As all Floridians well know, our beloved state is in fiscal melt-down. Governor Charlie Crist has threatened to tap into the Lawton Chiles Endowment Fund (reserved to assist the elderly and children) to financially bail out the state of Florida.
As Florida's checkbook falls deeper and deeper into the red, 2009 federal compliance with the Adam Walsh Act is within sight. Failure to comply results in the loss of 10 percent of the state's Byrne grant money.
From the Justice Policy Institute:
Translated-
Florida will save money by opting out of the AWA.
However....?
Is the Adam Walsh Act Implementation on the Florida financial "bail out" list?
Is John Walsh that influential?
As Florida's checkbook falls deeper and deeper into the red, 2009 federal compliance with the Adam Walsh Act is within sight. Failure to comply results in the loss of 10 percent of the state's Byrne grant money.
From the Justice Policy Institute:
Congress passed the Adam Walsh Act,a federal law that requires states to include children as young as age 14 on registries — often for the rest of their lives — in an attempt to protect our children from sexual violence.
But the Adam Walsh Act won’t keep our children safe.
Instead, this law will consume valuable law enforcement resources, needlessly target children and families, and undermine the very purpose of the juvenile justice system. Thankfully, states can opt out of compliance with this law, and make smart investments in programs and policies that will actually protect our children and our communities.
(...)
Herein lies the difficulty for Mr. Walsh.
Herein lies the difficulty for Mr. Walsh.
In every state, the first-year cost of implementing the Adam Walsh Act outweighs the cost of losing 10 percent of the state’s Byrne grant money.*
Translated-
Florida will save money by opting out of the AWA.
However....?
Is the Adam Walsh Act Implementation on the Florida financial "bail out" list?
Is John Walsh that influential?
Under threat of legal action by the Chiles family, is Charlie Crist about to "borrow" from the late Governer Chiles' legacy to fund a mandate founded on disproved research?
(Search the budget here).
Is Charlie about to borrow from funding set aside for children to include children as young as age 14 on registries for "offenses" such as "...a kindergarten student pinching a female classmate’s bottom?" (page 21, Registering Harm)
Is that what Charlie Crist is about to do for the special interest known as John Walsh?
From what I witnessed a couple of weeks ago, I believe Mr. Walsh may be realizing that the figures on the state ledger are just not adding up in his favor. But don't expect him to bow out gracefully.
One certainty.
Money (or lack thereof) always provides politicians who paint themselves into a political corner with a way out.
AWA Implementation Estimate for 2009
Once again..... In every state, the first-year cost of implementing the Adam Walsh Act outweighs the cost of losing 10 percent of the state’s Byrne grant money.
FLORIDA
Dwindling state dollars has Florida justice scrambling. "... Florida's justice system has already suffered through two rounds of budget cuts over during the last 18 months could lose up to 15 percent of its budget during this fiscal year and next." (Tampa Bay Online, 12/27/2008).(Search the budget here).
Is Charlie about to borrow from funding set aside for children to include children as young as age 14 on registries for "offenses" such as "...a kindergarten student pinching a female classmate’s bottom?" (page 21, Registering Harm)
Is that what Charlie Crist is about to do for the special interest known as John Walsh?
From what I witnessed a couple of weeks ago, I believe Mr. Walsh may be realizing that the figures on the state ledger are just not adding up in his favor. But don't expect him to bow out gracefully.
One certainty.
Money (or lack thereof) always provides politicians who paint themselves into a political corner with a way out.
AWA Implementation Estimate for 2009
Once again..... In every state, the first-year cost of implementing the Adam Walsh Act outweighs the cost of losing 10 percent of the state’s Byrne grant money.
FLORIDA
AWA Implementation Estimate for 2009 : $29,602,768Byrne Money Received in 2006**:
$12,402,69310 Percent of Byrne Money Lost for Noncompliance:
$1,240,269
***
First figure: AWA implementation costs Second figure: Byrne Money received in 2006. Third figure: 10 percent loss of Byrne Money for noncompliance
ALABAMA $7,506,185 $3,178,628 $317,863How much will the AWA cost your state?
First figure: AWA implementation costs Second figure: Byrne Money received in 2006. Third figure: 10 percent loss of Byrne Money for noncompliance
ALASKA $1,108,573 $565,971 $56,597
ARIZONA $10,281,201 $3,653,881 $365,388
ARKANSAS $4,597,925 $2,180,442 $218,044
CALIFORNIA $59,287,816 $21,876,819 $2,187,682
COLORADO $7,885,178 $2,725,489 $272,549
CONNECTICUT $5,680,602 $2,189,001 $218,900
DELAWARE $1,402,612 $1,248,534 $124,853
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA $954,186 $1,804,991 $180,499
FLORIDA $29,602,768 $12,402,693 $1,240,269
GEORGIA $15,481,193 $5,594,288 $559,429
HAWAII $2,081,603 $933,732 $93,373
IDAHO $2,431,969 $1,170,003 $117,000
ILLINOIS $20,846,306 $8,501,000 $850,100
INDIANA $10,291,799 $3,696,033 $369,603
IOWA $4,846,488 $1,881,623 $188,162
KANSAS $4,502,553 $2,035,999 $203,600
KENTUCKY $6,879,497 $2,702,451 $270,245
LOUISIANA $6,963,401 $3,514,704 $351,470
MAINE $2,136,456 $1,172,583 $117,258
MARYLAND $9,112,724 $4,320,568 $432,057
MASSACHUSETTS $10,461,238 $4,353,201 $435,320
MICHIGAN $16,336,082 $6,793,169 $679,317
MINNESOTA $8,430,328 $3,061,831 $306,183
MISSISSIPPI $4,734,150 $2,065,269 $206,527
MISSOURI $9,534,548 $4,182,382 $418,238
MONTANA $1,553,611 $1,076,424 $107,642
NEBRASKA $2,878,281 $1,288,957 $128,896
NEVADA $4,160,944 $1,808,095 $180,810
NEW HAMPSHIRE $2,134,219 $1,192,435 $119,244
NEW JERSEY $14,088,206 $5,160,709 $516,071
NEW MEXICO $3,195,121 $1,879,901 $187,990
NEW YORK $31,300,125 $11,279,841 $1,127,984
NORTH $14,696,622 $5,460,983 $546,098
NORTH DAKOTA $1,037,592 $554,556 $55,456
OHIO $18,598,869 $6,223,825 $622,383
OKLAHOMA $5,867,138 $2,790,472 $279,047
OREGON $6,078,218 $2,251,312 $225,131
PENNSYLVANIA $20,165,479 $7,640,322 $764,032
RHODE ISLAND $1,715,760 $967,292 $96,729
SOUTH CAROLINA $7,149,123 $3,610,292 $361,029
SOUTH DAKOTA $1,291,426 $513,858 $51,386
TENNESSEE $9,985,946 $4,817,782 $481,778
TEXAS $38,771,924 $14,045,713 $1,404,571
UTAH $4,290,617 $1,557,034 $155,703
VERMONT $1,007,649 $630,419 $63,042
VIRGINIA $12,508,695 $3,943,036 $394,304
WASHINGTON $10,491,519 $3,538,816 $353,882
WEST VIRGINIA $2,939,046 $1,679,108 $167,911
WISCONSIN $9,085,630 $2,982,833 $298,283
WYOMING $848,009 $584,036 $58,404
In every state, the first-year cost of implementing the Adam Walsh Act outweighs the cost of losing 10 percent of the state’s Byrne grant money.* * See Appendix B for methodology and additional information. ** The U.S. House of Representatives estimates that 2009 federal allocations for Byrne grants will return
***
What is a sex offense?
The definition of sex offenses varies widely from state to state. The FBI defines sex offenses as “Offenses against chastity, common decency, morals, and the like.” Frequently sex offenses include behaviors that psychologists consider to be normative for both adults and children, including sexual experimentation.
In some states, sex offenses can also include public urination and streaking.
Specific data on the numbers and types of sex offenses reported are not available on a national scale. The FBI Uniform Crime Report lumps together all sex-related, non-rape, and non-prostitution offenses into the category “sex offenses,”making it difficult to determine where and how sexual violence occurs.*
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Lawmakers established sex offense registries with the aim of protecting children from strangers. However, research conducted with the Federal Bureau of Investigation has found that 34 percent of youth victims (0-17 years old) were sexually assaulted by a family member and 59 percent were assaulted by acquaintances.
In other words, 7 percent of youth victims in this study were assaulted by strangers.
