The Florida Senate

1012.796  Complaints against teachers and administrators; procedure; penalties.--

(1)(a)  The Department of Education shall cause to be investigated expeditiously any complaint filed before it or otherwise called to its attention which, if legally sufficient, contains grounds for the revocation or suspension of a certificate or any other appropriate penalty as set forth in subsection (7). The complaint is legally sufficient if it contains the ultimate facts which show a violation has occurred as provided in s. 1012.795 The department may investigate or continue to investigate and take appropriate action on a complaint even though the original complainant withdraws the complaint or otherwise indicates a desire not to cause it to be investigated or prosecuted to completion. The department may investigate or continue to investigate and take action on a complaint filed against a person whose educator certificate has expired if the act or acts which are the basis for the complaint were allegedly committed while that person possessed an educator certificate.

(b)  When an investigation is undertaken, the department shall notify the certificateholder and the district school superintendent in the district in which the certificateholder is employed and shall inform the certificateholder of the substance of any complaint which has been filed against that certificateholder, unless the department determines that such notification would be detrimental to the investigation, in which case the department may withhold notification.

(c)  Each school district shall file in writing with the department all legally sufficient complaints within 30 days after the date on which subject matter of the complaint comes to the attention of the school district. The school district shall include all information relating to the complaint which is known to the school district at the time of filing. Each district school board shall develop policies and procedures to comply with this reporting requirement. The district school board policies and procedures shall include appropriate penalties for all personnel of the district school board for nonreporting and procedures for promptly informing the district school superintendent of each legally sufficient complaint. The district school superintendent is charged with knowledge of these policies and procedures. If the district school superintendent has knowledge of a legally sufficient complaint and does not report the complaint, or fails to enforce the policies and procedures of the district school board, and fails to comply with the requirements of this subsection, in addition to other actions against certificateholders authorized by law, the district school superintendent shall be subject to penalties as specified in s. 1001.51(13). This paragraph does not limit or restrict the power and duty of the department to investigate complaints as provided in paragraphs (a) and (b), regardless of the school district's untimely filing, or failure to file, complaints and followup reports.

(2)  The Commissioner of Education shall develop job specifications for investigative personnel employed by the department. Such specifications shall be substantially equivalent to or greater than those job specifications of investigative personnel employed by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The department may contract with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation for investigations. No person who is responsible for conducting an investigation of a teacher or administrator may prosecute the same case. The department general counsel or members of that staff may conduct prosecutions under this section.

(3)  The department staff shall advise the commissioner concerning the findings of the investigation. The department general counsel or members of that staff shall review the investigation and advise the commissioner concerning probable cause or lack thereof. The determination of probable cause shall be made by the commissioner. The commissioner shall provide an opportunity for a conference, if requested, prior to determining probable cause. The commissioner may enter into deferred prosecution agreements in lieu of finding probable cause when in his or her judgment such agreements would be in the best interests of the department, the certificateholder, and the public. Such deferred prosecution agreements shall become effective when filed with the clerk of the Education Practices Commission. However, a deferred prosecution agreement shall not be entered into where there is probable cause to believe that a felony or an act of moral turpitude has occurred. Upon finding no probable cause, the commissioner shall dismiss the complaint.

(4)  The complaint and all information obtained pursuant to the investigation by the department shall be confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) until the conclusion of the preliminary investigation of the complaint, until such time as the preliminary investigation ceases to be active, or until such time as otherwise provided by s. 1012.798(6). However, the complaint and all material assembled during the investigation may be inspected and copied by the certificateholder under investigation, or the certificateholder's designee, after the investigation is concluded, but prior to the determination of probable cause by the commissioner. If the preliminary investigation is concluded with the finding that there is no probable cause to proceed, the complaint and information shall be open thereafter to inspection pursuant to s. 119.07(1). If the preliminary investigation is concluded with the finding that there is probable cause to proceed and a complaint is filed pursuant to subsection (6), the complaint and information shall be open thereafter to inspection pursuant to s. 119.07(1). If the preliminary investigation ceases to be active, the complaint and all such material shall be open thereafter to inspection pursuant to s. 119.07(1), except as otherwise provided pursuant to s. 1012.798(6). For the purpose of this subsection, a preliminary investigation shall be considered active as long as it is continuing with a reasonable, good faith anticipation that an administrative finding will be made in the foreseeable future.

(5)  When deemed necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of a minor student, the district school superintendent in consultation with the school principal may, and upon the request of the Commissioner of Education shall, temporarily suspend a certificateholder from the certificateholder's regularly assigned duties, with pay, and reassign the suspended certificateholder to a position that does not require direct contact with students in the district school system. Such suspension shall continue until the completion of the proceedings and the determination of sanctions, if any, pursuant to this section and s. 1012.795

(6)  Upon the finding of probable cause, the commissioner shall file a formal complaint and prosecute the complaint pursuant to the provisions of chapter 120. An administrative law judge shall be assigned by the Division of Administrative Hearings of the Department of Management Services to hear the complaint if there are disputed issues of material fact. The administrative law judge shall make recommendations in accordance with the provisions of subsection (7) to the appropriate Education Practices Commission panel which shall conduct a formal review of such recommendations and other pertinent information and issue a final order. The commission shall consult with its legal counsel prior to issuance of a final order.

(7)  A panel of the commission shall enter a final order either dismissing the complaint or imposing one or more of the following penalties:

(a)  Denial of an application for a teaching certificate or for an administrative or supervisory endorsement on a teaching certificate. The denial may provide that the applicant may not reapply for certification, and that the department may refuse to consider that applicant's application, for a specified period of time or permanently.

(b)  Revocation or suspension of a certificate.

(c)  Imposition of an administrative fine not to exceed $2,000 for each count or separate offense.

(d)  Placement of the teacher, administrator, or supervisor on probation for a period of time and subject to such conditions as the commission may specify, including requiring the certified teacher, administrator, or supervisor to complete additional appropriate college courses or work with another certified educator, with the administrative costs of monitoring the probation assessed to the educator placed on probation.

(e)  Restriction of the authorized scope of practice of the teacher, administrator, or supervisor.

(f)  Reprimand of the teacher, administrator, or supervisor in writing, with a copy to be placed in the certification file of such person.

(g)  Imposition of an administrative sanction, upon a person whose teaching certificate has expired, for an act or acts committed while that person possessed a teaching certificate or an expired certificate subject to late renewal, which sanction bars that person from applying for a new certificate for a period of 10 years or less, or permanently.

(8)  Violations of the provisions of probation shall result in an order to show cause issued by the clerk of the Education Practices Commission. Upon failure of the probationer, at the time and place stated in the order, to show cause satisfactorily to the Education Practices Commission why a penalty for violating probation should not be imposed, the Education Practices Commission shall impose whatever penalty is appropriate as established in s. 1012.795(6). Any probation period will be tolled when an order to show cause has been issued until the issue is resolved by the Education Practices Commission.

(9)  All moneys collected by, or awarded to, the commission as fees, fines, penalties, or costs shall be deposited into the Educational Certification and Service Trust Fund pursuant to s. 1012.59

History.--s. 758, ch. 2002-387.