Herb Kohl: “I rise today with Senator Biden to introduce the Juvenile Crime Prevention and Control Act of 2001. This bill is an…”

“I rise today with Senator Biden to introduce the Juvenile Crime Prevention and Control Act of 2001. This bill is an important step forward in the debate on juvenile justice. It is a comprehensive approach that recognizes prevention and enforcement are indispensable partners in combating juvenile crime. This bill addresses the issues most important to our communities, to the police, to the teachers, to the social workers, and most importantly, to the at-risk children whom we need to help. The legislation does this by giving crime prevention programs the priority, attention, and funding they deserve while recognizing that enforcement programs are indispensable to safer communities. Let me focus on one part of the legislation. The Juvenile Crime Prevention and Control Act increases the authorization of Title V, the Community Prevention Grant program, to $250 million. I worked closely with Senator Hank Brown to create the Title V program in 1992 because we listened to local law enforcement experts who told us that prevention works. Almost a decade later, they still say the same thing: a crime bill without adequate prevention is only a half-measure. That's just common sense.”