Treatment Court: Is Yours Sustainable? (Part 4)

Part Four – Show Me the Money

As demonstrated in the prior blog posts,[i] sustainability is much more than having money to operate the Treatment Court.  Sustainability requires a plan on the necessary steps to operate the Treatment Court: it requires that the community is educated about the program’s success; and it requires that non-monetary sources are located that will support the Court’s efforts.   Sufficient funds are just one part of an overall plan for sustainability.

What funds are available will also depend on your location.  If you are a Treatment Court within the United States, there are federal funds available in addition to state and local funds.  If you are elsewhere in the world, you will need to do some additional research on what is available.

Part of the System?

When considering what funds are available, it is important to start with the premise that Treatment Courts should be part of the institutional court system.  Therefore, the source of funds for the courts in general should also supply the funds needed for Treatment Courts.  However, for most Treatment Courts this has not happened—yet. 

For many people, there is still the attitude that these courts are separate endeavors, not really part of the justice system.  That is the reason for a continuing need to educate the community, as well as your partners within the overall court system.  Education can build the recognition that Treatment Courts are the most effective response for high-risk, high-need individuals and must be part of the overall answer to reducing recidivism and making our communities safer. It builds the recognition that these Courts must be institutionalized and supported.  However, in the meantime, what funds are available to support your endeavor?

Federal Financial Support

In the United States, the most common federal funding source is the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), a division of the U.S. Department of Justice.  Each year, BJA provides funds through a grant application that includes implementation (start up) and enhancement (growth) grants, but it is important to acknowledge that these grants are very competitive.  The grants are submitted and then peer reviewed by others in the Treatment Court field to ensure the program has taken the appropriate steps to move forward, will use Best Practices, and follow the Guiding Principles for that particular type of program.[ii]

Another common federal funding source is through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  Like BJA, SAMHSA also takes grant applications to support Treatment Courts. But it is important to recognize that SAMHSA grant applications are very in-depth and take time to complete; the work to gather the appropriate information has to begin weeks and possibly months before the application is submitted.  However, these grants typically provide greater funds than BJA grants.[iii] 

Other possible federal grants sources can include through a Juvenile Accountability Incentive Block Grant (JAIBG), the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant Program (LLEBG), the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, and even the Department of Education.  Collaboration is the name of the game; examine which of these funding sources is looking to fund innovative collaborations and determine if  you meet their requirements.  

Financial Diversity is Important

Keep in mind that you should not focus on using only one source for all your needs.  That is not likely nor a good use of resources.  Just like a good retirement plan, diversity of funding for your Treatment Court is a sound financial plan.  Do you need a women’s treatment group?  You may need to write a grant for that particular endeavor.  What about housing for your participants?  Have you looked to see what the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) may have available?  Look at what need is missing from your program and then see what agency can possibly fill that hole.  Once again, it is about looking outside the box and bringing all of the pieces of the puzzle together to build an effective Treatment Court.

Because several of these grant options listed may not exist when you are looking for funds, someone on your team should register with Grants.gov to get email notices on grant opportunities.  Another service to provide notice of grant and assistance is SAM.gov, which replaced CFDA.gov.  Again, a member of the team can register with this website and receive announcements on federal assistance on a broad range of programs and services.

Ultimately it must be remembered that grants are typically short term, they are very competitive, they are not an entitlement, and there are no guarantees of success.  Many times, it takes more than one year to be successful with the first application being the trial run.  But the final question must always be: “How will your Treatment Court survive when the grant funds are gone?”  That must be part of your sustainability plan as well as part of the grant application.

State Financial Support

A number of states have developed approved funding for Treatment Court programs.  The funding may pass through a number of agencies, such as a State Court Administrative Office, a State Corrections Agency, or State Alcohol & Drug Abuse Agency.  Many of these agencies may also have discretionary funds for treatment or criminal justice purposes.  But you need to ask—go look at their websites and try to determine the contact person in each agency and then make the inquiry.

Consider who is saving money when your program is successful?  One obvious agency is the Department of Corrections (DOC)? By using the jails more effectively, the DOC should experience cost savings.  Work with them to see if there is support for your court.  They may provide funds for you to continue your Treatment Court.  What about your state legislature? Is the Budget Committee in your state trying to put together funds for Treatment Courts?  Can you help in that process?

Some State Highway Safety Offices have funding for DWI Court programs.[iv] Have any discussions been held with the director for that agency?  Does your state collect taxes on the sale of alcoholic beverages? In a few states, a portion of this revenue is earmarked for treatment or community service projects. Look and see if your Treatment Court can tap into these funds. Additionally, some states have passed legislation creating fines or adding a surcharge on fines or fees on criminal offenders—and these funds are, in many cases, earmarked for education and treatment programs. Again, will your Treatment Court qualify for those funds?

Local Financial Support

When looking at local support, be sure to approach your local governmental agencies.  Counties may have dollars that they are willing to appropriate for programs that can make a difference in the community.  Are members of the city council or the board of county commissioners on your steering committee?  If no, why aren’t they?  Have you gone out into the community to market your Treatment Court?[v]  If so, and Rotary and Kiwanis and Lions love the idea, can they help persuade that council when you make your pitch for funding?  How do you get on the agenda?  Your Sheriff and Prosecuting Attorney will know about this.  They’ve been addressing these bodies for years.  Enlist your team to help.  And don’t forget about the local bar association and other local entities.  They may have discretionary funds available.

Other Potential Sources of Support

There are a host of other financial resources.  Many Treatment Courts charge a nominal participant fee.  We’ve seen them ranging from five to twenty dollars per week.  This money can be used for grant matches, among other things.  Different Treatment Courts have accessed corporations and private foundations.  You can learn more about private foundations and funding opportunities at the Foundation Center.  Learn what issues the local foundations support, and ask them to support a piece of your program related to their community efforts.  For example, if a local foundation is promoting the betterment of child care for the indigent and working poor, send them a concept paper to start that day care center you’re looking for, or those parenting classes you want to develop. 

Don’t forget that individuals may also be able to contribute time and money to your program—and that fundraising events, whether car washes, etc., sponsored by the Treatment Court can raise cash.  Many grants require cash matches, so even relatively small amounts of cash, when used as a match and multiplied by ten, can turn into a significant funding source for your program.

ALWAYS remember throughout this process that the judge may have an ethical obligation that prevents him/her from being involved in any fundraising activities.

Critical Strategies for Continued Success

While this is at the end of the series, it really is part and parcel of the entire process. To obtain support for your Treatment Court, you must collect the data and then use it.  How many participants have graduated?  What is the overall recidivism rate? How many jail beds have been saved through the Treatment Court?  Those are just a few of the basic questions that need to be asked AND answered.  

In order to answer those questions, the data must be collected and analyzed.  Evaluations are a critical component for any successful court.[vi]  What works and doesn’t work, and how do you know?  All of the sources of funds mentioned above, and your partners in this life-saving effort will expect to have evidence of success. An evaluation will provide that evidence.

A Team Effort

Throughout this series, it has been stated and restated that any successful funding must be a team effort.  While one or two individuals may be supervising the effort, the whole team must be involved in the entire endeavor. Each person brings to the table a unique set of circumstances and potential connections.

Rinse and Repeat

Finally, any successful Treatment Court will review its successes for funding, and then continue the discussion with those sources while always looking for other avenues. The overall effort never stops.  The community education must be a regular effort: people move in and out of the community; new politicians are elected; other community issues become the focus of discussion.  To create a sustainable and institutionalized Treatment Court, your court must be held up as a beacon of success not once, or twice, or three times, but routinely.

Your Treatment Court is changing behavior, supporting individuals and restoring families, and it is saving lives.  For participants to be successful in a Treatment Court we tell them they will have to work hard, but the change they will see be worth the work.  The same is true with your Treatment Court team members.  Everyone on the team will have to work hard to ensure its success.  But the work will be worth the effort.  Just ask any graduate. 

Sustainability Series

In this series of articles on Treatment Court Sustainability, I discuss the importance of creating a long-term plan and some of the issues that can arise in ensuring your Treatment Court is sustainable.  This series includes discussion on:

1. A Sustainability Plan (Part I),
2. Marketing your Treatment Court (Part II),
3. Non-Monetary Resources—Your Community in Action (Part III),
4. Show Me the Money (Part IV).

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Endnotes

[i]        See Sustainability Parts 1, 2, and 3.

[ii]       For Drug Courts it is the 10 Key Components; for DWI Courts the 10 Guiding Principles; the 10 Key Components for Veterans Courts; and the 10 Key Components for Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts.

[iii]      SAMHSA now requires that applicants for a SAMHSA grant register with NIH’s eRA Commons which can also take weeks to complete and the grant must be submitted through Grants.gov.  See https://www.samhsa.gov/grants/grant-announcements-2019

[iv]       To learn more about your particular state highway safety, click here.

[v]       See: Sustainability Part II, Marketing Your Treatment Court

[vi]        See: Drug Court’s Key Component #8: Monitoring and evaluation measure the achievement of program goals and gauge effectiveness.