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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to correctional facilities; amending 2
s. 944.35, F.S.; providing definitions; prohibiting 3
sexual misconduct by any volunteer in, or any employee 4
of a contractor or subcontractor of, the Department of 5
Corrections or a private correctional fac ility; 6
providing criminal penalties; providing applicability; 7
transferring all powers, duties, functions, records, 8
offices, personnel, associated administrative support 9
positions, property, pending issues and existing 10
contracts, administrative authority, t rust funds, and 11
unexpended balances of appropriations, allocations, 12
and other funds of the Bureau of Private Prison 13
Monitoring to the Department of Corrections; 14
prohibiting a specified transfer from affecting 15
specified agreements and instruments in existen ce; 16
providing that specified obligations are valid and 17
binding; amending s. 287.042, F.S.; deleting 18
provisions relating to powers and duties of the 19
Department of Management Services concerning private 20
correctional facilities; amending s. 394.9151, F.S.; 21
authorizing the Department of Children and Families to 22
contract with the Department of Corrections, rather 23
than the Department of Management Services, for the 24
operation of facilities for sexually violent 25
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predators; amending s. 943.13, F.S.; conforming 26
provisions to changes made by the act; amending ss. 27
944.02, 944.115, 944.72, 944.8041, and 945.215, F.S.; 28
requiring the Department of Corrections to assume 29
specified duties and responsibilities of the 30
Department of Management Services; amending ss. 31
957.04, 957.06, 957.07, 957.08, 957.14, 957.15, and 32
957.16, F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by 33
the act; providing an effective date. 34
35
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 36
37
Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of section 38
944.35, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 39
944.35 Authorized use of force; malicious battery and 40
sexual misconduct prohibited; reporting required; penalties. — 41
(3) 42
(b)1. As used in this paragraph, the term: 43
a. "Female genitals" includes the labia mi nora, labia 44
majora, clitoris, vulva, hymen, and vagina. 45
b. "Private correctional facility" has the same meaning as 46
in s. 944.710. 47
c.b. "Sexual misconduct" means the oral, anal, or female 48
genital penetration by, or union with, the sexual organ of 49
another or the anal or female genital penetration of another by 50
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any other object, but does not include an act done for a bona 51
fide medical purpose or an internal search conducted in the 52
lawful performance of the employee's duty. 53
d. "Volunteer" means a person r egistered with the 54
department or a private correctional facility who is engaged in 55
specific voluntary service activities on an ongoing or continual 56
basis. 57
2. Any employee of the department or a private 58
correctional facility or any volunteer in, or any em ployee of a 59
contractor or subcontractor of, the department or a private 60
correctional facility as defined in s. 944.710 who engages in 61
sexual misconduct with an inmate or an offender supervised by 62
the department in the community, without committing the crim e of 63
sexual battery, commits a felony of the third degree, punishable 64
as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 65
3. The consent of the inmate or offender supervised by the 66
department in the community to any act of sexual misconduct may 67
not be raised as a defense to a prosecution under this 68
paragraph. 69
4. This paragraph does not apply to any employee , 70
volunteer, or employee of a contractor or subcontractor of the 71
department or any employee , volunteer, or employee of a 72
contractor or subcontracto r of a private correctional facility 73
who is legally married to an inmate or an offender supervised by 74
the department in the community, nor does it apply to any 75
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employee, volunteer, or employee of a contractor or 76
subcontractor who has no knowledge, and woul d have no reason to 77
believe, that the person with whom the employee , volunteer, or 78
employee of a contractor or subcontractor has engaged in sexual 79
misconduct is an inmate or an offender under community 80
supervision of the department. 81
Section 2. (1) All powers; duties; functions; records; 82
offices; personnel; associated administrative support positions; 83
property; pending issues and existing contracts; administrative 84
authority; trust funds; and unexpended balances of 85
appropriations, allocations, and other funds of the Bureau of 86
Private Prison Monitoring are transferred by a type two transfer 87
pursuant to s. 20.06(2), Florida Statutes, to the Department of 88
Corrections. 89
(2) In no way shall the transfer under this act affect any 90
existing agreements, bonds, ce rtificates of participation, or 91
other instruments of indebtedness entered into by the Department 92
of Management Services. All undertakings of the Department of 93
Management Services in connection with the issuance of 94
certificates of participation and the obli gations to make rent 95
payments thereunder to the Florida Correctional Financing 96
Corporation are validated and shall continue to be valid and 97
binding on the Department of Corrections in accordance with 98
their respective terms, conditions, and covenants. 99
Section 3. Subsection (17) of section 287.042, Florida 100
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Statutes, is amended to read: 101
287.042 Powers, duties, and functions. —The department 102
shall have the following powers, duties, and functions: 103
(17)(a) To enter into contracts pursuant to chapter 957 104
for the designing, financing, acquiring, leasing, constructing, 105
or operating of private correctional facilities. The department 106
shall enter into a contract or contracts with one contractor per 107
facility for the designing, acquiring, financing, leasing, 108
constructing, and operating of that facility or may, if 109
specifically authorized by the Legislature, separately contract 110
for any such services. 111
(b) To manage and enforce compliance with existing or 112
future contracts entered into pursuant to chapter 957. 113
114
The department may not delegate the responsibilities conferred 115
by this subsection. 116
Section 4. Section 394.9151, Florida Statutes, is amended 117
to read: 118
394.9151 Contract authority. —The Department of Children 119
and Families may contract with a private entity o r state agency 120
for use of and operation of facilities to comply with the 121
requirements of this act. The Department of Children and 122
Families may also contract with the Department of Corrections 123
Management Services to issue a request for proposals and monitor 124
contract compliance for these services. 125
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Section 5. Section 943.13, Florida Statutes, is amended to 126
read: 127
943.13 Officers' minimum qualifications for employment or 128
appointment.—On or after October 1, 1984, any person employed or 129
appointed as a full-time, part-time, or auxiliary law 130
enforcement officer or correctional officer; on or after October 131
1, 1986, any person employed as a full -time, part-time, or 132
auxiliary correctional probation officer; and on or after 133
October 1, 1986, any person employed as a full-time, part-time, 134
or auxiliary correctional officer by a private entity under 135
contract to the Department of Corrections or, to a county 136
commission, or to the Department of Management Services shall: 137
(1) Be at least 19 years of age, except that any p erson 138
employed as a full-time, a part-time, or an auxiliary 139
correctional officer must be at least 18 years of age. 140
(2) Be a citizen of the United States, notwithstanding any 141
law of the state to the contrary. 142
(3) Be a high school graduate or its "equiva lent" as the 143
commission has defined the term by rule. 144
(4) Not have been convicted of any felony or of a 145
misdemeanor involving perjury or a false statement, or have 146
received a dishonorable discharge from any of the Armed Forces 147
of the United States. Any p erson who, after July 1, 1981, pleads 148
guilty or nolo contendere to or is found guilty of any felony or 149
of a misdemeanor involving perjury or a false statement is not 150
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eligible for employment or appointment as an officer, 151
notwithstanding suspension of senten ce or withholding of 152
adjudication. Notwithstanding this subsection, any person who 153
has pled nolo contendere to a misdemeanor involving a false 154
statement, prior to December 1, 1985, and has had such record 155
sealed or expunged shall not be deemed ineligible f or employment 156
or appointment as an officer. 157
(5) Have documentation of his or her processed 158
fingerprints on file with the employing agency or, if a private 159
correctional officer, have documentation of his or her processed 160
fingerprints on file with the Depa rtment of Corrections or the 161
Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission. The 162
department shall retain and enter into the statewide automated 163
biometric identification system authorized by s. 943.05 all 164
fingerprints submitted to the department as requ ired by this 165
section. Thereafter, the fingerprints shall be available for all 166
purposes and uses authorized for arrest fingerprints entered in 167
the statewide automated biometric identification system pursuant 168
to s. 943.051. The department shall search all ar rest 169
fingerprints received pursuant to s. 943.051 against the 170
fingerprints retained in the statewide automated biometric 171
identification system pursuant to this section and report to the 172
employing agency any arrest records that are identified with the 173
retained employee's fingerprints. These fingerprints must be 174
forwarded to the department for processing and retention. 175
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(6) Have passed a physical examination by a licensed 176
physician, physician assistant, or licensed advanced practice 177
registered nurse, based o n specifications established by the 178
commission. In order to be eligible for the presumption set 179
forth in s. 112.18 while employed with an employing agency, a 180
law enforcement officer, correctional officer, or correctional 181
probation officer must have success fully passed the physical 182
examination required by this subsection upon entering into 183
service as a law enforcement officer, correctional officer, or 184
correctional probation officer with the employing agency, which 185
examination must have failed to reveal any e vidence of 186
tuberculosis, heart disease, or hypertension. A law enforcement 187
officer, correctional officer, or correctional probation officer 188
may not use a physical examination from a former employing 189
agency for purposes of claiming the presumption set forth in s. 190
112.18 against the current employing agency. The employing 191
agency must maintain records of the physical examination for at 192
least 5 years after the employee's separation from the employing 193
agency. If the employing agency fails to maintain the records of 194
the physical examination for the 5 -year period after the 195
employee's separation, it is presumed that the employee has met 196
the requirements of this subsection. 197
(7) Have a good moral character as determined by a 198
background investigation under procedures established by the 199
commission. 200
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(8) Execute and submit to the employing agency or, if a 201
private correctional officer, submit to the appropriate 202
governmental entity an affidavit -of-applicant form, adopted by 203
the commission, attesting to his or her complia nce with 204
subsections (1)-(7). The affidavit shall require the applicant 205
to disclose any pending investigation by a local, state, or 206
federal agency or entity for criminal, civil, or administrative 207
wrongdoing and whether the applicant separated or resigned f rom 208
previous criminal justice employment while he or she was under 209
investigation. The affidavit shall be executed under oath and 210
constitutes an official statement within the purview of s. 211
837.06. The affidavit shall include conspicuous language that 212
the intentional false execution of the affidavit constitutes a 213
misdemeanor of the second degree. The affidavit shall be 214
retained by the employing agency. 215
(9) Complete a commission -approved basic recruit training 216
program for the applicable criminal justice disc ipline, unless 217
exempt under this subsection. An applicant who has: 218
(a) Completed a comparable basic recruit training program 219
for the applicable criminal justice discipline in another state 220
or for the Federal Government and served as a full -time sworn 221
officer in another state or for the Federal Government for at 222
least 1 year, provided there is no more than an 8 -year break in 223
employment, as measured from the separation date of the most 224
recent qualifying employment to the time a complete application 225
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for an exemption under this subsection is submitted; or 226
(b) Served in the special operations forces for a minimum 227
of 5 years, provided there is no more than a 4 -year break from 228
the applicant's special operations forces experience, as 229
measured from the separation date from the special operations 230
forces to the time a complete application for an exemption under 231
this subsection is submitted, 232
233
is exempt in accordance with s. 943.131(2) from completing the 234
commission-approved basic recruit training program. 235
(10) Achieve an acceptable score on the officer 236
certification examination for the applicable criminal justice 237
discipline. 238
(11) Comply with the continuing training or education 239
requirements of s. 943.135. 240
Section 6. Subsection (4) of section 944.02, Florida 241
Statutes, is amended to read: 242
944.02 Definitions. —The following words and phrases used 243
in this chapter shall, unless the context clearly indicates 244
otherwise, have the following meanings: 245
(4) "Elderly offender" means a prisoner age 50 or older in 246
a state correctional institution or facility operated by the 247
Department of Corrections or the Department of Management 248
Services. 249
Section 7. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section 250
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944.115, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 251
944.115 Smoking prohibited inside state correctional 252
facilities.— 253
(2) As used in this section, the term: 254
(b) "Employee" means an employee of the department or a 255
private vendor in a contractual relationship with either the 256
department of Corrections or the Department of Management 257
Services, and includes persons such as contractors, volunteers, 258
or law enforcement officers who are within a state correctional 259
facility to perform a professional service. 260
Section 8. Subsection (1) of section 944.72, Florida 261
Statutes, is amended to re ad: 262
944.72 Privately Operated Institutions Inmate Welfare 263
Trust Fund.— 264
(1) There is hereby created in the department of 265
Corrections the Privately Operated Institutions Inmate Welfare 266
Trust Fund. The purpose of the trust fund shall be the benefit 267
and welfare of inmates incarcerated in private correctional 268
facilities under contract with the department pursuant to this 269
chapter or the Department of Management Services pursuant to 270
chapter 957. Moneys shall be deposited in the trust fund and 271
expenditures made from the trust fund as provided in s. 945.215. 272
Section 9. Section 944.8041, Florida Statutes, is amended 273
to read: 274
944.8041 Elderly offenders; annual review. —For the purpose 275
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of providing information to the Legislature on elderly offenders 276
within the correctional system, the department and the 277
Correctional Medical Authority shall each submit annually a 278
report on the status and treatment of elderly offenders in the 279
state-administered and private state correctional systems and 280
the department's geriatric facilities and dorms. In order to 281
adequately prepare the reports, the department and the 282
Department of Management Services shall grant access to the 283
Correctional Medical Authority that includes access to the 284
facilities, offenders, and any information the a gencies require 285
to complete their reports. The review shall also include an 286
examination of promising geriatric policies, practices, and 287
programs currently implemented in other correctional systems 288
within the United States. The reports, with specific findin gs 289
and recommendations for implementation, shall be submitted to 290
the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 291
Representatives on or before December 31 of each year. 292
Section 10. Paragraphs (a) and (c) of subsection (3) of 293
section 945.215, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 294
945.215 Inmate welfare and employee benefit trust funds. — 295
(3) PRIVATELY OPERATED INSTITUTIONS INMATE WELFARE TRUST 296
FUND; PRIVATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES. — 297
(a) For purposes of this subsection, privately operated 298
institutions or private correctional facilities are those 299
correctional facilities under contract with the department 300
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pursuant to chapter 944 or the Department of Management Services 301
pursuant to chapter 957. 302
(c) The department of Management Services shall annually 303
compile a report that documents Privately Operated Institutions 304
Inmate Welfare Trust Fund receipts and expenditures at each 305
private correctional facility. This report must specifically 306
identify receipt sources and expenditures. The department of 307
Management Services shall compile this report for the prior 308
fiscal year and shall submit the report by September 1 of each 309
year to the chairs of the appropriate substantive and fiscal 310
committees of the Senate and House of Representatives and to the 311
Executive Office of the Governor. 312
Section 11. Paragraphs (a), (b), (e), and (g) of 313
subsection (1), paragraph (c) of subsection (2), and subsections 314
(5), (6), and (7) of section 957.04, Florida Statutes, are 315
amended to read: 316
957.04 Contract requirements. — 317
(1) A contract entered into under this chapter for the 318
operation of private correctional facilities shall maximize the 319
cost savings of such facilities and shall: 320
(a) Be negotiated with the firm found most qualified. 321
However, a contract for private corre ctional services may not be 322
entered into by the department of Management Services unless the 323
department of Management Services determines that the contractor 324
has demonstrated that it has: 325
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1. The qualifications, experience, and management 326
personnel necessary to carry out the terms of the contract. 327
2. The ability to expedite the siting, design, and 328
construction of correctional facilities. 329
3. The ability to comply with applicable laws, court 330
orders, and national correctional standards. 331
(b) Indemnify the state and the department, including 332
their officials and agents, against any and all liability, 333
including, but not limited to, civil rights liability. Proof of 334
satisfactory insurance is required in an amount to be determined 335
by the department of Management Services. 336
(e) Establish operations standards for correctional 337
facilities subject to the contract. However, if the department 338
and the contractor disagree with an operations standard, the 339
contractor may propose to waive any rule, policy, or procedure 340
of the department related to the operations standards of 341
correctional facilities which is inconsistent with the mission 342
of the contractor to establish cost -effective, privately 343
operated correctional facilities. The department of Management 344
Services shall be responsible fo r considering all proposals from 345
the contractor to waive any rule, policy, or procedure and shall 346
render a final decision granting or denying such request. 347
(g) Require the selection and appointment of a full -time 348
contract monitor. The contract monitor sh all be appointed and 349
supervised by the department of Management Services . The 350
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contractor is required to reimburse the department of Management 351
Services for the salary and expenses of the contract monitor. It 352
is the obligation of the contractor to provide s uitable office 353
space for the contract monitor at the correctional facility. The 354
contract monitor shall have unlimited access to the correctional 355
facility. 356
(2) Each contract entered into for the design and 357
construction of a private correctional facility o r juvenile 358
commitment facility must include: 359
(c) A specific provision requiring the contractor, and not 360
the department of Management Services , to obtain the financing 361
required to design and construct the private correctional 362
facility or juvenile commitme nt facility built under this 363
chapter. 364
(5) Each contract entered into by the department of 365
Management Services must include substantial minority 366
participation unless demonstrated by evidence, after a good 367
faith effort, as impractical and must also include any other 368
requirements the department of Management Services considers 369
necessary and appropriate for carrying out the purposes of this 370
chapter. 371
(6) Notwithstanding s. 253.025(9), the Board of Trustees 372
of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund need not appr ove a lease-373
purchase agreement negotiated by the department of Management 374
Services if the department of Management Services finds that 375
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there is a need to expedite the lease -purchase. 376
(7)(a) Notwithstanding s. 253.025 or s. 287.057, whenever 377
the department of Management Services finds it to be in the best 378
interest of timely site acquisition, it may contract without the 379
need for competitive selection with one or more appraisers whose 380
names are contained on the list of approved appraisers 381
maintained by the Division of State Lands of the Department of 382
Environmental Protection in accordance with s. 253.025(8). In 383
those instances when the department of Management Services 384
directly contracts for appraisal services, it shall also 385
contract with an approved appraise r who is not employed by the 386
same appraisal firm for review services. 387
(b) Notwithstanding s. 253.025(8), the department of 388
Management Services may negotiate and enter into lease -purchase 389
agreements before an appraisal is obtained. Any such agreement 390
must state that the final purchase price cannot exceed the 391
maximum value allowed by law. 392
Section 12. Subsection (2) of section 957.06, Florida 393
Statutes, is amended to read: 394
957.06 Powers and duties not delegable to contractor. —A 395
contract entered into under this chapter does not authorize, 396
allow, or imply a delegation of authority to the contractor to: 397
(2) Choose the facility to which an inmate is initially 398
assigned or subsequently transferred. The contractor may 399
request, in writing, that an inmate be transferred to a facility 400
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operated by the department. The Department of Management 401
Services, the contractor, and the department and the contractor 402
shall develop and implement a cooperative agreement for 403
transferring inmates between a correctional facility operated by 404
the department and a private correctional facility. The 405
department, the Department of Management Services, and the 406
contractor must comply with the cooperative agreement. 407
Section 13. Subsections (1) and (4) and paragraph (d) of 408
subsection (5) of section 957.07, Florida Statutes, are amended 409
to read: 410
957.07 Cost-saving requirements. — 411
(1) The department of Management Services may not enter 412
into a contract or series of contracts unless the department 413
determines that the contract or series o f contracts in total for 414
the facility will result in a cost savings to the state of at 415
least 7 percent over the public provision of a similar facility. 416
Such cost savings as determined by the department of Management 417
Services must be based upon the actual c osts associated with the 418
construction and operation of similar facilities or services as 419
determined by the department of Corrections and certified by the 420
Auditor General. The department of Corrections shall calculate 421
all of the cost components that determi ne the inmate per diem in 422
correctional facilities of a substantially similar size, type, 423
and location that are operated by the department of Corrections, 424
including administrative costs associated with central 425
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administration. Services that are provided to t he department of 426
Corrections by other governmental agencies at no direct cost to 427
the department shall be assigned an equivalent cost and included 428
in the per diem. 429
(4) The department of Corrections shall provide a report 430
detailing the state cost to design , finance, acquire, lease, 431
construct, and operate a facility similar to the private 432
correctional facility on a per diem basis. This report shall be 433
provided to the Auditor General in sufficient time that it may 434
be certified to the Department of Management Services to be 435
included in the request for proposals. 436
(5) 437
(d) If a private vendor chooses not to renew the contract 438
at the appropriated level, the department of Management Services 439
shall terminate the contract as provided in s. 957.14. 440
Section 14. Section 957.08, Florida Statutes, is amended 441
to read: 442
957.08 Capacity requirements. —The department of 443
Corrections shall transfer and assign prisoners to each private 444
correctional facility opened pursuant to this chapter in an 445
amount not less than 90 perce nt or more than 100 percent of the 446
capacity of the facility pursuant to the contract with the 447
Department of Management Services . The prisoners transferred by 448
the department of Corrections shall represent a cross -section of 449
the general inmate population, ba sed on the grade of custody or 450
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the offense of conviction, at the most comparable facility 451
operated by the department. 452
Section 15. Section 957.14, Florida Statutes, is amended 453
to read: 454
957.14 Contract termination and control of a correctional 455
facility by the department.—A detailed plan shall be provided by 456
a private vendor under which the department shall assume 457
temporary control of a private correctional facility upon 458
termination of the contract. The department of Management 459
Services may terminate the contract with cause after written 460
notice of material deficiencies and after 60 workdays in order 461
to correct the material deficiencies. If any event occurs that 462
involves the noncompliance with or violation of contract terms 463
and that presents a serious thre at to the safety, health, or 464
security of the inmates, employees, or the public, the 465
department may temporarily assume control of the private 466
correctional facility , with the approval of the Department of 467
Management Services. A plan shall also be provided by a private 468
vendor for the purchase and temporary assumption of operations 469
of a correctional facility by the department in the event of 470
bankruptcy or the financial insolvency of the private vendor. 471
The private vendor shall provide an emergency plan to addre ss 472
inmate disturbances, employee work stoppages, strikes, or other 473
serious events in accordance with standards of the American 474
Correctional Association. 475
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Section 16. Section 957.15, Florida Statutes, is amended 476
to read: 477
957.15 Funding of contracts for operation, maintenance, 478
and lease-purchase of private correctional facilities. —The 479
request for appropriation of funds to make payments pursuant to 480
contracts entered into by the department of Management Services 481
for the operation, maintenance, and lease -purchase of the 482
private correctional facilities authorized by this chapter shall 483
be included made by the Department of Management Services in a 484
request to the department. The department shall include such 485
request in its budget request to the Legislature as a separately 486
identified item and shall forward the request of the Department 487
of Management Services without change . After an appropriation 488
has been made by the Legislature to the department for the 489
private correctional facilities, the department shall have no 490
authority over such funds other than to pay from such 491
appropriation to the appropriate private vendor such amounts as 492
are certified for payment by the department of Management 493
Services. 494
Section 17. Section 957.16, Florida Statutes, is amended 495
to read: 496
957.16 Expanding capacity. —The department of Management 497
Services is authorized to modify and execute agreements with 498
contractors to expand up to the total capacity of contracted 499
correctional facilities. Total capacity means the design 500
CS/CS/CS/HB 929 2023
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
capacity of all contracted correctional facilities increased by 501
one-half as described under s. 944.023(1)(b). Any additional 502
beds authorized under this section must comply with the cost -503
saving requirements set forth in s. 957.07. Any additional beds 504
authorized as a result of expanded capacity under this section 505
are contingent upon specified appropriations. 506
Section 18. This act shall take effect October 1, 2023. 507