PRINTER'S NO. 168
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE BILL
No. 219
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY KEARNEY, KANE, SAVAL, FONTANA, HAYWOOD, COSTA,
TARTAGLIONE, MILLER AND SCHWANK, FEBRUARY 3, 2025
REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, FEBRUARY 3, 2025
AN ACT
1 Providing for School-Based Youth Court Pilot Program and for
2 awarding grants; establishing the Youth Court Program
3 Account; and making a transfer.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Short title.
7 This act shall be known and may be cited as the School-Based
8 Youth Court Pilot Program Act.
9 Section 2. Definitions.
10 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
11 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
12 context clearly indicates otherwise:
13 "Account." The Youth Court Program Account established under
14 section 10(a).
15 "Department." The Department of Education of the
16 Commonwealth.
17 "Institution of higher education." Any of the following:
18 (1) A community college operating under Article XIX-A of
 1 the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known as the
2 Public School Code of 1949.
3 (2) A university within the State System of Higher
4 Education.
5 (3) The Pennsylvania State University.
6 (4) The University of Pittsburgh.
7 (5) Temple University.
8 (6) Lincoln University.
9 (7) Any other institution that is designated as "State-
10 related" by the Commonwealth.
11 (8) An accredited private or independent college or
12 university.
13 "Local education agency." A school district, cyber charter
14 school, charter school, area career and technical school or
15 intermediate unit.
16 "Organizing entity." A local education agency or institution
17 of higher education that is administering a school-based youth
18 court.
19 "Program." The School-Based Youth Court Pilot Program
20 established under section 4.
21 "Sanction." Discipline handed down by a youth court that a
22 referred youth must perform to redress harm caused by the
23 youth's conduct and assist the referred youth in acquiring
24 insight into the consequences of the youth's behavior to make
25 better decisions in the future. A sanction may include the
26 following:
27 (1) Cooperating with court-assigned mentors or tutors.
28 (2) Mediated conversations between conflicting parties.
29 (3) Goal-setting tasks tailored to respondent needs.
30 (4) Customized dispositions.
20250SB0219PN0168 - 2 -
 1 (5) Mandatory performance of community service.
2 (6) Participation on a youth court jury.
3 (7) Attendance at education workshops.
4 (8) Essay writing.
5 (9) Letter of apology or oral apology.
6 (10) Restitution and behavior modification classes.
7 (11) Other tasks as outlined in a behavior contract.
8 "School." An elementary, middle or high school located in
9 this Commonwealth.
10 "School-based youth court." A disciplinary court operated in
11 a school that processes school disciplinary offenses.
12 "Trauma-informed approach." As defined in section 102 of the
13 Public School Code of 1949.
14 "Youth." Any of the following:
15 (1) An individual under 21 years of age at the time of
16 the alleged offense for which the individual has been
17 referred to a youth court.
18 (2) An individual under 21 years of age enrolled in a
19 school who has been referred to a school disciplinary
20 proceeding for violating a school code of conduct or policy.
21 Section 3. Resource center.
22 The department shall establish an Education and Justice
23 Resource Center to:
24 (1) develop program guidelines and procedures under
25 section 4(b);
26 (2) identify and develop youth court training materials;
27 (3) provide training and technical assistance for
28 awardees of grants under section 6;
29 (4) provide assistance to local education agencies
30 seeking to start and operate youth courts;
20250SB0219PN0168 - 3 -
 1 (5) oversee data collection from programs, including
2 academic, socialization and civic engagement skill
3 acquisition by youth court members;
4 (6) engage with national and State youth court
5 organizations;
6 (7) support the growth and development of other
7 restorative justice strategies in schools; and
8 (8) ensure that all youth court members and trainers
9 understand restorative principles and are trauma informed and
10 that trauma training is completed before a formal hearing is
11 held.
12 Section 4. School-Based Youth Court Pilot Program.
13 (a) Establishment.--The School-Based Youth Court Pilot
14 Program is established within the department to support the
15 development of youth courts in schools as a trauma-informed
16 approach to alternative disciplinary disposition and effective
17 system of restorative justice for student misconduct. The
18 program shall operate for three full school years, beginning
19 with the first school year that begins at least six months after
20 the effective date of this subsection.
21 (b) Guidelines and procedures.--No later than six months
22 after the effective date of this subsection, the department, in
23 consultation with the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and
24 Delinquency, shall establish guidelines and procedures for the
25 program, which shall include the following:
26 (1) Procedures for referring school-based summary and
27 misdemeanor cases to youth courts, which shall include
28 procedures to prevent fingerprinting, photographing and the
29 occurrence of any other indicators of an arrest for any youth
30 referred to a youth court.
20250SB0219PN0168 - 4 -
 1 (2) Guidelines for youth court operations.
2 (3) Procedures for data collection and reporting.
3 (4) Other necessary program requirements as determined
4 by the department in consultation with the Pennsylvania
5 Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
6 (c) Use of money.--Money in the account shall be used to
7 award grants under section 6 and administer this act.
8 Section 5. Youth court.
9 (a) Court membership.--A youth court shall consist of a
10 judge and a peer tribunal or peer jury as follows:
11 (1) Only a youth eligible under this act to be referred
12 to a youth court for an alleged violation of State law,
13 municipal ordinance or school code of conduct or policy may
14 serve as a judge or on a peer tribunal or peer jury.
15 (2) A youth court that used a judge who is older than 21
16 years of age prior to the effective date of this subsection
17 may continue to use a judge who is older than 21 years of
18 age.
19 (b) Training.--Youth who operate a youth court shall be
20 trained by lawyers, teachers, counselors, mediation experts,
21 trained students of institutions of higher education and others
22 as approved by the organizing entity.
23 (c) Procedures.--A youth court's operational procedures must
24 be adopted from other Pennsylvania youth courts, the National
25 Association of Youth Courts or as created by the students who
26 operate the youth court. All operating procedures must be
27 approved by the organizing entity.
28 (d) Sanctions.--A sanction must be restorative in nature and
29 the types of sanctions shall be adopted by each youth court
30 after approval by the organizing entity.
20250SB0219PN0168 - 5 -
 1 (e) Code of conduct.--A youth court shall establish a code
2 of conduct, which shall include operational bylaws for
3 governance and a procedural manual describing the court's
4 operations.
5 (f) Type of youth court.--The youth court may operate as an
6 after-school program or be integrated within existing school
7 curriculum.
8 Section 6. Grants.
9 (a) Awards.--The Secretary of Education shall award up to
10 six grants each fiscal year to help schools develop youth courts
11 in accordance with this act.
12 (b) Grant amount.--The amount of a grant may not exceed
13 $250,000.
14 (c) Procedure.--The department shall develop a procedure for
15 awarding grants under the program. The procedure shall include a
16 rubric to prioritize grant awards, which shall include and
17 prioritize the following:
18 (1) School districts with a local capacity per weighted
19 student under section 2502.53 of the act of March 10, 1949
20 (P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949,
21 below the Statewide median.
22 (2) Rates of student disciplinary actions, including
23 suspensions and expulsions.
24 (3) Proposed projects that include partnerships with
25 external partners, including institutions of higher
26 education, nonprofit partners, law offices or external
27 evaluators.
28 Section 7. Application.
29 (a) Development.--The department shall develop an
30 application by which a local education agency may apply for a
20250SB0219PN0168 - 6 -
 1 grant under this act. The application shall include the
2 following:
3 (1) Narrative description of the proposed pilot project.
4 (2) Narrative description of demonstrated need.
5 (3) Relevant disciplinary data from prior school years,
6 as determined necessary by the department, including the
7 number of referrals of students to law enforcement.
8 (4) The organizing entities and project partners,
9 including external partners such as institutions of higher
10 education, nonprofit partners, law offices or external
11 evaluators.
12 (5) Projected program outcomes.
13 (b) Submission of applications.--An application under
14 subsection (a) must be submitted by a local education agency or
15 an institution of higher education. A local education agency may
16 apply on behalf of itself or on behalf of one or more local
17 education agencies. An institution of higher education may apply
18 on behalf of itself or on behalf of one or more local education
19 agencies.
20 Section 8. Reports by grantee.
21 An organizing entity that receives an award under this act
22 shall submit to the department, in a format determined by the
23 department, an annual report at the end of each grant period
24 with an evaluation report of program outcomes. The report shall
25 include the following:
26 (1) Number of suspension-eligible cases avoided through
27 referrals to youth courts.
28 (2) Number of total cases referred to youth courts.
29 (3) Number of police referrals deferred to youth courts.
30 (4) Number of individual students referred to youth
20250SB0219PN0168 - 7 -
 1 courts.
2 (5) List of the nature of cases referred to youth
3 courts.
4 (6) Number of students receiving youth court training.
5 (7) Any other outcomes determined by the department.
6 Section 9. Reports by department.
7 The department shall prepare an annual report on the outcomes
8 and progress of the program and the Education and Justice
9 Resource Center's work. The report shall be published on the
10 department's publicly accessible Internet website and shall be
11 submitted to the following:
12 (1) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
13 Education Committee of the Senate.
14 (2) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
15 Education Committee of the House of Representatives.
16 (3) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
17 Judiciary Committee of the Senate.
18 (4) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
19 Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives.
20 (5) The Office of Safe Schools Advocate of the
21 Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
22 (6) District attorneys and courts of common pleas of a
23 county in which an organizing entity has received a grant
24 under this act.
25 Section 10. Youth Court Program Account.
26 (a) Establishment.--The Youth Court Program Account is
27 established as an account in the General Fund. Money in the
28 account shall not lapse.
29 (b) Appropriation.--All money deposited into the account
30 under subsection (c) and the interest the money accrues is
20250SB0219PN0168 - 8 -
1 appropriated to the department on a continuing basis to
2 implement this act.
3 (c) Transfer from General Fund.--The sum of $9,500,000 shall
4 be transferred from the General Fund to the account for the
5 purpose of awarding grants to develop youth courts in accordance
6 with this act and administering this act.
7 Section 11. Effective date.
8 This act shall take effect July 1, 2025, or immediately,
9 whichever is later.
20250SB0219PN0168 - 9 -