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Secure Residential Care Center for Children and Youth

Secure Residential Care Center for Children and Youth (SRCC)

Act 185 allows a county or American Indian tribe to establish a Secure Residential Care Center for Children and Youth (SRCC) to house juveniles. An SRCC may be attached to a juvenile detention facility. SRCCs shall be subject to the Department administrative rule governing SRCCs.

Youth are placed in SRCCs under Correctional Placement dispositions (938.34(4m)), which requires that the youth be found delinquent of an act that would be punishable by a sentence of six months or more if committed by an adult and that youth has been found to be a danger to the public and in need of restrictive custodial treatment.

DCF will allocate additional Youth Aids funding to a county operating a joint SRCC equal to 15% of the county's Youth Aids costs in the prior fiscal year or $750,000, whichever is less.

DOC Administrative Rules

Act 185 requires the Department to promulgate both emergency and permanent administrative rules governing SRCCs. These rules establish minimum standards for the design, construction, repair, maintenance of SRCCs, the approval and operation of SRCCs, and the services and programs for juveniles in SRCCs. The Department will include uniform data reporting standards for counties or Indian tribes that operate or contract for SRCCs.

Governor Walker approved the Department's scope statement for the emergency rule. Act 185 required the Department to submit to the governor the final draft emergency rule no later than December 17, 2018.

Permanent Rule 347 Advisory Committee

DOC 347 seeks to establish minimum standards for the design, construction, repair and maintenance of secure residential care centers for children and youth (SRCCCY). It also establishes the approval and operation of SRCCCYs as well as the services and programs for youth in SRCCCYs. The objective of the rule is to establish a permanent rule for Chapter DOC 347 as a result of changes to Wisconsin Statutes chapters 301 and 938 by the enactment of 2017 Wisconsin Act 185.

The Department of Corrections (DOC) Office of Detention Facilities (ODF) is the entity responsible for the regulation and oversight of local detention facilities, including the newly established SRCCCYs. DOC staff along with external stakeholders will devote approximately 3,000 hours promulgating the permanent rule for DOC 347. This includes time required for research and analysis, rule drafting, and preparing related documents. A list of work group members can be found in the