Senate Bill sb0526

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    Florida Senate - 2007                                   SB 526

    By Senator Margolis





    35-516-07

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to a mental health advisory

  3         task force; creating the Criminal Justice Task

  4         Force within the Substance Abuse and Mental

  5         Health Corporation to identify barriers to

  6         providing comprehensive mental health and

  7         substance abuse treatment services to children,

  8         youth, and adults who are in the criminal

  9         justice system; providing for membership and

10         duties; providing for members of the task force

11         to be reimbursed for per diem and travel

12         expenses; requiring the task force to prepare a

13         report by a specified date; specifying a date

14         for the abolishment of the task force;

15         providing an effective date.

16  

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

18  

19         Section 1.  (1)  Contingent upon appropriations, the

20  Criminal Justice Task Force is created within the Substance

21  Abuse and Mental Health Corporation for the purpose of

22  identifying barriers to providing comprehensive mental health

23  and substance abuse treatment services to children, youth, and

24  adults who are in the criminal justice system and making

25  recommendations to improve mental health and substance abuse

26  treatment services.

27         (2)  The task force shall be comprised of the following

28  16 members:

29         (a)  The chairperson of the corporation.

30         (b)  The Secretary of Children and Family Services.

31         (c)  The Secretary of Corrections.

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    Florida Senate - 2007                                   SB 526
    35-516-07




 1         (d)  The Secretary of Juvenile Justice.

 2         (e)  The Secretary of Health Care Administration.

 3         (f)  The Commissioner of Education.

 4         (g)  A member of the Senate, appointed by the President

 5  of the Senate.

 6         (h)  A member of the House of Representatives,

 7  appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

 8         (i)  The Executive Director of the Correctional Medical

 9  Authority.

10         (j)  A circuit judge, appointed by the Chief Justice of

11  the Supreme Court.

12         (k)  A superintendent of a school district, appointed

13  by the Commissioner of Education.

14         (l)  A sheriff, selected by the Florida Sheriffs

15  Association.

16         (m)  A representative of providers of substance abuse

17  treatment services, appointed by the Secretary of Children and

18  Family Services.

19         (n)  A representative of providers of mental health

20  services, appointed by the Secretary of Children and Family

21  Services.

22         (o)  A representative of providers of juvenile justice

23  services, providers appointed by the Secretary of Juvenile

24  Justice.

25         (p)  A specialist in the field of forensic mental

26  health, appointed by the Secretary of Children and Family

27  Services.

28         (3)(a)  Members of the task force shall be

29  representative of the geographic regions and ethnic and gender

30  diversity of the state. The members of the task force shall

31  select a chairperson by majority vote.

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    Florida Senate - 2007                                   SB 526
    35-516-07




 1         (b)  The task force shall meet at the call of the

 2  chairperson and shall conduct at least three public meetings

 3  in geographically and demographically diverse areas of the

 4  state. The first meeting of the task force shall be conducted

 5  no later than October 1, 2007.

 6         (c)  All recommendations of the task force shall be by

 7  a majority vote.

 8         (d)  Members of the task force shall serve without

 9  compensation, but are entitled to receive reimbursement for

10  per diem and travel expenses in accordance with s. 112.061,

11  Florida Statutes, while in the performance of their duties.

12         (e)  The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Corporation

13  shall provide administrative support for the task force. Each

14  state agency member of the task force shall designate a member

15  of its staff to assist, under the direction of the

16  corporation, in coordinating administrative support for the

17  task force.

18         (4)  The task force shall:

19         (a)  Determine the feasibility of including within the

20  Social Services Estimating Conference the development of

21  official forecasts of admissions to civil and forensic mental

22  health treatment facilities and juvenile justice treatment

23  facilities and determine the capacity requirements for

24  purposes of state planning and budgeting.

25         (b)  Assess the medication formularies used in county

26  detention facilities and determine the extent to which the

27  current medications contribute to adult and juvenile

28  defendants being readmitted to state mental health and

29  juvenile justice treatment facilities.

30         (c)  Make an inventory of and assess the availability

31  of community-based diversion programs and treatment beds that

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    Florida Senate - 2007                                   SB 526
    35-516-07




 1  are designed to keep persons who have mental illness and who

 2  are homeless out of the criminal justice and juvenile justice

 3  system.

 4         (d)  Identify innovative local community partnerships

 5  and funding strategies in the state which successfully divert

 6  persons who have mental illness from the criminal justice and

 7  juvenile justice systems.

 8         (e)  Make advisory recommendations of strategies and

 9  programs to improve the community response to children, youth,

10  and adults who have mental illness and who are in the criminal

11  and juvenile justice system.

12         (5)  The task force shall submit a report of its

13  findings and recommendations to the Governor, the President of

14  the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by

15  October 1, 2008. All meetings of the task force and all

16  business of the task force for which reimbursement may be

17  requested must be concluded before the report is filed. The

18  task force is abolished on June 30, 2009.

19         Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

20  law.

21  

22            *****************************************

23                          SENATE SUMMARY

24    Creates the Criminal Justice Task Force within the
      Substance Abuse and Mental Health Corporation to identify
25    barriers to providing comprehensive mental health and
      substance abuse services to children, youth, and adults
26    who are in the criminal justice system. Provides for
      membership and duties of the task force. Requires the
27    task force to prepare a report by October 1, 2008.
      Provides for the task force to be abolished on June 30,
28    2009.

29  

30  

31  

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