Deficit or not, Florida needs criminal-justice reform
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage the nation, Gov. Ron DeSantis has called for agencies to submit proposals that would cut their respective budgets by 8.5 percent in the current fiscal year and a whopping 10 percent the following year.
In order to meet the governor’s request, the Department of Corrections has offered up a long list of cuts — everything from health services, salaries and benefits, communitybased programs, education programs, community work squads (outside work details for the incarcerated) and operations.
The Department of Corrections’ proposal, if approved by the Legislature, would slash $211 million from the current year’s budget, with programs at adult prisons, along with drug-control and substance-abuse programs, carrying the brunt of these reductions.
To achieve budget savings over the next two fiscal years, the department is recommending some notable changes to Florida law, such as:
Sending only those with sentences of two years or longer to prison, as opposed to Floridians with sentences of one year or longer as prescribed by state law, which would save $206.6 million;
Broadening sentencing ● policy to require diversion programs for certain individuals with third-degree and non-forcible felony convictions, which would yield $49.7 million in fiscal benefits; and
Offering a one-time lump sum of 180 days as gain time for eligible individuals who are serving time, which would save Florida $10.6 million. (Eligible inmates with a release date of fewer than 180 days by Jan. 1, 2021 would be released early. Those who are serving a life sentence or convicted of sex offenses would not be eligible.
That would reduce the current prison population, thus saving the per-diem cost of incarceration of 180 days.)
Most of the department’s proposals are recommen
dations that criminal-justice advocates have been heralding for years but that have received little buy-in from the Legislature. On the upside, these are recommendations that would — if enacted — effectively reduce Florida’s prison population.
But some of their recommendations also carry negative consequences because of the lack of consideration for overall rehabilitation needs and broader criminal-justice reform.
For example, eliminating parts of the work-squad programs would save the
state $8.2 million; however, incarcerated individuals who often seek out these types of programs for the work experience they offer would lose out, making re-entry into communities and employment searches more difficult.
Reducing parts of the work-squad program without offering any other alternatives is not a smart reform.
Because Fiscal Year 2020-21 is already under way, the state would need to officially declare a general revenue deficit to enact cuts of this magnitude.
Such a proclamation has not yet been made, and the last budget projection conference estimated there will be enough funds to avoid an actual deficit.
However, with a flattened economy and COVID-19 cases spiking again, state lawmakers could approve some of these budget reduction proposals as they prepare for the upcoming fiscal year.
To be clear, the Department of Corrections is no stranger to budget shortfalls — it experienced a $28 million deficit in 2018. And while its budget woes may be worsened by COVID-19, they’ve been present and growing for years.
The time for a financial breakthrough is way overdue, and the only effective solution is comprehensive criminal-justice reform.