NCJ Number
180400
Date Published
December 1999
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This information brief provides an interim report on the Florida Department of Corrections' progress in its reorganization prior to the 2000 Florida legislative session.
Abstract
After being appointed the new secretary of the Department of Corrections in January 1999, Michael Moore concluded that the department was organized inefficiently and that its policies and practices were inconsistent. With Ch. 99-271, Laws of Florida, the legislature authorized Secretary Moore to reorganize the Department of Corrections within general parameters to address these concerns. This interim report describes the department's primary reorganization initiatives to date and identifies issues the secretary should address. The department's reorganization will shift the agency from a decentralized to a centralized organizational model. The goals of this reorganization are to standardize and consolidate operations across the State, increase efficiency, reduce costs, and refocus on the mission of public safety. Although the reorganization effort affects most department functions, this review identifies five primary components of reorganization: reconfiguring operational regions and the central office; establishing service centers to centralize business, personnel, and other support functions; realigning staff; redefining specific prison missions and the populations assigned to those prisons; and consolidating accounting. This review recommends that the secretary balance centralized control with site-based decision making so that local administrators are not paralyzed by "bottlenecks" and delays. Increased communication between department managers and stakeholders would improve the reorganization process and enhance the potential for success. The Department of Corrections' response to this review is included in this report.