Hillsborough County proposes to serve incarcerated women suffering from co-occurring disorders with minor children through a pre and post release evidence based treatment program.

The Second Chance Act (Pub. L. 110-199) provides a comprehensive response to the increasing number of parents who are incarcerated as well as their families. Research has shown that children may benefit from maintaining healthy relationships with their incarcerated parents. Section 113 of the Second Chance Act authorizes grants to states, units of local government, and Indian tribes to improve the provision of substance abuse treatment within prison and jails and after reentry for inmates who have minor children and also includes outreach to families and provision of treatment and other services to children and other family members of participant inmates. The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) will fund eligible applicants to plan, implement, or expand such treatment programs.

The Family-Based Prisoner Substance Abuse Treatment Program enhances the capability of states and tribes to provide substance abuse treatment for incarcerated parents; prepares offenders for their reintegration into the communities from which they came by incorporating reentry planning activities into treatment programs; and assists offenders and their communities through the reentry process through the delivery of community-based treatment and other broad-based aftercare services. Projects will provide prison-based substance abuse treatment and parenting programs for incarcerated parents of minor children, as well as treatment and other services to the participating offenders minor children and family members. Programming must be targeted to inmates with minor children and include services for these inmates, their minor children, and other family members. By law, no less that 5 percent of the funds available for the Family-Based Substance Abuse Treatment Program will be used for grants to Indian Tribes.

The Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners will use funds to implement POWER, a family-based prisoner substance abuse treatment program. The funding will provide for use of assessment instruments for treatment and reentry planning, targeting of criminogenic needs that affect recidivism, evidence-based treatment services and a comprehensive range of family and recovery support services. The POWER program involves a high degree of collaboration, coordination with families of offenders, effect case assessment and management, and graduated, proportionate responses to violations of supervision. The mission of the program is to work closely with incarcerated women through the transition process from the jail system into the community, along with their children, families and significant others while contributing to stronger relationships and a safer community. Individuals will have access to the full array of needed and appropriate services available in the community to prevent future relapse and recidivism, and to ensure that services are flexible and responsive to individuals changing needs. The ultimate goal is to assist individuals and their families to achieve and maintain independence in the community and to recover and strengthen their role as a parent so that they may live a meaningful and purposeful life, reflective of themselves and not of the condition for which they were diagnosed. The program will achieve the aforementioned goals by providing substance abuse treatment, parenting training, case management and linkage and co-ordination of care.

CA/NCF