Since 1960 when legislation was first enacted to permit the formation of regional juvenile and domestic relations courts (hereafter called re­gional juvenile courts), members of the judiciary, legislators, State and local officials and the public have studied and worked to develop the regional juvenile court concept as a means to provide probation and re­lated services on a more effective basis throughout the State. The initial 1960 legislation was amended extensively in 1964, and it was specifically provided that the salaries of regional juvenile court probation personnel would be paid entirely by the State rather than one-half by the county or city and one-half by the State as is the case for regular juvenile and domestic relations courts (hereafter called juvenile courts). Thus, localities unable to afford or perhaps even to justify employing full-time probation staffing were permitted and encouraged to form regional juvenile courts and at no cost to themselves to obtain probation services for their area.

Continuing concern respecting the administration and organization of the regional juvenile court system produced a study by the Virginia Advisory Legislative Council and its Report to the 1966 General Assembly. That Report called for a moratorium on the formation of new regional juvenile courts pending a full study on the desirability of forming a State-established system of regional juvenile courts to replace the current local option system or of forming a system of family courts with jurisdic­tion broadened beyond that of existing juvenile courts to include adoption and divorce proceedings. These proposals for a moratorium and broad study were rejected by the General Assembly.

Following the 1966 Session, the Governor requested the Council to reexamine the regional juvenile court system and noted the fact that the 1964 regional juvenile court legislation does not include criteria to govern the establishment of regional juvenile courts by the localities with respect to such matters as the contiguity of the localities establishing the court.

The Council appointed John Warren Cooke of Mathews, member of the Council and the House of Delegates, to serve as Chairman of the Committee to make a preliminary study and report to it. Selected to serve with Mr. Cooke on the Committee were C. Braxton Valentine, Jr., attorney, Richmond; Herman T. Benn, attorney, Richmond; Mrs. W. Hamilton Crockford, III, Richmond; Mrs. Charles H. Elmore, Bon Air; Charles R. Fenwick, member of the Council and Senate, Arlington; William H. Hodges, member of the Senate,· Chesapeake; James H. Montgomery, Jr., attorney, Richmond; Garnett S. Moore, member of the Council and· House of Delegates, Pulaski; Mrs. Mary Alice Roberts, Roanoke; and John G. Sowder, Judge, New Kent County Court, Providence Forge.

Mr. Valentine was elected Vice-Chairman of the Committee; G. M. Lapsley and Mary Spain served as Secretary and Recording Secretary, respectively.

The Committee conferred extensively with experts in the field of juvenile court work including judges and representatives of the Department of Welfare and Institutions.