This report addresses (1) expenditures for the recruitment, retention, training, licensing, and tracking of homes maintained by foster parents; (2) an assessment of whether the Department’s contract process of home recruitment, study, and supervision is the most appropriate means to provide these services; and (3) best performance measures to evaluate the effectiveness of these services. Although contracting appears to be an appropriate method for obtaining foster home recruitment-related services, the Department should improve how it contracts for these services.

The South Arizona Avenue Entry Corridor Study is prompted by a Mayor and Council goal for redeveloping the section of Arizona Avenue from Pecos Road to Boston Street as a new entryway to downtown from the Santan/Loop 202 Freeway. The plan was created with extensive neighborhood participation,which included six neighborhood meetings and individual meetings with property owners.The comprehensive approach to this study can be broken down into four primary areas: Land Use,Traffic Circulation, Conceptual Design Standards, and Neighborhood Planning.

Construction of a habitat restoration project in the Salt River will begin in the spring of 2000 which will transform the riverbed to provide a variety of amenities including recreation opportunities, improved flood management, riparian vegetation and wildlife habitat. The Beyond the Tanks area surrounds the Rio Salado project and is bounded by I-17 to the north, 32nd Street to the east, Broadway Road to the south and 19th Avenue to the west. The committee has adopted the name "Village at Rio Salado" for this area but will be referred to as "Beyond the Banks" in this report.

This report seeks to address the knowledge gap in understanding the relationship between combat-related conditions such as PTSD and TBI and involvement in the criminal justice system, through an examination of 1,370 recently booked arrestees in Maricopa County, Arizona. Using interview data from the Arizona Arrestee Reporting Information Network (AARIN), the report characterizes the problems and prior experiences of military veterans, and compares veteran and nonveteran arrestees along a range of demographic, background and criminal behavior measures. The overall objectives of the report are to provide an ongoing estimate of the prevalence of military veterans in the Maricopa County arrestee population and to assess the extent to which the arrested veterans differ from the larger arrestee population.

Several jurisdictions across the United States have created specialized Veterans Courts, which employ a drug court-adapted therapeutic approach to funnel justice system-involved veterans to counseling and support services that are closely monitored by the court. Despite the emergence of Veterans Courts, little is known regarding the prevalence of military veterans in the criminal justice system, the nature of their cases and prior experiences, as well how combat-related conditions such as PTSD or TBI may have contributed to their involvement in the system. This report seeks to address the knowledge gap in this area through an examination of 2,102 recently booked arrestees in Maricopa County, Arizona. Using interview data from the Arizona Arrestee Reporting Information Network (AARIN), the report characterizes the problems and prior experiences of military veterans, and to compare veteran and nonveteran arrestees along a range of demographic, background and criminal behavior measures. The overall objectives of the paper are to determine the prevalence of military veterans in the Maricopa County arrestee population and to assess the extent to which the arrested veterans differ from the larger arrestee population.

In early 2009, an Exploratory Committee was formed to investigate the potential creation of a Veterans Court in Maricopa County, Arizona. The Committee’s initial efforts have focused on examining existing Veterans Courts and determining the size and scope of the problem (i.e., the number of veterans in the county jail). This report provides an overview of information on veterans in the Maricopa County Jail System, drawing on data collected by the Arizona Arrestee Reporting Information Network (AARIN). This report is intended to assist the work of the Veterans Court Exploratory Committee.

In fiscal year 2013, the Department paid at least $14.6 million for transportation services for child protective services clients. However, the Department does not use performance measurement to manage and evaluate these services, including overseeing contracted transportation providers. The Department should develop and implement a performance measurement system to evaluate these services and ensure that this system provides the necessary data to evaluate the appropriateness and cost-effectiveness of contracting for these services. In addition, although the Department has implemented some procedures to help ensure proper payments to transportation providers for these services, additional steps would help address internal control deficiencies.