Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Staffing Survey Summary

A national prospective of staffinglevels for criminal justicecoordinating councilsto assist local governmentswith personnel considerationsCriminal JusticeCoordinatingCouncil StaffingSurvey SummaryPrepared on behalf of the Ramsey CountyCriminal Justice Coordinating Council by theRamsey County Sheriff’s OfficeMinnesota’s First Law Enforcement AgencySheriff Matt BostromDecember 20130

Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Staffing Survey SummaryIntroductionWith increasing frequency, city and countygovernments are formally establishing criminaljustice coordinating councils. Althoughdefinitions and missions may vary byjurisdiction, a criminal justice coordinatingcouncil – or CJCC – is generally considered toserve as a forum to cooperatively promoteimprovements in the criminal justice systemthat transcend various organizations andcommunities. This is accomplished throughassociation, consultation, and studyby criminal justice, human service,community, and governmentorganizations. CJCCs are advisoryplanning and problem-solvingbodies, and rarely, if at all, oversee theoperation of any organization.Functioning as the conduit for supportingthe coordination of policies, programs, andservices, CJCC goals differ among jurisdictions.However, there is some commonality. Goalsusually center on enhancing collaboration andcommunication, reducing harm, fosteringpublic safety, preventing crime andvictimization, and improving systemeffectiveness. It is also common for CJCCs tonote the importance of communityengagement, offender accountability, and useof data/information to support decisionmaking.CJCCs offer great potential for city, county,and state governments. Increasedcommunication, engagement ininterdisciplinary partnerships, implementationof best practices, shared coordination oflimited system resources, and jointrecommendations for changes to policy andservices are just some of the benefits. At thesame time, CJCCs present a uniqueopportunity to leverage technology and data,improving access to information tosupport better outcomes anddecision-making. In turn, this fostersan empowered criminal justice systemto address issues, resulting in moresafe communities, decreases in crime,and reductions in recidivism. All ofwhich leads to one less crime, one lessvictim, and one less offender – and, ultimatelysavings of taxpayer dollars.Given this potential, it is important that thelevels of governments provide resourcesnecessary to ensure the success of a criminaljustice coordinating council.This staffing survey, created by the RamseyCounty Sheriff’s Office and distributed by TheJustice Management Institute, was designed tocapture a national prospective of staffing levelsof criminal justice coordinating councils and toassist in future staffing considerations.BackgroundIn Ramsey County, city, county, and state departments collaborated to establish a criminaljustice coordinating council. Sheriff Matt Bostrom led this effort and was selected to serve as theCouncil’s inaugural chair. Ramsey County Attorney John Choi is vice chair. Since October 2011, theSheriff’s Office has provided staffing to support the Council. In November 2013, the Council made aformal request to the County Manager for a dedicated position to be assigned full-time to the CJCC.1

Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Staffing Survey SummaryDistribution and QuestionsThe Justice Management Institute (JMI) distributed the staffing survey via the Criminal JusticeCoordinating Council Network email distribution list. Individuals receiving the email were introducedto the survey as follows:The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office (Minnesota) is seeking information regarding Criminal JusticeCoordinating Council staffing. The information collected will help to provide a nationalperspective of staffing levels and assist in future staffing considerations. The survey should takeless than 10 minutes to complete. To complete the survey, please visit (link).If you have any questions, please contact Sheriff’s Senior Analyst Kyle Mestad at 651-266-9523 orkyle.mestad@co.ramsey.mn.us.The survey asked the following questions. Answers were collected via an online survey tool.Table 1: Survey QuestionsQuestionRespondent Information1. What is your name?2. What is your title?3. What department do you work in?4. What level of government is your department?5. What is your email address?6. County Name7. County State8. County Seat (City)CJCC-specific questions9. What year was the CJCC started?10. Does the CJCC have dedicated staff?11. How many FTEs are dedicated to the CJCC?12. What positions are assigned to the CJCC? Please checkthose that apply and explain if needed.13. Who does the staff assigned to the CJCC report to? Ifneeded, please explain.14. How is the CJCC staffed?15. What department does the CJCC operate within?16. What is the CJCC’s funding source? (e.g., city andcounty share cost, state provides funding, etc.)17. What is the CJCC’s annual budget?18. Please share any additional information (e.g., history,accomplishments, issues, challenges, comments, or jobdescriptions)19. Would you like to be emailed survey results?TypeOpen ended, single text boxOpen ended, single text boxMultiple choice, one answer onlyMultiple choice, one answer onlyOpen ended, single text boxOpen ended, single text boxDrop down, select one state onlyOpen ended, single text boxOpen ended, single text boxYes or no, one answer onlyMultiple choice, one answer onlyMultiple choice, multiple answersMultiple choice, one answer onlyOpen ended, paragraph text boxMultiple choice, one answer onlyOpen ended, paragraph text boxMultiple choice, one answer onlyOpen ended, paragraph text boxMultiple choice, one answer only2

Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Staffing Survey SummaryExecutive SummaryThere were 60 criminal justice coordinating councils (respondents) from 17 states thatcontributed to the staffing survey. Overwhelming, 70.7% of respondents indicated working for county government.Nearly 70% of respondents indicated there is at least a 1.0 FTE dedicated to the CJCC.'Coordinator' (40%) and 'Director' (22%) were the most common dedicated positionsassigned to a CJCC.Over half (54.8%) of CJCC staff report to the County Executive (County Administrator orCounty Manager).CJCCs generally operate within a County Executive’s Office or a Community CorrectionsDepartment.The majority of CJCCs have a budget, with funding sources from one of five categories: (1)no budget/volunteer staff time, (2) county/levy funded, (3) grant-funded (state and/orfederal grants, legislative appropriation), (4) shared funding (city, county, and/or state), or(5) multiple funding sources (two or more of any of the above).The importance of having a dedicated position for a CJCC is reinforced by a comment from one of therespondents:“In order for the CJCC to run effectively, it requires dedicated staff. For the first 10 years, there wasdedicated staff, then no dedicated staff. The CJCC started to flounder, attendance dropped, [and]things were not getting done. After an internal review, there was a recommendation to have adedicated staff member [and] an analyst position was created and filled. Current staff has been in theassignment for six years now and the CJCC is accomplishing its missions and goals.”For more information, please contact:Kyle MestadSheriff’s Senior AnalystRamsey County Sheriff’s Office425 Grove StreetSaint Paul, Minnesota 55102Phone: 651-266-9523Email: kyle.mestad@co.ramsey.mn.usRyan O’NeillCommander, Office of Professional StandardsRamsey County Sheriff’s Office425 Grove StreetSaint Paul, Minnesota 55102Phone: 651-266-9551Email: ryan.oneill@co.ramsey.mn.usMatt BostromRamsey County SheriffChair, Criminal Justice Coordinating Council425 Grove StreetSaint Paul, Minnesota 55102Phone: 651-266-9300Email: matt.bostrom@co.ramsey.mn.usJohn J. ChoiRamsey County AttorneyVice Chair, Criminal Justice Coordinating Council345 Wabasha Street North, Suite 120Saint Paul, Minnesota 55102Phone: 651-266-3222Email: john.choi@co.ramsey.mn.us3

Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Staffing Survey SummaryResponse and Response ProfileThere were 60 criminal justice coordinating councils (respondents) that contributed to the staffingsurvey. A response rate was not recorded. States. Respondents from 17 states responded to the survey. Virginia (19) and Wisconsin (15)accounted for 56.7% (34) responses. Two (2) respondents identified being from Minnesota –Ramsey County and Winona County.Table 2: Respondents’ 5.0%1.7%1.7%3.3%1.7%3.3%Number123311212StateNew YorkNorth Number211132191560 Titles. Respondents reported titles ranging from administrative assistant, probation officer,supervisor, coordinator, manager, analyst, court administrator, director (including assistant ordeputy director), county manager/administrator, judge, and sheriff. Level of Government. Respondents were asked what level of government their respectivedepartment was allocated. Overwhelming, 70.7% of respondents indicated working forcounty government.Table 3: Respondents’ Level of GovernmentAnswer OptionsState GovernmentCounty GovernmentCity GovernmentOther (please specify)ResponsePercent15.5%70.7%13.8%answered questionskipped questionResponseCount94184582Notes: two respondents identified as both “city and county” government and two respondentslisted “non-profit” (e.g., via contract).4

Criminal Justice Coordinating Council Staffing Survey Summary Department. The majority of respondents reported working within a Community CorrectionsDepartment (18, or 36%), a County Manager’s Office (12, or 24%), or the Courts (11, or 22%).Table 4: Respondents’ DepartmentResponseCountBoard of Commissioners/City Council0Budgeting & Accounting (Finance)1Community Corrections (Probation/Parole)18County Attorney/District Attorney1County Executive (County Administrator/Manager)12Courts11Emergency Communications0Emergency Management0Human Services3Information Services/IT0Pre-trial Services2Public Defender’s Office0Sheriff’s Office/Law Enforcement2Other (please specify)17answered question50skipped question10Answer .0%0.0%6.0%0.0%4.0%0.0%4.0%Notes: based on the responses, it would appear some governments have an office or agencyresponsible for coordinating criminal justice services (e.g., a department of safety, a state judiciarycouncil, an office of criminal justice coordination). In a few jurisdictions, both probation and pretrial services were a combined department. Counties and County Seats. Respondents were asked to provide their county name andcounty seat (city). Note: not all responses were complete.Alaska Anchorage (consolidated cityborough) (2007)California Placer County, Auburn (1991) Sacramento County,Sacramento (1992)Colorado Denver County, Denver (2005) Weld County, GreeleyFlorida Flagler, Putnam, Saint Johns, &Volusia Counties; Bunnell,Palatka, Saint Augustine, andDeland (approximately 2000) Hillsborough County, Tampa(early 1990's) Lee County, Fort Myers (circa1995)Illinois Johnson County, Olathe (2008)5