Drug Treatment Program Compliance and Resistance Activities during Implementation of California'S Proposition 36

Abstract

The Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act (SACPA), also known as Proposition 36, was implemented statewide in 2001 in California. This legislation remands non-violent drug offenders to drug treatment rather than prison or jail. Structured telephone interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 72 drug treatment programs from six Southern California counties concerning compliance and resistance activities during implementation. A linear regression model was developed that used a dependent variable capturing overall experience with Proposition 36 and compliance and resistance activities as independent variables. The final model included three compliance variables (sharing problems and solutions with other treatment providers, hiring new staff, acquiring additional space through rental or purchase) that were most predictive of the programs’ overall experience with Proposition 36. The implications of these findings in the context of organizational compliance and resistance activities are discussed.