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CS/SB 820 — Problem-solving Court Reports
by Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice and Senator Bradley
This summary is provided for information only and does not represent the opinion of any Senator, Senate Officer, or Senate Office.
Prepared by: Judiciary Committee (JU)
The state currently has 182 problem-solving courts which may be found operating in every county of the state. Rather than function in the traditional adversarial model, problem-solving courts provide non-adversarial proceedings with a dedicated judge who monitors each participant’s progress and compliance. The Office of the State Courts Administrator is required to provide an annual report to the Legislature which identifies the number of participants in each problem-solving court, the types of services provided, sources of funding, and performance outcomes.
The bill specifies additional data that must be presented in the annual problem-solving court reports prepared by the Office of the State Courts Administrator. The additional data must include data relating to treatment compliance, program completion, and offenses committed during program participation. The bill creates data reporting requirements for early childhood court and veterans treatment court programs and amends data reporting requirements for mental health courts and drug courts. The additional reporting requirements may aid in the evaluation of the effectiveness of problem-solving court programs.
The bill sets forth reporting timelines for problem-solving courts funded by the state courts system’s problem-solving court appropriation and all other problem solving courts.
If approved by the Governor, or allowed to become law without the Governor's signature, these provisions take effect on July 1, 2026.
Vote: Senate 37-1; House 114-0