HB 645

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to community residential homes; amending
3	s. 393.501, F.S.; prohibiting certain rules adopted by the
4	Agency for Persons with Disabilities from restricting the
5	number of facilities designated as community residential
6	homes located within a planned residential community;
7	amending s. 419.001, F.S.; defining the term "planned
8	residential community"; providing that community
9	residential homes located within a planned residential
10	community may be contiguous to one another; providing an
11	effective date.
12
13	WHEREAS, individuals who have development disabilities have
14	the same rights and freedoms as every other citizen in the
15	United States, and
16	WHEREAS, the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill
17	of Rights Act of 2000, Pub. L. No. 106-402, found that
18	individuals who have developmental disabilities and their
19	families are the primary decisionmakers regarding the services
20	and supports such individuals and their families receive,
21	including choosing where the individuals live, and play
22	decisionmaking roles in policies and programs that affect the
23	lives of such individuals and their families, and
24	WHEREAS, individuals who have developmental disabilities
25	should be able to select a home with the same freedom of choice
26	as other United States citizens, and
27	WHEREAS, such selection should have no bearing on
28	eligibility for services or supports that an individual may
29	otherwise be entitled to receive, NOW, THEREFORE,
30
31	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
32
33	Section 1.  Subsection (2) of section 393.501, Florida
34	Statutes, is amended to read:
35	393.501  Rulemaking.-
36	(2)  Such rules must shall address the number of facilities
37	on a single lot or on adjacent lots, except that there is no
38	restriction on the number of facilities designated as community
39	residential homes located within a planned residential community
40	as those terms are defined in s. 419.001(1). In adopting rules,
41	an alternative living center and an independent living education
42	center, as described in s. 393.18, are shall be subject to the
43	provisions of s. 419.001, except that such centers are shall be
44	exempt from the 1,000-foot-radius requirement of s. 419.001(2)
45	if:
46	(a)  The centers are located on a site zoned in a manner
47	that permits all the components of a comprehensive transitional
48	education center to be located on the site; or
49	(b)  There are no more than three such centers within a
50	radius of 1,000 feet.
51	Section 2.  Subsection (1) of section 419.001, Florida
52	Statutes, is amended, present subsections (4) through (11) of
53	that section are redesignated as subsections (5) through (12),
54	respectively, and a new subsection (4) is added to that section,
55	to read:
56	419.001  Site selection of community residential homes.-
57	(1)  For the purposes of this section, the term following
58	definitions shall apply:
59	(a)  "Community residential home" means a dwelling unit
60	licensed to serve residents, as defined in paragraph (d), who
61	are clients of the Department of Elderly Affairs, the Agency for
62	Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Juvenile Justice,
63	or the Department of Children and Family Services or a dwelling
64	unit licensed by the Agency for Health Care Administration which
65	provides a living environment for 7 to 14 unrelated residents
66	who operate as the functional equivalent of a family, including
67	such supervision and care by supportive staff as may be
68	necessary to meet the physical, emotional, and social needs of
69	the residents.
70	(b)  "Licensing entity" or "licensing entities" means the
71	Department of Elderly Affairs, the Agency for Persons with
72	Disabilities, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department
73	of Children and Family Services, or the Agency for Health Care
74	Administration, all of which are authorized to license a
75	community residential home to serve residents, as defined in
76	paragraph (d).
77	(c)  "Local government" means a county as set forth in
78	chapter 7 or a municipality incorporated under the provisions of
79	chapter 165.
80	(d)  "Planned residential community" means a local
81	government-approved, planned unit development that is planned
82	and developed as a whole, is designed to serve the unique needs
83	of residents who have developmental disabilities, and may
84	include two or more community residential homes. For the
85	purposes of this paragraph, local government approval must be
86	based on criteria that includes, but is not limited to,
87	compliance with appropriate land use, zoning, and building
88	codes, but does not include proximity limitations based on the
89	type of residents anticipated to be living in the community.
90	(e)(d)  "Resident" means any of the following: a frail
91	elder as defined in s. 429.65; a person who has a handicap
92	physically disabled or handicapped person as defined in s.
93	760.22(7)(a); a developmentally disabled person who has a
94	developmental disability as defined in s. 393.063; a
95	nondangerous mentally ill person who has a mental illness as
96	defined in s. 394.455(18); or a child who is found to be
97	dependent as defined in s. 39.01 or s. 984.03, or a child in
98	need of services as defined in s. 984.03 or s. 985.03.
99	(f)(e)  "Sponsoring agency" means an agency or unit of
100	government, a profit or nonprofit agency, or any other person or
101	organization which intends to establish or operate a community
102	residential home.
103	(4)  Community residential homes, including homes of six or
104	fewer residents which would otherwise meet the definition of a
105	community residential home, which are located within a planned
106	residential community are not subject to the proximity
107	requirements of this section and may be contiguous to each
108	other.
109	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.