The TaxWatch Research Blog

Florida Boys and Girls Clubs (FBGC) participants demonstrate significant differences in educational and juvenile justice outcomes versus similar peers who do not take advantage of the FBGC programs, according to this Special Report.

This Report includes a recap of the 2012 Justice Summit in Florida, as well as three pre-meeting recaps from the run up to the Summit.

"A joint project between TaxWatch and Associated Industries of Florida, the poll shows overwhelming support from more than 600 Republican likely voters for Smart Justice reforms. "

Diverting juvenile offenders from the traditional juvenile justice model is paying big dividends in public safety and savings. This report shows how some counties are going about this and why others should create their own civil citation programs.

Florida's prison population is growing while public safety is diminishing. This report outlines the reasons for this discrepancy and shows how other states are dealing with similar issues.

"Many current correctional systems operate under policy decisions made decades ago, a leading factor in persistently high recidivism rates. This report shows how private sector involvement could be the key to improved inmate outcomes. "

Florida's incarceration of children is excessively high and is actually making citizens more vulnerable. This report offers some proven paths toward improving the system.

Civil legal aid programs in Florida provide a broad array of legal services to Floridians who cannot afford to pay for legal representation. This report calculates the economic impact that the provision of civil legal services has on the Florida economy. In addition to calculating the effect of the existing program in 2008, TaxWatch also estimates the effect of expanding the program to include the cases that were turned away for lack of resources.

"This Special Report examines the court system's cost efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, accountability, and related issues. Among the findings: cost efficiency standards could result in cost savings of between $34 million and $140 million. "