Senate Bill 2390c2

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2390

    By the Committees on Fiscal Policy, Criminal Justice and
    Senator Thomas




    309-2195-00

  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         Department of Corrections to establish and

  7         operate a geriatric facility for elderly

  8         offenders at the current River Junction

  9         Correctional Institution site; requiring the

10         department to develop rules specifying

11         eligibility for the facility; requiring a

12         study; creating s. 944.8041, F.S.; requiring

13         annual review and reports by the Florida

14         Corrections Commission and the Correctional

15         Medical Authority on the status and treatment

16         of elderly offenders; amending ss. 120.81,

17         413.051, 414.40, F.S.; correcting

18         cross-references; providing an effective date.

19

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

21

22         Section 1.  Section 944.02, Florida Statutes, is

23  amended to read:

24         944.02  Definitions.--The following words and phrases

25  used in this chapter shall, unless the context clearly

26  indicates otherwise, have the following meanings:

27         (1)(3)  "Commission" means the Parole Commission.

28         (2)(1)  "Correctional system" means all prisons and

29  other state correctional institutions now existing or

30  hereafter created under the jurisdiction of the Department of

31  Corrections.

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2390
    309-2195-00




  1         (3)(2)  "Department" means the Department of

  2  Corrections.

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

  4  older in a state correctional institution or facility operated

  5  by the Department of Corrections or the Correctional

  6  Privatization Commission.

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

  8  sales contract which requires regular payments with an

  9  interest charge included and which provides that the lessee

10  receive title to the property upon final payment.

11         (6)(5)  "Prisoner" means any person who is under arrest

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

13  any person convicted and sentenced by any court and committed

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

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

16  provided by law.

17         (7)(4)  "Secretary" means the Secretary of Corrections.

18         (8)(6)  "State correctional institution" means any

19  prison, road camp, prison industry, prison forestry camp, or

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

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

22  or maintained, under the custody and jurisdiction of the

23  department.

24         Section 2.  Section 944.804, Florida Statutes, is

25  created to read:

26         944.804  Elderly offenders correctional facilities

27  program of 2000.--

28         (1)  The Legislature finds that the number and

29  percentage of elderly offenders in the Florida prison system

30  is increasing and will continue to increase for the forseeable

31  future. The current cost to incarcerate elderly offenders is

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2390
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  1  approximately three times the cost of incarceration of younger

  2  inmates. Alternatives to the current approaches to housing,

  3  programming, and treating the medical needs of elderly

  4  offenders, which may reduce the overall costs associated with

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

  6  implemented.

  7         (2)  The department shall establish and operate a

  8  geriatric facility at the site known as River Junction

  9  Correctional Institution, which shall be an institution

10  specifically for generally healthy elderly offenders who can

11  perform general work appropriate for their physical and mental

12  condition.  Prior to reopening the facility, the department

13  shall make modifications to the facility which will ensure its

14  compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and

15  decrease the likelihood of falls, accidental injury, and other

16  conditions known to be particularly hazardous to the elderly.

17         (a)  In order to decrease long-term medical costs to

18  the state, a preventive fitness/wellness program and diet

19  specifically designed to maintain the mental and physical

20  health of elderly offenders shall be developed and

21  implemented.  In developing the program, the department shall

22  give consideration to preventive medical care for the elderly

23  which shall include, but not be limited to, maintenance of

24  bone density, all aspects of cardiovascular health, lung

25  capacity, mental alertness, and orientation.  Existing

26  policies and procedures shall be reexamined and altered to

27  encourage offenders to adopt a more healthy lifestyle and

28  maximize their level of functioning. The program components

29  shall be modified as data and experience are received which

30  measure the relative success of the program components

31  previously implemented.

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2390
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  1         (b)  Consideration must be given to redirecting

  2  resources as a method of offsetting increased medical costs.

  3  Elderly offenders are not likely to reenter society as a part

  4  of the workforce, and programming resources would be better

  5  spent in activities to keep the elderly offenders healthy,

  6  alert, and oriented.  Limited or restricted programming or

  7  activities for elderly offenders will increase the daily cost

  8  of institutional and health care; and programming

  9  opportunities adequate to reduce the cost of care will be

10  provided.  Programming shall include, but not be limited to,

11  recreation, education, and counseling which is needs-specific

12  to elderly offenders.  Institutional staff shall be

13  specifically trained to effectively supervise elderly

14  offenders and to detect physical or mental changes which

15  warrant medical attention before more serious problems

16  develop.

17         (3)  The department shall adopt rules that specify

18  which elderly offenders shall be eligible to be housed at

19  River Junction Correctional Institution.

20         (4)  While developing the criteria for eligibility, the

21  department shall use the information in existing offender

22  databases to determine the number of offenders who would be

23  eligible. The Legislature directs the department to consider a

24  broad range of elderly offenders for River Junction

25  Correctional Institution who have good disciplinary records

26  and a medical grade that will permit them to perform

27  meaningful work activities, including participation in an

28  appropriate correctional-work-program (PRIDE) facility, if

29  available.

30         (5)  The department shall also submit a study based on

31  existing offenders which projects the number of existing

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2390
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  1  offenders who will qualify under the rules. An appendix to the

  2  study shall identify the specific offenders who qualify.

  3         Section 3.  Section 944.8041, Florida Statutes, is

  4  created to read:

  5         944.8041  Elderly offenders; annual review.--For the

  6  purpose of providing information to the Legislature on elderly

  7  offenders within the correctional system, the Florida

  8  Corrections Commission and the Correctional Medical Authority

  9  shall each submit annually a report on the status and

10  treatment of elderly offenders in the state-administered and

11  private state correctional systems, as well as such

12  information on the River Junction Correctional Institution.

13  In order to adequately prepare the reports, the Department of

14  Corrections and the Correctional Privatization Commission

15  shall grant access to the Florida Corrections Commission and

16  the Correctional Medical Authority which includes access to

17  the facilities, offenders, and any information the agencies

18  require to complete their reports.  The review shall also

19  include an examination of promising geriatric policies,

20  practices, and programs currently implemented in other

21  correctional systems within the United States.  The reports,

22  with specific findings and recommendations for implementation,

23  shall be submitted to the President of the Senate and the

24  Speaker of the House of Representatives on or before December

25  31 of each year.

26         Section 4.  Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (3) of

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

28         120.81  Exceptions and special requirements; general

29  areas.--

30         (3)  PRISONERS AND PAROLEES.--

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2390
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  1         (a)  Notwithstanding s. 120.52(12), prisoners, as

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

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

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

  5  agency action. Prisoners are not eligible to seek an

  6  administrative determination of an agency statement under s.

  7  120.56(4). Parolees shall not be considered parties for

  8  purposes of agency action or judicial review when the

  9  proceedings relate to the rescission or revocation of parole.

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

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

12  Corrections to an opportunity to present evidence and argument

13  on issues under consideration by submission of written

14  statements concerning intended action on any department rule.

15         Section 5.  Paragraph (d) of subsection (2) of section

16  413.051, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

17         413.051  Eligible blind persons; operation of vending

18  stands.--

19         (2)  As used in this section:

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

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

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

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

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

25         Section 6.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section

26  414.40, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

27         414.40  Stop Inmate Fraud Program established;

28  guidelines.--

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

30  implement the Stop Inmate Fraud Program in accordance with the

31  following guidelines:

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2390
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  1         (a)  The program shall establish procedures for sharing

  2  public records not exempt from the public records law among

  3  social services agencies regarding the identities of persons

  4  incarcerated in state correctional institutions, as defined in

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

  6  other detention facilities of local governments under chapter

  7  950 or chapter 951 who are wrongfully receiving public

  8  assistance benefits or entitlement benefits.

  9         Section 7.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

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11          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
12                            CS/SB 2390

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14  Deletes requirements that occupancy of the geriatric facility
    at River Junction Correctional Institution be targeted to 100
15  percent of capacity.

16  Deletes expression of intent of the Legislature concerning the
    adoption of rules by the Department of Corrections.
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