Florida Senate - 2025                       CS for CS for SB 168
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Appropriations; and Criminal Justice; and
       Senators Bradley and Garcia
       
       
       
       
       576-03230-25                                           2025168c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to mental health; providing a short
    3         title; amending s. 394.658, F.S.; expanding the
    4         programs and diversion initiatives supported by
    5         implementation or expansion grants to include training
    6         for 911 public safety telecommunicators and emergency
    7         medical technicians for certain purposes and to
    8         include veterans treatment court programs; exempting
    9         certain fiscally constrained counties from local match
   10         requirements for specified grants; amending s.
   11         916.105, F.S.; providing legislative intent; creating
   12         s. 916.135, F.S.; defining terms; encouraging
   13         communities to apply for specified grants to establish
   14         misdemeanor or ordinance violation mental health
   15         diversion programs; providing a model process for such
   16         mental health diversion programs; requiring adherence
   17         to specified provisions to the extent of available
   18         resources; authorizing specified entities to
   19         collaborate to establish certain policies and
   20         procedures and to develop a certain consent form;
   21         providing consent form requirements; requiring
   22         defendants to sign the consent form to participate in
   23         the diversion program; authorizing the screening of
   24         certain defendants and prompt evaluation for
   25         involuntary examination under certain circumstances;
   26         specifying procedures if the evaluation demonstrates
   27         that the defendant meets the criteria for involuntary
   28         examination; authorizing a court to consider releasing
   29         a defendant on his or her own recognizance under
   30         certain circumstances; requiring a court to order that
   31         a defendant be assessed for outpatient treatment under
   32         certain circumstances; authorizing the state attorney,
   33         the defense attorney, or the court to, at any stage of
   34         the criminal proceedings, request that such a
   35         defendant be screened pursuant to certain provisions;
   36         authorizing defendants out of custody to be evaluated
   37         pursuant to certain provisions; requiring the state
   38         attorney to consider dismissal of the charges upon a
   39         defendant’s successful completion of all treatment
   40         recommendations from a mental health assessment;
   41         authorizing the court to exhaust therapeutic
   42         interventions aimed at improving compliance before a
   43         defendant is returned to jail; creating s. 916.136,
   44         F.S.; defining terms; encouraging communities to apply
   45         for specified grants to establish pretrial felony
   46         mental health diversion programs; providing a model
   47         process for such mental health diversion programs;
   48         authorizing specified entities to collaborate to
   49         establish certain policies and procedures and to
   50         develop a certain consent form; providing consent form
   51         requirements; requiring defendants to sign the consent
   52         form to participate in the diversion program;
   53         specifying criteria under which a defendant may be
   54         eligible for the mental health diversion program;
   55         specifying that the state attorney has the sole
   56         discretion to determine a defendant’s pretrial felony
   57         mental health diversion eligibility; authorizing the
   58         state attorney to recommend that certain defendants be
   59         screened and offered pretrial felony mental health
   60         diversion; requiring defendants to sign the consent
   61         form to participate in the diversion program;
   62         requiring that a defendant be assessed for outpatient
   63         treatment upon his or her agreeing to participate in
   64         the mental health diversion program; requiring the
   65         state attorney to consider dismissal of the charges
   66         upon a defendant’s successful completion of all
   67         treatment recommendations from a mental health
   68         assessment; authorizing the state attorney to revoke
   69         the defendant’s participation in such mental health
   70         diversion program under specified circumstances;
   71         amending s. 916.185, F.S.; expanding eligibility for
   72         the Forensic Hospital Diversion Pilot Program to
   73         include Hillsborough County; creating s. 945.093,
   74         F.S.; requiring the Department of Corrections to
   75         evaluate the physical and mental health of each inmate
   76         eligible for work assignments and correctional work
   77         programs; requiring the department to document
   78         eligibility before the inmate receives orders for an
   79         assignment or program; creating s. 948.0395, F.S.;
   80         requiring mental health evaluations and the following
   81         of all recommendations as conditions of probation for
   82         specified defendants; amending s. 1004.649, F.S.;
   83         specifying that the Northwest Regional Data Center is
   84         responsible for creating, operating, and managing,
   85         including the research conducted by, the Florida
   86         Behavioral Health Care Data Repository; specifying the
   87         purposes of the data repository; requiring the
   88         Northwest Regional Data Center to develop a specified
   89         plan; requiring the Northwest Regional Data Center to
   90         submit, by a specified date, a certain developed plan
   91         to the Governor and the Legislature; requiring the
   92         Florida Behavioral Health Care Data Repository to
   93         submit, by a specified date and annually thereafter, a
   94         specified report to the Governor and the Legislature;
   95         providing an appropriation; providing an effective
   96         date.
   97          
   98  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   99  
  100         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Tristin Murphy
  101  Act.
  102         Section 2. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 394.658,
  103  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  104         394.658 Criminal Justice, Mental Health, and Substance
  105  Abuse Reinvestment Grant Program requirements.—
  106         (1) The Criminal Justice, Mental Health, and Substance
  107  Abuse Statewide Grant Review Committee, in collaboration with
  108  the Department of Children and Families, the Department of
  109  Corrections, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department
  110  of Elderly Affairs, and the Office of the State Courts
  111  Administrator, shall establish criteria to be used to review
  112  submitted applications and to select the county that will be
  113  awarded a 1-year planning grant or a 3-year implementation or
  114  expansion grant. A planning, implementation, or expansion grant
  115  may not be awarded unless the application of the county meets
  116  the established criteria.
  117         (a) The application criteria for a 1-year planning grant
  118  must include a requirement that the applicant county or counties
  119  have a strategic plan to initiate systemic change to identify
  120  and treat individuals who have a mental illness, substance abuse
  121  disorder, or co-occurring mental health and substance abuse
  122  disorders who are in, or at risk of entering, the criminal or
  123  juvenile justice systems. The 1-year planning grant must be used
  124  to develop effective collaboration efforts among participants in
  125  affected governmental agencies, including the criminal,
  126  juvenile, and civil justice systems, mental health and substance
  127  abuse treatment service providers, transportation programs, and
  128  housing assistance programs. The collaboration efforts shall be
  129  the basis for developing a problem-solving model and strategic
  130  plan for treating adults and juveniles who are in, or at risk of
  131  entering, the criminal or juvenile justice system and doing so
  132  at the earliest point of contact, taking into consideration
  133  public safety. The planning grant shall include strategies to
  134  divert individuals from judicial commitment to community-based
  135  service programs offered by the Department of Children and
  136  Families in accordance with ss. 916.13 and 916.17.
  137         (b) The application criteria for a 3-year implementation or
  138  expansion grant shall require information from a county that
  139  demonstrates its completion of a well-established collaboration
  140  plan that includes public-private partnership models and the
  141  application of evidence-based practices. The implementation or
  142  expansion grants may support programs and diversion initiatives
  143  that include, but need not be limited to:
  144         1. Mental health courts.
  145         2. Diversion programs.
  146         3. Alternative prosecution and sentencing programs.
  147         4. Crisis intervention teams.
  148         5. Treatment accountability services.
  149         6. Specialized training for criminal justice, juvenile
  150  justice, and treatment services professionals.
  151         7. Specialized training for 911 public safety
  152  telecommunicators as defined in s. 401.465 and emergency medical
  153  technicians as defined in s. 112.1911 to assist in determining
  154  which response team is most appropriate under the circumstances.
  155  A response team may include, but is not limited to, a law
  156  enforcement agency, an emergency medical response team, a crisis
  157  intervention team, or a mobile crisis response service as
  158  defined in s. 394.455. Each affected agency must consider what
  159  resources are available in the community.
  160         8. Service delivery of collateral services such as housing,
  161  transitional housing, and supported employment.
  162         9.8. Reentry services to create or expand mental health and
  163  substance abuse services and supports for affected persons.
  164         10.9. Coordinated specialty care programs.
  165         11.Veterans treatment court programs.
  166         (c) Each county application must include the following
  167  information:
  168         1. An analysis of the current population of the jail and
  169  juvenile detention center in the county, which includes:
  170         a. The screening and assessment process that the county
  171  uses to identify an adult or juvenile who has a mental illness,
  172  substance abuse disorder, or co-occurring mental health and
  173  substance abuse disorders;
  174         b. The percentage of each category of persons admitted to
  175  the jail and juvenile detention center that represents people
  176  who have a mental illness, substance abuse disorder, or co
  177  occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders; and
  178         c. An analysis of observed contributing factors that affect
  179  population trends in the county jail and juvenile detention
  180  center.
  181         2. A description of the strategies the county intends to
  182  use to serve one or more clearly defined subsets of the
  183  population of the jail and juvenile detention center who have a
  184  mental illness or to serve those at risk of arrest and
  185  incarceration. The proposed strategies may include identifying
  186  the population designated to receive the new interventions, a
  187  description of the services and supervision methods to be
  188  applied to that population, and the goals and measurable
  189  objectives of the new interventions. The interventions a county
  190  may use with the target population may include, but are not
  191  limited to:
  192         a. Specialized responses by emergency medical response
  193  teams, crisis intervention teams, mobile crisis response
  194  services, and law enforcement agencies;
  195         b. Centralized receiving facilities for individuals
  196  evidencing behavioral difficulties;
  197         c. Postbooking alternatives to incarceration;
  198         d. New court programs, including pretrial services and
  199  specialized dockets;
  200         e. Specialized diversion programs;
  201         f. Intensified transition services that are directed to the
  202  designated populations while they are in jail or juvenile
  203  detention to facilitate their transition to the community;
  204         g. Specialized probation processes;
  205         h. Day-reporting centers;
  206         i. Linkages to community-based, evidence-based treatment
  207  programs for adults and juveniles who have mental illness or
  208  substance abuse disorders; and
  209         j. Community services and programs designed to prevent
  210  high-risk populations from becoming involved in the criminal or
  211  juvenile justice system.
  212         3. The projected effect the proposed initiatives will have
  213  on the population and the budget of the jail and juvenile
  214  detention center. The information must include:
  215         a. The county’s estimate of how the initiative will reduce
  216  the expenditures associated with the incarceration of adults and
  217  the detention of juveniles who have a mental illness;
  218         b. The methodology that the county intends to use to
  219  measure the defined outcomes and the corresponding savings or
  220  averted costs;
  221         c. The county’s estimate of how the cost savings or averted
  222  costs will sustain or expand the mental health and substance
  223  abuse treatment services and supports needed in the community;
  224  and
  225         d. How the county’s proposed initiative will reduce the
  226  number of individuals judicially committed to a state mental
  227  health treatment facility.
  228         4. The proposed strategies that the county intends to use
  229  to preserve and enhance its community mental health and
  230  substance abuse system, which serves as the local behavioral
  231  health safety net for low-income and uninsured individuals.
  232         5. The proposed strategies that the county intends to use
  233  to continue the implemented or expanded programs and initiatives
  234  that have resulted from the grant funding.
  235         (2)(a) As used in this subsection, the term “available
  236  resources” includes in-kind contributions from participating
  237  counties.
  238         (b) A 1-year planning grant may not be awarded unless the
  239  applicant county makes available resources in an amount equal to
  240  the total amount of the grant, except fiscally constrained
  241  counties that are awarded reinvestment grants to establish
  242  programs pursuant to this section may not be required to provide
  243  local matching funds. A planning grant may not be used to
  244  supplant funding for existing programs. For fiscally constrained
  245  counties, the available resources may be at 50 percent of the
  246  total amount of the grant.
  247         (c) A 3-year implementation or expansion grant may not be
  248  awarded unless the applicant county or consortium of counties
  249  makes available resources equal to the total amount of the
  250  grant. For fiscally constrained counties, the available
  251  resources may be at 50 percent of the total amount of the grant,
  252  except fiscally constrained counties that are awarded
  253  reinvestment grants to establish programs pursuant to this
  254  section may not be required to provide local matching funds.
  255  This match shall be used for expansion of services and may not
  256  supplant existing funds for services. An implementation or
  257  expansion grant must support the implementation of new services
  258  or the expansion of services and may not be used to supplant
  259  existing services.
  260         Section 3. Present subsection (4) of section 916.105,
  261  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (5), and a new
  262  subsection (4) and subsection (6) are added to that section, to
  263  read:
  264         916.105 Legislative intent.—
  265         (4)It is the intent of the Legislature that a defendant
  266  who is charged with certain felonies, any misdemeanor, or any
  267  ordinance violation and who has a mental illness, intellectual
  268  disability, or autism be evaluated and provided services in a
  269  community setting, whenever this is a feasible alternative to
  270  incarceration.
  271         (6)It is the intent of the Legislature that law
  272  enforcement agencies in this state provide law enforcement
  273  officers with crisis intervention team training.
  274         Section 4. Section 916.135, Florida Statutes, is created to
  275  read:
  276         916.135Misdemeanor or ordinance violation mental health
  277  diversion program.—
  278         (1)As used in this section, the term:
  279         (a) “Court” means a circuit court, a county court, or any
  280  court presiding over felony, misdemeanor, or ordinance
  281  violations under the laws of this state or any of its political
  282  subdivisions.
  283         (b)Defendant” means a person who has been charged as an
  284  adult by a law enforcement agency or a state attorney solely
  285  with a misdemeanor offense or an ordinance violation under the
  286  laws of this state or any of its political subdivisions.
  287         (c) “Qualified mental health professional” means a
  288  physician, a physician assistant, a clinical psychologist, a
  289  psychiatric nurse, an advanced practice registered nurse
  290  registered under s. 464.0123, or a mental health counselor, a
  291  marriage and family therapist, or a clinical social worker, as
  292  those terms are defined in s. 394.455.
  293         (d) “Receiving facility has the same meaning as in s.
  294  394.455.
  295         (2)A community desiring to establish a misdemeanor or
  296  ordinance violation mental health diversion program to divert
  297  clinically appropriate defendants from jails to treatment is
  298  encouraged to apply for the Criminal Justice, Mental Health, and
  299  Substance Abuse Reinvestment Grant Program under s. 394.656 for
  300  the purpose of obtaining funds to plan, implement, or expand
  301  such mental health diversion programs. This section provides a
  302  model process for diverting such defendants to treatment, but
  303  the process may be modified according to each community’s
  304  particular resources. A community that obtains a grant pursuant
  305  to s. 394.658 must adhere to the processes in this section to
  306  the extent that local resources are available to do so.
  307         (a)The local sheriff’s department, the state attorney, the
  308  public defender, the court, and local treatment providers may
  309  collaborate to establish policies and procedures to meet the
  310  specific needs of each community and to develop a form that a
  311  defendant must sign to consent to treatment.
  312         (b) A consent form must include the defendant’s consent to
  313  treatment and to the release of any records necessary to
  314  demonstrate compliance with and completion of treatment.
  315  Additionally, the consent form must include that the defendant
  316  agrees to waive his or her right to a speedy trial by
  317  participating in the diversion program. A defendant must sign
  318  the consent form to participate in the diversion program.
  319         (3)Within 24 hours after a defendant is booked into a
  320  jail, the jail’s corrections or medical staff may screen the
  321  defendant using a standardized, validated mental health
  322  screening instrument to determine if there is an indication of a
  323  mental illness. If there is an indication of a mental illness,
  324  the defendant may be promptly evaluated for involuntary
  325  examination under chapter 394 by a qualified mental health
  326  professional. In conducting this evaluation, the qualified
  327  mental health professional may evaluate the defendant as if he
  328  or she is at liberty in the community and may not rely on the
  329  person’s incarcerated status to defeat the involuntary
  330  examination criteria provided for in s. 394.463.
  331         (a)If the evaluation demonstrates that the defendant meets
  332  the criteria for involuntary examination under s. 394.463, the
  333  qualified mental health professional may issue a professional
  334  certificate referring the defendant to a receiving facility.
  335         (b)Upon the issuance of a professional certificate, the
  336  defendant must be transported within 72 hours to a receiving
  337  facility for further evaluation for involuntary examination
  338  under chapter 394. Such transport may be made with a hold for
  339  jail custody notation so that the receiving facility may only
  340  release the defendant back to jail custody. Alternatively, the
  341  court may request on the transport order that the defendant be
  342  transported back to appear before the court, depending upon the
  343  outcome of the evaluation at the receiving facility, the court’s
  344  availability of other resources and diversion programs, and the
  345  willingness of the defendant to receive treatment.
  346         (c)Once at the receiving facility, the defendant may be
  347  assessed and evaluated to determine whether he or she meets the
  348  criteria for involuntary services under chapter 394. If the
  349  criteria are met, the receiving facility may forward the court a
  350  discharge plan when the defendant no longer meets criteria for
  351  inpatient treatment, or an outpatient treatment plan, as
  352  appropriate, as soon as such a plan is developed. If the
  353  defendant does not meet the criteria for involuntary services,
  354  the receiving facility may issue an outpatient treatment plan
  355  and forward it to the court as soon as such plan is developed.
  356  If appropriate, the receiving facility may notify the court that
  357  no treatment is necessary.
  358         (d)Upon receipt of a discharge plan or an outpatient
  359  treatment plan, the court may consider releasing the defendant
  360  on his or her own recognizance on the condition that he or she
  361  comply fully with the discharge plan or outpatient treatment
  362  plan. The state attorney and the defense attorney must have an
  363  opportunity to be heard before the court releases the defendant.
  364         (e)If a professional certificate is not issued under
  365  paragraph (a), but the defendant has a mental illness, the court
  366  must order that the defendant be assessed for outpatient
  367  treatment by a local mental health treatment center. This
  368  assessment may be completed:
  369         1.At the jail via telehealth assessment by the local
  370  mental health treatment center;
  371         2.At the local mental health treatment center after the
  372  sheriff or jail authorities transport the defendant to and from
  373  the treatment center; or
  374         3.By releasing the defendant on his or her own
  375  recognizance on the conditions that the assessment be completed
  376  at the local mental health treatment center within 48 hours
  377  after his or her release and that all treatment recommendations
  378  be followed.
  379  
  380  If the assessment under this paragraph results in an outpatient
  381  treatment plan, and the defendant has not already been released,
  382  the defendant may be released on his or her own recognizance on
  383  the condition that all treatment recommendations must be
  384  followed. The state attorney and the defense attorney must have
  385  an opportunity to be heard before the court releases the
  386  defendant.
  387         (f)If the defendant is released from the custody of the
  388  jail on pretrial release at any point before the completion of
  389  the process in this section, evaluation or assessment of the
  390  defendant under this section by a qualified mental health
  391  professional may be initiated at any time by order of the court
  392  at the request of the state attorney or the defense attorney, or
  393  on the court’s own motion. If this process results in the
  394  creation of a discharge plan by a receiving facility or an
  395  outpatient treatment plan by the local mental health treatment
  396  center, the court may set as a condition of the defendant’s
  397  continued pretrial release compliance with all of the terms of
  398  the discharge plan or outpatient treatment plan.
  399         (4)If a defendant has not been referred to the diversion
  400  program under this section, the state attorney, the defense
  401  attorney, or the court may, at any stage of the criminal
  402  proceedings, request that the defendant be screened pursuant to
  403  subsection (3) to determine if there is an indication of mental
  404  illness. If the defendant is no longer in custody, the defendant
  405  may be evaluated or assessed pursuant to paragraph (3)(f).
  406         (5)Upon the defendant’s successful completion of all of
  407  the treatment recommendations from any mental health evaluation
  408  or assessment completed pursuant to this section, the state
  409  attorney must consider dismissal of the charges. If dismissal is
  410  deemed inappropriate by the state attorney, the state attorney
  411  may consider referral of the defendant’s case to mental health
  412  court or another available mental health diversion program.
  413         (6)If the defendant fails to comply with any aspect of his
  414  or her discharge or outpatient treatment plan under this
  415  section, the court may exhaust therapeutic interventions aimed
  416  at improving compliance before considering returning the
  417  defendant to the jail.
  418         Section 5. Section 916.136, Florida Statutes, is created to
  419  read:
  420         916.136 Pretrial felony mental health diversion program.—
  421         (1)As used in this section, the term:
  422         (a) “Conviction” means a determination of guilt that is the
  423  result of a plea agreement, including a plea of nolo contendere,
  424  or trial. For purposes of this section, a conviction does not
  425  include an offense for which an adjudication of guilt was
  426  withheld.
  427         (b)“Court” means a circuit court or any court presiding
  428  over felony violations under the laws of this state or any of
  429  its political subdivisions.
  430         (c) “Defendant” means a person who has been charged as an
  431  adult by a law enforcement agency or a state attorney with a
  432  felony of the second degree or felony of the third degree, and
  433  who is eligible for the diversion program as provided in
  434  subsection (3).
  435         (d) “Qualified mental health professional” means a
  436  physician, a physician assistant, a clinical psychologist, a
  437  psychiatric nurse, an advanced practice registered nurse
  438  registered under s. 464.0123, or a mental health counselor, a
  439  marriage and family therapist, or a clinical social worker, as
  440  those terms are defined in s. 394.455.
  441         (2)A community desiring to establish a pretrial felony
  442  mental health diversion program to divert clinically appropriate
  443  defendants from jails to treatment is encouraged to apply for
  444  the Criminal Justice, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse
  445  Reinvestment Grant Program under s. 394.656 for the purpose of
  446  obtaining funds to plan, implement, or expand such programs.
  447  This section provides a model process for diverting such
  448  defendants to treatment, but this process may be modified
  449  according to each community’s particular resources.
  450         (a) The local sheriff’s department, the state attorney, the
  451  public defender, the court, and local treatment providers may
  452  collaborate to establish policies and procedures to meet the
  453  specific needs of each community and to develop a form that a
  454  defendant must sign to consent to treatment.
  455         (b) A consent form must include the defendant’s consent to
  456  treatment and to the release of any records necessary to
  457  demonstrate compliance with and completion of treatment.
  458  Additionally, such form must include that the defendant agrees
  459  to waive his or her right to a speedy trial by participating in
  460  the diversion program. A defendant must sign the consent form to
  461  participate in the diversion program.
  462         (3) A defendant may be eligible for the pretrial felony
  463  mental health diversion program under this section if he or she
  464  meets the following criteria:
  465         (a) Has a mental illness;
  466         (b) Has no more than three prior felony convictions in the
  467  past 5 years;
  468         (c) Is not charged with a violent felony; and
  469         (d) Does not have a significant history of violence.
  470  
  471  The state attorney has the sole discretion to determine a
  472  defendant’s eligibility for the pretrial felony mental health
  473  diversion program. Meeting the criteria in this subsection does
  474  not guarantee eligibility. Additionally, the state attorney may,
  475  in extenuating circumstances, waive the criteria in this
  476  subsection if he or she finds that it is in the interest of
  477  justice.
  478         (4) At any stage in the pretrial process, the state
  479  attorney may recommend that a defendant be screened using a
  480  standardized, validated mental health screening instrument to
  481  determine if there is an indication of mental illness. Such
  482  screening may be completed by the jail’s corrections or medical
  483  staff or by any qualified mental health professional. The
  484  results of such screening must be forwarded to the state
  485  attorney and the defense attorney.
  486         (5) If there is an indication of mental illness, the state
  487  attorney may consider an offer of pretrial felony mental health
  488  diversion under this section. Entry into the diversion program
  489  is voluntary, and the defendant must sign the consent form as
  490  described in subsection (2) before participating in the program.
  491         (6)Upon the defendant agreeing to participate in pretrial
  492  felony mental health diversion under this section, the defendant
  493  must be assessed for outpatient treatment by a local mental
  494  health treatment center. This assessment may be completed:
  495         (a)At the jail via telehealth assessment by the local
  496  mental health treatment center;
  497         (b)At the local mental health treatment center after the
  498  sheriff or jail authorities transport the defendant to and from
  499  the treatment center; or
  500         (c)By releasing the defendant on his or her own
  501  recognizance on the conditions that the assessment be completed
  502  at the local mental health treatment center within 48 hours
  503  after his or her release and that all treatment recommendations
  504  be followed.
  505  
  506  If the assessment under this subsection results in an outpatient
  507  treatment plan, and the defendant has not already been released,
  508  the defendant may be released on his or her own recognizance on
  509  the condition that all treatment recommendations be followed.
  510         (7)Upon the defendant’s successful completion of all
  511  treatment recommendations from the mental health evaluation or
  512  assessment completed pursuant to this section, the state
  513  attorney must consider dismissal of the charges.
  514         (8)If the defendant fails to comply with pretrial release
  515  or with any aspect of his or her treatment plan under this
  516  section, the state attorney may revoke the defendant’s
  517  participation in the pretrial felony mental health diversion
  518  program.
  519         Section 6. Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section
  520  916.185, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  521         916.185 Forensic Hospital Diversion Pilot Program.—
  522         (3) CREATION.—There is authorized a Forensic Hospital
  523  Diversion Pilot Program to provide competency-restoration and
  524  community-reintegration services in either a locked residential
  525  treatment facility when appropriate or a community-based
  526  facility based on considerations of public safety, the needs of
  527  the individual, and available resources.
  528         (a) The department may implement a Forensic Hospital
  529  Diversion Pilot Program modeled after the Miami-Dade Forensic
  530  Alternative Center, taking into account local needs and
  531  resources in Okaloosa County, in conjunction with the First
  532  Judicial Circuit in Okaloosa County; in Duval County, in
  533  conjunction with the Fourth Judicial Circuit in Duval County; in
  534  Broward County, in conjunction with the Seventeenth Judicial
  535  Circuit in Broward County; and in Miami-Dade County, in
  536  conjunction with the Eleventh Judicial Circuit in Miami-Dade
  537  County; and in Hillsborough County, in conjunction with the
  538  Thirteenth Judicial Circuit in Hillsborough County.
  539         Section 7. Section 945.093, Florida Statutes, is created to
  540  read:
  541         945.093 Requirements for work assignments and programs.—The
  542  department shall evaluate, at a minimum, the physical and mental
  543  health of each inmate eligible for a work assignment or
  544  correctional work program and shall document approval of
  545  eligibility before the inmate receives orders for the assignment
  546  or program. The department may use discretion in determining
  547  whether an inmate is appropriate for an assignment.
  548         Section 8. Section 948.0395, Florida Statutes, is created
  549  to read:
  550         948.0395Probation conditions for defendants with mental
  551  illness.—A defendant who was adjudicated incompetent to proceed
  552  due to a mental illness under chapter 916 and later regained
  553  competency, and who is sentenced to a term of probation, must
  554  have as a condition of such probation a mental health evaluation
  555  and must follow all recommendations of the evaluation.
  556         Section 9. Present subsection (4) of section 1004.649,
  557  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (5), and a new
  558  subsection (4) is added to that section, to read:
  559         1004.649 Northwest Regional Data Center.—
  560         (4)The Northwest Regional Data Center is the lead entity
  561  responsible for creating, operating, and managing, including the
  562  research conducted by, the Florida Behavioral Health Care Data
  563  Repository as established by this subsection.
  564         (a)The purpose of the data repository is to create a
  565  centralized system for:
  566         1.Collecting and analyzing existing statewide behavioral
  567  health care data to:
  568         a.Better understand the scope of and trends in behavioral
  569  health services, spending, and outcomes to improve patient care
  570  and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of behavioral
  571  health services;
  572         b.Better understand the scope of, trends in, and
  573  relationship between behavioral health, criminal justice,
  574  incarceration, and the use of behavioral health services as a
  575  diversion from incarceration for individuals with mental
  576  illness; and
  577         c.Enhance the collection and coordination of treatment and
  578  outcome information as an ongoing evidence base for research and
  579  education related to behavioral health.
  580         2.Developing useful data analytics, economic metrics, and
  581  visual representations of such analytics and metrics to inform
  582  relevant state agencies and the Legislature of data and trends
  583  in behavioral health.
  584         (b)The Northwest Regional Data Center shall develop, in
  585  collaboration with the Data Analysis Committee of the Commission
  586  on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder created under s.
  587  394.9086 and with relevant stakeholders, a plan that includes
  588  all of the following:
  589         1.A project plan that describes the technology,
  590  methodology, timeline, cost, and resources necessary to create a
  591  centralized, integrated, and coordinated data system.
  592         2.A proposed governance structure to oversee the
  593  implementation and operations of the repository.
  594         3.An integration strategy to incorporate existing data
  595  from relevant state agencies, including, but not limited to, the
  596  Agency for Health Care Administration, the Department of
  597  Children and Families, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the
  598  Office of the State Courts Administrator, and the Department of
  599  Corrections.
  600         4.Identification of relevant data and metrics to support
  601  actionable information and ensure the efficient and responsible
  602  use of taxpayer dollars within behavioral health systems of
  603  care.
  604         5.Data security requirements for the repository.
  605         6.The structure and process that will be used to create an
  606  annual analysis and report that gives state agencies and the
  607  Legislature a better general understanding of trends and issues
  608  in the state’s behavioral health systems of care and the trends
  609  and issues in behavioral health systems related to criminal
  610  justice treatment, diversion, and incarceration.
  611         (c)By December 1, 2025, the Northwest Regional Data
  612  Center, in collaboration with the Data Analysis Committee of the
  613  Commission on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder, shall
  614  submit the developed plan for implementation and ongoing
  615  operation with a proposed budget to the Governor, the President
  616  of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives
  617  for review.
  618         (d)Beginning December 1, 2026, and annually thereafter,
  619  the Northwest Regional Data Center shall submit the developed
  620  trends and issues report under subparagraph (b)6. to the
  621  Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the
  622  House of Representatives.
  623         Section 10. For the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the nonrecurring
  624  sum of $229,840 and the recurring sum of $565,040 from the
  625  General Revenue Fund is appropriated to the Northwest Regional
  626  Data Center to implement the Florida Behavioral Health Care Data
  627  Repository as created by this act.
  628         Section 11. This act shall take effect October 1, 2025.