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Nineteenth Judicial Circuit of Florida CYNTHIA L. COX COUNTIES OF MARTIN, ST. LUCIE, CIRCUIT JUDGE INDIAN RIVER AND OKEECHOBEE 2000 — 16" Avenue, Suite 383 Vero Beach, FL 32960 coxc@circuitl 9.oro December 11, 2017 M Havely White Combe JUDICIAL ASSISTANT (772) 770-5231 FAX (772) 770-5335 whiteh a circuitl 9.ora RE: Award of the 2017/2018 Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Treatment Fund And Designation of Indian River County's Problem Solving Courts As A Chosen Program Recipient Backaround: Section 893.165, Florida Statutes, allows the Indian River County Board of County Commissioners to create the Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Trust Fund to be used for disbursing assistance grants on an annual basis to such alcohol and other drug abuse treatment or education programs. The Indian River County Board of County Commissioners established the Indian River County Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Trust Fund in section 305.07 of the Indian River County Code of Ordinances. The funds are derived from court assessments on drug offenses. The total amount in the trust fund as of December 6, 2017, is $250,063 and it accrues approximately $10,000 annually. In Fiscal Year 2016/2017, the Indian River County Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Trust Fund accrued $10,108 and to date in Fiscal Year 2017/2018, the Indian River County Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Trust Fund has accrued $712. History of Proarams: Indian River County's Drug Court currently has 44 participants and has graduated 304 since 2002. The Mental Health Court has 188 participants with 43 graduating since the program began in 2015. The Veterans Treatment Court currently has 7 participants and has graduated 16 since September 2013. The programs have expeditiously and efficiently moved people from jail into treatment programs without compromising public safety. They also isolate and focus upon defendants with substance abuse issues who need appropriate treatment. Drug addiction requires random and frequent testing to serve as a true deterrent, which can be costly to many, although the frequency decreases once they are involved in treatment and meetings. Many graduates have admitted that drug testing was the biggest deterrent to relapse. Many individual indigent defendants have not been able to participate in the problem solving courts because of the cost of substance abuse testing and treatment. All of the programs require that defendants test frequently at the Substance Awareness Center. The cost of drug testing is $30 per week (or $7-30 per test for some) or approximately $1500 per year per participant and drug treatment ranges from $50 per week for outpatient to $12,000 for inpatient drug treatment. The cost to 25 individuals for substance abuse treatment totaled over $70,000 in 2017. The participants are drug/alcohol tested at least twice monthly and up to five times per week. To date in the year 2017, the Substance Awareness Center has conducted over 4,000 tests for problem solving clients. Once awarded, these trust funds would be used to help offset the cost of indigent drug/alcohol screening and substance abuse treatment for the defendants participating in problem solving courts that cannot otherwise afford to participate and/or pay for their testing and/or treatment. 130