Florida Senate - 2014                                    SB 1638
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Criminal Justice
       
       
       
       
       
       591-02091-14                                          20141638__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to community reentry programs;
    3         requiring the Department of Corrections to develop an
    4         operational plan to implement a vocational work
    5         release pilot program in specified counties; requiring
    6         that the operational plan describe the necessary
    7         facilities, staff, budget, and methods for selecting
    8         inmates to participate in the pilot program; providing
    9         examples of vocational training or certification;
   10         requiring inmates to be within a specified time period
   11         of their release dates to be considered for
   12         participation in the pilot program; providing criteria
   13         to assess the risk of placing an inmate in the pilot
   14         program; requiring that the department submit a report
   15         to the Governor and the Legislature by a specified
   16         date; providing an effective date.
   17          
   18  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   19  
   20         Section 1. Vocational work-release pilot program.—
   21         (1) The Department of Corrections shall develop an
   22  operational plan to implement a vocational work-release pilot
   23  program for the 2015-2016 fiscal year in Santa Rosa, Escambia,
   24  Walton, and Okaloosa Counties. At a minimum, the operational
   25  plan for the pilot program must describe and document:
   26         (a) The resources needed for the program, including, but
   27  not limited to, specific buildings, grounds, and property that
   28  must be obtained for or redesignated as vocational work-release
   29  facilities.
   30         (b) The placement of facilities and services in specific
   31  areas to maximize the opportunity for participating inmates to
   32  benefit from being located near where they plan to live after
   33  completion of their sentences.
   34         (c) The additional staff or changes to staff qualifications
   35  necessary to operate the program.
   36         (d) The types of contracts the program intends to use for
   37  private providers that desire to provide on-the-job vocational
   38  training to eligible inmates.
   39         (e) The security staffing plan.
   40         (f) The programming plan.
   41         (g) The proposed budget.
   42         (h) The process and method for selecting an inmate to
   43  participate in the program, including any initial screening
   44  process, the criteria used in the risk assessment, and any
   45  prioritization of placement.
   46         (i) The changes in law which are necessary to implement the
   47  program.
   48         (2) The pilot program shall be designed to provide
   49  residential care, custody, control, and on-the-job vocational
   50  training or certification to eligible inmates. For purposes of
   51  the program, vocational training or certification include, but
   52  are not limited to, housing assistance, money management
   53  training, employment assistance, vocational education, life
   54  skills training, and substance abuse education or treatment.
   55         (3) All inmates who are considered for participation in the
   56  program must be within 36 months of their release dates. The
   57  selection must be based upon a risk assessment process that
   58  includes, but is not limited to, whether:
   59         (a) The inmate has potential for rehabilitation and has the
   60  need for on-the-job vocational training.
   61         (b) The inmate can be placed in the geographic area where
   62  he or she is from, or has family or identified friends, and
   63  intends to reside in the area upon release from custody.
   64         (4) The pilot program may include an existing community
   65  work-release program established pursuant to s. 945.091, Florida
   66  Statutes, as a service provider, but the existing program must
   67  provide enhanced reentry services to participating inmates,
   68  including, but not limited to, housing assistance, money
   69  management training, employment assistance, vocational
   70  education, life skills training, and substance abuse education
   71  or treatment.
   72         Section 2. The Department of Corrections shall submit a
   73  status report related to the vocational work-release pilot
   74  program authorized by this act by February 15, 2015, to the
   75  Executive Office of the Governor, the President of the Senate,
   76  and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The report must
   77  document the projected number of inmates to be served by the
   78  pilot program in the 2015-2016 fiscal year and the funding
   79  needed to implement the operational plan.
   80         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.