Senate Bill 200 (SB200) substantially overhauled Kentucky’s juvenile justice system and amended or created new obligations for the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS), KDE, Court Designated Workers, County Attorneys, District and Family Courts, school resource officers, school security officers, each local school, and directors of pupil personnel.
Although no appropriation was made for the implementation of SB 200 (2014), the measure created a financial incentive program through which a portion of any savings achieved is to be reinvested into community-based programs and services.
Institutions such as the courts, social services and correctional facilities have uniform policies and procedures across the state, but Kentucky’s public schools are not controlled or managed by a single administrative body. Each school district is under the management and control of a board of education. Each local board of education adopts a policy for implementing school-based decision making in the district.
Although KRS 160.160 and KRS 160.345 establish local control of school districts, KDE has been working to assist with the implementation of this legislation through collaborative work with the Juvenile Justice Task Force; interagency meetings with CHFS, DJJ, and AOC; the Juvenile Justice Advisory Board; the Advisory Committee on the Statewide Juvenile Rules of Court; FAIR Team members, CDWs and community partners; the Public Offense/Youthful Offense subcommittee; the Jurisdiction subcommittee; the Transfers to District Court Work Group; and the Juvenile Forms and Administrative Process subcommittee.
KDE recognizes that Kentucky’s statutes regarding student behavior present complicated legal obligations for local school districts, school based decision-making councils, teachers, principals, and superintendents, and will continue to provide guidance for reconciling these obligations.