The Florida Senate
BILL ANALYSIS AND FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
(This document is based on the provisions contained in the legislation as of the latest date listed below.)
Prepared By: The Professional Staff of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice
BILL: PCS/CS/SB 1032 (741924)
INTRODUCER: Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice; Criminal Justice
Committee; and Senator Perry
SUBJECT: Criminal Convictions
DATE: April 8, 2021 REVISED:
ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR REFERENCE ACTION
1. Siples Jones CJ Fav/CS
2. Forbes Harkness ACJ Recommend: Fav/CS
3. AP
Please see Section IX. for Additional Information:
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE - Substantial Changes
I. Summary:
PCS/CS/SB 1032 revises licensing requirements for individuals with criminal convictions,
revises the purpose of the Criminal Punishment Code, and modifies the current system of gain-
time, which allows prisoners to reduce the term of prison sentences.
The bill prohibits the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) from denying
an application for licensure for certain professions if more than two years have passed since the
applicant’s conviction, with exceptions. The bill also requires the DBPR to approve educational
courses offered by correctional institutions or facilities, to satisfy applicable training
requirements for licensure for certain professions.
The bill revises the purpose of the Criminal Punishment Code to provide that criminal offenders
are to be appropriately punished and rehabilitated, rather than ensuring that violent criminal
offenders are incarcerated. The bill also provides that the dual purpose of sentencing in the
criminal justice system are punishment and rehabilitation of the offender so that he or she can
successfully transition back into the community. Rehabilitation is no longer a subordinate goal.
The bill authorizes the Department of Corrections (DOC) to award three types of reductions to a
prisoner’s sentence in the form of outstanding deed awards, good behavior time, and
rehabilitation credits.
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The bill authorizes the DOC to award outstanding deed awards of 30 to 60 days, per outstanding
deed, to a prisoner who performs an outstanding deed, such as saving a life. The bill requires the
DOC to grant 10 days each month of good behavior time to encourage satisfactory behavior and
develop character traits for successful reentry into the community. The bill authorizes prisoners
who are serving sentences for offenses committed on or after July 1, 1978, to be granted good
behavior time. The DOC grants rehabilitation credits for each month a prisoner participates in
education or training. The amount of rehabilitation credit a prisoner may earn varies by the date
of the offense for which he or she is incarcerated and the offense severity level of the offense.
The bill authorizes the DOC to grant up to two additional days per month of good behavior time
to prisoners serving sentences related to certain offenses involving controlled substances. The
grant of these two additional days of good behavior is to be applied retroactively.
The bill authorizes prisoners to earn rehabilitation credit for completion of a high school
equivalency diploma, a college degree, vocational certificate, drug treatment program, life skills
program, reentry program, or other evidence-based program approved by the DOC that serves
the purpose of reducing recidivism and assisting a prisoner to reintegrate into society. Prisoners
may earn 60 days of rehabilitation credit for the completion of each program. Additionally, the
bill authorizes prisoners to earn five days of rehabilitation credit for completion of any other
DOC-approved program. The bill makes these rehabilitation credits retroactive.
The bill prohibits prisoners from earning good behavior time or outstanding deed awards in an
amount that would cause them to serve less than 85 percent of the sentence imposed if the
prisoner is serving a sentence for an offense committed after October 1, 1995. However, a
prisoner may earn rehabilitation credits in an amount that would not cause him or her to serve
less than 65 percent of the imposed sentence.
The bill also revises the Criminal Punishment Code to prohibit a prisoner from earning good
behavior time or outstanding deed awards in an amount that would cause a prisoner to serve less
than 85 percent of the sentence imposed if the prisoner is serving a sentence for an offense
committed after October 1, 1995, and rehabilitation credits in an amount that would cause a
prisoner to serve less than 65 percent of the sentence imposed.
The bill requires the DOC to provide a prisoner due process before the forfeiture of any gain-
time.
The bill directs the DOC to adopt rules to implement its provisions. The bill also makes
conforming changes and reenacts statutes.
The bill will likely have a negative prison bed impact, resulting in a decrease in the need for
prison beds. See Section V. Fiscal Impact Statement.
The bill is effective July 1, 2021.
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II. Present Situation:
Licensing Determinations and Criminal History
Section 112.011, F.S., outlines general guidelines for considering criminal convictions during
licensure determinations. Generally, a person may be denied a professional license based on his
or her prior conviction of a crime if the crime was a felony1 or first-degree misdemeanor2 that is
directly related to the standards determined by the regulatory authority to be necessary and
reasonably related to the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare for the specific
profession for which the license is sought.3 Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a state
agency may not deny an application for a license based solely on the applicant’s lack of civil
rights.4
Department of Business and Professional Regulation
Licensure, Generally
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) has 12 divisions that are
tasked with the licensure and general regulation of several professions and businesses in Florida.5
Fifteen boards and programs exist within the Division of Professions,6 two boards exist within
the Division of Real Estate,7 and one board exists in the Division of Certified Public
Accounting.8
1
Section 775.08(1), F.S., defines “felony” as any criminal offense that is punishable under the laws of this state, or that
would be punishable if committed in this state, by death or a term of imprisonment in a state penitentiary that exceeds one
year.
2
Section 775.08(2), F.S., defines “misdemeanor” as any criminal offense that is punishable under the laws of this state, or
that would be punishable if committed in this state, by a term of imprisonment in a county correctional facility of less than
one year. A first degree misdemeanor is punishable by a term of imprisonment not exceeding one year and a fine not
exceeding $1,000. Sections 775.082 and 775.083, F.S.
3
Section 112.011(1)(b), F.S. See also, e.g., State ex rel. Sbordy v. Rowlett, 138 Fla. 330, 190 So. 59, 63 (1939), holding that
“the preservation of the public health is one of the duties of sovereignty and in a conflict between the right of a citizen to
follow a profession and the right of a sovereignty to guard the health and welfare, it logically follows that the rights of the
citizen to pursue his profession must yield to the power of the State to prescribe such restrictions and regulations as shall
fully protect the people from ignorance, incapacity, deception, and fraud.”
4
Section 112.011(1)(c), F.S.
5
See s. 20.165, F.S, creating the divisions of Administration; Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco; Certified Public
Accounting; Drugs, Devices, and Cosmetics; Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes; Hotels and
Restaurants; Pari-mutuel Wagering; Professions; Real Estate; Regulation; Service Operations; and Technology.
6
Section 20.165(4)(a), F.S., establishes the following boards and programs which are noted with the implementing statutes:
Board of Architecture and Interior Design, part I of ch. 481, F.S.; Florida Board of Auctioneers, part VI of ch. 468, F.S.;
Barbers’ Board, ch. 476, F.S.; Florida Building Code Administrators and Inspectors Board, part XII of ch. 468, F.S.;
Construction Industry Licensing Board, part I of ch. 489, F.S.; Board of Cosmetology, ch. 477, F.S.; Electrical Contractors’
Licensing Board, part II of ch. 489, F.S.; Board of Employee Leasing Companies, part XI of ch. 468, F.S.; Board of
Landscape Architecture, part II of ch. 481, F.S.; Board of Pilot Commissioners, ch. 310, F.S.; Board of Professional
Engineers, ch. 471, F.S.; Board of Professional Geologists, ch. 492, F.S.; Board of Veterinary Medicine, ch. 474, F.S.; Home
Inspection Services Licensing Program, part XV of ch. 468, F.S.; and Mold-related Services Licensing Program, part XVI of
ch. 468, F.S.
7
See s. 20.165(4)(b), F.S. Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board, created under part II of ch. 475, F.S., and Florida Real Estate
Commission, created under part I of ch. 475, F.S.
8
See s. 20.165(4)(c), F.S., which establishes the Board of Accountancy, created under ch. 473, F.S.
BILL: PCS/CS/SB 1032 (741924) Page 4
Sections 455.203 and 455.213, F.S., establish the DBPR’s general licensing authority, including
its authority to charge license fees and license renewal fees. Each board within the DBPR must
determine by rule the amount of license fees for each profession, based on estimates of the
required revenue to implement the regulatory laws affecting the profession.9 When a person is
authorized to engage in a profession or occupation in Florida, the DBPR issues a “permit,
registration, certificate, or license” to the licensee.10
In Fiscal Year 2019-2020, there were 468,949 active licensees in the Division of Professions.11
Denial of Licensure
Chapter 455, F.S., provides the general powers of the DBPR and sets forth the procedural and
administrative framework for all of the professional boards housed under the DBPR as well as
the Divisions of Certified Public Accounting, Professions, Real Estate, and Regulation.12
The DBPR may regulate professions “only for the preservation of the health, safety, and welfare
of the public under the police powers of the state.”13 Regulation is required when:
 The potential for harming or endangering public health, safety, and welfare is recognizable
and outweighs any anticompetitive impact that may result;
 The public is not effectively protected by other state statutes, local ordinances, federal
legislation, or other means; and
 Less restrictive means of regulation are not available.14
However, “neither the department nor any board may create a regulation that has an
unreasonable effect on job creation or job retention,” or a regulation that unreasonably restricts
the ability of those who desire to engage in a profession or occupation to find employment.15
The DBPR or a pertinent regulatory board may deny an application for licensure based on the
grounds set forth in s. 455.227(1), F.S., or in the profession’s practice act.16 Specifically, the
DBPR or regulatory board may deny a licensure application for any person who was:
…convicted or found guilty of, or entering a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to,
regardless of adjudication, a crime in any jurisdiction which relates to the practice of,
or the ability to practice, a licensee’s profession.17 (Emphasis added.)
9
Section 455.219(1), F.S.
10
Section 455.01(4) and (5), F.S.
11
See Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Professions, Division of Certified Public Accounting,
Division of Real Estate, and Division of Regulation, Annual Report, Fiscal Year 2019-2020, p. 20, available at
http://www.myfloridalicense.com/DBPR/os/documents/DivisionAnnualReport_FY1920.pdf (last visited March 2, 2021).
12
See ss. 455.01(6) and 455.203, F.S. The DBPR must also provide legal counsel for boards within the DBPR by contracting
with the Department of Legal Affairs, by retaining private counsel, or by providing DBPR staff counsel. See s. 455.221(1),
F.S.
13
Section 455.201(2), F.S.
14
Section 455.201(2), F.S.
15
Section 455.201(4)(b), F.S.
16
Section 455.227(2), F.S.
17
Section 455.227(1)(c), F.S.
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Section 455.227, F.S., does not specifically require the DBPR or the applicable regulatory board
to consider the passage of time since the disqualifying criminal offense before denying or
granting a license.
Licensing and Criminal Background for Certain Professions
However, in 2019, the Legislature created a new process for reviewing the criminal history of
applicants for specified professions or occupations regulated by the DBPR.18 The new process
applies to:
 Barbers;
 Cosmetologists and cosmetology specialists (i.e. hair braiders, hair wrappers, and body
wrappers);
 Construction professionals, including:
o Air-conditioning contractors;
o Electrical contractors;
o Mechanical contractors;
o Plumbing contractors;
o Pollutant storage systems contractors;
o Roofing contractors;
o Septic tank contractors;
o Sheet metal contractors;
o Solar contractors;
o Swimming pool and spa contractors;
o Underground utility and excavation contractors; and
o Other specialty contractors; or
 Any other profession for which the DBPR issues a license, provided the profession is offered
to prisoners in any correctional institution or correctional facility as a vocational training or
through an industry certification program.19
Under this process, a prisoner may apply for a license before he or she is lawfully released from
confinement or supervision.20 The application may not be denied solely on the basis of the
applicant’s current confinement or supervision.
The DBPR may not deny a license for one of the above-listed occupations based on a conviction
for a crime more than five years before the date of application.21 However, a board may deny a
license if the applicant’s criminal history includes a crime listed in s. 775.21(4)(a)1., F.S.,
relating to sexual predator crimes, or s. 776.08, F.S., relating to forcible felonies, if such criminal
history relates to the practice of the applicable profession.22 A regulatory board may also
consider the criminal history of an applicant if such criminal history is found to relate to good
moral character.23
18
Chapter 2019-167, L.O.F., codified at s. 455.213(3), F.S.
19
Section 455.213(3)(a), F.S.
20
Section 455.213.(3)(c), F.S.
21
Section 455.213(3)(b)1., F.S. “Conviction” means a determination of guilt that is the result of a plea or trial, regardless of
whether adjudication is withheld.
22
Id.
23
Section 455.213(3)(b) 2., F.S.
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Education for State Prisoners
Florida law establishes a Correctional Education Program (CEP) under the Department of
Corrections (DOC), which must be composed of the educational facilities and services of all
institutions, and facilities housing inmates operated by the DOC.24 The duties of the CEP
include, but are not limited to:
 Developing guidelines for collecting education-related information during the inmate
reception process and for disseminating such information to the classification staff of the
DOC.25
 Approving educational programs of the appropriate levels and types in the correctional
institutions and developing procedures for the admission of inmate students into such
programs.26
 Entering into agreements with public or private school districts, entities, community colleges,
junior colleges, colleges, or universities as may be deemed appropriate for the purpose of
carrying out the CEP duties.27
 Ensuring that such local agreements require minimum performance standards and standards
for measurable objectives, in accordance with established Department of Education
standards.28
 Developing and maintaining complete and reliable statistics on the number of high school
equivalency diplomas and vocational certificates issued by each institution