Senate Health, Criminal Justice Appropriations Committee Reports

The Health and Human Services Appropriations and the Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations Senate Committees met on Thursday, December 13, 2007.  A member of this Firm attended both meetings and provided the following reports:

 

Health and Human Services Appropriations Committee Summary

The Senate Committee on Health and Human Services Appropriations, chaired by Senator Durell Peaden (R-Crestview), met today to hear a series of Interim Monitor Projects.  Of particular concern to Committee members was project number 2008-360 relating to the Comprehensive Statewide Tobacco Education and Use Prevention Program. 

Committee Staff Director Elaine Peters reported on the various components and expenditures of the Program, which has a total budget for Fiscal Year 2007-08 of $57.8 million, with almost $20 million of that devoted to advertising and educational programs currently being implemented statewide. 

For a complete list of the Program’s expenditures and the rest of the Committee packet click here.

Committee members, led by Senator Frederica Wilson (D-Miami Gardens) noted their continued support for this plan as well as their desire to increase funding for Fiscal Year 2008-09. 

In addition to the Tobacco Education Report, Committee members heard reports from staff relating to the following topics:  Low Income Pool, KidCare enrollment, forensic mental health services, and home and community based waiver services for the developmentally disabled.  Each of the Committee members related his or her desire to leave these programs fully funded, but noted that it may be difficult to do so because of the state of Florida’s economy.

 

Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations Summary

The Senate Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations, led by Chairman Victor Crist (R-Tampa) met today and received testimony relating to the Criminal Justice Estimating Conference.  Kathy McCharen, from the Office of Demographic Research, reported the findings to Committee members.

To view the Committee packet, including Ms. McCharen’s presentation, click here.

According to the Estimating Conference, the current prison population currently stands at 98,023, up 1,306 from 2006, which equates to a 7.4 percent estimated increase in the prison population in 2007. The population is projected to continue to increase in the future, with a five-year outlook estimating prisons to house more than 125,000 inmates in Fiscal Year 2012-13. 

Factors relating to the increase in new commitments to prison were identified and may be broken down into four categories:  crime trends are increasing, zero tolerance policies, jail overcrowding and stronger judicial sentences.  In particular, the recently-created zero tolerance policy has caused probation violators who were originally sentenced for less serious offenses to be placed in prison.  As a result, almost 37 percent of prison population growth can be attributed to increases in “technical” probation violators.

Committee members said they will continue to monitor the situation in Florida’s prisons and encouraged creative and innovative ways to control the population.  Given the budget realities facing the state, new construction is a less attractive alternative than other potential methods to control overcrowding.

To read the entire Criminal Justice Estimating Report click here.

 

 

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