July 11, 2005
The Honorable Susan Bysiewicz
Secretary of the State
30 Trinity Street
Hartford, CT 06115-0470
Dear Madam Secretary:
I am hereby returning without my signature House Bill 6982, An Act Concerning The Future of the Connecticut Juvenile Training School. House Bill 6982 requires that a critical response team be established to make recommendations regarding the reorganization and operation of the Connecticut Juvenile Training School (“CJTS”). The creation of such a response team would be duplicative of the initiatives I have already ordered and which are currently underway. The bill also requires that the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families (“DCF”) submit a feasibility plan, which was already ordered by my office, and that it be addressed to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly. In view of of the fact that I have already asked the DCF Commissioner to provide me with such a plan, it would be an unnecessary expenditure of state resources to proceed in the fashion outlined by House Bill 6982.
I fully agree with the proposition that the CJTS must not be converted into an adult prison. The bill seeks to accomplish this goal by creating a critical response team that shall have the responsibility of reorganizing the CJTS, and whose recommendations shall not include the conversion of the same into an adult correctional facility. I do not expect, nor will I accept, a report from the DCF Commissioner which recommends transformation of the CJTS to an adult correctional facility. However, the efforts of a critical response team to stop this conversion are not necessary, as I have already commenced measures that would demand for reform or closure at the school without utilizing a team of 25 members to achieve the same objective.
It is without doubt that the Connecticut Juvenile Training School has been a priority for my administration since I took office last year. In recent months, I have taken several steps to evaluate the efficiency and organization of the CJTS. In April of this year, I directed the DCF to prepare a feasibility plan on the future of the CJTS, which would also include the possibility of its closing. I also asked the DCF to coordinate the creation of their plan with representatives of the appropriate state agencies, including my office, the Office of Policy and Management, the Department of Correction, the Department of Administrative Services and the Department of Public Works. I directed several agencies of state government to participate in the drafting of this plan so as to ensure that we have evaluated all of the state divisions that have a role in the operation of the CJTS. DCF has been instructed to provide a report to me by August 1, 2005, in which they are to outline plans which would address how the young men at the CJTS can be transitioned for treatment in community-based, residential or other types of treatment programs. An additional issue to be addressed by the report is how the staff at the CJTS can be utilized at other facilities in the event that all or some of the buildings at CJTS are closed.
By enactment of House Bill 6982, the General Assembly is engaging in duplicative efforts that have already been initiated by my administration. It is unwise to expend additional state financial resources to reproduce efforts that are already in motion. Further, as there are the futures of several young men at stake, we should continue the process of determining suitable placement and treatment for these individuals. Enacting this bill would only interrupt this process. DCF will be submitting its report to me on August 1st, which is three weeks from today. Upon receipt of the report, I intend to quickly consider its recommendations and develop a plan for implementation of appropriate suggestions. We have neither the time nor the resources to engage in the promotion of meaningless bureaucracy, especially when a plan concerning the future of the CJTS is less than a month away from completion.
For the reasons stated herein, I am returning without my signature House Bill 6982, An Act Concerning The Future of the Connecticut Juvenile Training School. Pursuant to Article Four, Section 15 of the Constitution of the State of Connecticut and Article III of the Amendments to the Constitution of the State of Connecticut Section I am returning the bill without my signature.
Sincerely,
M. JODI RELL
Governor
