COORDINATING DOJ GRANT REFORM WITH CMS REFORM & OLMSTEAD COMPLIANCE: THE NEED FOR SPECIFICITY

Reimagining Federal Grants for Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform

​Oct. 7, 2020

"Today, the movement to end mass incarceration and police violence is gaining steam.

"Communities are calling for a smaller justice system that is no longer the primary response to many social issues, from behavioral health disorders to homelessness to school discipline.

"These are not new priorities; rather, national public awareness has started to catch up to what many communities have been advocating for years.

"Yet federal funding mechanisms are still stuck in the 1990s.

"Instead of pushing jurisdictions toward justice reform, the largest available justice-related grants incentivize deference to law enforcement and criminal justice agencies, which have historically perpetuated approaches that drive up arrest and incarceration rates.

"Dedicated funding streams for reform-minded strategies are much smaller and are generally awarded on a competitive basis, thereby limiting the number of jurisdictions that can use federal funds to promote change."
Olmstead Planning:  The Specificity Principle & Cognitive Disability

This is HARD STUFF.  It would be ridiculous to pretend otherwise.

We need a lot of Specific Guidance coming out of:

• CMS
• HUD, and
• DOJ

to ensure Olmstead Compliance:

• Measurable Goals
• Reasonable Time Frames, and
• Funding to Support the Plan

The SPECIFICITY needed includes TEMPLATES for GOALS, TIME FRAMES and FUNDING that can MODIFIED so long as OLMSTEAD COMPLIANCE is ACHIEVED.

​One of the reasons we have MASS INCARCERATION is that States are NOT COMPLYING with Olmstead with regard to Cognitive Disability, including Substance Use Issues.

It is not uncommon to find that under that Substance Use issue is a Developmental Disability such as ADHD or Autism, mental illnesses such as Bipolar Disorder, Depression, or Schizophrenia and/or a Brain Injury.

There are a lot of things going on with State Olmstead NON-COMPLIANCE:

• Discrimination against people with Cognitive Disabilities
• Discrimination against poor people
• Discrimination against people of color
• NOT really having the vaguest idea how to FUND what's needed.
• The reality is more and more MIDDLE CLASS White People are finding themselves or a family member ensnared in the Criminal Justice System because of Cognitive Disability.
• Further, these are PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUES that DO NOT DISCRIMINATE on the basis of color (although Intergenerational Trauma can be a factor)
• Additionally, there is a BIG DIVIDE is this country regarding what one can afford in terms of treatment or long term care. if necessary.    MEDICAID is HUGELY IMPORTANT.