House Bill 1859

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                HB 1859

        By the Committee on Corrections and Representative
    Trovillion





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to elderly offenders; amending

  3         s. 944.02, F.S.; providing a definition of

  4         "elderly offender"; creating s. 944.804, F.S.;

  5         providing legislative findings; requiring the

  6         Correctional Privatization Commission to issue

  7         a request for proposals for the establishment

  8         and operation of an exclusively geriatric

  9         facility for elderly offenders at the current

10         River Junction Correctional Institution site;

11         authorizing certain contracts; providing for

12         request for proposals; requiring the commission

13         to oversee facility operation; requiring the

14         Department of Corrections to develop rules

15         specifying eligibility for the facility;

16         providing specific legislative intent for

17         implementation of rules; requiring a study;

18         amending ss. 120.81, 413.051, and 414.40, F.S.;

19         correcting cross references; providing an

20         effective date.

21

22  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

23

24         Section 1.  Section 944.02, Florida Statutes, is

25  amended to read:

26         944.02  Definitions.--The following words and phrases

27  used in this chapter shall, unless the context clearly

28  indicates otherwise, have the following meanings:

29         (1)(3)  "Commission" means the Parole Commission.

30         (2)(1)  "Correctional system" means all prisons and

31  other state correctional institutions now existing or

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  1  hereafter created under the jurisdiction of the Department of

  2  Corrections.

  3         (3)(2)  "Department" means the Department of

  4  Corrections.

  5         (4)  "Elderly offender" means a prisoner age 50 or

  6  older whose chronological medically appraised age is at least

  7  62.  Declines in mental or physical health as a result of

  8  dementia, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, or other

  9  similar degenerative diseases shall be considered as increases

10  in age, although the effect of the change may be to reduce an

11  individual's mental or physical capacity to that of a child.

12         (5)(7)  "Lease-purchase agreement" means an installment

13  sales contract which requires regular payments with an

14  interest charge included and which provides that the lessee

15  receive title to the property upon final payment.

16         (6)(5)  "Prisoner" means any person who is under arrest

17  and in the lawful custody of any law enforcement official, or

18  any person convicted and sentenced by any court and committed

19  to any municipal or county jail or state prison, prison farm,

20  or penitentiary, or to the custody of the department, as

21  provided by law.

22         (7)(4)  "Secretary" means the Secretary of Corrections.

23         (8)(6)  "State correctional institution" means any

24  prison, road camp, prison industry, prison forestry camp, or

25  any prison camp or prison farm or other correctional facility,

26  temporary or permanent, in which prisoners are housed, worked,

27  or maintained, under the custody and jurisdiction of the

28  department.

29         Section 2.  Section 944.804, Florida Statutes, is

30  created to read:

31

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                HB 1859

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  1         944.804  Elderly offenders correctional facilities

  2  program of 2000.--

  3         (1)  The Legislature finds that the number and

  4  percentage of elderly offenders in the Florida prison system

  5  is increasing and will continue to increase for the forseeable

  6  future. The current cost to incarcerate elderly offenders is

  7  approximately three times the cost of incarceration of younger

  8  inmates. Alternatives to the current approaches to housing,

  9  programming, and treating the medical needs of elderly

10  offenders, which may reduce the overall costs associated with

11  this segment of the prison population, must be explored and

12  implemented.

13         (2)  The Correctional Privatization Commission shall

14  issue a request for proposals for the establishment and

15  operation of a geriatric facility at the site known as River

16  Junction Correctional Institution, which shall be an

17  institution specifically for elderly offenders. The

18  Correctional Privatization Commission may enter into contracts

19  for this facility notwithstanding s. 957.07. The Correctional

20  Privatization Commission shall oversee the operation of the

21  facility by the contractor selected through the

22  request-for-proposals process. The request for proposals shall

23  include modifications to the facility which will decrease the

24  likelihood of falls, accidental injury, and other conditions

25  known to be particularly hazardous to the elderly. The

26  proposal shall include the requirements of a fitness/wellness

27  program and diet designed to maintain the physical and mental

28  fitness of the elderly offenders and decrease long-term health

29  costs to the state correctional system. The request for

30  proposals shall require proposers to consider how to reduce

31  costs associated with elderly offenders as a method of

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  1  offsetting increased medical costs. Programming and work

  2  opportunities appropriate for this population shall be

  3  developed, and institutional staff shall be specifically

  4  trained to effectively supervise elderly offenders.

  5         (3)  Notwithstanding the provisions of s. 120.54(1)(b),

  6  the department shall adopt rules within 90 days after the

  7  effective date of this act, or may initially adopt emergency

  8  rules, that specify which elderly offenders shall be eligible

  9  to be housed at River Junction Correctional Institution. The

10  Legislature finds that initial emergency rulemaking power is

11  necessary for the welfare of the people in order to provide

12  future savings to benefit the public. The Legislature further

13  finds that if the initial rules adopted are emergency rules,

14  then the department need not make the findings required by s.

15  120.54(4)(a).

16         (4)  In developing the rules or initial emergency

17  rules, the Legislature directs the department to target

18  occupancy at 100 percent, and to achieve occupancy of no less

19  than 85 percent, at River Junction Correctional Institution.

20  While developing the criteria for eligibility, the department

21  shall use the information in existing offender databases to

22  determine the number of offenders who would be eligible. The

23  Legislature directs the department to consider a broad range

24  of elderly offenders for River Junction Correctional

25  Institution who have good disciplinary records and a medical

26  grade that will permit them to perform meaningful work

27  activities, including participation in an appropriate

28  correctional work program (PRIDE) facility, if available.

29         (5)  It is further the specific intent of the

30  Legislature that implementation of these statutory provisions

31  not be delayed until adoption of rules or emergency rules or

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  1  during any period when previously existing rules are no longer

  2  in effect. During any such period, the department shall

  3  maintain an inmate population profile in accordance with the

  4  following schedule:

  5

  6      Profile Variable                 Population     Variation

  7                                       Percent        Percent

  8      Age 50 or greater                   100%             2%

  9      Custody Level

10        Minimum/Medium                    100%           .05%

11      Physical Health Grade

12        M1 or M2                           60%             1%

13        M3 with chronic condition(s)

14          considered stable                40%             1%

15      Psychological Grade

16        S1 or S2                          100%             1%

17

18         (6)  At the time of submission of the rules to the

19  Joint Administrative Procedures Committee, the department

20  shall also submit a study based on existing offenders which

21  projects the number of existing offenders who will qualify

22  under the rules. An appendix to the study shall identify the

23  specific offenders who qualify.

24         Section 3.  Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (3) of

25  section 120.81, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:

26         120.81  Exceptions and special requirements; general

27  areas.--

28         (3)  PRISONERS AND PAROLEES.--

29         (a)  Notwithstanding s. 120.52(12), prisoners, as

30  defined by s. 944.02(5), shall not be considered parties in

31  any proceedings other than those under s. 120.54(3)(c) or (7),

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  1  and may not seek judicial review under s. 120.68 of any other

  2  agency action. Prisoners are not eligible to seek an

  3  administrative determination of an agency statement under s.

  4  120.56(4). Parolees shall not be considered parties for

  5  purposes of agency action or judicial review when the

  6  proceedings relate to the rescission or revocation of parole.

  7         (b)  Notwithstanding s. 120.54(3)(c), prisoners, as

  8  defined by s. 944.02(5), may be limited by the Department of

  9  Corrections to an opportunity to present evidence and argument

10  on issues under consideration by submission of written

11  statements concerning intended action on any department rule.

12         Section 4.  Paragraph (d) of subsection (2) of section

13  413.051, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

14         413.051  Eligible blind persons; operation of vending

15  stands.--

16         (2)  As used in this section:

17         (d)  "State property" means any building or land owned,

18  leased, or otherwise controlled by the state, but does not

19  include any building or land under the control of the Board of

20  Regents, a community college district board of trustees, or

21  any state correctional institution as defined in s. 944.02(6).

22         Section 5.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section

23  414.40, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

24         414.40  Stop Inmate Fraud Program established;

25  guidelines.--

26         (2)  The Department of Law Enforcement is directed to

27  implement the Stop Inmate Fraud Program in accordance with the

28  following guidelines:

29         (a)  The program shall establish procedures for sharing

30  public records not exempt from the public records law among

31  social services agencies regarding the identities of persons

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  1  incarcerated in state correctional institutions, as defined in

  2  s. 944.02(6), or in county, municipal, or regional jails or

  3  other detention facilities of local governments under chapter

  4  950 or chapter 951 who are wrongfully receiving public

  5  assistance benefits or entitlement benefits.

  6         Section 6.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

  7

  8            *****************************************

  9                          HOUSE SUMMARY

10
      Defines "elderly offender" with respect to the State
11    Correctional System. Directs the Correctional
      Privatization Commission to issue a request for proposals
12    for the establishment and operation of a geriatric
      correctional facility at River Junction Correctional
13    Institution. Specifies proposal requirements and
      authorizes the commission to enter into contracts.
14    Requires the commission to oversee the contractor's
      operation of the facility. Requires the Department of
15    Corrections to develop rules, or to initially adopt
      emergency rules, specifying eligibility criteria for the
16    facility. Provides specific legislative intent that
      implementation of the program not be delayed. Requires
17    the commission to conduct a study projecting the number
      of existing offenders qualifying for the program.
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