CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
CHAMBER ACTION
Senate House
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5 ORIGINAL STAMP BELOW
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11 The Committee on Family Law & Children offered the following:
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13 Substitute Amendment for Amendment (634073) (with title
14 amendment)
15 Remove from the bill: Everything after the enacting
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18 and insert in lieu thereof:
19 Section 1. Section 409.1671, Florida Statutes, is
20 amended to read:
21 409.1671 Foster care and related services;
22 privatization.--
23 (1) It is the intent of the Legislature that to
24 encourage the Department of Children and Family Services shall
25 privatize the provision of to contract with competent
26 community-based agencies to provide foster care and related
27 services statewide. As used in this section, the term
28 "privatize" means to contract with competent, community-based
29 agencies. The department shall submit a plan to accomplish
30 privatization statewide, through a competitive process, phased
31 in over a 3-year period beginning January 1, 2000. This plan
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 is to be submitted by July 1, 1999, to the President of the
2 Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
3 Governor, and the minority leaders of both houses. This plan
4 must be developed with local community participation,
5 including, but not limited to, input from community-based
6 providers that are currently under contract with the
7 department to furnish community-based foster care and related
8 services, and must include a methodology for determining and
9 transferring all available funds, including federal funds that
10 the provider is eligible for and agrees to earn and that
11 portion of general revenue funds which is currently associated
12 with the services that are being furnished under contract. The
13 methodology must provide for the transfer of funds
14 appropriated and budgeted for all services and programs that
15 have been incorporated into the project, including all
16 management, capital (including current furniture and
17 equipment), and administrative funds to accomplish the
18 transfer of these programs. This methodology must address
19 expected workload and at least the 3 previous years'
20 experience in expenses and workload. With respect to any
21 district or portion of a district in which privatization
22 cannot be accomplished within the 3 years' timeframe, the
23 department must clearly state in its plan the reasons the
24 timeframe cannot be met and the efforts that should be made to
25 remediate the obstacles, which may include alternatives to
26 total privatization, such as public private partnerships. As
27 used in this section, the term "related services" means By
28 privatizing these services, the support and commitment of
29 communities to the reunification of families and care of
30 children and their families will be strengthened, and
31 efficiencies as well as increased accountability will be
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 gained. These services may include family preservation,
2 independent living, emergency shelter, residential group care,
3 foster care, therapeutic foster care, intensive residential
4 treatment, postadjudication legal services, foster care
5 supervision, postadjudication case management, postplacement
6 supervision, permanent foster care, family reunification, the
7 filing of a petition for the termination of parental rights,
8 and adoption. Unless otherwise provided for, beginning in
9 fiscal year 1999 - 2000, either the State Attorney or the
10 Office of the Attorney General shall provide child welfare
11 legal services, pursuant to Chapter 39, and other relevant
12 provisions, in Sarasota, Pinellas, Pasco, and Manatee
13 Counties. Such legal services shall commence upon and be
14 effective, as soon as determined reasonably feasible by the
15 respective State Attorney or the Office of the Attorney
16 General, after the privatization of associated programs and
17 child protective investigations has occurred. When a private
18 nonprofit agency has received case management
19 responsibilities, transferred from the state under this
20 section, for a child who is sheltered or found to be dependent
21 and who is assigned to the care of the privatization project,
22 the agency may act as the child's guardian for the purpose of
23 registering the child in school if a parent or guardian of the
24 child is unavailable and his or her whereabouts cannot
25 reasonably be ascertained. The private nonprofit agency may
26 also seek emergency medical attention for such a child, but
27 only if a parent or guardian of the child is unavailable, his
28 or her whereabouts cannot reasonably be ascertained, and a
29 court order for such emergency medical services cannot be
30 obtained because of the severity of the emergency or because
31 it is after normal working hours. However, the provider may
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 not consent to sterilization, abortion, or termination of life
2 support. If a child's parents' rights have been terminated,
3 the nonprofit agency shall act as guardian of the child in all
4 circumstances.
5 (2) The department may contract for the delivery,
6 administration, or management of protective services, the
7 services specified in subsection (1) relating to foster care,
8 and other related services or programs, as appropriate. The
9 department shall retain responsibility for the quality of
10 contracted services and programs and shall ensure that
11 services are delivered in accordance with applicable federal
12 and state statutes and regulations.
13 (3)(a) The department shall establish a quality
14 assurance program for privatized the privatization of
15 services. The quality assurance program may be performed by a
16 national accrediting organization such as the Council on
17 Accreditation of Services for Families and Children, Inc.
18 (COA) or the Council on Accreditation of Rehabilitation
19 Facilities (CARF). The department shall develop a request for
20 proposal for such oversight. This program must be developed
21 and administered at a statewide level. The Legislature intends
22 that the department be permitted to have limited flexibility
23 to use funds for improving quality assurance. To this end,
24 effective January 1, 2000, the department may transfer up to
25 0.125 percent of the total funds from categories used to pay
26 for these contractually provided services, but the total
27 amount of such transferred funds may not exceed $300,000 in
28 any fiscal year. When necessary, the department may establish,
29 in accordance with s. 216.177, additional positions that will
30 be exclusively devoted to these functions. Any positions
31 required under this paragraph may be established,
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 notwithstanding ss. 216.262(1)(a) and 216.351. The quality
2 assurance program must include standards for each specific
3 component of these services. The department, in consultation
4 with the community-based agencies that are undertaking the
5 privatized projects, shall establish minimum thresholds for
6 each component of service, consistent with standards
7 established by the Legislature. Each program operated under
8 pursuant to contract with a community-based agency must be
9 evaluated annually by the department or by an objective
10 competent entity designated by the department under the
11 provisions of the quality assurance program. The evaluation
12 must be financed from cost savings associated with the
13 privatization of services. The department shall submit an
14 annual report regarding quality performance, outcome measure
15 attainment, and cost efficiency to the President of the
16 Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
17 minority leader of each house of the Legislature, and the
18 Governor no later than January 31 of each year for each
19 project in operation during the preceding fiscal year,
20 beginning in 1998. The quality assurance program must be
21 funded through administrative savings generated by this act.
22 (b) The department shall establish and operate a
23 comprehensive system to measure and report annually the
24 outcomes and effectiveness of the services that have been
25 privatized. The department shall use these findings in making
26 recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature for future
27 program and funding priorities in the child welfare system.
28 (4)(a) The community-based agency must comply with
29 statutory requirements and agency rules regulations in the
30 provision of contractual services. Each foster home,
31 therapeutic foster home, emergency shelter, or other placement
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 facility operated by the community-based agency or agencies
2 must be licensed by the Department of Children and Family
3 Services under chapter 402 or this chapter. Each
4 community-based agency must be licensed as a child-caring or
5 child-placing agency by the department under this chapter. The
6 department, in order to eliminate or reduce the number of
7 duplicate inspections by various program offices, shall
8 coordinate inspections required pursuant to licensure of
9 agencies under this section.
10 (b) A community-based agency providing contractual
11 services under this section may be issued a Medicaid provider
12 number pursuant to s. 409.907 to enable the agency to maximize
13 federal support for these services under the state's Medicaid
14 plan. A community-based agency must also participate in and
15 cooperate with any federal program that will assist in the
16 maximization of federal support for those services, as
17 directed by the department.
18 (5) Beginning January 1, 1999, and continuing at least
19 through December 31, 1999, the Department of Children and
20 Family Services shall privatize all foster care and related
21 services in district 5 while continuing to contract with the
22 current model programs in districts 1, 4, and 13, and in
23 subdistrict 8A, and shall expand the subdistrict 8A pilot
24 program to incorporate Manatee County. Planning for the
25 district 5 privatization shall be done by providers that are
26 currently under contract with the department for foster care
27 and related services and shall be done in consultation with
28 the department. A lead provider of the district 5 program
29 shall be competitively selected and must demonstrate the
30 ability to provide necessary comprehensive services through a
31 local network of providers Beginning in fiscal year 1996-1997,
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 the Department of Children and Family Services shall establish
2 a minimum of five model programs. These models must be
3 established in the department's districts 1, 4, and 13; in
4 subdistrict 8A; and in a fifth district to be determined by
5 the department, with the concurrence of the appropriate
6 district health and human services board. For comparison of
7 privatization savings, the fifth model program must be
8 contracted with a competent for-profit corporation. Providers
9 of these model programs may be selected from a single source
10 pursuant to s. 287.057(3)(c) and must be established,
11 community-based organizations within the district or
12 subdistrict. Contracts with organizations responsible for the
13 model programs must shall include the management and
14 administration of all privatized services specified in
15 subsection (1), except for funds necessary to manage the
16 contract. However, the department may use funds for contract
17 management only after obtaining written approval from the
18 Executive Office of the Governor. The request for such
19 approval must include, but is not limited to, a statement of
20 the proposed amount of such funds and a description of the
21 manner in which such funds will be used. If the
22 community-based organization selected for a model program
23 under this subsection is not a Medicaid provider, the
24 organization shall be issued a Medicaid provider number
25 pursuant to s. 409.907 for the provision of services currently
26 authorized under the state Medicaid plan to those children
27 encompassed in this model and in a manner not to exceed the
28 current level of state expenditure.
29 (6) Each district and subdistrict that participates in
30 the model program effort or any future privatization effort as
31 described in this section must thoroughly analyze and report
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 the complete direct and indirect costs of delivering these
2 services through the department and the full cost of
3 privatization, including the cost of monitoring and evaluating
4 the contracted services.
5 Section 2. Section 415.5071, Florida Statutes, is
6 created to read:
7 415.5071 Sheriffs of Pasco and Pinellas Counties to
8 provide child protective investigative services; procedures;
9 funding.--
10 (1) As described in this section, the Department of
11 Children and Family Services shall, by the end of fiscal year
12 1999-2000, transfer all responsibility for child protective
13 investigations for Pinellas County and Pasco County to the
14 sheriff of that county in which the child abuse, neglect, or
15 abandonment is alleged to have occurred. Each sheriff is
16 responsible for the provision of all child protective
17 investigations in his or her county. Each individual who
18 provides these services must complete the training provided to
19 and required of protective investigators employed by the
20 Department of Children and Family Services.
21 (2) During fiscal year 1998-1999, the Department of
22 Children and Family Services and each sheriff's office shall
23 enter into a contract for the provision of these services.
24 Funding for the services will be appropriated to the
25 Department of Children and Family Services, and the department
26 shall transfer to the respective sheriffs for the duration of
27 fiscal year 1998-1999, funding for the investigative
28 responsibilities assumed by the sheriffs, including federal
29 funds that the provider is eligible for and agrees to earn and
30 that portion of general revenue funds which is currently
31 associated with the services that are being furnished under
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 contract, and including, but not limited to, funding for all
2 investigative, supervisory, and clerical positions; training;
3 all associated equipment; furnishings; and other fixed capital
4 items. The contract must specify whether the department will
5 continue to perform part or none of the child protective
6 investigations during the initial year. The sheriffs may
7 either conduct the investigations themselves or may, in turn,
8 subcontract with municipal officials or private agencies to
9 have those officials or agencies conduct the investigations.
10 The contract must specify whether the services are to be
11 performed by departmental employees or by an agency or persons
12 determined by the sheriff. During this initial year, the
13 department is responsible for quality assurance, and the
14 department retains the responsibility for the performance of
15 all child protective investigations. The department must
16 identify any barriers to transferring the entire
17 responsibility for child protective services to the sheriffs'
18 offices and must pursue avenues for removing any such barriers
19 by means including, but not limited to, applying for federal
20 waivers. By January 15, 1999, the department shall submit to
21 the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of
22 Representatives, and the chairs of the Senate and House
23 committees that oversee departmental activities a report that
24 describes any remaining barriers, including any that pertain
25 to funding and related administrative issues. Unless the
26 Legislature, on the basis of that report or other pertinent
27 information, acts to block a transfer of the entire
28 responsibility for child protective investigations to the
29 sheriffs' offices, the sheriffs of Pasco County and Pinellas
30 County, beginning in fiscal year 1999-2000, shall assume the
31 entire responsibility for such services, as provided in
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 subsection (3).
2 (3)(a) Beginning in fiscal year 1999-2000, the
3 sheriffs of Pasco County and Pinellas County have the
4 responsibility to provide all child protective investigations
5 in their respective counties.
6 (b) The sheriffs of Pasco County and Pinellas County
7 shall operate, at a minimum, in accordance with the
8 performance standards established by the Legislature for
9 protective investigations conducted by the Department of
10 Children and Family Services.
11 (c) Funds for providing child protective
12 investigations in Pasco County and Pinellas County must be
13 appropriated directly to the respective sheriffs' offices.
14 Funds for the child protective investigations may not be
15 integrated into the sheriffs' regular budgets. Budgetary data
16 and other data relating to the performance of child protective
17 investigations must be maintained separately from all other
18 records of the sheriffs' offices.
19 (d) Program performance evaluation shall be based on
20 criteria mutually agreed upon by the respective Sheriffs and a
21 committee of five persons appointed by the Governor and
22 selected from those persons serving on the Department of
23 Children and Family Services district 5 Health and Human
24 Services Board. Two of the Governor's appointees must be
25 residents of Pasco County and two of the Governor's appointees
26 must be residents of Pinellas County. Such appointees shall
27 serve at the pleasure of the Governor. The individuals
28 appointed must have demonstrated experience in outcome
29 evaluation, social service areas of protective investigation,
30 or child welfare supervision. The committee shall submit an
31 annual report regarding quality performance, outcome measure
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 attainment and cost efficiency, to the President of the
2 Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and to
3 the Governor, no later than January 31 of each year the
4 sheriffs are receiving general appropriations to provide child
5 protective investigations.
6 Section 3. Subsection (2) of Section 768.28, Florida
7 Statutes, is amended to read:
8 (2) As used in this act, "state agencies or
9 subdivisions" include the executive departments, the
10 Legislature, the judicial branch (including public defenders),
11 and the independent establishments of the state; counties and
12 municipalities; community-based agencies that have contracted
13 with the Department of Children and Family Services pursuant
14 to s. 409.1671 or s. 415.5071; and corporations primarily
15 acting as instrumentalities or agencies of the state,
16 counties, or municipalities, including the Spaceport Florida
17 Authority.
18 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1 of the
19 year in which enacted.
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22 ================ T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ===============
23 And the title is amended as follows:
24 remove from the title of the bill: everything before the
25 enacting clause
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27 and insert in lieu thereof:
28 A bill to be entitled
29 An act relating to the privatization of foster
30 care and related services; amending s.
31 409.1671, F.S.; providing legislative intent;
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
1 defining the terms "privatize" and "related
2 services"; requiring the Department of Children
3 and Family Services to develop a plan to
4 accomplish statewide privatization within a
5 specified time period and to submit the plan to
6 the Governor and to designated legislative
7 officials by a specified date; providing plan
8 requirements; requiring the department to state
9 whether and why privatization cannot be
10 accomplished in a particular district or
11 portion of a district and how the department
12 will address the obstacles to privatization;
13 providing for legal services; requiring that
14 child welfare legal services be provided by
15 specified providers; providing for case
16 management responsibilities; providing for
17 quality assurance; providing requirements for
18 and restrictions upon funding for
19 privatization; creating s. 415.5071, F.S.;
20 providing for a model program for child
21 protective investigative services, to be
22 initiated in a specified district; requiring
23 the department to contract with the sheriffs in
24 that district; providing responsibilities of
25 the department; requiring a report; providing
26 for funding; providing for the creation of a
27 specified committee which shall submit a
28 required report; amending s. 768.28, Florida
29 Statutes; amending the definition of the term
30 "state agencies or subdivisions" with respect
31 to specified agencies; providing an effective
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HOUSE AMENDMENT
Bill No. HB 3217
Amendment No. A1 (for drafter's use only)
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