Florida Senate - 2012 CS for SB 498
By the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senator Lynn
591-01567-12 2012498c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to substance abuse education and
3 intervention programs; amending s. 948.15, F.S.;
4 providing that probation supervision services for
5 defendants found guilty of certain misdemeanor
6 controlled substance offenses may be provided by
7 licensed substance abuse education and intervention
8 programs; authorizing certain entities providing
9 probation services to provide licensed substance abuse
10 education and intervention programs; requiring private
11 entities providing such programs to contract with the
12 county and comply with other applicable provisions;
13 providing an effective date.
14
15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
16
17 Section 1. Section 948.15, Florida Statutes, is amended to
18 read:
19 948.15 Misdemeanor probation services.—
20 (1) A defendant Defendants found guilty of a misdemeanor
21 misdemeanors who is are placed on probation shall be under
22 supervision not to exceed 6 months unless otherwise specified by
23 the court. Probation supervision services for a defendant found
24 guilty of a misdemeanor for possession of a controlled substance
25 or drug paraphernalia under chapter 893 may be provided by a
26 licensed substance abuse education and intervention program,
27 which shall provide substance abuse education and intervention
28 as well as any other terms and conditions of probation. In
29 relation to any offense other than a felony in which the use of
30 alcohol is a significant factor, the period of probation may be
31 up to 1 year.
32 (2) A private entity or public entity, including a licensed
33 substance abuse education and intervention program, under the
34 supervision of the board of county commissioners or the court
35 may provide probation services and licensed substance abuse
36 education and treatment intervention programs for offenders
37 sentenced by the county court.
38 (3) Any private entity, including a licensed substance
39 abuse education and intervention program, providing services for
40 the supervision of misdemeanor probationers must contract with
41 the county in which the services are to be rendered. In a county
42 having with a population of fewer less than 70,000, the county
43 court judge, or the administrative judge of the county court in
44 a county that has more than one county court judge, must approve
45 the contract. Terms of the contract must state, but are not
46 limited to:
47 (a) The extent of the services to be rendered by the entity
48 providing supervision or rehabilitation.
49 (b) Staff qualifications and criminal record checks of
50 staff in accordance with essential standards established by the
51 American Correctional Association as of January 1, 1991.
52 (c) Staffing levels.
53 (d) The number of face-to-face contacts with the offender.
54 (e) Procedures for handling the collection of all offender
55 fees and restitution.
56 (f) Procedures for handling indigent offenders which ensure
57 placement irrespective of ability to pay.
58 (g) Circumstances under which revocation of an offender’s
59 probation may be recommended.
60 (h) Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
61 (i) Default and contract termination procedures.
62 (j) Procedures that aid offenders with job assistance.
63 (k) Procedures for accessing criminal history records of
64 probationers.
65
66 In addition, the entity shall supply the chief judge’s office
67 with a quarterly report summarizing the number of offenders
68 supervised by the private entity, payment of the required
69 contribution under supervision or rehabilitation, and the number
70 of offenders for whom supervision or rehabilitation will be
71 terminated. All records of the entity must be open to inspection
72 upon the request of the county, the court, the Auditor General,
73 the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government
74 Accountability, or agents thereof.
75 (4) A private entity that provides court-ordered services
76 to offenders and that charges a fee for such services must
77 register with the board of county commissioners in the county in
78 which the services are offered. The entity shall provide the
79 following information for each program it operates:
80 (a) The length of time the program has been operating in
81 the county.
82 (b) A list of the staff and a summary of their
83 qualifications.
84 (c) A summary of the types of services that are offered
85 under the program.
86 (d) The fees the entity charges for court-ordered services
87 and its procedures, if any, for handling indigent offenders.
88 (5) The private entity, including a licensed substance
89 abuse education and intervention program, providing misdemeanor
90 supervision services must shall also comply with all other
91 applicable provisions of law.
92 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.