) is a national non-profit organization which provides training and technical assistance to State Agency Groups (SAGs) such as the Minnesota JJAC , with support from OJJDP.

The Center for Juvenile Justice Reform (CJJR) at Georgetown University Public Policy Institute offers Certificate Programs designed to advance multi-systems work to improve outcomes for youth involved in the juvenile justice and child welfare systems. Individuals and jurisdictions will receive financial support for the travel, lodging and tuition for the Certificate Program.
The Juvenile Collateral Consequences Project is an endeavor undertaken by the American Bar Association to document juvenile justice collateral consequences by state.

Minnesota organizations

State agencies

Youth Collaborations

Individuals and Families

Partners and Providers

Get Involved

Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee

About JJAC

Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act

Join JJAC

Federal Title II Funds

Native American Pass-Through Funding

Publications and resources

Partners

No English?