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SB 25-043

Deflection Supports Justice-Involved Youth

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Judy Amabile and 4 co-sponsors

Expands deflection for justice-involved youth, enabling referrals from police, schools, and courts to community services to reduce arrests and formal charges.

Senate Committee on Appropriations Lay Over Unamended - Amendment(s) Failed
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Bill Summary · SB 25-043

SB 25-043 — Deflection Supports Justice-Involved Youth

Status: Senate Committee on Appropriations — Lay Over Unamended (Amendment(s) Failed)
Introduced: January 8, 2025
Latest actions: 2025-05-08 (Appropriations lay over unamended); 2025-02-24 (Judiciary referred amended to Appropriations)
Primary sponsor: Dafna Michaelson Jenet (with L. Cutter cosponsor; additional primary sponsors: Judy Amabile, Mary Bradfield, Regina English)

Summary — purpose and intent

SB 25-043, titled “Deflection Supports Justice-Involved Youth,” is intended to expand or formalize “deflection” approaches that steer youth away from formal juvenile justice processing and toward community-based supports. The bill’s general aim is to reduce youth involvement in the justice system by increasing access to services (such as behavioral health, education, housing, family supports, or case management) and by empowering law enforcement, schools, or community providers to refer eligible young people to alternatives to arrest or formal charges.

Key provisions (based on title and legislative history)

The bill text was not provided here. Typical provisions for bills with this title and legislative trajectory often include some combination of:
- Establishing or funding deflection/diversion programs targeted at justice-involved youth.
- Defining eligibility criteria for youth who may be diverted (age ranges, types of offenses).
- Creating referral pathways from law enforcement, schools, or probation to community service providers.
- Authorizing grants to community organizations, behavioral health providers, or local governments.
- Requiring training for participating law enforcement and service providers on youth-centered, trauma-informed practices.
- Data collection, reporting, and evaluation requirements to measure outcomes (recidivism, service uptake).
- Protections for confidentiality and limits on use of diversion referrals in later criminal proceedings.

Because the bill advanced from Judiciary to Appropriations (amended on 2/24) and was laid over in Appropriations without adopting committee amendments (5/08), fiscal impacts likely were debated and amendments proposed but failed.

Who would be affected

  • Justice-involved youth (primary beneficiaries) — especially those charged with low-level offenses or identified as suitable for community-based intervention.
  • Local law enforcement agencies, schools, juvenile courts, probation departments — as referring authorities or program partners.
  • Community and behavioral health service providers — potential grant recipients or contractors.
  • Local budgets and the state appropriation process — if the bill includes funding or mandates new programs.

Procedural/timeline notes

  • Introduced in the Senate (Judiciary) on 2025-01-08.
  • Amended in Judiciary and referred to Appropriations on 2025-02-24.
  • On 2025-05-08, Appropriations laid the bill over unamended; committee-level amendments previously proposed failed.

Next steps / where to find more information

To understand exact provisions, fiscal impacts, and final status, consult the full bill text, committee reports, and the fiscal note on the Colorado General Assembly website (search “SB 25-043”). These documents will show precise language, funding amounts (if any), definitions, eligibility rules, and required reporting.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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