The information is based on assessments of seven pilot community service restitution (CSR) projects funded under LEAA. Community service restitution involves offender's payment of service to the community rather than money payments to the victims. As practiced in the United States, CSR can be a sentencing option, a sentencing condition, a means for avoiding formal prosecution, a means for avoiding sentencing, or a means for bonding. The handbook discusses the legal issues arising from such an alternative program and presents information required for a thorough needs assessment as an initial step in project planning. Issues such as what types of clients to accept and at what point in the criminal processing to pursue referrals are examined. In addition, the handbook considers the advantages and disadvantages of the various types of administrative and managerial designs for a CSR program and identifies staff requirements. A discussion of the interactions between a CSR project, the offender, and the community examines such issues as intake processes, means of developing placement opportunities, and volunteer monitoring. Suggestions are made for case termination procedures and client support services. Finally, the handbook presents evaluation methods and discusses the role of evaluation in the overall credibility of a CSR project. Costs involved in running a CSR project are outlined, along with the means for calculating cost effectiveness. Each section consists of a series of questions followed by brief responses and, in most cases, longer discussions. Examples of CSR project forms, a directory of CSR projects, and adult community service legislation in the United States are appended. Tables and a selected bibliography of about 80 references are supplied. (Author abstract modified)