Criminal Justice Commission budget includes $40 million for behavioral health deflection grants; some enforcement grant components dropped

On June 2, 2025 the Public Safety Subcommittee advanced House Bill 5,005, recommending a Criminal Justice Commission (CJC) budget of $317,626,234 and 35 positions (35 FTE), and approved multiple grant packages that reallocate one‑time and ongoing funds for restorative justice, behavioral health and treatment programs.

Major elements in the LFO recommendation include a $40,000,000 one‑time general fund deposit to support behavioral health deflection grants and a separate $40,000,000 other‑funds limitation that gives the commission authority to disperse those grants (the LFO described the pair of entries as a deposit plus permission to spend from a separate Treasury account). The commission also received one‑time appropriations for the jail medication for opioid use disorder program ($6,000,000 general fund plus carryover to total about $10,000,000), a $4,000,000 one‑time restorative justice appropriation, $10,000,000 for impacts grants (with some carryover making total funding roughly $13,000,000), and a permanent $850,000 general fund increase to support the family preservation program at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility.

The LFO recommended funding for staffing and federal‑grant positions, including two positions to staff a Juvenile Justice Policy Commission and one position to permanently staff the treatment court grant program. The recommendation also included a collection of other‑funds limitations to allow CJC to disperse a large set of grants in the coming biennium, and line items tied to programs created or restructured in House Bill 3,069 (the public safety grants reorganization bill).

Senators and representatives questioned how the paired general fund deposit and other‑funds limitation work in practice. Senator Brock Smith asked the LFO to "tease that out a little more" and said he wanted clarity because the presentation showed a $40,000,000 deposit and a corresponding $40,000,000 spending limitation. LFO staff explained the pattern: the Legislature can deposit general fund into a newly created Treasury account and then grant the agency an other‑funds limitation so the agency can disburse those funds without the amounts reverting to the general fund at the end of the biennium.

The package did not include grant funding that some members sought for illegal marijuana‑market enforcement. Members including Representative Lewis, Senator Brock Smith and Representative Helfrich expressed concern that grant components previously used to support marijuana enforcement work were not included in this biennium’s appropriations; the committee recorded objections from those members when adopting the dash‑3 amendment but moved the bill forward.

Representative Graeber praised the decision to move permanent funding for the family preservation project into the current service level, calling it a high‑return investment. Other members said they wanted more permanent and predictable funding for successful local programs, and noted that many CJC grant programs in the recommendation are one‑time appropriations.

The subcommittee adopted the LFO key performance measure adjustments and approved the dash‑3 amendment to the bill; objections were recorded but the motion carried and the measure will go to full Ways and Means.