On Tuesday, May 17, the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) will host an informational webinar about upcoming municipal contracts for Blake reimbursements for cities.
During the webinar, AOC’s Chief Financial & Management Officer Chris Stanley will provide information on the upcoming contracts for Blake reimbursements. Mr. Stanley will cover the methodology behind the reimbursement amounts, how funds will
be distributed to municipalities and courts, and what documentation will be required to receive reimbursement. There will also be time for questions. Click here to register for the webinar on May 17 at Noon.
Background
As a reminder, in 2021, the Supreme Court determined that the statute that penalized possession of a controlled substance was unconstitutional because it lacked the requirement that a person “knowingly” possessed the substance. The statute
had been in effect since 1971. There are impacts for cities with ordinances for simple drug possession that lack (or lacked) the knowing requirement. Currently, there are at least two cases pending in Division II of the court of appeals related to
misdemeanor possession convictions where the court has held there should be no distinction between a felony and misdemeanor possession conviction. As cities review the caseload to determine the extent of the impacts of the Blake case, AWC requests your feedback on the potential costs if misdemeanor possession cases were to be deemed unconstitutional. AWC anticipates requesting the Legislature for additional funds to reimburse cities in 2023. Your input will be invaluable to informing the funding request.
In the 2022 supplemental budget, cities received $21.5 million to offset the financial impacts of vacating simple drug possession charges tied to the Blake decision. Of the amount appropriated, approximately $10 million is earmarked to reimburse
legal and financial obligations tied to the vacated conviction. Additionally, investments related to the Blake decision include $4.9 million for municipal courts to create new therapeutic courts or to expand services provided by existing therapeutic
court. Finally, AOC received $2.5 million to support community justice counselors and community coordinators that work with municipal and district court drug and therapeutic court programs. This appropriation will support a minimum of four municipal
courts, regionally based, and will cover a variety of expenditures including bus passes, transportation assistance, cell phones, phone cards, and translation services.
Additional grant opportunities webinar
An additional webinar covering non-Blake grants available through AOC will be held on Thursday, May 19 at Noon. You can register for that webinar here.