Bill Text: FL S0344 | 2018 | Regular Session | Introduced


Bill Title: Offender Probation, Parole, and Supervision

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2018-03-10 - Died in Criminal Justice [S0344 Detail]

Download: Florida-2018-S0344-Introduced.html
       Florida Senate - 2018                                     SB 344
       
       
        
       By Senator Bracy
       
       
       
       
       
       11-00280-18                                            2018344__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to offender probation, parole, and
    3         supervision; creating s. 948.95, F.S.; providing a
    4         short title; creating s. 948.951, F.S.; providing
    5         definitions; creating s. 948.952, F.S.; requiring the
    6         Department of Corrections and certain local
    7         governmental agencies, hereinafter known as “the
    8         agency,” to adopt policies and rules that by a
    9         specified date result in all supervised individuals
   10         being supervised in accordance with evidence-based
   11         practices, or practices developed based upon evidence
   12         based practices; requiring the agency to consult with
   13         and seek recommendations from local law enforcement
   14         agencies, circuit courts, state attorney offices, and
   15         community corrections programs on adopting policies
   16         and rules for evidence-based supervision practices;
   17         providing requirements for the adopted policies and
   18         rules; requiring, by a specified date, all postrelease
   19         supervision programs receiving state funds to be
   20         established in accordance with evidence-based
   21         practices or developed based upon evidence-based
   22         practices; requiring the agency, by a specified date,
   23         to eliminate supervision policies, procedures,
   24         programs, and practices intended to reduce recidivism
   25         but which scientific research demonstrates do not
   26         reduce recidivism; requiring certain data collected
   27         and maintained regarding recidivism rates to be
   28         collected and maintained in a specified manner;
   29         creating s. 948.953, F.S.; requiring the agency to
   30         adopt policies and rules that improve crime victim
   31         satisfaction with the criminal justice system, subject
   32         to certain requirements; requiring the Office of the
   33         Attorney General to develop a victim satisfaction
   34         survey for use by the agency; creating s. 948.954,
   35         F.S.; requiring the agency to provide its employees
   36         and supervising agents with intensive initial and
   37         ongoing training and professional development services
   38         to support the implementation of evidence-based
   39         practices, subject to certain requirements; creating
   40         s. 948.955, F.S.; authorizing the department to form
   41         partnerships or enter into contracts with certain
   42         institutions or other organizations for assistance
   43         with data collection, analysis, and research; creating
   44         s. 948.956, F.S.; requiring the agency to submit,
   45         beginning on a specified date and each year
   46         thereafter, to the Governor, the Chief Justice of the
   47         Supreme Court, and the Legislature a comprehensive
   48         report on its efforts to implement this act; providing
   49         requirements for the report; requiring the agency to
   50         make the report and an executive summary of the report
   51         available to the general public on its website;
   52         creating s. 948.957, F.S.; providing rulemaking
   53         authority; providing an effective date.
   54          
   55  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   56  
   57         Section 1. Section 948.95, Florida Statutes, is created to
   58  read:
   59         948.95Short title.Sections 948.95-948.957 may be cited as
   60  the “Evidence-Based Practices of Supervision Act.”
   61         Section 2. Section 948.951, Florida Statutes, is created to
   62  read:
   63         948.951Definitions.—As used in ss. 948.95-948.957, the
   64  term:
   65         (1)“Agency” means both of the following:
   66         (a)The Department of Corrections.
   67         (b)Any regional, local, or county governmental agency that
   68  receives state funding and that is responsible for supervising
   69  individuals who are placed on probation or who are serving a
   70  period of parole or postrelease supervision from a prison or
   71  jail.
   72         (2)“Case plan” means an individualized accountability and
   73  behavior change strategy for supervised individuals which does
   74  all of the following:
   75         (a)Identifies and prioritizes the specific criminal risk
   76  factors of the offender.
   77         (b)Matches programs to the offender’s individual
   78  characteristics, such as gender, culture, motivation,
   79  developmental stage, or learning style.
   80         (c)Establishes a timetable for achieving specific
   81  behavioral goals, including a schedule for payment of victim
   82  restitution, child support, and other financial obligations. The
   83  agency shall determine the offender’s ability to pay in
   84  establishing a timetable under this paragraph for payment of
   85  victim restitution, child support, and other financial
   86  obligations.
   87         (d)Specifies positive and negative actions that will be
   88  taken in response to the supervised individual’s behaviors.
   89         (3)“Community supervision” means the placement of an
   90  individual under supervision after release from prison or jail,
   91  with conditions imposed by the releasing authority for a
   92  specified period.
   93         (4)“Criminal risk factors” means characteristics and
   94  behaviors that when addressed or changed affect an individual’s
   95  risk for committing crimes. These factors include antisocial
   96  attitudes, values, and beliefs; poor impulse control, criminal
   97  personality, substance abuse, criminal peers, dysfunctional
   98  family, or a lack of employment or education.
   99         (5)“Evidence-based practices” means supervision policies,
  100  procedures, programs, and practices that scientific research
  101  demonstrates reduce recidivism among individuals on probation,
  102  parole, or postrelease supervision.
  103         (6)“Program” means an intervention, other than medical
  104  services, to which both of the following apply:
  105         (a)It is intended to reduce recidivism by supervised
  106  individuals.
  107         (b)It is funded in whole or in part by this state or is
  108  administered by an agency of this state.
  109         (7)“Recidivism” means an offender’s rearrest,
  110  reconviction, or reincarceration in prison or jail for a felony
  111  or misdemeanor offense or a probation or parole violation, as
  112  measured first after 3 years and again after 5 years from the
  113  date of his or her release from incarceration, placement on
  114  probation, or conviction, whichever is later.
  115         (8)“Supervised individual” means an individual placed on
  116  probation or serving a period of parole.
  117         (9)“Supervising agent” means an individual appointed or
  118  employed by the agency to supervise individuals placed on
  119  community supervision.
  120         (10)“Technical parole violation” means a violation of the
  121  terms of a parolee’s parole order which is not a violation of a
  122  law of this state, a political subdivision of this state,
  123  another state, or the United States or of tribal law.
  124         (11)“Technical probation violation” means a violation of
  125  the terms of a probationer’s probation order which is not a
  126  violation of a law of this state, a political subdivision of
  127  this state, another state, or the United States or of tribal
  128  law.
  129         Section 3. Section 948.952, Florida Statutes, is created to
  130  read:
  131         948.952Agency policies and rules.—
  132         (1)The agency shall adopt policies and rules that by
  133  October 1, 2022, result in all supervised individuals being
  134  supervised in accordance with evidence-based practices, or
  135  practices developed based upon evidence-based practices, in
  136  order to improve the success rates of and to reduce recidivism
  137  rates for supervised individuals. The agency shall consult with
  138  and seek recommendations from local law enforcement agencies,
  139  including sheriff’s departments, circuit courts, state attorney
  140  offices, and community corrections programs, in adopting
  141  policies and rules for evidence-based supervision practices.
  142         (2)The policies and rules adopted under subsection (1)
  143  must include all of the following:
  144         (a)The adoption, validation, and use of an objective risk
  145  and needs assessment tool.
  146         (b)The use of assessment scores and other objective
  147  criteria to determine the risk level and program needs of each
  148  supervised individual, prioritizing supervision and program
  149  resources for offenders who are at higher risk to reoffend.
  150         (c)Definitions of low-, moderate-, and high-risk levels
  151  during the period of supervision.
  152         (d)Guidelines for the development of a case plan, based on
  153  the assessment score, for each individual who is assessed to be
  154  moderate to high risk. The case plan developed under this
  155  paragraph must allow a supervised individual options for
  156  programming, subject to any conditions imposed by a court having
  157  jurisdiction over the supervised individual.
  158         (e)The development of a case plan, based on the assessment
  159  score, for each individual who is assessed to be low risk. The
  160  case plan developed under this paragraph must allow a supervised
  161  individual options for programming, subject to any conditions
  162  imposed by a court having jurisdiction over the supervised
  163  individual.
  164         (f)The identification of swift, certain, proportionate,
  165  and graduated responses that a supervising agent will apply in
  166  response to a supervised individual’s compliant and noncompliant
  167  behaviors.
  168         (g)The adoption of caseload guidelines that are based on
  169  offender risk levels and take into account agency resources and
  170  employee and supervising agent workload.
  171         (h)The establishment of protocols and standards that
  172  assess the degree to which agency policies, procedures,
  173  programs, and practices relating to offender recidivism
  174  reduction are evidence-based.
  175         (3)By October 1, 2022, all postrelease supervision
  176  programs receiving state funds must be established in accordance
  177  with evidence-based practices or developed based upon evidence
  178  based practices.
  179         (4)By October 1, 2022, the agency shall eliminate
  180  supervision policies, procedures, programs, and practices
  181  intended to reduce recidivism but which scientific research
  182  demonstrates do not reduce recidivism.
  183         (5)Any data collected and maintained under this act
  184  regarding recidivism rates must be collected and maintained in a
  185  manner that separates the data on technical probation violations
  186  and technical parole violations from data on new felony and
  187  misdemeanor convictions.
  188         Section 4. Section 948.953, Florida Statutes, is created to
  189  read:
  190         948.953Crime victim satisfaction with the criminal justice
  191  system.—The agency shall adopt policies and rules that improve
  192  crime victim satisfaction with the criminal justice system,
  193  including all of the following:
  194         (1)The payment by supervised individuals of victim
  195  restitution and child support.
  196         (2)The opportunity for victims to complete victim impact
  197  statements or provide input on presentence investigation
  198  reports.
  199         (3)The availability of information for victims about their
  200  rights and the services offered, and referrals to access those
  201  rights and services.
  202         (4)The opportunity for victims to complete a victim
  203  satisfaction survey with data that will be used to measure
  204  agency performance. The Office of the Attorney General shall
  205  develop a victim satisfaction survey for use by the agency as
  206  provided in this subsection.
  207         (5)The facilitating of victim-offender dialogue if the
  208  victim is willing.
  209         Section 5. Section 948.954, Florida Statutes, is created to
  210  read:
  211         948.954Training and professional development services.
  212         (1)The agency shall provide its employees and supervising
  213  agents with intensive initial and ongoing training and
  214  professional development services to support the implementation
  215  of evidence-based practices.
  216         (2)The training and professional development services as
  217  provided in subsection (1) must include assessment techniques,
  218  case planning, risk reduction and intervention strategies,
  219  effective communication skills, substance abuse intervention
  220  information, and other topics identified by the agency or its
  221  employees and supervising agents.
  222         Section 6. Section 948.955, Florida Statutes, is created to
  223  read:
  224         948.955Partnerships and contractual authority.—The
  225  Department of Corrections may form partnerships or enter into
  226  contracts with institutions of higher education or other
  227  qualified organizations for assistance with data collection,
  228  analysis, and research.
  229         Section 7. Section 948.956, Florida Statutes, is created to
  230  read:
  231         948.956Reporting requirements.—
  232         (1)Beginning in 2019 and annually thereafter, the agency
  233  shall submit to the Governor, the Chief Justice of the Supreme
  234  Court, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House
  235  of Representatives by March 1 a comprehensive report on its
  236  efforts to implement this act. The report must include all of
  237  the following:
  238         (a)The percentage and number of supervised individuals
  239  being supervised in accordance with evidence-based practices.
  240         (b)The amount of state funds expended for programs that
  241  are evidence-based.
  242         (c)A list of all programs, including an identification of
  243  all programs that are evidence-based.
  244         (d)An identification of all supervision policies,
  245  procedures, programs, and practices that were eliminated.
  246         (e)The results of victim satisfaction surveys administered
  247  under s. 948.953.
  248         (f)The agency’s recommendations for resource allocation,
  249  and any additional collaboration with other state, regional, or
  250  local public agencies, private entities, or faith-based or
  251  community organizations.
  252         (2)The agency shall make the full report required under
  253  subsection (1) and an executive summary of that report available
  254  to the general public on its website.
  255         Section 8. Section 948.957, Florida Statutes, is created to
  256  read:
  257         948.957 Rulemaking authority.—The Department of Corrections
  258  may adopt rules to implement ss. 948.95-948.956.
  259         Section 9. This act shall take effect October 1, 2018.

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