Florida Senate - 2011                                     SB 554
       
       
       
       By Senator Fasano
       
       
       
       
       11-00381A-11                                           2011554__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to community-based juvenile justice;
    3         creating s. 985.665, F.S.; providing legislative
    4         intent; defining the term “regional coordinating
    5         agency”; providing requirements for a regional
    6         coordinating agency; providing for the Department of
    7         Juvenile Justice to contract with regional
    8         coordinating agencies for specified services relating
    9         to juvenile justice; providing for annual measurement
   10         and reporting concerning the outcomes and
   11         effectiveness of community-based juvenile justice
   12         services; requiring regional coordinating agencies to
   13         comply with specified requirements; providing for
   14         liability of regional coordinating agencies and
   15         contracted providers with respect to the treatment of
   16         juvenile offenders; providing for governance of
   17         regional coordinating agencies; providing for 2-year
   18         pilot programs in specified judicial circuits;
   19         requiring reports; providing an effective date.
   20  
   21         WHEREAS, 94 percent of Florida youth grow up to be
   22  productive citizens, but the 6 percent of Florida youth that
   23  become delinquent cost the state of Florida an average of $5,200
   24  per child annually according to 2008 statistics, and
   25         WHEREAS, according to national studies, 27 percent of
   26  abused or neglected children become delinquent, and
   27         WHEREAS, one of the most effective ways to reduce
   28  delinquency is to prevent child abuse, abandonment, and neglect,
   29  and
   30         WHEREAS, Florida’s juvenile commitment programs have a 39
   31  percent recidivism rate within 1 year, and
   32         WHEREAS, the Department of Juvenile Justice shows that 59
   33  percent of the juveniles being rearrested offend within 120 days
   34  after being released, revealing a critical transition period
   35  currently not being addressed, and
   36         WHEREAS, the State of Washington undertook a study that
   37  demonstrated that a significant level of future prison
   38  construction can be avoided, taxpayer dollars can be saved, and
   39  crime rates can be reduced by a portfolio of evidence-based
   40  youth service options, and
   41         WHEREAS, it has been proven that at-risk youth benefit from
   42  a comprehensive approach through coordination of intensive
   43  prevention, diversion, and family services, and
   44         WHEREAS, local management fosters all these approaches,
   45  ensures stronger relationships between providers and the family,
   46  and allows providers to assist in strengthening relationships
   47  between the child and the family, and
   48         WHEREAS, instead of competing for funding, prevention,
   49  diversion, and juvenile justice services should cooperate with
   50  the goal of keeping youth out of juvenile detention, NOW,
   51  THEREFORE,
   52  
   53  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   54  
   55         Section 1. Section 985.665, Florida Statutes, is created to
   56  read:
   57         985.665 Community-based juvenile justice.—
   58         (1)(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to direct the
   59  department to contract with competent community-based agencies
   60  to coordinate and manage juvenile justice and related services.
   61  By implementing community-based juvenile justice, the community
   62  based regional coordinating agency will provide flexibility to
   63  assess needs, apportion the funds allocated to the department
   64  for this purpose, and build the appropriate continuum of care
   65  resulting in more local ownership of juvenile justice problems
   66  and better service outcomes. The community-based juvenile
   67  justice model is designed to treat most of the juveniles in
   68  services that are located and managed in their home communities
   69  and that will promote greater family involvement and engagement,
   70  promote better system and service coordination, and achieve more
   71  significant economic and operational efficiencies. These
   72  services may include intervention, prevention, assessment
   73  centers, diversion programs, civil citation, home detention,
   74  alternatives to detention, community-based services, probation,
   75  day treatment, independent living, evidence-based programs,
   76  residential programming, and detention.
   77         (b) As used in this section, the term “regional
   78  coordinating agency” means a single nonprofit or county
   79  government agency with which the department shall contract for
   80  the provision of juvenile justice services in a community that
   81  consists of at least one entire county.
   82         (c) The requirements for a regional coordinating agency
   83  include, but are not limited to:
   84         1. The organizational infrastructure and financial capacity
   85  to coordinate, integrate, and manage all juvenile justice
   86  services in the designated community in cooperation with law
   87  enforcement and the judiciary.
   88         2. The ability to ensure continuity of care from entry to
   89  exit for all juveniles referred to the agency by law enforcement
   90  agencies, the court system, and other referral sources.
   91         3. The ability to contract with providers to create a local
   92  network of juvenile justice services.
   93         4. The willingness to accept accountability for meeting the
   94  outcomes and performance standards related to juvenile justice
   95  established by the Legislature and the Federal Government.
   96         5. The capability and willingness to serve all juveniles
   97  referred to the agency by law enforcement agencies and the court
   98  system with funding from the department.
   99         6. The willingness to ensure that each individual who
  100  provides juvenile justice services has successfully completed
  101  the training required by the department as of July 1, 2011.
  102         (2) The department shall contract with the regional
  103  coordinating agency for the delivery, administration, and
  104  management of services, including the services specified in
  105  subsection (1) relating to juvenile justice, and other related
  106  services or programs, as appropriate. The department shall
  107  retain responsibility for the quality of contracted services and
  108  programs and shall ensure that services are delivered in
  109  accordance with applicable federal and state statutes and
  110  regulations.
  111         (3)(a) The department, in partnership with an objective,
  112  competent entity, shall establish a quality assurance program
  113  for community-based juvenile justice. The quality assurance
  114  program must include national standards for each specific
  115  component of these services. The department, in consultation
  116  with the regional coordinating agencies that are undertaking
  117  community-based juvenile justice, shall establish minimum
  118  thresholds for each component of service. Each regional
  119  coordinating agency must be evaluated annually by the department
  120  or by an objective, competent entity designated by the
  121  department under the provisions of the quality assurance
  122  program.
  123         (b) The department shall establish and operate a
  124  comprehensive system to measure and report annually the outcomes
  125  and effectiveness of the services that are part of the regional
  126  coordinating agencies’ community-based juvenile justice service
  127  programs. The department shall use these findings in making
  128  recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature for future
  129  program and funding priorities in the juvenile justice system.
  130         (4) The regional coordinating agency must comply with
  131  statutory requirements and agency regulations in the provision
  132  of contractual services. Each regional coordinating agency must
  133  contract with providers meeting the current department standards
  134  under this chapter. The department, in order to eliminate or
  135  reduce the number of duplicate inspections by various program
  136  offices, shall coordinate inspections required pursuant to
  137  approval of agencies under this section.
  138         (5) With respect to the treatment of juvenile offenders
  139  under this section, regional coordinating agencies and
  140  contracted providers shall be treated as the state and its
  141  agencies and subdivisions for liability purposes under s.
  142  768.28.
  143         (6) The operations of a regional coordinating agency shall
  144  be governed by a local board of directors, of which 75 percent
  145  of the membership shall be comprised of persons residing within
  146  the service area of the regional coordinating agency.
  147         (7) Beginning in the 2011-2012 fiscal year, the department
  148  shall establish a minimum of three pilot sites to operate for 2
  149  years each. These pilot sites must be established in judicial
  150  circuits 2, 6, and 11. Regional coordinating agencies may be
  151  selected from a single source pursuant to s. 287.057(3)(c) and
  152  must be established organizations within the circuit. The
  153  department shall select the regional coordinating agencies for
  154  each of the pilot sites by December 1, 2011. Contracts with
  155  organizations responsible for the pilots shall include the
  156  management and administration of all juvenile justice services
  157  specified in subsection (1). The department shall transfer all
  158  administrative and operational funding associated with these
  159  services to the regional coordinating agency, less those funds
  160  necessary to provide and coordinate management of quality
  161  assurance and oversight. Each regional coordinating agency that
  162  participates in the pilot effort or any future community-based
  163  juvenile justice effort as described in this section must
  164  thoroughly analyze and report the complete direct and indirect
  165  costs of delivering these services through the department and
  166  the full cost of community-based juvenile justice, including the
  167  cost of monitoring and evaluating the contracted services. No
  168  later than January 31 of each year, beginning in 2013, the
  169  department shall submit the evaluation regarding quality
  170  performance, outcome measure attainment, and cost efficiency, as
  171  provided in paragraph (3)(b), for each pilot program in
  172  operation during the preceding fiscal year, to the President of
  173  the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
  174  minority leaders of the Senate and the House of Representatives,
  175  and the Governor.
  176         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.