Budget Amendment ID: FY2015-S4-728

EHS 728

ASSIST (Addiction/Sobriety Solutions through Increased Substance Treatment) Act

Mr. Wolf moved that the proposed new text be amended moved that the bill be amended by inserting, after section 88, the following new section: -

“SECTION __. There is hereby established a special commission for the purposes of investigating and studying the development of criteria for mandated treatment or monitoring of nonviolent offenders with substance addictions and to expand effective, evidence based addiction treatment programs for nonviolent substance addicted offenders.

The commission shall consist of the court administrator or a designee, who shall serve as co-chair; the director of the bureau of substance abuse services or a designee, who shall serve as co-chair; the chief justice of the trial court or a designee; the attorney general or a designee; the secretary of public safety and security or a designee; the commissioner of the department of correction or a designee; the chair of the parole board or a designee; the commissioner of the department of probation or a designee; the chief counsel of the committee for public counsel services or a designee; the commissioner of the department of mental health or a designee; the secretary of the department of veterans' services or a designee; 2 members of the senate, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the senate president and 1 of whom shall be appointed by the senate minority leader; 2 members of the house of representatives, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the speaker of the house and 1 of whom shall be appointed by the house minority leader; the president of the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association or a designee; the president of the Massachusetts Bar Association or a designee; and 2 members appointed by the governor, 1 of whom shall be a substance addiction treatment expert and 1 of whom shall be a mental health treatment expert.

Such investigation and study shall include, but not be limited to: (a) an evaluation of the application and effectiveness of "Standards on Substance Abuse," approved by the justices of the supreme judicial court on April 28, 1998, and recommendations to improve and ensure the consistent application of the standards in the courts; (b) an evaluation and recommendations for improvement of specialty courts that address substance addictions, including current eligibility requirements or practices, availability of such courts and use of best practices in establishing quality of services; (c) the optimum number and estimated expansion costs associated with the drug courts necessary to meet the needs of the total annual number of nonviolent substance addicted offenders; (d) an evaluation of the number and type of nonviolent offenses committed by substance addicted defendants adjudicated in the commonwealth; (e) the development of a definition of nonviolent substance addicted offender; (f) an examination of best practices relative to specialty courts that deal with substance addicted offenders, both within the commonwealth and in other states; (g) an assessment of the quantity, quality and availability of effective, evidence based addiction treatment programs in the commonwealth; and (h) an assessment of the cost of expanding addiction treatment resources to meet the needs of the total annual number of nonviolent substance addicted offenders.

The commission shall submit its report and findings, along with any draft of legislation, to the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on the judiciary, the joint committee on public health, the joint committee on mental health and substance abuse, and the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate on or before December 31, 2014.”