Administering county and municipal delinquency programs and facilities.
F.S. 985.688
in effect(1)
A county or municipal government may plan, develop, and coordinate services and programs for the control and rehabilitative treatment of delinquent behavior.
(2)
A county or municipal government may develop or contract for innovative programs that provide rehabilitative treatment with particular emphasis on reintegration and conditional release for all children in the program, including halfway houses and community-based substance abuse treatment services, mental health treatment services, residential and nonresidential programs, and environmental programs.
(3)
A county or municipal government developing or contracting for a local program pursuant to this section is responsible for all costs associated with the establishment, operation, and maintenance of the program.
(4)
In accordance with rules adopted by the department, a county or municipal government may transfer a child, when necessary to appropriately administer the child’s commitment, from one facility or program operated, contracted, or subcontracted by the county or municipal government to another such facility or program.
(5)
In view of the importance of the basic value of work, responsibility, and self-reliance to a child’s rehabilitation within his or her community, a county or municipal government may provide work programs for delinquent children and may pay a child a reasonable sum of money for work performed while employed in any such work program. The work involved in such work programs must be designed to benefit the county or municipal government, the local community, or the state.
(6)
A county or municipal government developing or contracting for a local program pursuant to this section is responsible for following state law and department rules relating to children’s delinquency services and for the coordination of its efforts with those of the Federal Government, state agencies, private agencies, and child advocacy groups providing such services.
(7)
The department is required to conduct quarterly inspections and evaluations of each county or municipal government juvenile delinquency program to determine whether the program complies with department rules for continued operation of the program. The department shall charge, and the county or municipal government shall pay, a monitoring fee equal to 0.5 percent of the direct operating costs of the program. The operation of a program which fails to pass the department’s quarterly inspection and evaluation, if the deficiency causing the failure is material, must be terminated if such deficiency is not corrected by the next quarterly inspection.
(8)
A county or municipal government providing a local program pursuant to this section shall ensure that personnel responsible for the care, supervision, and treatment of children in the program are apprised of the requirements of this section and appropriately trained to comply with department rules.
(9)
A county or municipal government may establish and operate a juvenile detention facility in compliance with this section, if such facility is certified by the department.
(a)
The department shall evaluate the county or municipal government detention facility to determine whether the facility complies with the department’s rules prescribing the standards and requirements for the operation of a juvenile detention facility. The rules for certification of secure juvenile detention facilities operated by county or municipal governments must be consistent with the rules for certification of secure juvenile detention facilities operated by the department.
(b)
The department is required to conduct quarterly inspections and evaluations of each county or municipal government juvenile detention facility to determine whether the facility complies with the department’s rules for continued operation. The department shall charge, and the county or municipal government shall pay, a monitoring fee equal to 0.5 percent of the direct operating costs of the program. The operation of a facility which fails to pass the department’s quarterly inspection and evaluation, if the deficiency causing the failure is material, must be terminated if such deficiency is not corrected by the next quarterly inspection.
(c)
A county or municipal government operating a local juvenile detention facility pursuant to this section is responsible for all costs associated with the establishment, operation, and maintenance of the facility.
(d)
Only children who reside within the jurisdictional boundaries of the county or municipal government operating the juvenile detention facility and children who are detained for committing an offense within the jurisdictional boundaries of the county or municipal government operating the facility may be held in the facility.
(e)
A child may be placed in a county or municipal government juvenile detention facility only when:
1.
The department’s regional juvenile detention facility is filled to capacity;
2.
The safety of the child dictates; or
3.
Otherwise ordered by a court.
(f)
A child who is placed in a county or municipal government juvenile detention facility must meet the detention criteria as established in this chapter.
(10)(a)
The department may institute injunctive proceedings in a court of competent jurisdiction against a county or municipality to:
1.
Enforce the provisions of this chapter or a minimum standard, rule, regulation, or order issued or entered pursuant thereto; or
2.
Terminate the operation of a facility operated pursuant to this section.
(b)
The department may institute proceedings against a county or municipality to terminate the operation of a facility when any of the following conditions exist:
1.
The facility fails to take preventive or corrective measures in accordance with any order of the department.
2.
The facility fails to abide by any final order of the department once it has become effective and binding.
3.
The facility commits any violation of this section constituting an emergency requiring immediate action as provided in this chapter.
4.
The facility has willfully and knowingly refused to comply with the screening requirement for personnel under s. 985.644(1) or has refused to dismiss personnel found to be in noncompliance with the requirements for good moral character.
(c)
Injunctive relief may include temporary and permanent injunctions.
(11)(a)
Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a county is in compliance with this section if:
1.
The county provides the full cost for detention for juveniles;
2.
The county authorizes the county sheriff, any other county jail operator, or a contracted provider located inside or outside the county to provide detention care for juveniles;
3.
The county sheriff or other county jail operator is accredited by the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission or American Correctional Association; and
4.
The facility is inspected annually and meets the Florida Model Jail Standards.
(b)
A county or county sheriff may form regional detention facilities through an interlocal agreement in order to meet the requirements of this section.
(c)
Each county sheriff or other county jail operator must follow the federal regulations that require sight and sound separation of juvenile inmates from adult inmates.
(d)
A county or county sheriff that complies with this subsection is not subject to any additional training, procedures, or inspections required by this chapter.
Source: FL Statutes (Official Site)URL: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2025/Chapter985/AllFetched: 7/8/2026