$ 100, $ 1,561, $ 0.00 SUBMITTING DEPARTMENT NAME AND COMPLETE ADDRESS (INCLUDE TELEPHONE AND FAX NUMBER) $ 1,460,760.

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1 Date of Implementation/Adoption: March 1, 2001 Project Status: Ongoing One-time only Did you submit this project before? Yes No Executive Summary: Describe the project in 15 lines or less. Summarize the problem, solution, and benefits of the project in a clear and direct manner The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department houses approximately 20,000 individuals within its jails. The California Penal Code specifies that all prisoners confined in local detention facilities shall be afforded reasonable opportunities to exercise religious freedom. In the past, Religious Services in the jails were administered through a contracted vendor. This vendor represented one specific faith, and was not necessarily responsive to the needs of inmates with other faiths. In March 2001, Sheriff's Department personnel (funded by the Inmate Welfare Fund) assumed the administration of the. The Jail Chaplaincy Program now includes 200 chaplains, and 1,600 religious volunteers, representing eight major faith groups and numerous sects within those groups. All Chaplain services, worship services, scripture study programs, and spiritual counseling for inmates is perfomed by volunteer clergy, at no cost to the County. (1) ESTIMATED/ACTUAL ANNUAL COST AVOIDANCE $ 1,460, (2) ESTIMATED/ACTUAL ANNUAL COST SAVINGS $ 100, (3) ESTIMATED/ACTUAL ANNUAL REVENUE $ 0.00 SUBMITTING DEPARTMENT NAME AND COMPLETE ADDRESS (INCLUDE TELEPHONE AND FAX NUMBER) (1) + (2) + (3) TOTAL ESTIMATED/ACTUAL BENEFIT $ 1,561, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Inmate Services Unit Religious & Volunteer Services Office 450 Bauchet Street, #E888 Los Angeles, CA PROGRAM MANAGER S NAME TELEPHONE NUMBER Paula L. Tokar, Lieutenant PRODUCTIVITY MANAGER S NAME AND SIGNATURE (SIGNATURE ON FILE) Martha Y. Zavala DEPARTMENT HEAD S NAME AND SIGNATURE DATE SIGNED DATE SIGNED (213) TELEPHONE NUMBER (323) TELEPHONE NUMBER (SIGNATURE ON FILE) Larry L. Waldie, Undersheriff (323)

2 JAIL CHAPLAINCY PROGRAM FOR JOINT SUBMISSIONS ONLY (for single department submissions, do not include this page) Department No. 2 Name and Complete Address Department No. 3 Name and Complete Address Department No. 4 Name and Complete Address Department No. 5 Name and Complete Address Department No. 6 Name and Complete Address

3 Fact Sheet: Describe the Problem, Solution, and Benefits of the project, written in plain language. The description should identify the link between this project and your department s performance measures (Performance Counts! represents the County of Los Angeles focus on building an overall performance measurement framework for the County). Fact sheet is limited to 3 pages only. Organizational Goals Service Excellence Workforce Excellence Organizational Effectiveness Fiscal Responsibility Programmatic Goals Children and Families Well-Being Community Services Health and Mental Health Public Safety PROBLEM The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department houses approximately 20,000 individuals within its jails. The California Penal Code specifies that all prisoners confined in local detention facilities shall be afforded reasonable opportunities to exercise religious freedom. In the past, Religious Services in the jails were administered through a contracted vendor. That vendor represented one specific faith, and was not necessarily responsive to the needs of inmates with other faiths. This, unfortunately, negatively impacted our inmates ability to practice their own religion while in custody. SOLUTION In March 2001, Sheriff's Department personnel (funded by the Inmate Welfare Fund) assumed the administration of the. The Jail Chaplaincy Program now includes 200 chaplains, and 1,600 religious volunteers, representing eight major faith groups and numerous sects within those groups. All Chaplain services, worship services, scripture study programs, and spiritual counseling for inmates is perfomed by volunteer clergy, at no cost to the County. The Religious & Volunteer Services Office (RVS) was created to administer the Jail Chaplaincy Program. This program coordinates all religious activity within the jails and ensures that inmates have access to ministers of their own faith. Assisting RVS, in this task, is the "Religious Advisory Council." This is a group of six Liaison Chaplains, representing the Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist, Jewish, Islamic, Christ Scientist, and Jehovah's Witness faiths. This body sets religious policy within the religious programs, and works closely with the RVS office to resolve conflicts or custody issues. The faiths currently represented in custody are: Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, Protestant, Orthodox Jewish, Reform Jewish, Buddhist, Jehovah's Witness, Christ Scientist, Latter Day Saints (Mormon), and Islam. There are 200 ordained or licensed chaplains, and 1600 laity volunteers serving the Los Angeles County jail system.

4 Whenever a special religious event is needed, such as Ramadan observance, Passover, or Christmas, the Religious & Volunteer Services Office processes the requests and coordinates with the facility to schedule the event. This includes working closely with Food Services, for any special dietary needs. The Religious and Volunteer Services Office has hosted several unique religious services over the past four years such as Ministries from Mexico (July 2005), Germany (2005), the Billy Graham Crusade (July and November 2004), and the interfaith Music Conference (May 2005). RVS has coordinated religious programs offered to the inmate population by such religious leaders as Cardinal Roger Mahoney (each December), Minster Louis Farrakhan February 2002), and Mister Kirk Cameron (April 2005). Since August 2005, RVS has coordinated Shabbat dinners and services which are now conducted monthly for Jewish inmates. BENEFITS The not only meets the "letter of the law" by providing incarcerated individuals "reasonable opportunities to exercise religious freedom," it sets a new standard of service for religious programs in a custody environment. Experts agree that one crucial component of any rehabilitation effort is spiritual. Without addressing a person's spiritual needs, rehabilitation programs have little likelihood of success. The LASD, administered by the Religious & Volunteer Services Office, meets the spiritual needs of our incarcerated population--whether they belong to a major religion or follow a numerically smaller faith. As an important part of rehabilitation, the helps to reduce recidivism--resulting in lessened crime and better quality of life for all county residents. The, through the Religious & Volunteer Services Office also fosters stronger, positive community relations. The Religious and Volunteer Services Office acts as a liaison and coordination point for inmate's families who have emergent needs which need to be conveyed to the inmate via the Jail Chaplaincy program. These needs may be as simple as an emergency telephone call, or as complex as an emergency hospital visit, inmate marriage, or funeral attendance. Frequently, people calling for assistance are grieving or distraught. Several times each week, Religious & Volunteer Services Office staff discuss these issues with callers, explain the process, and prepare whatever paperwork was necessary--including writing court removal orders to allow eligible inmates to attend family funerals or visit the critically ill in a hospital. Often, these conversations with the public are conducted entirely in Spanish. The ultimate beneficiaries of the Jail Chaplaincy program are the inmates, the community, and the Sheriff's Department. The helps individuals deal with the stress of incarceration, and encourages them to pursue a

5 positive and balanced life upon their release. It benefits the community through better community relations while a person is in jail, and reduced likelihood of an inmate's committing additional offenses once they are released. And, the Jail Chaplaincy Program benefits the Sheriff's Department both by avoiding the costs previously associated with offering religious programs in the jails, and by reducing stress within the jails. With Chaplains of all faiths always available, inmates know they can discuss any issue, and seek assistance, without fear of retaliation or censure. Additionally, both inmates and staff see the positive example set, every day, by Chaplains of all faiths working together in harmony.

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8 Cost Avoidance, Cost Savings, and/or Revenue Generated (Estimated/Actual Benefit): Use this form and provide details on the estimated/actual benefits. As a suggestion, work with your fiscal staff. (1) ANNUAL COST AVOIDANCE (2) ANNUAL COST SAVINGS (3) ANNUAL REVENUE (1) + (2) + (3) TOTAL ESTIMATED BENEFIT $ 1,460, $ 100, $ 0.00 $ 1,561, Cost Avoidance: volunteer Chaplains work approximately 50,000 hours each year inside the jails. Religious Layperson Volunteers work an additional 24,000 hours. The Financial Standards Accounting Board allows crediting a value of $19.74 per hour for this volunteer work. Because providing spiritual programs in jail is required by law, the $1,460,760 would, necessarily, be funded by the county, absent this volunteer based program. Cost Savings: Immediately prior to assuming the administration of the, the Sheriff s Department was negotiating a contract with Christian Chaplain Services, Inc. for a five year contract with an annual cost of $100, Annual Revenue: There is no revenue associated with this program.