§ 9-33-201 - Legislative findings.
9-33-201. Legislative findings.
(a) The General Assembly, in response to the recommendations from the Governor's Summit on Youth Violence Prevention in December 1994, and the regional summits held in December 1996, finds that:
(1) For too many Arkansas children, the environment in which they live prevents their healthy development, resulting in school failure, substance abuse, teen pregnancy, violence, and other destructive behaviors;
(2) Intervention or treatment programs and punishment or incarceration are far more costly than working to prevent destructive behaviors from occurring;
(3) An environment in which youths can grow up healthy, safe, succeeding in school, participating in community life, and ready to enter productive adulthood is inseparable from the well-being of families and the safety, stability, and economic viability of the neighborhoods and communities where they live;
(4) New relationships are needed between state government, local communities, public and private service agencies, and the families and young people who need services, so that help will be more accessible, easier to use, and more effective;
(5) Better evaluation tools are needed to identify youth crime and violence prevention programs that are working and those that are not, so that scarce resources can be more effectively utilized;
(6) A better communication system is needed to connect and streamline the array of services, coalitions, and committees already under way, to track programs and publicize successful models; and
(7) Solving the current problems of youth cannot be accomplished in a short-term program but will take a long-term commitment on the part of state and local government and all those who touch the lives of our youth.
(b) Therefore, the Common Ground Program, established by the 1995 General Assembly and that will cease to exist March 1, 1997, is hereby reestablished as hereinafter provided to serve as a bridge connecting and assisting government, communities, and citizens to build a more responsive human educational and economic system in which children and families can thrive.