The purpose of the Department of Corrections is to protect the public through the incarceration and supervision of offenders and to rehabilitate offenders through the application of work, programs, and services.

The department's activities include the following.

• Institutions is responsible for the supervision of four institutional regions throughout the state and operational management of all correctional institutions. The major activities of this program involve maintaining security, inmate classification, drug testing, food service, production, providing professional development opportunities for inmates, and unannounced security and classification audits of all facilities to ensure that operations of all institutions meet required security standards.  
• Programs and Re-Entry provides in-prison programming such as pro-social skills, academic, career, and technical education, and substance use treatment that assists with re-integration into the community. The department's chaplaincy services provide for the spiritual needs of inmates and coordinates religious education. The community transition team partners with industry, re-entry service, workforce development, and education providers as well as trade and professional associations to facilitate re-entry services and employment for inmates returning to the community and offenders under community supervision.
• Health Services oversees the delivery of health care services in order to provide inmates with a constitutional standard of care. The department contracts with Centurion of Florida, LLC, to provide comprehensive inmate medical, mental health, and dental services statewide under a managed care model. Department staff provide statewide functions such as technical assistance, training, policy development, grievance appeals, clinical-legal issues, contract management and monitoring, budget development and tracking, analytics, and partnership development.
• Probation Services monitors and supervises adult offenders through probation offices across the state. This includes offenders released from prison on parole, conditional release, or conditional medical release and those placed on court ordered supervision including regular probation, administrative probation, drug offender probation, sex offender probation, and community control. Aiming to protect the community by enforcing standard conditions of supervision stipulated by statute, as well as special conditions imposed by the court or sentencing authority, these conditions can include victim restitution, substance abuse or mental health treatment programs, and other sanctions or restrictions. Correctional probation officers monitor offender compliance through contacts at their residences, employment sites, and other locations in the community and conduct investigations, including pre-sentence investigations, other state investigations, and violation reports. In addition, officers make appropriate referrals to assist the offender with resources available to complete their term of supervision successfully.

Yes, there are private prisons in Florida. Of the state’s 49 major correctional institutions, 7 are private. There are six private prisons housing male inmates: Bay Correctional Facility (Bay County), Blackwater River Correctional Facility (Santa Rosa County), Graceville Correctional Facility (Jackson County), Lake City Correctional Facility (Columbia County), Moore Haven Correctional Facility (Glades County), and South Bay Correctional Facility (Palm Beach County). The one private prison housing female inmates, Gadsden Correction Facility, is located in Gadsden County.

Previously overseen by the Florida Department of Management Services, the 2023 Legislature enacted Ch. 2023-268, Laws of Florida, to transfer all of the powers, duties, functions, records, personnel, property, and administrative authority and rules relating to private correctional prisons to the Department of Corrections.

Performance measures and standards for the department may be found in its Long Range Program Plan.

OPPAGA Reports and Presentations
A complete list of OPPAGA reports and presentations is available on our website.

Other Reports
Florida Department of Corrections, Statistics and Publications
Florida Prison Recidivism Report: Releases From 2009 to 2021, Florida Department of Corrections, 2024
Florida Criminal Punishment Code: Assessment and Analysis, Florida Department of Corrections, 2023
2023-2024 Regulatory Plan, Florida Department of Corrections, 2023
Comprehensive Correctional Master Plan, Florida Department of Corrections, 2018
A complete list of Florida Auditor General reports is available on its website.

Websites of Interest
American Correctional Association
American Probation and Parole Association
Correctional Peace Officers Foundation
Federal Bureau of Prisons

Chapters 944, 945, 946, 958, and 960 and s. 20.315, Florida Statutes

Florida Department of Corrections Contact Website
Florida Department of Corrections
501 South Calhoun Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2500
(850) 488-7052
Website