Title: Inmate Reentry Services

Summary: Requires DOC to allow nonprofit organizations to provide inmate reentry services; requires DOC to adopt policies & procedures for screening, approving, & registering those nonprofit organizations; prohibits DOC from endorsing or sponsoring any faith-based reentry program, endorsing any specific religious message, or requiring inmate to participate in faith-based program.

Full Text:
An act relating to inmate reentry services; creating s. 944.8025, F.S.; requiring the Department of Corrections to allow representatives from nonprofit organizations to apply to be registered with the department for the purpose of providing inmate reentry services; requiring the department to develop and adopt policies and procedures for screening, approving, and registering those nonprofit organizations and their representatives; authorizing the department to deny approval and registration to an organizati on or a representative from an organization if the department determines that the organization or representative does not meet the department's screening guidelines; authorizing the department and each of the correctional facilities in this state to retain the discretion to deny entry into a correctional facility at any time to a representative of an organization; requiring the department to post certain information on its public website for certain purposes; prohibiting the department from endorsing or sponsoring any faith-based reentry program or endorsing any specific religious message; prohibiting the department from requiring an inmate to participate in a faith-based program; providing rulemaking HB 2018 authority; providing an effective date. Be It Enacte dby the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Section 944.8025, Florida Statutes, is created to read: 944.8025 Inmate reentry services by nonprofit organizations.-(1) Subject to the policies and procedures adopted under subsection (2) for screening and approving applicants, the department shall allow representatives from all nonprofit faith based, business and professional, civic, and community organizations to apply to be registered with the department under this section for the purpos eof providing inmate reentry services. Reentry services include, but are not limited to, counseling, providing information on housing and job placement, and money management assistance. (2) The department shall develop and adopt policies and procedures for screening, approving, and registering organizations and their representatives that apply to provide inmate reentry services under subsection (1). The department may deny approval and registration of an organization or a representative from an organizat ion if the department determines that the organization or representative does not meet the department's screening guidelines. The department and each of HB 2018 the correctional facilities in this state retain the discretion to deny entry to a correctional facilit yat any time to a representative of an organization listed under subsection (1) regardless of whether that representative previously applied to and was registered with the department to provide inmate reentry services at a correctional facility. (3) The department shall post a department telephone number and provide an application for registration on its public website. The telephone number and application may be used by representatives from an organization described in subsection (1) to obtain informati on and to begin the application process for registration with the department to provide inmate reentry services. (4) The department may not endorse or sponsor any faith based reentry program or endorse any specific religious message. The department may not require an inmate to participate in a faith-based program. (5) The department shall adopt rules to implement this section. Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2018.