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HB0831 • 2026

Problem-solving Court Reports

Problem-solving Court Reports

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Cassel
Last action
2026-03-10
Official status
House - Laid on Table, refer to CS/SB 820
Effective date
2026-07-01

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not specify whether the bill ensures uniformity in data across all problem-solving court programs.

Problem-Solving Court Reports

This bill requires problem-solving court reports to include specific data and changes the frequency of reporting for mental health and drug treatment-based programs.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires problem-solving courts to report detailed information about participants, including their offenses, compliance with treatment, completion status, and other relevant details.
  • Changes the requirement for mental health court programs to submit reports annually instead of quarterly.
  • Updates the reporting requirements for drug treatment-based court programs to be annual as well.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Problem-solving courts in Florida
  • The Office of the State Courts Administrator

Terms To Know

Problem-Solving Court Reports
Reports that detail information about participants and outcomes for problem-solving court programs.
Aggregate Data
Combined data from multiple sources or cases, providing a summary of trends or patterns.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify the exact format or method for submitting these reports.
  • It is unclear how additional funding will be provided to support the increased reporting requirements.

Bill History

  1. 2026-03-10 House

    • Laid on Table, refer to CS/SB 820

  2. 2026-01-27 House

    • Favorable by Judiciary Committee • Reported out of Judiciary Committee • Bill released to House Calendar • Added to Second Reading Calendar

  3. 2026-01-23 House

    • Added to Judiciary Committee agenda

  4. 2026-01-20 House

    • Favorable by Criminal Justice Subcommittee • Reported out of Criminal Justice Subcommittee • Now in Judiciary Committee

  5. 2026-01-15 House

    • Added to Criminal Justice Subcommittee agenda

  6. 2026-01-13 House

    • 1st Reading (Original Filed Version)

  7. 2026-01-05 House

    • Referred to Criminal Justice Subcommittee • Referred to Judiciary Committee • Now in Criminal Justice Subcommittee

  8. 2025-12-18 House

    • Filed

Official Summary Text

Problem-solving Court Reports; Requires specified data to be included in problem-solving court reports; revises frequency with which mental health & treatment-based drug court program reports must be reported to Office of State Courts Administrator.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HB 831 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb831-00
Page 1 of 4
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to problem-solving court reports; 2
amending s. 43.51, F.S.; requiring specified data to 3
be included in problem-solving court reports; amending 4
ss. 394.47892 and 397.334, F.S.; conforming provisions 5
to changes made by the act; revising the frequency 6
with which mental health and treatment-based drug 7
court program reports, respectively, must be reported 8
to the Office of the State Courts Administrator; 9
providing an effective date. 10
11
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 12
13
Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 43.51, Florida 14
Statutes, is amended to read: 15
43.51 Problem-solving court reports.— 16
(1) The Office of the State Courts Administrator shall 17
provide an annual report to the President of the Senate and the 18
Speaker of the House of Representatives which details the number 19
of participants in each problem-solving court for each fiscal 20
year the court has been operating and the types of services 21
provided, identifies each source of funding for each court 22
during each fiscal year, and provides information on the 23
performance of each court based upon outcome measures 24
established by the courts. The report shall, at a minimum, 25

HB 831 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb831-00
Page 2 of 4
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

include uniform aggregate data regarding: 26
(a) The number of participants by court type. 27
(b) Participant primary offenses that resulted in the 28
court program referral or sentence, treatment compliance, 29
completion status and reasons for failure to complete, offenses 30
committed during treatment and the sanctions imposed, frequency 31
of court appearances, and units of service. 32
(c) Participant recidivism rate by category, including new 33
arrests, new adjudications, and new felony adjudications. 34
(d) Participant changes in the status of employment, 35
housing, and child custody during program participation. 36
(e) Other uniform information that demonstrates the 37
effectiveness of the program. 38
Section 2. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section 39
394.47892, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 40
394.47892 Mental health court programs.— 41
(5) 42
(b) Each mental health court program shall collect 43
sufficient client-level data and programmatic information for 44
purposes of program evaluation under s. 43.51. Client-level data 45
includes primary offenses that resulted in the mental health 46
court program referral or sentence, treatment compliance, 47
completion status and reasons for failure to complete, offenses 48
committed during treatment and the sanctions imposed, frequency 49
of court appearances, and units of service. Programmatic 50

HB 831 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb831-00
Page 3 of 4
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

information includes referral and screening procedures, 51
eligibility criteria, type and duration of treatment offered, 52
and residential treatment resources. The programmatic 53
information and aggregate data on the number of mental health 54
court program admissions and terminations by type of termination 55
shall be reported at least quarterly annually by each mental 56
health court program to the Office of the State Courts 57
Administrator. 58
Section 3. Paragraph (b) of subsection (6) of section 59
397.334, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 60
397.334 Treatment-based drug court programs.— 61
(6) 62
(b) Each treatment-based drug court program shall collect 63
sufficient client-level data and programmatic information for 64
purposes of program evaluation under s. 43.51. Client-level data 65
includes primary offenses that resulted in the treatment-based 66
drug court program referral or sentence, treatment compliance, 67
completion status and reasons for failure to complete, offenses 68
committed during treatment and the sanctions imposed, frequency 69
of court appearances, and units of service. Programmatic 70
information includes referral and screening procedures, 71
eligibility criteria, type and duration of treatment offered, 72
and residential treatment resources. Each treatment-based drug 73
court program must annually report at least quarterly the 74
programmatic information and aggregate data on the number of 75

HB 831 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb831-00
Page 4 of 4
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

treatment-based drug court program admissions and terminations 76
by type of termination to the Office of the State Courts 77
Administrator. 78
Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 79