Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on how funds will be used if the grant program is not funded, nor does it specify which local programs will receive grants or the number of communities that will benefit.

Community Violence Prevention Grants

AB-785 establishes a grant program to fund community projects aimed at reducing violence in neighborhoods and schools.

What This Bill Does

• Creates the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program under the California Health and Human Services Agency.
• Provides grants for local programs focused on reducing neighborhood and school violence through community-driven solutions.
• Specifies eligible uses of grant funds, such as recreation-based interventions and school health centers.
• Requires the agency to develop an application process and criteria for funding these projects.

Who It Names or Affects

• Local community programs working on violence prevention in neighborhoods and schools.
• The California Health and Human Services Agency, which will manage the grant program.

Terms To Know

Community-driven solutions

Projects designed and implemented by community members to address local issues, such as violence prevention.

Grant program

A system where a government agency provides financial support to organizations for specific projects or activities.

Limits and Unknowns

• It's unclear which local programs will receive grants and how many communities will benefit from this initiative.
• The bill requires annual calculations of state savings from prison closures, but it does not specify how these funds will be used if the grant program is not funded.

Official Summary Text

AB 785, as amended, Sharp-Collins.
Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program.
Existing law establishes the California Violence Intervention and Prevention Grant Program, administered by the Board of State and Community Corrections, to award competitive grants for the purpose of violence intervention and prevention. Existing law establishes the Youth Reinvestment Grant Program within the Board of State and Community Corrections to grant funds, upon appropriation, to local jurisdictions and Indian tribes for the purpose of implementing trauma-informed diversion programs for minors, as specified.
Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to give diligent care to the health and physical development of pupils and authorizes the governing board of a school district to employ properly certified persons for the work. Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a
charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, or both, as provided. Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health, in cooperation with the State Department of Education, to establish a Public School Health Center Support Program, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to assist school health centers, which are defined as centers or programs, located at or near local educational agencies, that provide age-appropriate health care services at the program site or through referrals, as specified.
This bill would create the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program to be administered by the California Health and Human Services Agency to provide funding to local community programs for community-driven solutions to decrease violence in neighborhoods and schools. The bill would specify the types of
programs the grant funds may be used for, including, but not limited to, programs that create and enhance recreation- and health-based interventions for youth during peak times of violence and the creation and operation of school-based health centers. The bill would require the agency to develop an application process and criteria for funding and would require the agency to administer the grant program, as specified. The bill would require, beginning July 31,
2025,
2026,
and annually thereafter, the Director of Finance and the Legislative Analyst’s Office to calculate the savings to the state from the closure of state prisons, as specified, and would require the Director of Finance to certify the results of the calculation to the Controller no later than August 1 of each fiscal year. The bill would create the Community
Violence Interdiction Grant Fund and would require moneys in the fund to be made available, only upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the agency for the purposes of the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Program. The bill would require that the Controller, before August 15,
2025,
2026,
and annually thereafter, upon appropriation by the Legislature, transfer from the General Fund to the Community Violence Interdiction Grant Fund the total amount of savings from the closure of state prisons so calculated.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF