Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2025

Key Points

• The bill reauthorizes federal juvenile justice funding for five more years (2026-2030), keeping money flowing to states for programs that prevent youth delinquency and keep kids out of the justice system.
• By September 2028, states must stop using court orders to lock up kids in secure facilities for status offenses like truancy or running away, with narrow exceptions for interstate situations limited to 15 days.
• When minors are tried as adults, courts must follow strict new rules before placing them in adult jails, including regular hearings every 30 days and a hard cap of 180 days. Judges must consider the youth's age, mental state, and maturity before allowing placement in an adult facility.
• States must expand the data they collect about youth in the justice system to include religion, national origin, and sexual orientation, in addition to existing categories like race, gender, and disability. This is designed to help spot and address unfair treatment.
• The bill adds new program categories that states can fund, including restorative justice practices, early diversion programs to keep kids out of the system, and efforts to address racial and ethnic disparities in juvenile justice.
• When a child is held for violating a court order related to a status offense, the bill requires a public agency to interview the child within 24 hours and a court hearing within 48 hours, with detention limited to a maximum of 7 days that cannot be renewed.