The findings suggest that the Florida legislature was misguided in its decision to eliminate funding for the JASP if the goal of criminal justice policy is to maximize outcomes while minimizing costs. Stepwise regression analysis indicated that the youths in the community-based Juvenile Alternative Service Program (JASP) had lower rates of post-program completion recidivism and lower direct costs associated with recidivism than did youths in the other four diversion programs. The evaluation came about as a result of Florida legislature budget cuts that eliminated the community-based JASP in 2000 and replaced it with juvenile justice based diversion programs such as the Walker Plan and expanded arbitration programs that allow greater penetration into the juvenile justice system. This allowed for a comparison of the costs associated with participant recidivism across five different diversion programs. Data were drawn from the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice and included arrest history, current charges, and information on program participation and compliance. Participants were selected from December 1999 through May 2000 as they entered 1 of the 5 diversion programs: JASP (n=180), expanded arbitration (n=46), IDDS (n=105), Prodigy (n=74), and the Walker Plan (n=179). Future research should continue to compare the outcomes and costs associated with these programs by extending the follow-up period. Tables, figures, references, notes