Cover memo for Senate Bill 194, December 9, 2003

2004 Legislative Initiatives: Cover Memo with Draft Bill Drug Treatment Bill Package (Craig Williams, Don Hogan) 12/9/03 Bill Status ® There are four parts of this package that are the product of a drug -treatment workgroup established several months ago, including DPSCS, DJS, DHMH (AJDAA), GOCCP, and staff from the Governor’s Office. The Governor should decide if these four components should be tied together in one bill or introduced in pieces or separately, e There is also an associated Executive Order with this package. It creates a new Substance Abuse Council, with new membership, authority, and duties. • Alan Friedman and Pete Luongo have been tapped by the workgroup to lead the public effort to recruit the support of the legal community, including judges, public defenders, states’ attorneys, and others. • Questions to be resolved: 1) Should the bill apply only to drug treatment and not alcohol treatment in order to avoid issues with the MADD mothers? The tentative decision was to leave alcohol treatment in the bill, but to consider omitting it or amending the bill if this appears to be a problem; and (2) The workgroup recommended providing funding for evaluation and treatment primarily by adding a $10 court cost in all criminal- cases, including nonincarcerable motor vehicle cases (including prepaid fines). In light of the Transportation Trust Fund and other budgetary issues;' is this a viable funding source? Elements of the Legislation (1) Requires the Parole Commission to consider the results of a drug and alcohol assessment when considering parole; . (2). Makes several changes to the law dealing with civil commitment of criminal defendants and inmates with drug and alcohol problems: (a) eliminates the ability of a court to commit a person to DHMH for evaluation or treatment. Any order.for evaluation or "treatment must be done in accordance with DHMH regulations and with the recommendation of DHMH;- (b) provides that the mechanism for ordering treatment is either as a condition of pretrial release or probation, not the separate civil commitment procedure currently allowed; and (c) supervision of a defendant under treatment is the duty of the appropriate pretrial release agency or the Division of Parole and Probation, and not by DHMH; (3) Creates a diversion program for criminal defendants. It allows a State’s Attorney to divert non-violent offenders who qualify to drug or alcohol treatment. Procedurally, a defendant would be given a stet with the requirement of drug or alcohol abuse treatment. The stet would be entered into the criminal and motor vehicle records and a defendant would be eligible-for this disposition only one time. There would be a $150- surcharge for this disposition, with the money going to the new Maryland Substance Abuse Fund under DHMH; (4) Creates the Maryland Substance Abuse Fund for the purpose of funding drug and alcohol evaluation and treatment for criminal defendants. The fund is to be funded by the $150 surcharge described in paragraph (3) above but primarily through a $10 additional court cost on all criminal cases, including nonincarcerable motor vehicle offenses (including prepaid fines).