Florida Senate - 2012 SB 498 By Senator Lynn 7-00468A-12 2012498__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to substance abuse education and 3 intervention programs; amending s. 948.03, F.S.; 4 providing for the placement of certain misdemeanor 5 controlled substance offenders in licensed substance 6 abuse education and intervention programs as a 7 standard condition of probation; amending s. 948.15, 8 F.S.; providing that probation supervision services 9 for defendants found guilty of certain misdemeanor 10 controlled substance offenses may be provided by 11 licensed substance abuse education and intervention 12 programs; authorizing certain entities providing 13 probation services to provide licensed substance abuse 14 education and intervention programs; requiring private 15 entities providing such programs to contract with the 16 county and comply with other applicable provisions; 17 providing an effective date. 18 19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 20 21 Section 1. Paragraph (q) is added to subsection (1) of 22 section 948.03, Florida Statutes, to read: 23 948.03 Terms and conditions of probation.— 24 (1) The court shall determine the terms and conditions of 25 probation. Conditions specified in this section do not require 26 oral pronouncement at the time of sentencing and may be 27 considered standard conditions of probation. These conditions 28 may include among them the following, that the probationer or 29 offender in community control shall: 30 (q) Be placed in a licensed substance abuse education and 31 intervention program as provided in s. 948.15 if the probationer 32 or offender is convicted of a misdemeanor for possession of a 33 controlled substance or drug paraphernalia under chapter 893. 34 Section 2. Section 948.15, Florida Statutes, is amended to 35 read: 36 948.15 Misdemeanor probation services.— 37 (1) A defendantDefendantsfound guilty of a misdemeanor 38misdemeanorswho isareplaced on probation shall be under 39 supervision not to exceed 6 months unless otherwise specified by 40 the court. Probation supervision services for a defendant found 41 guilty of a misdemeanor for possession of a controlled substance 42 or drug paraphernalia under chapter 893 may be provided by a 43 licensed substance abuse education and intervention program, 44 which shall provide substance abuse education and intervention 45 as well as any other terms and conditions of probation. In 46 relation to any offense other than a felony in which the use of 47 alcohol is a significant factor, the period of probation may be 48 up to 1 year. 49 (2) A private entity or public entity, including a licensed 50 substance abuse education and intervention program, under the 51 supervision of the board of county commissioners or the court 52 may provide probation services and licensed substance abuse 53 education and treatment intervention programs for offenders 54 sentenced by the county court. 55 (3) Any private entity, including a licensed substance 56 abuse education and intervention program, providing services for 57 the supervision of misdemeanor probationers must contract with 58 the county in which the services are to be rendered. In a county 59 havingwitha population of fewerlessthan 70,000, the county 60 court judge, or the administrative judge of the county court in 61 a county that has more than one county court judge, must approve 62 the contract. Terms of the contract must state, but are not 63 limited to: 64 (a) The extent of the services to be rendered by the entity 65 providing supervision or rehabilitation. 66 (b) Staff qualifications and criminal record checks of 67 staff in accordance with essential standards established by the 68 American Correctional Association as of January 1, 1991. 69 (c) Staffing levels. 70 (d) The number of face-to-face contacts with the offender. 71 (e) Procedures for handling the collection of all offender 72 fees and restitution. 73 (f) Procedures for handling indigent offenders which ensure 74 placement irrespective of ability to pay. 75 (g) Circumstances under which revocation of an offender’s 76 probation may be recommended. 77 (h) Reporting and recordkeeping requirements. 78 (i) Default and contract termination procedures. 79 (j) Procedures that aid offenders with job assistance. 80 (k) Procedures for accessing criminal history records of 81 probationers. 82 83 In addition, the entity shall supply the chief judge’s office 84 with a quarterly report summarizing the number of offenders 85 supervised by the private entity, payment of the required 86 contribution under supervision or rehabilitation, and the number 87 of offenders for whom supervision or rehabilitation will be 88 terminated. All records of the entity must be open to inspection 89 upon the request of the county, the court, the Auditor General, 90 the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government 91 Accountability, or agents thereof. 92 (4) A private entity that provides court-ordered services 93 to offenders and that charges a fee for such services must 94 register with the board of county commissioners in the county in 95 which the services are offered. The entity shall provide the 96 following information for each program it operates: 97 (a) The length of time the program has been operating in 98 the county. 99 (b) A list of the staff and a summary of their 100 qualifications. 101 (c) A summary of the types of services that are offered 102 under the program. 103 (d) The fees the entity charges for court-ordered services 104 and its procedures, if any, for handling indigent offenders. 105 (5) The private entity, including a licensed substance 106 abuse education and intervention program, providing misdemeanor 107 supervision services mustshallalso comply with all other 108 applicable provisions of law. 109 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.