Florida Senate - 2025 CS for CS for SB 1140
By the Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice;
the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senator Gruters
604-03475-25 20251140c2
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to a criminal offender substance abuse
3 pilot program; creating s. 948.22, F.S.; creating a
4 substance abuse accountability pilot program in a
5 specified county; providing for eligibility for the
6 program; specifying that eligible participants shall
7 be advised of the program before entering a plea;
8 providing for design and implementation of the
9 program; specifying how long a person may participate
10 in the program; providing that participants are
11 entitled to an attorney at any court hearing related
12 to the program; providing requirements for the
13 program; authorizing a court to terminate probation
14 and participation in the program or place a person on
15 administrative probation under specified circumstances
16 related to the program; specifying personnel
17 requirements; authorizing subgrants for personnel
18 needs; specifying that program participation does not
19 supersede ignition interlock requirements; requiring
20 program evaluation by a specified date; requiring a
21 report to certain officials by a specified date;
22 providing for repeal of provisions; providing an
23 appropriation; providing an effective date.
24
25 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
26
27 Section 1. Section 948.22, Florida Statutes, is created to
28 read:
29 948.22 Substance Abuse Accountability Pilot Program.—
30 (1) A Substance Abuse Accountability Pilot Program is
31 established in Hillsborough County from October 1, 2025, through
32 September 30, 2027.
33 (2)(a) Among persons convicted of a felony or first-degree
34 misdemeanor and who are placed on probation, for which
35 abstention from alcohol or controlled substances is a condition
36 of compliance, a court shall designate a subset identified as
37 eligible for the program. Among this eligible pool, individuals
38 will be randomly assigned to participate in the program. All
39 persons deemed eligible shall have the same probability of
40 assignment to the program and shall participate in the program
41 if assigned. No more than 150 offenders may participate in the
42 program at any one time.
43 (b) Prior to entering any plea agreement that includes a
44 term of probation and any condition of compliance that would
45 make a person eligible for the program, the person must be
46 explicitly advised that he or she may be randomly assigned to
47 participate in the program. All terms and conditions of the
48 program shall be explained to the person, and the person shall
49 acknowledge in writing that he or she understands such terms and
50 conditions and is entering a plea freely and voluntarily.
51 (3) The sheriff of the participating county, in
52 consultation with the chief judge of the judicial circuit, the
53 state attorney, and the Department of Corrections, shall design
54 and implement the program. The sheriff may contract with a third
55 party to assist with program design and implementation. However,
56 the program established under this section must include all of
57 the following elements:
58 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the sheriff shall manage
59 the supervision of all participants during their participation
60 in the program. Upon discharge from the program, the
61 participants shall be managed in accordance with current law for
62 any remaining term of supervision.
63 (b) Participants shall attend an in-person judicial hearing
64 at which a judge shall explain to the participants all program
65 conditions and sanctions for noncompliance. Except as provided
66 in paragraph (k), a participant’s term of participation in the
67 program shall be for the same length as the term of probation
68 for which he or she was sentenced, but may not exceed the
69 expiration of the program. Participants are entitled to an
70 attorney at any court hearing related to the program. A court
71 shall appoint a public defender for a participant who is
72 eligible to be represented by a public defender under s. 27.51.
73 (c) A participant who is ordered to abstain from alcohol
74 shall be tested twice per day by mobile breath alcohol testing.
75 Testing shall be completed in person at the participating county
76 sheriff’s office or an alternate location designated by the
77 sheriff’s office, approximately 12 hours apart. However, if a
78 court determines that in-person testing is unreasonably
79 burdensome to a participant, the participant may instead be
80 ordered to wear a continuous monitoring device capable of
81 detecting and signaling the presence of alcohol.
82 (d) A participant who is ordered to abstain from controlled
83 substances shall be tested randomly, at least twice every 7
84 days, with no fewer than 60 hours between tests. Testing shall
85 be completed in person at the participating county sheriff’s
86 office or an alternate location designated by the sheriff’s
87 office, by a method determined by the sheriff.
88 (e) A missed test, failed test, or alert by a continuous
89 monitoring device of a positive test result shall be probable
90 cause that a participant has committed a violation of the
91 program. However, the presence of a federally approved
92 medication lawfully prescribed to a participant for the
93 treatment of a substance use disorder shall not constitute a
94 failed test or positive test result for purposes of establishing
95 probable cause under this paragraph.
96 (f) If there is probable cause that a participant has
97 committed a violation of the program, the participant shall be
98 arrested at the earliest opportunity and held in county jail
99 until an appearance before a judge which must occur no later
100 than 24 hours after the participant’s arrest.
101 (g) Upon a judicial finding that a participant has
102 committed a violation of the program, the participant shall be
103 ordered to serve 24 hours in county jail, with credit for time
104 served between his or her arrest and the judicial finding of a
105 violation. The court may not waive or modify any penalties
106 required under this paragraph.
107 (h) A participant who is arrested and held in custody under
108 this section whose alleged violation is not adjudicated within
109 24 hours of his or her arrest must be released at the earliest
110 possible opportunity. Release of a participant under this
111 paragraph does not end the offender’s participation in the
112 program.
113 (i) A court may reduce the frequency of testing for alcohol
114 consumption to once per day for a participant who has zero
115 adjudicated program violations for 60 consecutive days.
116 (j) A court may reduce the frequency of testing for
117 controlled substances to once per week for a participant who has
118 zero adjudicated program violations for 6 consecutive months.
119 (k) Upon successful completion of half the term of
120 participation, the court may place the person on administrative
121 probation pursuant to s. 948.013 for the remainder of the term
122 of supervision, or may terminate the person’s probation and
123 participation in the program.
124 (l) Upon five adjudicated violations of program conditions,
125 a court may discharge the participant from the program and
126 sentence the offender as authorized by law. Nothing in this
127 paragraph shall preclude a court from modifying the conditions
128 of a participant’s supervision, including revocation of
129 supervision, upon any other violation of supervision conditions.
130 (m) Participants shall pay all fees associated with
131 participation in the program. However, a court may reduce or
132 eliminate program fees for a participant who has been declared
133 indigent.
134 (4) The program established under this section shall
135 include a program coordinator, whose duties shall include
136 identifying and hiring personnel to ensure efficient
137 administration of the program. The sheriff of the participating
138 county may make subgrants to any appropriate agency for hiring
139 personnel under this subsection.
140 (5) A court may not order participation in the program in
141 lieu of mandatory placement of an ignition interlock device as
142 described in s. 316.193.
143 (6) By June 30, 2028, the Attorney General shall complete
144 an evaluation of the program’s effectiveness. The Attorney
145 General shall determine the metrics to be evaluated and may
146 contract with a third party to conduct any program evaluations.
147 (7) A report on the pilot program, which must include the
148 number of program participants, the number of program
149 violations, and the number of successful program completions,
150 shall be delivered to the Governor, the President of the Senate,
151 and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by November 30,
152 2028.
153 (8) This section is repealed November 30, 2028.
154 Section 2. For the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the nonrecurring
155 sum of $2.5 million to the sheriff in Hillsborough County shall
156 be appropriated from the Opioid Settlement Trust Fund. Funds
157 appropriated under this section may be used for any expenses
158 related to establishing and administering the program through
159 September 30, 2027, including personnel, equipment, training and
160 technical assistance, payments for jail space, data collection,
161 program evaluations, and program fees for indigent participants.
162 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.