The work of the policy team is to define and develop policy, practice and resources in the areas of assessment, treatment, testing, criminal justice leverage and sanctions/rewards.

The policies guide the team relationship by specifying the nature of a working relationship in operational terms, such as target populations, treatment selection criteria, supervision standards, drug testing schedules and sanctions. Traditional barriers of information dissemination, confidentiality concerns and uncertainty about how information will be used disappear by working through these issues as a team.

For example, a policy which states that drug test results will be shared between the criminal justice and treatment systems is designed to ensure that both agencies are informed of a client's progress. The policy directs supervisors and staff to develop a mechanism for sharing drug testing information on a timely basis. At the staff level, this removes the potential for individual staff members to make decisions about whether or not drug test results should be shared. At the operational level, treatment and supervision staff must work together as a team to put the policies into daily practice and ensure consistent messages of controlling behavior for the offender.