Florida Senate - 2020                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 572
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì100336|Î100336                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  12/10/2019           .                                
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       The Committee on Criminal Justice (Bracy) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete lines 38 - 69
    4  and insert:
    5         Section 1. Paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of section
    6  921.002, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
    7         921.002 The Criminal Punishment Code.—The Criminal
    8  Punishment Code shall apply to all felony offenses, except
    9  capital felonies, committed on or after October 1, 1998.
   10         (1) The provision of criminal penalties and of limitations
   11  upon the application of such penalties is a matter of
   12  predominantly substantive law and, as such, is a matter properly
   13  addressed by the Legislature. The Legislature, in the exercise
   14  of its authority and responsibility to establish sentencing
   15  criteria, to provide for the imposition of criminal penalties,
   16  and to make the best use of state prisons so that violent
   17  criminal offenders are appropriately incarcerated, has
   18  determined that it is in the best interest of the state to
   19  develop, implement, and revise a sentencing policy. The Criminal
   20  Punishment Code embodies the principles that:
   21         (e) The sentence imposed by the sentencing judge reflects
   22  the length of actual time to be served, shortened only by the
   23  application of incentive and meritorious gain-time as provided
   24  by law, and may not be shortened if the defendant would
   25  consequently serve less than 65 percent of his or her term of
   26  imprisonment as provided in s. 944.275(4)(b)3.a. or less than 85
   27  percent of his or her term of imprisonment as provided in s.
   28  944.275(4) or s. 944.275(4)(b)3.b. The provisions of chapter
   29  947, relating to parole, shall not apply to persons sentenced
   30  under the Criminal Punishment Code.
   31         Section 2. Paragraphs (b) and (f) of subsection (4) of
   32  section 944.275, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   33         944.275 Gain-time.—
   34         (4)
   35         (b) For each month in which an inmate works diligently,
   36  participates in training, uses time constructively, or otherwise
   37  engages in positive activities, the department may grant
   38  incentive gain-time in accordance with this paragraph. The rate
   39  of incentive gain-time in effect on the date the inmate
   40  committed the offense that which resulted in his or her
   41  incarceration shall be the inmate’s rate of eligibility to earn
   42  incentive gain-time throughout the period of incarceration and
   43  may shall not be altered by a subsequent change in the severity
   44  level of the offense for which the inmate was sentenced.
   45         1. For sentences imposed for offenses committed before
   46  prior to January 1, 1994, up to 20 days of incentive gain-time
   47  may be granted. If granted, such gain-time shall be credited and
   48  applied monthly.
   49         2. For sentences imposed for offenses committed on or after
   50  January 1, 1994, and before October 1, 1995:
   51         a. For offenses ranked in offense severity levels 1 through
   52  7, under former s. 921.0012 or former s. 921.0013, up to 25 days
   53  of incentive gain-time may be granted. If granted, such gain
   54  time shall be credited and applied monthly.
   55         b. For offenses ranked in offense severity levels 8, 9, and
   56  10, under former s. 921.0012 or former s. 921.0013, up to 20
   57  days of incentive gain-time may be granted. If granted, such
   58  gain-time shall be credited and applied monthly.
   59         3. For sentences imposed for offenses, regardless of the
   60  date committed, the department may grant up to 20 days per month
   61  of incentive gain-time, except that:
   62         a.If the offense is a nonviolent felony, as defined in s.
   63  948.08(6), the prisoner is not eligible to earn any type of
   64  gain-time in an amount that would cause a sentence to expire,
   65  end, or terminate, or that would result in a prisoner’s release,
   66  before he or she serves a minimum of 65 percent of the sentence
   67  imposed. For purposes of this sub-subparagraph, credits awarded
   68  by the court for time physically incarcerated must be credited
   69  toward satisfaction of 65 percent of the sentence imposed. A
   70  prisoner who is granted incentive gain-time pursuant to this
   71  sub-subparagraph may not accumulate further gain-time awards at
   72  any point when the tentative release date is the same as that
   73  date at which the prisoner will have served 65 percent of the
   74  sentence imposed. State prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment
   75  must be incarcerated for the rest of their natural lives, unless
   76  granted pardon or clemency.
   77         b.If the offense is not a nonviolent felony, as defined in
   78  s. 948.08(6), the prisoner is not eligible to earn any type of
   79  gain-time in an amount that would cause a sentence to expire,
   80  end, or terminate, or that would result in a prisoner’s release,
   81  before he or she serves a minimum of 85 percent of the sentence
   82  imposed. For purposes of this sub-subparagraph, credits awarded
   83  by the court for time physically incarcerated must be credited
   84  toward satisfaction of 85 percent of the sentence imposed. A
   85  prisoner who is granted incentive gain-time pursuant to this
   86  sub-subparagraph may not accumulate further gain-time awards at
   87  any point when the tentative release date is the same as that
   88  date at which the prisoner will have served 85 percent of the
   89  sentence imposed. State prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment
   90  must be incarcerated for the rest of their natural lives, unless
   91  granted pardon or clemency For sentences imposed for offenses
   92  committed on or after October 1, 1995, the department may grant
   93  up to 10 days per month of incentive gain-time.
   94  
   95  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   96  And the title is amended as follows:
   97         Delete lines 2 - 3
   98  and insert:
   99         An act relating to release from imprisonment; amending
  100         s. 921.002, F.S.; revising a principle of the Criminal
  101         Punishment Code relating to a prisoner’s required
  102         minimum term of imprisonment; amending s. 944.275,
  103         F.S.; revising the incentive gain-time that the
  104         Department of Corrections may grant a prisoner;
  105         providing exceptions; specifying that an inmate is not