Senate Bill 2524c1

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524

    By the Committee on Commerce and Economic Opportunities and
    Senators Harris and Turner




    310-1933-98

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the WAGES Program; amending

  3         s. 414.026, F.S.; requiring that the WAGES

  4         Program State Board of Directors approve any

  5         WAGES-related proposed administrative rules;

  6         requiring collaboration with the WAGES State

  7         Board concerning other actions by the Workforce

  8         Development Board of Enterprise Florida, Inc.,

  9         and state agencies; extending the existence of

10         the WAGES Program State Board of Directors;

11         allowing the Governor to designate the WAGES

12         Program State Board of Directors as a nonprofit

13         corporation; providing requirements; amending

14         s. 414.028, F.S.; revising requirements for a

15         member of a local WAGES coalition in the case

16         of a conflict of interest; providing

17         requirements for disclosing any such conflict;

18         providing for certain nonvoting members to be

19         appointed to a local coalition; requiring a

20         local coalition to deliver certain services

21         under the WAGES Program; providing for staff

22         support for local coalitions; amending s.

23         414.065, F.S.; deleting provisions that require

24         an employer to repay certain supplements or

25         incentives under specified circumstances;

26         creating a WAGES training bonus to be paid to

27         an employer who hires certain program

28         participants; providing protection for current

29         employees; amending s. 414.105, F.S.; providing

30         for eligibility for extended temporary cash

31         assistance under specified circumstances;

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
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  1         providing that an individual who cares for a

  2         disabled family member is exempt from certain

  3         time limitations; providing legislative intent

  4         with respect to encouraging the employment of

  5         participants in the WAGES Program; requiring

  6         the Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic

  7         Development to certify to the President of the

  8         Senate and the Speaker of the House of

  9         Representatives the amount of taxes and the

10         economic benefit generated by the restaurant

11         industry from employing WAGES participants and

12         to add that amount to the total amount of

13         certain beverage taxes and penalties paid

14         during a specified calendar year; providing for

15         the repeal of s. 561.501, F.S., relating to the

16         surcharge on the sale of alcoholic beverages,

17         if the total amount of the surcharge exceeds a

18         specified figure; providing an effective date.

19

20  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

21

22         Section 1.  Present subsection (4) of section 414.026,

23  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (6) and

24  amended, and new subsections (4) and (5) are added to that

25  section, to read:

26         414.026  WAGES Program State Board of Directors.--

27         (4)  The WAGES Program State Board of Directors must

28  approve the WAGES State Plan, the operating budget and any

29  amendments thereto, and any WAGES-related proposed

30  administrative rules. In addition, state agencies charged by

31  law with implementation of the WAGES Program and the Workforce

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
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  1  Development Board of Enterprise Florida, Inc., shall

  2  collaborate with the staff of the WAGES Program State Board of

  3  Directors on all WAGES-related policies, requests for

  4  proposals, and related directives.

  5         (5)(a)  The Governor, by executive order, may designate

  6  the WAGES Program State Board of Directors as a nonprofit

  7  corporation for the purpose of receiving federal funds and

  8  providing oversight and maintenance to the WAGES Program and

  9  in administering the State Plans for Aid and Services to Needy

10  Families with Children under 42 U.S.C. s. 602, as amended. The

11  nonprofit corporation shall be known as WAGES, Inc., and may,

12  by executive order, be designated as the state agency required

13  by 42 U.S.C. s. 602(a)(3).

14         (b)  The executive order designating the nonprofit

15  corporation must include provisions for the governance and

16  organizational structure of the corporation which are

17  consistent with 42 U.S.C. s. 602(a)(5).

18         (c)  The nonprofit corporation shall be organized under

19  chapter 617 and shall possess all the powers granted by that

20  chapter.

21         (d)  The designated nonprofit corporation is eligible

22  to use the state communications system in accordance with s.

23  282.105(3).

24         (e)  Pursuant to the applicable provisions of chapter

25  284, the Division of Risk Management of the Department of

26  Insurance may insure the nonprofit corporation under the same

27  general terms and conditions as other nonprofit, statutory

28  corporations.

29         (f)  All departments, officers, agencies, coalitions,

30  and institutions of the state shall cooperate with the

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
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  1  designated nonprofit corporation in the performance of its

  2  duties.

  3         (g)  The designated nonprofit corporation shall make

  4  provisions for an annual postaudit of its financial accounts

  5  by an independent certified public accountant. The annual

  6  audit shall be submitted to the Executive Office of the

  7  Governor for review.

  8         (h)  WAGES, Inc., shall make all arrangements and

  9  fulfill all legal conditions to become a nonprofit

10  corporation.

11         (i)  The nonprofit corporation shall make available to

12  the public, upon request, copies of 42 U.S.C. s. 602, as

13  amended; applicable state laws; and any executive orders

14  establishing WAGES, Inc.

15         (j)  The nonprofit corporation is subject to the

16  provisions of chapter 119, relating to public records, and

17  those provisions of chapter 286 relating to public meetings

18  and records.

19         (k)  The nonprofit corporation is authorized to hire an

20  executive director and appropriate staff. The nonprofit

21  corporation shall annually, by February 1, provide the

22  Legislature with a list of staff and salaries.

23         (6)(4)  This section expires June 30, 2002 1999, and

24  shall be reviewed by the Legislature prior to that date. In

25  its review, the Legislature shall assess the status of the

26  WAGES Program and shall determine if the responsibility for

27  administering the program should be transferred to other state

28  agencies.

29         Section 2.  Section 414.028, Florida Statutes, is

30  amended to read:

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
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  1         414.028  Local WAGES coalitions.--The WAGES Program

  2  State Board of Directors shall create and charter local WAGES

  3  coalitions to plan and coordinate the delivery of services

  4  under the WAGES Program at the local level. The boundaries of

  5  the service area for a local WAGES coalition shall conform to

  6  the boundaries of the service area for the regional workforce

  7  development board established under the Enterprise Florida

  8  workforce development board. The local delivery of services

  9  under the WAGES Program shall be coordinated, to the maximum

10  extent possible, with the local services and activities of the

11  local service providers designated by the regional workforce

12  development boards.

13         (1)(a)  Each local WAGES coalition must have a minimum

14  of 11 members, of which at least one-half must be from the

15  business community. The composition of the coalition

16  membership must generally reflect the racial, gender, and

17  ethnic diversity of the community as a whole. All members

18  shall be appointed to 3-year terms. The membership of each

19  coalition must include:

20         1.  Representatives of the principal entities that

21  provide funding for the employment, education, training, and

22  social service programs that are operated in the service area,

23  including, but not limited to, representatives of local

24  government, the regional workforce development board, and the

25  United Way.

26         2.  A representative of the health and human services

27  board.

28         3.  A representative of a community development board.

29         4.  Three representatives of the business community who

30  represent a diversity of sizes of businesses.

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
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  1         5.  Representatives of other local planning,

  2  coordinating, or service-delivery entities.

  3         6.  A representative of a grassroots community or

  4  economic development organization that serves the poor of the

  5  community.

  6         (b)  A person may be a member of a local WAGES

  7  coalition or a combined WAGES coalition as provided in

  8  subsection (2) regardless of whether the member, or an

  9  organization represented by a member, could benefit

10  financially from transactions of the coalition. However, if

11  the coalition enters into a contract with an organization or

12  individual represented on the coalition, the contract must be

13  approved by a two-thirds vote of the entire board, and the

14  board member who could benefit financially from the

15  transaction must abstain from voting. A board member must

16  disclose any such conflict in a manner that is approved by the

17  WAGES Program State Board of Directors and is consistent with

18  the procedures outlined in s. 112.3143. A representative of an

19  agency or entity that could benefit financially from funds

20  appropriated under the WAGES Program may not be a member of a

21  local WAGES coalition.

22         (c)  A member of the board of a public or private

23  educational institution may not serve as a member of a local

24  WAGES coalition.

25         (d)  A representative of any county or municipal

26  governing body that elects to provide services through the

27  local WAGES coalition shall be an ex officio, nonvoting member

28  of the coalition.

29         (e)  A representative of a county health department or

30  a representative of a healthy start coalition shall serve as

31  an ex officio, nonvoting member of the coalition.

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
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  1         (f)  This subsection does not prevent a local WAGES

  2  coalition from extending regular, voting membership to not

  3  more than one representative of a county health department and

  4  not more than one representative of a healthy start coalition.

  5         (2)  A local WAGES coalition and a regional workforce

  6  development board may be combined into one board if the

  7  membership complies with subsection (1), and if the membership

  8  of the combined board meets the requirements of Pub. L. No.

  9  97-300, the federal Job Training Partnership Act, as amended,

10  and with any law delineating the membership requirements for

11  the regional workforce development boards. Notwithstanding

12  paragraph (1)(b), in a region in which the duties of the two

13  boards are combined, a person may be a member of the WAGES

14  coalition even if the member, or the member's principal, could

15  benefit financially from transactions of the coalition.

16  However, members must recuse themselves from voting on all

17  matters from which they or their principals could benefit

18  financially. Failure to recuse on any such vote will

19  constitute grounds for immediate removal from the local WAGES

20  coalition.

21         (3)  The statewide implementation plan prepared by the

22  WAGES Program State Board of Directors shall prescribe and

23  publish the process for chartering the local WAGES coalitions.

24         (4)  Each local WAGES coalition shall perform the

25  planning, coordination, and oversight functions specified in

26  the statewide implementation plan, including, but not limited

27  to:

28         (a)  Developing a program and financial plan to achieve

29  the performance outcomes specified by the WAGES Program State

30  Board of Directors for current and potential program

31  participants in the service area. The plan must reflect the

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  1  needs of service areas for seed money to create programs that

  2  assist children of WAGES participants.

  3         (b)  Developing a funding strategy to implement the

  4  program and financial plan which incorporates resources from

  5  all principal funding sources.

  6         (c)  Identifying employment, service, and support

  7  resources in the community which may be used to fulfill the

  8  performance outcomes of the WAGES Program.

  9         (d)  In cooperation with the regional workforce

10  development board, coordinating the implementation of one-stop

11  career centers.

12         (e)  Advising the Department of Children and Family

13  Services and the Department of Labor and Employment Security

14  with respect to the competitive procurement of services under

15  the WAGES Program.

16         (f)  Selecting an entity to administer the program and

17  financial plan, such as a unit of a political subdivision

18  within the service area, a not-for-profit private organization

19  or corporation, or any other entity agreed upon by the local

20  WAGES coalition.

21         (5)  By October 1, 1998, local WAGES coalitions shall

22  deliver the full continuum of services provided under the

23  WAGES Program, including services that are provided at the

24  point of application. However, local WAGES coalitions may not

25  determine an individual's eligibility for temporary cash

26  assistance. The local WAGES coalitions shall develop a

27  transition plan to be approved by the WAGES Program State

28  Board of Directors.

29         (6)(5)  The WAGES Program State Board of Directors may

30  not approve the program and financial plan of a local

31  coalition unless the plan provides a teen pregnancy prevention

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  1  component that includes, but is not necessarily limited to, a

  2  plan for implementing the Florida Education Now and Babies

  3  Later (ENABL) program under s. 411.242 and the Teen Pregnancy

  4  Prevention Community Initiative within each county segment of

  5  the service area in which the teen childhood birth rate is

  6  higher than the state average. Each local WAGES coalition is

  7  authorized to fund community-based welfare prevention and

  8  reduction initiatives that increase the support provided by

  9  noncustodial parents to their welfare-dependent children and

10  are consistent with program and financial guidelines developed

11  by the WAGES Program State Board of Directors and the

12  Commission on Responsible Fatherhood. These initiatives may

13  include, but are not limited to, improved paternity

14  establishment, work activities for noncustodial parents, and

15  programs aimed at decreasing out-of-wedlock pregnancies,

16  encouraging the involvement of fathers with their children,

17  and increasing child-support payments.

18         (7)(6)  At the option of the local WAGES coalition,

19  local employees of the department and the Department of Labor

20  and Employment Security shall provide staff support for the

21  local WAGES coalitions. At the option of the local WAGES

22  coalition, Staff support may be provided by another agency, or

23  entity, or by contract if it can be provided at no cost to the

24  state and if the support is not provided by an agency or other

25  entity that could benefit financially from funds appropriated

26  to implement the WAGES Program.

27         (8)(7)  There shall be no liability on the part of, and

28  no cause of action of any nature shall arise against, any

29  member of a local WAGES coalition or its employees or agents

30  for any lawful action taken by them in the performance of

31  their powers and duties under this section and s. 414.029.

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    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
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  1         Section 3.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section

  2  414.065, Florida Statutes, is amended and subsection (12) is

  3  added to that section to read:

  4         414.065  Work requirements.--

  5         (1)  WORK ACTIVITIES.--The following activities may be

  6  used individually or in combination to satisfy the work

  7  requirements for a participant in the WAGES Program:

  8         (b)  Subsidized private sector employment.--Subsidized

  9  private sector employment is employment in a private

10  for-profit enterprise or a private not-for-profit enterprise

11  which is directly supplemented by federal or state funds. A

12  subsidy may be provided in one or more of the forms listed in

13  this paragraph.

14         1.  Work supplementation.--A work supplementation

15  subsidy diverts a participant's temporary cash assistance

16  under the program to the employer. The employer must pay the

17  participant wages that equal or exceed the applicable federal

18  minimum wage. Work supplementation may not exceed 6 months. At

19  the end of the supplementation period, the employer is

20  expected to retain the participant as a regular employee

21  without receiving a subsidy for at least 12 months. A The work

22  supplementation agreement may not be continued with any

23  employer who exhibits a pattern of failing to provide

24  participants with continued employment after the period of

25  work supplementation ends must provide that if the employee is

26  dismissed at any time within 12 months after termination of

27  the supplementation period due in any part to loss of the

28  supplement, the employer shall repay some or all of the

29  supplement previously paid as a subsidy to the employer under

30  the WAGES Program.

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  1         2.  On-the-job training.--On-the-job training is

  2  full-time, paid employment in which the employer or an

  3  educational institution in cooperation with the employer

  4  provides training needed for the participant to perform the

  5  skills required for the position. The employer or the

  6  educational institution on behalf of the employer receives a

  7  subsidy to offset the cost of the training provided to the

  8  participant. Upon satisfactory completion of the training, the

  9  employer is expected to retain the participant as a regular

10  employee without receiving a subsidy. An The on-the-job

11  training agreement may not be continued with any employer who

12  exhibits a pattern of failing to provide participants with

13  continued employment after the on-the-job training subsidy

14  ends must provide that in the case of dismissal of a

15  participant due to loss of the subsidy, the employer shall

16  repay some or all of the subsidy previously provided by the

17  department and the Department of Labor and Employment

18  Security.

19         3.  Incentive payments.--The department and the

20  Department of Labor and Employment Security may provide

21  additional incentive payments to encourage employers to employ

22  program participants. Incentive payments may include payments

23  to encourage the employment of hard-to-place participants, in

24  which case the amount of the payment shall be weighted

25  proportionally to the extent to which the participant has

26  limitations associated with the long-term receipt of welfare

27  and difficulty in sustaining employment. In establishing

28  incentive payments, the department and the Department of Labor

29  and Employment Security shall consider the extent of prior

30  receipt of welfare, lack of employment experience, lack of

31  education, lack of job skills, and other appropriate factors.

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  1  A participant who has complied with program requirements and

  2  who is approaching the time limit for receiving temporary cash

  3  assistance may be defined as "hard-to-place." Incentive

  4  payments may include payments in which an initial payment is

  5  made to the employer upon the employment of a participant, and

  6  the majority of the incentive payment is made after the

  7  employer retains the participant as a full-time employee for

  8  at least 12 months. An The incentive agreement may not be

  9  continued with any employer who exhibits a pattern of failing

10  to provide participants with continued employment after the

11  incentive payments cease must provide that if the employee is

12  dismissed at any time within 12 months after termination of

13  the incentive payment period due in any part to loss of the

14  incentive, the employer shall repay some or all of the payment

15  previously paid as an incentive to the employer under the

16  WAGES Program.

17         4.  Tax credits.--An employer who employs a program

18  participant may qualify for enterprise zone property tax

19  credits under s. 220.182, the tax refund program for qualified

20  target industry businesses under s. 288.106, or other federal

21  or state tax benefits. The department and the Department of

22  Labor and Employment Security shall provide information and

23  assistance, as appropriate, to use such credits to accomplish

24  program goals.

25         5.  WAGES training bonus.--An employer who hires a

26  WAGES participant who has less than 6 months of eligibility

27  for temporary cash assistance remaining and who pays the

28  participant a wage that precludes the participant's

29  eligibility for temporary cash assistance may receive $240 for

30  each full month of employment for a period that may not exceed

31  3 months. An employer who receives a WAGES training bonus for

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  1  an employee may not receive a work supplementation subsidy for

  2  the same employee.

  3         (12)  PROTECTION FOR CURRENT EMPLOYEES.--In

  4  establishing and contracting for work-experience and community

  5  service activities, other work-experience activities,

  6  on-the-job training, subsidized employment, and work

  7  supplementation under the WAGES Program, an employed worker

  8  may not be displaced, either completely or partially. A WAGES

  9  participant may not be assigned to an activity or employed in

10  a position if the employer has created the vacancy or

11  terminated an existing employee without good cause in order to

12  fill that position with a WAGES Program participant.

13         Section 4.  Section 414.105, Florida Statutes, is

14  amended to read:

15         414.105  Time limitations of temporary cash

16  assistance.--Unless otherwise expressly provided in this

17  chapter, an applicant or current participant shall receive

18  temporary cash assistance for episodes of not more than 24

19  cumulative months in any consecutive 60-month period that

20  begins with the first month of participation and for not more

21  than a lifetime cumulative total of 48 months as an adult.

22         (1)  The time limitation for episodes of temporary cash

23  assistance may not exceed 36 cumulative months in any

24  consecutive 72-month period that begins with the first month

25  of participation and may not exceed a lifetime cumulative

26  total of 48 months of temporary cash assistance as an adult,

27  for cases in which the participant:

28         (a)  Has received aid to families with dependent

29  children or temporary cash assistance for any 36 months of the

30  preceding 60 months; or

31         (b)  Is a custodial parent under the age of 24 who:

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  1         1.  Has not completed a high school education or its

  2  equivalent; or

  3         2.  Had little or no work experience in the preceding

  4  year.

  5         (2)  A participant who is not exempt from work activity

  6  requirements may earn 1 month of eligibility for extended

  7  temporary cash assistance, up to a maximum of 12 additional

  8  months, for each month in which the participant is fully

  9  complying with all the requirements of the WAGES Program and

10  is employed part-time or full-time. The period for which

11  extended temporary cash assistance is granted shall be based

12  upon compliance with WAGES Program requirements beginning

13  October 1, 1997. A participant may not receive temporary cash

14  assistance under this subsection, in combination with other

15  periods of temporary cash assistance, for longer than 48

16  months.

17         (3)(2)  Hardship exemptions to the time limitations of

18  this chapter shall be limited to 10 percent of participants in

19  the first year of implementation of this chapter, 15 percent

20  of participants in the second year of implementation of this

21  chapter, and 20 percent of participants in all subsequent

22  years. Criteria for hardship exemptions include:

23         (a)  Diligent participation in activities, combined

24  with inability to obtain employment.

25         (b)  Diligent participation in activities, combined

26  with extraordinary barriers to employment, including the

27  conditions which may result in an exemption to work

28  requirements.

29         (c)  Significant barriers to employment, combined with

30  a need for additional time.

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  1         (d)  Diligent participation in activities and a need by

  2  teen parents for an exemption in order to have 24 months of

  3  eligibility beyond receipt of the high school diploma or

  4  equivalent.

  5         (e)  A recommendation of extension for a minor child of

  6  a participating family that has reached the end of the

  7  eligibility period for temporary cash assistance. The

  8  recommendation must be the result of a review which determines

  9  that the termination of the child's temporary cash assistance

10  would be likely to result in the child being placed into

11  emergency shelter or foster care. Temporary cash assistance

12  shall be provided through a protective payee. Staff of the

13  Children and Families Family Services Program Office of the

14  department shall conduct all assessments in each case in which

15  it appears a child may require continuation of temporary cash

16  assistance through a protective payee.

17

18  At the recommendation of the local WAGES coalition, temporary

19  cash assistance under a hardship exemption for a participant

20  who is eligible for work activities and who is not working

21  shall be reduced by 10 percent. Upon the employment of the

22  participant, full benefits shall be restored.

23         (4)(3)  The department shall establish a procedure for

24  reviewing and approving hardship exemptions, and the local

25  WAGES coalitions may assist in making these determinations.

26  The composition of any review panel must generally reflect the

27  racial, gender, and ethnic diversity of the community as a

28  whole. Members of a review panel shall serve without

29  compensation, but are entitled to receive reimbursement for

30  per diem and travel expenses as provided in s. 112.016.

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  1         (5)(4)  The cumulative total of all hardship exemptions

  2  may not exceed 12 months, may include reduced benefits at the

  3  option of the community review panel, and shall, in

  4  combination with other periods of temporary cash assistance as

  5  an adult, total no more than 48 months of temporary cash

  6  assistance. If an individual fails to comply with program

  7  requirements during a hardship exemption period, the hardship

  8  exemption shall be removed.

  9         (6)(5)  For individuals who have moved from another

10  state and have legally resided in this state for less than 12

11  months, the time limitation for temporary cash assistance

12  shall be the shorter of the respective time limitations used

13  in the two states, and months in which temporary cash

14  assistance was received under a block grant program that

15  provided temporary assistance for needy families in any state

16  shall count towards the cumulative 48-month benefit limit for

17  temporary cash assistance.

18         (7)(6)  For individuals subject to a time limitation

19  under the Family Transition Act of 1993, that time limitation

20  shall continue to apply. Months in which temporary cash

21  assistance was received through the family transition program

22  shall count towards the time limitations under this chapter.

23         (8)(7)  Except when temporary cash assistance was

24  received through the family transition program, the

25  calculation of the time limitation for temporary cash

26  assistance shall begin with the first month of receipt of

27  temporary cash assistance after the effective date of this

28  act.

29         (9)(8)  Child-only cases are not subject to time

30  limitations, and temporary cash assistance received while an

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  1  individual is a minor child shall not count towards time

  2  limitations.

  3         (10)(9)  An individual who receives benefits under the

  4  Supplemental Security Income program or the Social Security

  5  Disability Insurance program is not subject to time

  6  limitations.

  7         (11)  A person who is totally responsible for the

  8  personal care of a disabled family member is not subject to

  9  time limitations if the need for the care is verified and

10  alternative care is not available for the family member. The

11  department shall annually evaluate an individual's

12  qualifications for this exemption.

13         (12)(10)  A member of the WAGES Program staff shall

14  interview and assess the employment prospects and barriers of

15  each participant who is within 6 months of reaching the

16  24-month time limit.  The staff member shall assist the

17  participant in identifying actions necessary to become

18  employed prior to reaching the benefit time limit for

19  temporary cash assistance and, if appropriate, shall refer the

20  participant for services that could facilitate employment.

21         Section 5.  The Legislature recognizes that the

22  restaurant industry is uniquely qualified to provide

23  employment opportunities for a significant number of WAGES

24  participants. Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature

25  to encourage employment of WAGES participants by the

26  restaurant industry. By March 1, 1999, the Office of Tourism,

27  Trade, and Economic Development shall certify to the President

28  of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives

29  the amount of taxes and the dollar value of economic benefits

30  generated by the restaurant industry from the employment of

31  participants in the WAGES Program during the 1998 calendar

                                  17

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






    Florida Senate - 1998                           CS for SB 2524
    310-1933-98




  1  year. The total of the amount of taxes and the dollar value of

  2  economic benefits reported to the President of the Senate and

  3  the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be added to

  4  the amount of taxes paid during the 1998 calendar year under

  5  sections 563.05, 564.06, and 565.12, Florida Statutes, and

  6  payments made to the state under section 561.54, Florida

  7  Statutes. If the total of these amounts is greater than $535

  8  million, effective July 1, 1999, section 561.501, Florida

  9  Statutes, is repealed.

10         Section 6.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

11  law.

12

13          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
14                         Senate Bill 2524

15

16  This committee substitute requires the WAGES Program State
    Board of Directors to approve the WAGES Program State Plan and
17  operating budget as well as any WAGES related proposed
    administrative rules and further requires the Workforce
18  Development Board of Enterprise Florida, Inc., and state
    agencies charged by law to implement the WAGES Program, to
19  collaborate with the staff of the WAGES Program State Board on
    all WAGES related policies, request for proposals and related
20  directives. Furthermore, this committee substitute extends the
    WAGES Program State Board to the year 2002 and allows the
21  Governor, by executive order, to designate the WAGES Program
    State Board as a nonprofit corporation. This corporation is
22  subject to public meeting and public records law.

23  This committee substitute requires local WAGES coalitions, by
    October 1, 1998, to deliver the full continuum of WAGES
24  services, with exceptions, and provides that existing employed
    workers may not be displaced by WAGES Program participants.
25
    This committee substitute requires that the Office of Tourism,
26  Trade, and Economic Development certify to the Legislature the
    amount of taxes and the economic benefits generated by the
27  restaurant industry from employing participants in the WAGES
    Program and add that amount to the total amount of certain
28  beverage taxes and penalties paid during the 1998 calendar
    year. If this total amount exceeds $535 million, the surcharge
29  on the sale of alcoholic beverages for consumption on premises
    is repealed effective July 1, 1999.
30

31

                                  18