The Florida Senate

¹400.5572  Background screening.--

(1)(a)  Level 2 background screening must be conducted on each of the following persons, who shall be considered employees for the purposes of conducting screening under chapter 435:

1.  The adult day care center owner if an individual, the operator, and the financial officer.

2.  An officer or board member if the owner of the adult day care center is a firm, corporation, partnership, or association, or any person owning 5 percent or more of the facility, if the agency has probable cause to believe that such person has been convicted of any offense prohibited by s. 435.04. For each officer, board member, or person owning 5 percent or more who has been convicted of any such offense, the facility shall submit to the agency a description and explanation of the conviction at the time of license application. This subparagraph does not apply to a board member of a not-for-profit corporation or organization if the board member serves solely in a voluntary capacity, does not regularly take part in the day-to-day operational decisions of the corporation or organization, receives no remuneration for his or her services, and has no financial interest and has no family members with a financial interest in the corporation or organization, provided that the board member and facility submit a statement affirming that the board member's relationship to the facility satisfies the requirements of this subparagraph.

(b)  Proof of compliance with level 2 screening standards which has been submitted within the previous 5 years to meet any facility or professional licensure requirements of the agency or the Department of Health satisfies the requirements of this subsection.

(c)  The agency may grant a provisional license to an adult day care center applying for an initial license when each individual required by this subsection to undergo screening has completed the Department of Law Enforcement background check, but has not yet received results from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, or when a request for an exemption from disqualification has been submitted to the agency pursuant to s. 435.07, but a response has not been issued.

(2)  The owner or administrator of an adult day care center must conduct level 1 background screening as set forth in chapter 435 on all employees hired on or after October 1, 1998, who provide basic services or supportive and optional services to the participants. Such persons satisfy this requirement if:

(a)  Proof of compliance with level 1 screening requirements obtained to meet any professional license requirements in this state is provided and accompanied, under penalty of perjury, by a copy of the person's current professional license and an affidavit of current compliance with the background screening requirements.

(b)  The person required to be screened has been continuously employed, without a breach in service that exceeds 180 days, in the same type of occupation for which the person is seeking employment and provides proof of compliance with the level 1 screening requirement which is no more than 2 years old. Proof of compliance must be provided directly from one employer or contractor to another, and not from the person screened. Upon request, a copy of screening results shall be provided to the person screened by the employer retaining documentation of the screening.

(c)  The person required to be screened is employed by a corporation or business entity or related corporation or business entity that owns, operates, or manages more than one facility or agency licensed under this chapter, and for whom a level 1 screening was conducted by the corporation or business entity as a condition of initial or continued employment.

History.--ss. 53, 71, ch. 98-171; s. 83, ch. 2000-349.

¹Note.--Section 71(1), ch. 98-171, provides that "[t]he provisions of this act which require an applicant for licensure, certification, or registration to undergo background screening shall stand repealed on June 30, 2001, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by this legislature."