Maryland Juvenile Services Section 2-122

      (a)      In this section, "youth services bureau" means a community-based entity that is operated:

            (1)      To provide community-oriented delinquency prevention, youth suicide prevention, drug and alcohol abuse prevention, and youth development;

            (2)      To ameliorate conditions that breed delinquency, youth suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, and family disruption; and

            (3)      To function as an advocate of youth needs.

      (b)      (1)      The Department shall adopt rules and regulations that set eligibility guidelines for State funding of youth services bureaus under this section.

            (2)      The rules and regulations shall require that each State-aided youth services bureau:

                  (i)      Provide, free of charge or at a rate established by each youth services bureau's board of directors, in consultation with the Department, that is based upon the client's family income, at convenient hours:

                        1.      Individual, family, and group counseling;

                        2.      Referral and information services;

                        3.      Crisis intervention, including intervention relating to youth suicide prevention;

                        4.      Alcohol and drug abuse assessment and referral services by staff who have received substance abuse assessment and referral training from the Office of Education and Training for Addictions Services (OETAS) in the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene or from any other entity that the Secretary determines to be qualified to provide substance abuse assessment and referral training;

                        5.      Informal counseling; and

                        6.      In accordance with particular community needs:

                        A.      Tutoring;

                        B.      Alternative leisure activities;

                        C.      Employment assistance;

                        D.      Community education, including training and information relating to youth suicide prevention; and

                        E.      Other specialized services; and

                  (ii)      Dispose of all information and records on each individual receiving services from a youth services bureau under this section 5 years after services to the individual are no longer necessary.

            (3)      Any fees charged under paragraph (2) of this subsection may be retained by the youth services bureau for the purposes of the youth services bureau.

            (4)      Fees authorized under paragraph (2) of this subsection do not apply to youth referred to a youth services bureau by court order.

      (c)      The Department shall:

            (1)      As to each youth services bureau receiving State funding:

                  (i)      Monitor its operations;

                  (ii)      Evaluate annually its effectiveness; and

                  (iii)      Stop funding a youth services bureau that is ineffective or that, for 2 years, fails to meet the eligibility guidelines for State funding; and

            (2)      Review and either approve or disapprove the application for State funding of a youth services bureau or proposed youth services bureau.

      (d)      (1)      The funding of an eligible youth services bureau shall be a shared responsibility of this State and of local governments. This State's share shall be 75 percent of the funding of an eligible youth services bureau, as provided in the State budget.

            (2)      Each eligible youth services bureau shall submit to the Department a proposed annual budget for review and approval, at the times that the Department specifies.

            (3)      The proposed budget of the Department shall list the eligible youth services bureaus and estimate the amount of State funds to be allocated to each.

            (4)      At the option of the local governing body that provides the matching funds for an eligible youth services bureau, the State funds for the support of the eligible youth services bureau shall be paid directly to its private sponsor or to the local governing body. Before the State funds are paid, the fiscal officer of the local government shall certify, in writing, the source of the 25 percent local funds.