House Bill 3883e1
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to protection of children;
3 reorganizing and revising ch. 39, F.S.;
4 providing for pt. I of said chapter, entitled
5 "General Provisions"; amending ss. 39.001,
6 39.002, and 415.501, F.S.; revising purposes
7 and intent; providing for personnel standards
8 and screening and for drug testing; amending s.
9 39.01, F.S.; revising definitions; renumbering
10 and amending s. 39.455, F.S., relating to
11 immunity from liability for agents of the
12 Department of Children and Family Services or a
13 social service agency; amending s. 39.012,
14 F.S., and creating s. 39.0121, F.S.; providing
15 authority and requirements for department
16 rules; renumbering and amending s. 39.40, F.S.,
17 relating to procedures and jurisdiction;
18 providing for right to counsel; renumbering s.
19 39.4057, F.S., relating to permanent mailing
20 address designation; renumbering and amending
21 s. 39.411, F.S., relating to oaths, records,
22 and confidential information; renumbering s.
23 39.414, F.S., relating to court and witness
24 fees; renumbering and amending ss. 39.415 and
25 39.474, F.S., relating to compensation of
26 appointed counsel; renumbering and amending s.
27 39.418, F.S., relating to the Operations and
28 Maintenance Trust Fund; renumbering and
29 amending s. 415.5015, F.S., relating to child
30 abuse prevention training in the district
31 school system; providing for pt. II of ch. 39,
1
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 F.S., entitled "Reporting Child Abuse";
2 renumbering and amending s. 415.504, F.S.,
3 relating to mandatory reports of child abuse,
4 abandonment, or neglect; renumbering and
5 amending s. 415.511, F.S., relating to immunity
6 from liability in cases of child abuse,
7 abandonment, or neglect; renumbering and
8 amending s. 415.512, F.S., relating to
9 abrogation of privileged communications in
10 cases of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect;
11 renumbering and amending s. 415.513, F.S.;
12 providing penalties relating to reporting of
13 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect; deleting
14 the requirement for the Department of Children
15 and Family Services to provide information to
16 the state attorney; providing for the
17 Department of Children and Family Services to
18 report annually to the Legislature the number
19 of reports referred to law enforcement
20 agencies; providing for investigation by local
21 law enforcement agencies of possible false
22 reports; providing for law enforcement agencies
23 to refer certain reports to the state attorney
24 for prosecution; providing for law enforcement
25 entities to handle certain reports of abuse or
26 neglect during the pendency of such an
27 investigation; providing procedures; specifying
28 the penalty for knowingly and willfully making,
29 or advising another to make, a false report;
30 providing for state attorneys to report
31 annually to the Legislature the number of
2
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 complaints that have resulted in informations
2 or indictments and the disposition of those
3 complaints; renumbering and amending s.
4 415.5131, F.S., increasing an administrative
5 fine for false reporting; providing for pt. III
6 of ch. 39, F.S., entitled "Protective
7 Investigations"; creating s. 39.301, F.S.;
8 providing for child protective investigations;
9 creating s. 39.302, F.S.; providing for
10 protective investigations of institutional
11 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect;
12 renumbering and amending s. 415.5055, F.S.,
13 relating to child protection teams and services
14 and eligible cases; creating s. 39.3035, F.S.;
15 providing standards for child advocacy centers
16 eligible for state funding; renumbering and
17 amending s. 415.507, F.S., relating to
18 photographs, medical examinations, X rays, and
19 medical treatment of an abused, abandoned, or
20 neglected child; renumbering and amending s.
21 415.5095, F.S., relating to a model plan for
22 intervention and treatment in sexual abuse
23 cases; creating s. 39.306, F.S.; providing for
24 working agreements with local law enforcement
25 to perform criminal investigations; renumbering
26 and amending s. 415.50171, F.S., relating to
27 reports of child-on-child sexual abuse;
28 providing for pt. IV of ch. 39, F.S., entitled
29 "Family Builders Program"; renumbering and
30 amending s. 415.515, F.S., relating to
31 establishment of the program; renumbering and
3
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 amending s. 415.516, F.S., relating to goals of
2 the program; renumbering and amending s.
3 415.517, F.S., relating to contracts for
4 services; renumbering and amending s. 415.518,
5 F.S., relating to family eligibility;
6 renumbering s. 415.519, F.S., relating to
7 delivery of services; renumbering and amending
8 s. 415.520, F.S., relating to qualifications of
9 program workers; renumbering s. 415.521, F.S.,
10 relating to outcome evaluation; renumbering and
11 amending s. 415.522, F.S., relating to funding;
12 providing for pt. V of ch. 39, F.S., entitled
13 "Taking Children into Custody and Shelter
14 Hearings"; creating s. 39.395, F.S.; providing
15 for medical or hospital personnel taking a
16 child into protective custody; amending s.
17 39.401, F.S.; providing for law enforcement
18 officers or authorized agents of the department
19 taking a child alleged to be dependent into
20 custody; amending s. 39.402, F.S., relating to
21 placement in a shelter; amending s. 39.407,
22 F.S., relating to physical and mental
23 examination and treatment of a child and
24 physical or mental examination of a person
25 requesting custody; renumbering and amending s.
26 39.4033, F.S., relating to referral of a
27 dependency case to mediation; providing for pt.
28 VI of ch. 39, F.S., entitled "Petition,
29 Arraignment, Adjudication, and Disposition";
30 renumbering and amending s. 39.404, F.S.,
31 relating to petition for dependency;
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 renumbering and amending s. 39.405, F.S.,
2 relating to notice, process, and service;
3 renumbering and amending s. 39.4051, F.S.,
4 relating to procedures when the identity or
5 location of the parent, legal custodian, or
6 caregiver is unknown; renumbering and amending
7 s. 39.4055, F.S., relating to injunction
8 pending disposition of a petition for detention
9 or dependency; renumbering and amending s.
10 39.406, F.S., relating to answers to petitions
11 or other pleadings; renumbering and amending s.
12 39.408(1), F.S., relating to arraignment
13 hearings; renumbering and amending ss.
14 39.408(2) and 39.409, F.S., relating to
15 adjudicatory hearings and orders; renumbering
16 and amending ss. 39.408(3) and (4) and 39.41,
17 F.S., relating to disposition hearings and
18 powers of disposition; creating s. 39.5085,
19 F.S.; establishing the Relative Caregiver
20 Program; directing the Department of Children
21 and Family Services to establish and operate
22 the Relative-Caregiver Program; providing
23 financial assistance within available resources
24 to relatives caring for children; providing for
25 financial assistance and support services to
26 relatives caring for children placed with them
27 by the child protection system; providing for
28 rules establishing eligibility guidelines,
29 caregiver benefits, and payment schedule;
30 renumbering and amending s. 39.4105, F.S.,
31 relating to grandparents rights; renumbering
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 and amending s. 39.413, F.S., relating to
2 appeals; providing for pt. VII of ch. 39, F.S.,
3 entitled "Case Plans"; renumbering and amending
4 ss. 39.4031 and 39.451, F.S., relating to case
5 plan requirements and case planning for
6 children in out-of-home care; renumbering and
7 amending s. 39.452(1)-(4), F.S., relating to
8 case planning for children in out-of-home care
9 when the parents, legal custodians, or
10 caregivers do not participate; renumbering and
11 amending s. 39.452(5), F.S., relating to court
12 approvals of case planning; providing for pt.
13 VIII of ch. 39, F.S., entitled "Judicial
14 Reviews"; renumbering and amending s. 39.453,
15 F.S., relating to judicial review of the status
16 of a child; renumbering and amending s.
17 39.4531, F.S., relating to citizen review
18 panels; renumbering and amending s. 39.454,
19 F.S., relating to initiation of proceedings for
20 termination of parental rights; renumbering and
21 amending s. 39.456, F.S.; revising exemptions
22 from judicial review; providing for pt. IX of
23 ch. 39, F.S., entitled "Termination of Parental
24 Rights"; renumbering and amending ss. 39.46 and
25 39.462, F.S., relating to procedures,
26 jurisdiction, and service of process;
27 renumbering and amending ss. 39.461 and
28 39.4611, F.S., relating to petition for
29 termination of parental rights, and filing and
30 elements thereof; creating s. 39.803, F.S.;
31 providing procedures when the identity or
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 location of the parent is unknown after filing
2 a petition for termination of parental rights;
3 renumbering s. 39.4627, F.S., relating to
4 penalties for false statements of paternity;
5 renumbering and amending s. 39.463, F.S.,
6 relating to petitions and pleadings for which
7 no answer is required; renumbering and amending
8 s. 39.464, F.S., relating to grounds for
9 termination of paternal rights; renumbering and
10 amending s. 39.465, F.S., relating to right to
11 counsel and appointment of a guardian ad litem;
12 renumbering and amending s. 39.466, F.S.,
13 relating to advisory hearings; renumbering and
14 amending s. 39.467, F.S., relating to
15 adjudicatory hearings; renumbering and amending
16 s. 39.4612, F.S., relating to the manifest best
17 interests of the child; renumbering and
18 amending s. 39.469, F.S., relating to powers of
19 disposition and order of disposition;
20 renumbering and amending s. 39.47, F.S.,
21 relating to post disposition relief; creating
22 s. 39.813, F.S.; providing for continuing
23 jurisdiction of the court which terminates
24 parental rights over all matters pertaining to
25 the child's adoption; renumbering s. 39.471,
26 F.S., relating to oaths, records, and
27 confidential information; renumbering and
28 amending s. 39.473, F.S., relating to appeal;
29 creating s. 39.816, F.S.; authorizing certain
30 pilot and demonstration projects contingent on
31 receipt of federal grants or contracts;
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 creating s. 39.817, F.S.; providing for a
2 foster care demonstration pilot project;
3 providing for pt. X of ch. 39, F.S., entitled
4 "Guardians Ad Litem and Guardian Advocates";
5 creating s. 39.820, F.S.; providing
6 definitions; renumbering s. 415.5077, F.S.,
7 relating to qualifications of guardians ad
8 litem; renumbering and amending s. 415.508,
9 F.S., relating to appointment of a guardian ad
10 litem for an abused, abandoned, or neglected
11 child; renumbering and amending s. 415.5082,
12 F.S., relating to guardian advocates for drug
13 dependent newborns; renumbering and amending s.
14 415.5083, F.S., relating to procedures and
15 jurisdiction; renumbering s. 415.5084, F.S.,
16 relating to petition for appointment of a
17 guardian advocate; renumbering s. 415.5085,
18 F.S., relating to process and service;
19 renumbering and amending s. 415.5086, F.S.,
20 relating to hearing for appointment of a
21 guardian advocate; renumbering and amending s.
22 415.5087, F.S., relating to grounds for
23 appointment of a guardian advocate; renumbering
24 s. 415.5088, F.S., relating to powers and
25 duties of the guardian advocate; renumbering
26 and amending s. 415.5089, F.S., relating to
27 review and removal of a guardian advocate;
28 providing for pt. XI of ch. 39, F.S., entitled
29 "Domestic Violence"; renumbering s. 415.601,
30 F.S., relating to legislative intent regarding
31 treatment and rehabilitation of victims and
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 perpetrators; renumbering and amending s.
2 415.602, F.S., relating to definitions;
3 renumbering and amending s. 415.603, F.S.,
4 relating to duties and functions of the
5 department; renumbering and amending s.
6 415.604, F.S., relating to an annual report to
7 the Legislature; renumbering and amending s.
8 415.605, F.S., relating to domestic violence
9 centers; renumbering s. 415.606, F.S., relating
10 to referral to such centers and notice of
11 rights; renumbering s. 415.608, F.S., relating
12 to confidentiality of information received by
13 the department or a center; amending ss. 20.43,
14 61.13, 61.401, 61.402, 63.052, 63.092, 90.5036,
15 154.067, 216.136, 232.50, 318.21, 384.29,
16 392.65, 393.063, 395.1023, 400.4174, 400.556,
17 402.165, 402.166, 409.1672, 409.176, 409.2554,
18 409.912, 409.9126, 414.065, 447.401, 464.018,
19 490.014, 491.014, 741.30, 744.309, 784.075,
20 933.18, 944.401, 944.705, 984.03, 984.10,
21 984.15, 984.24, 985.03, and 985.303, F.S.;
22 correcting cross references; conforming related
23 provisions and references; amending s. 20.19,
24 F.S.; providing for certification programs for
25 family safety and preservation employees of the
26 department; providing for rules; amending ss.
27 213.053 and 409.2577, F.S.; authorizing
28 disclosure of certain confidential taxpayer and
29 parent locator information for diligent search
30 activities under ch. 39, F.S.; creating s.
31 435.045, F.S.; providing background screening
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 requirements for prospective foster or adoptive
2 parents; amending s. 943.045, F.S.; providing
3 that the Department of Children and Family
4 Services is a "criminal justice agency" for
5 purposes of the criminal justice information
6 system; providing an appropriation; repealing
7 s. 39.0195, F.S., relating to sheltering
8 unmarried minors and aiding unmarried runaways;
9 repealing s. 39.0196, F.S., relating to
10 children locked out of the home; repealing ss.
11 39.39, 39.449, and 39.459, F.S., relating to
12 definition of "department"; repealing s.
13 39.403, F.S., relating to protective
14 investigation; repealing s. 39.4032, F.S.,
15 relating to multidisciplinary case staffing;
16 repealing s. 39.4052, F.S., relating to
17 affirmative duty of written notice to adult
18 relatives; repealing s. 39.4053, F.S., relating
19 to diligent search after taking a child into
20 custody; repealing s. 39.45, F.S., relating to
21 legislative intent regarding foster care;
22 repealing s. 39.457, F.S., relating to a pilot
23 program in Leon County to provide additional
24 benefits to children in foster care; repealing
25 s. 39.4625, F.S., relating to identity or
26 location of parent unknown after filing of
27 petition for termination of parental rights;
28 repealing s. 39.472, F.S., relating to court
29 and witness fees; repealing s. 39.475, F.S.,
30 relating to rights of grandparents; repealing
31 ss. 415.5016, 415.50165, 415.5017, 415.50175,
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 415.5018, 415.50185, and 415.5019, F.S.,
2 relating to purpose and legislative intent,
3 definitions, procedures, confidentiality of
4 records, district authority and
5 responsibilities, outcome evaluation, and rules
6 for the family services response system;
7 repealing s. 415.502, F.S., relating to
8 legislative intent for comprehensive protective
9 services for abused or neglected children;
10 repealing s. 415.503, F.S., relating to
11 definitions; repealing s. 415.505, F.S.,
12 relating to child protective investigations and
13 investigations of institutional child abuse or
14 neglect; repealing s. 415.506, F.S., relating
15 to taking a child into protective custody;
16 repealing s. 415.5075, F.S., relating to rules
17 for medical screening and treatment of
18 children; repealing s. 415.509, F.S., relating
19 to public agencies' responsibilities for
20 prevention, identification, and treatment of
21 child abuse and neglect; repealing s. 415.514,
22 F.S., relating to rules for protective
23 services; providing effective dates.
24
25 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
26
27 Section 1. Part I of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
28 consisting of sections 39.001, 39.01, 39.011, 39.012, 39.0121,
29 39.013, 39.0131, 39.0132, 39.0133, 39.0134, and 39.0135,
30 Florida Statutes, shall be entitled to read:
31 PART I
11
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 GENERAL PROVISIONS
2 Section 2. Section 39.001, Florida Statutes, is
3 amended, subsection (3) of said section is renumbered as
4 subsection (9), section 39.002, Florida Statutes, is
5 renumbered as subsections (3), (4), and (5) of said section
6 and amended, and section 415.501, Florida Statutes, is
7 renumbered as subsections (6), (7), and (8) of said section
8 and amended, to read:
9 39.001 Purposes and intent; personnel standards and
10 screening.--
11 (1) PURPOSES OF CHAPTER.--The purposes of this chapter
12 are:
13 (a)(b) To provide for the care, safety, and protection
14 of children in an environment that fosters healthy social,
15 emotional, intellectual, and physical development; to ensure
16 secure and safe custody; and to promote the health and
17 well-being of all children under the state's care.
18 (b) To recognize that most families desire to be
19 competent caregivers and providers for their children and that
20 children achieve their greatest potential when families are
21 able to support and nurture the growth and development of
22 their children. Therefore, the Legislature finds that policies
23 and procedures that provide for intervention through the
24 department's child protection system should be based on the
25 following principles:
26 1. The health and safety of the children served shall
27 be of paramount concern.
28 2. The intervention should engage families in
29 constructive, supportive, and nonadversarial relationships.
30 3. The intervention should intrude as little as
31 possible into the life of the family, be focused on clearly
12
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 defined objectives, and take the most parsimonious path to
2 remedy a family's problems.
3 4. The intervention should be based upon outcome
4 evaluation results that demonstrate success in protecting
5 children and supporting families.
6 (c) To provide a child protection system that reflects
7 a partnership between the department, other agencies, and
8 local communities.
9 (d) To provide a child protection system that is
10 sensitive to the social and cultural diversity of the state.
11 (e) To provide procedures which allow the department
12 to respond to reports of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect
13 in the most efficient and effective manner that ensures the
14 health and safety of children and the integrity of families.
15 (c) To ensure the protection of society, by providing
16 for a comprehensive standardized assessment of the child's
17 needs so that the most appropriate control, discipline,
18 punishment, and treatment can be administered consistent with
19 the seriousness of the act committed, the community's
20 long-term need for public safety, the prior record of the
21 child and the specific rehabilitation needs of the child,
22 while also providing whenever possible restitution to the
23 victim of the offense.
24 (f)(d) To preserve and strengthen the child's family
25 ties whenever possible, removing the child from parental
26 custody only when his or her welfare or the safety and
27 protection of the public cannot be adequately safeguarded
28 without such removal.; and, when the child is removed from his
29 or her own family, to secure for the child custody, care, and
30 discipline as nearly as possible equivalent to that which
31 should have been given by the parents; and to assure, in all
13
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 cases in which a child must be permanently removed from
2 parental custody, that the child be placed in an approved
3 family home, adoptive home, independent living program, or
4 other placement that provides the most stable and permanent
5 living arrangement for the child, as determined by the court.
6 (g) To ensure that the parent or guardian from whose
7 custody the child has been taken assists the department to the
8 fullest extent possible in locating relatives suitable to
9 serve as caregivers for the child.
10 (h) To ensure that permanent placement with the
11 biological or adoptive family is achieved as soon as possible
12 for every child in foster care and that no child remains in
13 foster care longer than 1 year.
14 (i) To secure for the child, when removal of the child
15 from his or her own family is necessary, custody, care, and
16 discipline as nearly as possible equivalent to that which
17 should have been given by the parents; and to ensure, in all
18 cases in which a child must be removed from parental custody,
19 that the child is placed in an approved relative home,
20 licensed foster home, adoptive home, or independent living
21 program that provides the most stable and potentially
22 permanent living arrangement for the child, as determined by
23 the court. All placements shall be in a safe environment where
24 drugs and alcohol are not abused.
25 (j) To ensure that, when reunification or adoption is
26 not possible, the child will be prepared for alternative
27 permanency goals or placements, to include, but not be limited
28 to, long-term foster care, independent living, custody to a
29 relative on a permanent basis with or without legal
30 guardianship, or custody to a foster parent or caregiver on a
31 permanent basis with or without legal guardianship.
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 (k) To make every possible effort, when two or more
2 children who are in the care or under the supervision of the
3 department are siblings, to place the siblings in the same
4 home; and in the event of permanent placement of the siblings,
5 to place them in the same adoptive home or, if the siblings
6 are separated, to keep them in contact with each other.
7 (l)(a) To provide judicial and other procedures to
8 assure due process through which children, parents, and
9 guardians and other interested parties are assured fair
10 hearings by a respectful and respected court or other tribunal
11 and the recognition, protection, and enforcement of their
12 constitutional and other legal rights, while ensuring that
13 public safety interests and the authority and dignity of the
14 courts are adequately protected.
15 (m) To ensure that children under the jurisdiction of
16 the courts are provided equal treatment with respect to goals,
17 objectives, services, and case plans, without regard to the
18 location of their placement. It is the further intent of the
19 Legislature that, when children are removed from their homes,
20 disruption to their education be minimized to the extent
21 possible.
22 (e)1. To assure that the adjudication and disposition
23 of a child alleged or found to have committed a violation of
24 Florida law be exercised with appropriate discretion and in
25 keeping with the seriousness of the offense and the need for
26 treatment services, and that all findings made under this
27 chapter be based upon facts presented at a hearing that meets
28 the constitutional standards of fundamental fairness and due
29 process.
30 2. To assure that the sentencing and placement of a
31 child tried as an adult be appropriate and in keeping with the
15
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 seriousness of the offense and the child's need for
2 rehabilitative services, and that the proceedings and
3 procedures applicable to such sentencing and placement be
4 applied within the full framework of constitutional standards
5 of fundamental fairness and due process.
6 (f) To provide children committed to the Department of
7 Juvenile Justice with training in life skills, including
8 career education.
9 (2) DEPARTMENT CONTRACTS.--The department of Juvenile
10 Justice or the Department of Children and Family Services, as
11 appropriate, may contract with the Federal Government, other
12 state departments and agencies, county and municipal
13 governments and agencies, public and private agencies, and
14 private individuals and corporations in carrying out the
15 purposes of, and the responsibilities established in, this
16 chapter.
17 (a) When the department of Juvenile Justice or the
18 Department of Children and Family Services contracts with a
19 provider for any program for children, all personnel,
20 including owners, operators, employees, and volunteers, in the
21 facility must be of good moral character. A volunteer who
22 assists on an intermittent basis for less than 40 hours per
23 month need not be screened if the volunteer is under direct
24 and constant supervision by persons who meet the screening
25 requirements.
26 (b) The department of Juvenile Justice and the
27 Department of Children and Family Services shall require
28 employment screening, and rescreening no less frequently than
29 once every 5 years, pursuant to chapter 435, using the level 2
30 standards set forth in that chapter for personnel in programs
31 for children or youths.
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 (c) The department of Juvenile Justice or the
2 Department of Children and Family Services may grant
3 exemptions from disqualification from working with children as
4 provided in s. 435.07.
5 (d) The department shall require all job applicants,
6 current employees, volunteers, and contract personnel who
7 currently perform or are seeking to perform child protective
8 investigations to be drug tested pursuant to the procedures
9 and requirements of s. 112.0455, the Drug-Free Workplace Act.
10 The department is authorized to adopt rules, policies, and
11 procedures necessary to implement this paragraph.
12 (e) The department shall develop and implement a
13 written and performance-based testing and evaluation program
14 pursuant to s. 20.19(4), to ensure measurable competencies of
15 all employees assigned to manage or supervise cases of child
16 abuse, abandonment, and neglect.
17 39.002 Legislative intent.--
18 (3)(1) GENERAL PROTECTIONS FOR CHILDREN.--It is a
19 purpose of the Legislature that the children of this state be
20 provided with the following protections:
21 (a) Protection from abuse, abandonment, neglect, and
22 exploitation.
23 (b) A permanent and stable home.
24 (c) A safe and nurturing environment which will
25 preserve a sense of personal dignity and integrity.
26 (d) Adequate nutrition, shelter, and clothing.
27 (e) Effective treatment to address physical, social,
28 and emotional needs, regardless of geographical location.
29 (f) Equal opportunity and access to quality and
30 effective education, which will meet the individual needs of
31
17
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CS/HB 3883, First Engrossed
1 each child, and to recreation and other community resources to
2 develop individual abilities.
3 (g) Access to preventive services.
4 (h) An independent, trained advocate, when
5 intervention is necessary and a skilled guardian or caregiver
6 caretaker in a safe environment when alternative placement is
7 necessary.
8 (4)(2) SUBSTANCE ABUSE SERVICES.--The Legislature
9 finds that children in the care of the state's dependency
10 system and delinquency systems need appropriate health care
11 services, that the impact of substance abuse on health
12 indicates the need for health care services to include
13 substance abuse services to children and parents where
14 appropriate, and that it is in the state's best interest that
15 such children be provided the services they need to enable
16 them to become and remain independent of state care. In order
17 to provide these services, the state's dependency system and
18 delinquency systems must have the ability to identify and
19 provide appropriate intervention and treatment for children
20 with personal or family-related substance abuse problems. It
21 is therefore the purpose of the Legislature to provide
22 authority for the state to contract with community substance
23 abuse treatment providers for the development and operation of
24 specialized support and overlay services for the dependency
25 system and delinquency systems, which will be fully
26 implemented and utilized as resources permit.
27 (5)(3) PARENTAL, CUSTODIAL, AND GUARDIAN
28 RESPONSIBILITIES.--Parents, custodians, and guardians are
29 deemed by the state to be responsible for providing their
30 children with sufficient support, guidance, and supervision to
31 deter their participation in delinquent acts. The state
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1 further recognizes that the ability of parents, custodians,
2 and guardians to fulfill those responsibilities can be greatly
3 impaired by economic, social, behavioral, emotional, and
4 related problems. It is therefore the policy of the
5 Legislature that it is the state's responsibility to ensure
6 that factors impeding the ability of caregivers caretakers to
7 fulfill their responsibilities are identified through the
8 dependency delinquency intake process and that appropriate
9 recommendations and services to address those problems are
10 considered in any judicial or nonjudicial proceeding.
11 415.501 Prevention of abuse and neglect of children;
12 state plan.--
13 (6)(1) LEGISLATIVE INTENT FOR THE PREVENTION OF ABUSE,
14 ABANDONMENT, AND NEGLECT OF CHILDREN.--The incidence of known
15 child abuse, abandonment, and child neglect has increased
16 rapidly over the past 5 years. The impact that abuse,
17 abandonment, or neglect has on the victimized child, siblings,
18 family structure, and inevitably on all citizens of the state
19 has caused the Legislature to determine that the prevention of
20 child abuse, abandonment, and neglect shall be a priority of
21 this state. To further this end, it is the intent of the
22 Legislature that a comprehensive approach for the prevention
23 of abuse, abandonment, and neglect of children be developed
24 for the state and that this planned, comprehensive approach be
25 used as a basis for funding.
26 (7)(2) PLAN FOR COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH.--
27 (a) The department of Children and Family Services
28 shall develop a state plan for the prevention of abuse,
29 abandonment, and neglect of children and shall submit the plan
30 to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President
31 of the Senate, and the Governor no later than January 1, 1983.
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1 The Department of Education and the Division of Children's
2 Medical Services of the Department of Health shall participate
3 and fully cooperate in the development of the state plan at
4 both the state and local levels. Furthermore, appropriate
5 local agencies and organizations shall be provided an
6 opportunity to participate in the development of the state
7 plan at the local level. Appropriate local groups and
8 organizations shall include, but not be limited to, community
9 mental health centers; guardian ad litem programs for children
10 under the circuit court; the school boards of the local school
11 districts; the district human rights advocacy committees;
12 private or public organizations or programs with recognized
13 expertise in working with children who are sexually abused,
14 physically abused, emotionally abused, abandoned, or neglected
15 and with expertise in working with the families of such
16 children; private or public programs or organizations with
17 expertise in maternal and infant health care;
18 multidisciplinary child protection teams; child day care
19 centers; law enforcement agencies, and the circuit courts,
20 when guardian ad litem programs are not available in the local
21 area. The state plan to be provided to the Legislature and
22 the Governor shall include, as a minimum, the information
23 required of the various groups in paragraph (b).
24 (b) The development of the comprehensive state plan
25 shall be accomplished in the following manner:
26 1. The department of Children and Family Services
27 shall establish an interprogram task force comprised of the
28 Assistant Secretary for Children and Family Services, or a
29 designee, a representative from the Children and Families
30 Program Office, a representative from the Alcohol, Drug Abuse,
31 and Mental Health Program Office, a representative from the
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1 Developmental Services Program Office, a representative from
2 the Office of Standards and Evaluation, and a representative
3 from the Division of Children's Medical Services of the
4 Department of Health. Representatives of the Department of
5 Law Enforcement and of the Department of Education shall serve
6 as ex officio members of the interprogram task force. The
7 interprogram task force shall be responsible for:
8 a. Developing a plan of action for better coordination
9 and integration of the goals, activities, and funding
10 pertaining to the prevention of child abuse, abandonment, and
11 neglect conducted by the department in order to maximize staff
12 and resources at the state level. The plan of action shall be
13 included in the state plan.
14 b. Providing a basic format to be utilized by the
15 districts in the preparation of local plans of action in order
16 to provide for uniformity in the district plans and to provide
17 for greater ease in compiling information for the state plan.
18 c. Providing the districts with technical assistance
19 in the development of local plans of action, if requested.
20 d. Examining the local plans to determine if all the
21 requirements of the local plans have been met and, if they
22 have not, informing the districts of the deficiencies and
23 requesting the additional information needed.
24 e. Preparing the state plan for submission to the
25 Legislature and the Governor. Such preparation shall include
26 the collapsing of information obtained from the local plans,
27 the cooperative plans with the Department of Education, and
28 the plan of action for coordination and integration of
29 departmental activities into one comprehensive plan. The
30 comprehensive plan shall include a section reflecting general
31 conditions and needs, an analysis of variations based on
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1 population or geographic areas, identified problems, and
2 recommendations for change. In essence, the plan shall
3 provide an analysis and summary of each element of the local
4 plans to provide a statewide perspective. The plan shall also
5 include each separate local plan of action.
6 f. Working with the specified state agency in
7 fulfilling the requirements of subparagraphs 2., 3., 4., and
8 5.
9 2. The department, the Department of Education, the
10 Department of Children and Family Services, and the Department
11 of Health shall work together in developing ways to inform and
12 instruct parents of school children and appropriate district
13 school personnel in all school districts in the detection of
14 child abuse, abandonment, and neglect and in the proper action
15 that should be taken in a suspected case of child abuse,
16 abandonment, or neglect, and in caring for a child's needs
17 after a report is made. The plan for accomplishing this end
18 shall be included in the state plan.
19 3. The department, the Department of Law Enforcement,
20 the Department of Children and Family Services, and the
21 Department of Health shall work together in developing ways to
22 inform and instruct appropriate local law enforcement
23 personnel in the detection of child abuse, abandonment, and
24 neglect and in the proper action that should be taken in a
25 suspected case of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect.
26 4. Within existing appropriations, the department of
27 Children and Family Services shall work with other appropriate
28 public and private agencies to emphasize efforts to educate
29 the general public about the problem of and ways to detect
30 child abuse, abandonment, and neglect and in the proper action
31 that should be taken in a suspected case of child abuse,
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1 abandonment, or neglect. The plan for accomplishing this end
2 shall be included in the state plan.
3 5. The department, the Department of Education, the
4 Department of Children and Family Services, and the Department
5 of Health shall work together on the enhancement or adaptation
6 of curriculum materials to assist instructional personnel in
7 providing instruction through a multidisciplinary approach on
8 the identification, intervention, and prevention of child
9 abuse, abandonment, and neglect. The curriculum materials
10 shall be geared toward a sequential program of instruction at
11 the four progressional levels, K-3, 4-6, 7-9, and 10-12.
12 Strategies for encouraging all school districts to utilize the
13 curriculum are to be included in the comprehensive state plan
14 for the prevention of child abuse, abandonment, and child
15 neglect.
16 6. Each district of the department of Children and
17 Family Services shall develop a plan for its specific
18 geographical area. The plan developed at the district level
19 shall be submitted to the interprogram task force for
20 utilization in preparing the state plan. The district local
21 plan of action shall be prepared with the involvement and
22 assistance of the local agencies and organizations listed in
23 paragraph (a), as well as representatives from those
24 departmental district offices participating in the treatment
25 and prevention of child abuse, abandonment, and neglect. In
26 order to accomplish this, the district administrator in each
27 district shall establish a task force on the prevention of
28 child abuse, abandonment, and neglect. The district
29 administrator shall appoint the members of the task force in
30 accordance with the membership requirements of this section.
31 In addition, the district administrator shall ensure that each
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1 subdistrict is represented on the task force; and, if the
2 district does not have subdistricts, the district
3 administrator shall ensure that both urban and rural areas are
4 represented on the task force. The task force shall develop a
5 written statement clearly identifying its operating
6 procedures, purpose, overall responsibilities, and method of
7 meeting responsibilities. The district plan of action to be
8 prepared by the task force shall include, but shall not be
9 limited to:
10 a. Documentation of the magnitude of the problems of
11 child abuse, including sexual abuse, physical abuse, and
12 emotional abuse, and child abandonment and neglect in its
13 geographical area.
14 b. A description of programs currently serving abused,
15 abandoned, and neglected children and their families and a
16 description of programs for the prevention of child abuse,
17 abandonment, and neglect, including information on the impact,
18 cost-effectiveness, and sources of funding of such programs.
19 c. A continuum of programs and services necessary for
20 a comprehensive approach to the prevention of all types of
21 child abuse, abandonment, and neglect as well as a brief
22 description of such programs and services.
23 d. A description, documentation, and priority ranking
24 of local needs related to child abuse, abandonment, and
25 neglect prevention based upon the continuum of programs and
26 services.
27 e. A plan for steps to be taken in meeting identified
28 needs, including the coordination and integration of services
29 to avoid unnecessary duplication and cost, and for alternative
30 funding strategies for meeting needs through the reallocation
31 of existing resources, utilization of volunteers, contracting
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1 with local universities for services, and local government or
2 private agency funding.
3 f. A description of barriers to the accomplishment of
4 a comprehensive approach to the prevention of child abuse,
5 abandonment, and neglect.
6 g. Recommendations for changes that can be
7 accomplished only at the state program level or by legislative
8 action.
9 (8)(3) FUNDING AND SUBSEQUENT PLANS.--
10 (a) All budget requests submitted by the department of
11 Children and Family Services, the Department of Education, or
12 any other agency to the Legislature for funding of efforts for
13 the prevention of child abuse, abandonment, and neglect shall
14 be based on the state plan developed pursuant to this section.
15 (b) The department of Children and Family Services at
16 the state and district levels and the other agencies listed in
17 paragraph (7)(2)(a) shall readdress the plan and make
18 necessary revisions every 5 years, at a minimum. Such
19 revisions shall be submitted to the Speaker of the House of
20 Representatives and the President of the Senate no later than
21 June 30 of each year divisible by 5. An annual progress
22 report shall be submitted to update the plan in the years
23 between the 5-year intervals. In order to avoid duplication
24 of effort, these required plans may be made a part of or
25 merged with other plans required by either the state or
26 Federal Government, so long as the portions of the other state
27 or Federal Government plan that constitute the state plan for
28 the prevention of child abuse, abandonment, and neglect are
29 clearly identified as such and are provided to the Speaker of
30 the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate
31 as required above.
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1 (9)(3) LIBERAL CONSTRUCTION.--It is the intent of the
2 Legislature that this chapter be liberally interpreted and
3 construed in conformity with its declared purposes.
4 Section 3. Section 415.5015, Florida Statutes, is
5 renumbered as section 39.0015, Florida Statutes, and amended
6 to read:
7 39.0015 415.5015 Child abuse prevention training in
8 the district school system.--
9 (1) SHORT TITLE.--This section may be cited as the
10 "Child Abuse Prevention Training Act of 1985."
11 (2) LEGISLATIVE INTENT.--It is the intent of the
12 Legislature that primary prevention training for all children
13 in kindergarten through grade 12 be encouraged in the district
14 school system through the training of school teachers,
15 guidance counselors, parents, and children.
16 (3) DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section:
17 (a) "Department" means the Department of Education.
18 (b) "Child abuse" means those acts as defined in ss.
19 39.01, 415.503, and 827.04.
20 (c) "Primary prevention and training program" means a
21 training and educational program for children, parents, and
22 teachers which is directed toward preventing the occurrence of
23 child abuse, including sexual abuse, physical abuse, child
24 abandonment, child neglect, and drug and alcohol abuse, and
25 toward reducing the vulnerability of children through training
26 of children and through including coordination with, and
27 training for, parents and school personnel.
28 (d) "Prevention training center" means a center as
29 described in subsection (5).
30
31
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1 (4) PRIMARY PREVENTION AND TRAINING PROGRAM.--A
2 primary prevention and training program shall include all of
3 the following, as appropriate for the persons being trained:
4 (a) Information provided in a clear and nonthreatening
5 manner, describing the problem of sexual abuse, physical
6 abuse, abandonment, neglect, and alcohol and drug abuse, and
7 the possible solutions.
8 (b) Information and training designed to counteract
9 common stereotypes about victims and offenders.
10 (c) Crisis counseling techniques.
11 (d) Available community resources and ways to access
12 those resources.
13 (e) Physical and behavioral indicators of abuse.
14 (f) Rights and responsibilities regarding reporting.
15 (g) School district procedures to facilitate
16 reporting.
17 (h) Caring for a child's needs after a report is made.
18 (i) How to disclose incidents of abuse.
19 (j) Child safety training and age-appropriate
20 self-defense techniques.
21 (k) The right of every child to live free of abuse.
22 (l) The relationship of child abuse to handicaps in
23 young children.
24 (m) Parenting, including communication skills.
25 (n) Normal and abnormal child development.
26 (o) Information on recognizing and alleviating family
27 stress caused by the demands required in caring for a
28 high-risk or handicapped child.
29 (p) Supports needed by school-age parents in caring
30 for a young child.
31
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1 (5) PREVENTION TRAINING CENTERS; FUNCTIONS; SELECTION
2 PROCESS; MONITORING AND EVALUATION.--
3 (a) Each training center shall perform the following
4 functions:
5 1. Act as a clearinghouse to provide information on
6 prevention curricula which meet the requirements of this
7 section and the requirements of ss. 39.001, 231.17, and
8 236.0811, and 415.501.
9 2. Assist the local school district in selecting a
10 prevention program model which meets the needs of the local
11 community.
12 3. At the request of the local school district, design
13 and administer training sessions to develop or expand local
14 primary prevention and training programs.
15 4. Provide assistance to local school districts,
16 including, but not limited to, all of the following:
17 administration, management, program development, multicultural
18 staffing, and community education, in order to better meet the
19 requirements of this section and of ss. 39.001, 231.17, and
20 236.0811, and 415.501.
21 5. At the request of the department of Education or
22 the local school district, provide ongoing program development
23 and training to achieve all of the following:
24 a. Meet the special needs of children, including, but
25 not limited to, the needs of disabled and high-risk children.
26 b. Conduct an outreach program to inform the
27 surrounding communities of the existence of primary prevention
28 and training programs and of funds to conduct such programs.
29 6. Serve as a resource to the Department of Children
30 and Family Services and its districts.
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1 (b) The department, in consultation with the
2 Department of Children and Family Health and Rehabilitative
3 Services, shall select and award grants by January 1, 1986,
4 for the establishment of three private, nonprofit prevention
5 training centers: one located in and serving South Florida,
6 one located in and serving Central Florida, and one located in
7 and serving North Florida. The department, in consultation
8 with the Department of Children and Family Health and
9 Rehabilitative Services, shall select an agency or agencies to
10 establish three training centers which can fulfill the
11 requirements of this section and meet the following
12 requirements:
13 1. Have demonstrated experience in child abuse
14 prevention training.
15 2. Have shown capacity for training primary prevention
16 and training programs as provided for in subsections (3) and
17 defined in subsection (4).
18 3. Have provided training and organizing technical
19 assistance to the greatest number of private prevention and
20 training programs.
21 4. Have employed the greatest number of trainers with
22 experience in private child abuse prevention and training
23 programs.
24 5. Have employed trainers which represent the cultural
25 diversity of the area.
26 6. Have established broad community support.
27 (c) The department shall monitor and evaluate primary
28 prevention and training programs utilized in the local school
29 districts and shall monitor and evaluate the impact of the
30 prevention training centers on the implementation of primary
31
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1 prevention programs and their ability to meet the required
2 responsibilities of a center as described in this section.
3 (6) The department of Education shall administer this
4 section act and in so doing is authorized to adopt rules and
5 standards necessary to implement the specific provisions of
6 this section act.
7 Section 4. Section 39.01, Florida Statutes, as amended
8 by chapter 97-276, Laws of Florida, is amended to read:
9 39.01 Definitions.--When used in this chapter, unless
10 the context otherwise requires:
11 (1) "Abandoned" means a situation in which the parent
12 or legal custodian of a child or, in the absence of a parent
13 or legal custodian, the caregiver person responsible for the
14 child's welfare, while being able, makes no provision for the
15 child's support and makes no effort to communicate with the
16 child, which situation is sufficient to evince a willful
17 rejection of parental obligations. If the efforts of such
18 parent or legal custodian, or caregiver person primarily
19 responsible for the child's welfare, to support and
20 communicate with the child are, in the opinion of the court,
21 only marginal efforts that do not evince a settled purpose to
22 assume all parental duties, the court may declare the child to
23 be abandoned. The term "abandoned" does not include a "child
24 in need of services" as defined in chapter 984 or a "family in
25 need of services" as defined in chapter 984. The incarceration
26 of a parent, legal custodian, or caregiver person responsible
27 for a child's welfare may support does not constitute a bar to
28 a finding of abandonment.
29 (2) "Abuse" means any willful act or threatened act
30 that results in any physical, mental, or sexual injury or harm
31 that causes or is likely to cause the child's physical,
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1 mental, or emotional health to be significantly impaired. For
2 the purpose of protective investigations, abuse of a child
3 includes the acts or omissions of the parent, legal custodian,
4 caregiver, or other person responsible for the child's
5 welfare. Corporal discipline of a child by a parent, legal
6 custodian, or caregiver guardian for disciplinary purposes
7 does not in itself constitute abuse when it does not result in
8 harm to the child as defined in s. 415.503.
9 (3) "Addictions receiving facility" means a substance
10 abuse service provider as defined in chapter 397.
11 (4) "Adjudicatory hearing" means a hearing for the
12 court to determine whether or not the facts support the
13 allegations stated in the petition as is provided for under s.
14 39.408(2), in dependency cases, or s. 39.467, in termination
15 of parental rights cases.
16 (5) "Adult" means any natural person other than a
17 child.
18 (6) "Adoption" means the act of creating the legal
19 relationship between parent and child where it did not exist,
20 thereby declaring the child to be legally the child of the
21 adoptive parents and their heir at law, and entitled to all
22 the rights and privileges and subject to all the obligations
23 of a child born to such adoptive parents in lawful wedlock.
24 (7) "Alleged juvenile sexual offender" means:
25 (a) A child 12 years of age or younger who is alleged
26 to have committed a violation of chapter 794, chapter 796,
27 chapter 800, s. 827.071, or s. 847.0133; or
28 (b) A child who is alleged to have committed any
29 violation of law or delinquent act involving juvenile sexual
30 abuse. "Juvenile sexual abuse" means any sexual behavior which
31 occurs without consent, without equality, or as a result of
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1 coercion. For purposes of this paragraph, the following
2 definitions apply:
3 1. "Coercion" means the exploitation of authority or
4 the use of bribes, threats of force, or intimidation to gain
5 cooperation or compliance.
6 2. "Equality" means two participants operating with
7 the same level of power in a relationship, neither being
8 controlled nor coerced by the other.
9 3. "Consent" means an agreement, including all of the
10 following:
11 a. Understanding what is proposed based on age,
12 maturity, developmental level, functioning, and experience.
13 b. Knowledge of societal standards for what is being
14 proposed.
15 c. Awareness of potential consequences and
16 alternatives.
17 d. Assumption that agreement or disagreement will be
18 accepted equally.
19 e. Voluntary decision.
20 f. Mental competence.
21
22 Juvenile sexual offender behavior ranges from noncontact
23 sexual behavior such as making obscene phone calls,
24 exhibitionism, voyeurism, and the showing or taking of lewd
25 photographs to varying degrees of direct sexual contact, such
26 as frottage, fondling, digital penetration, rape, fellatio,
27 sodomy, and various other sexually aggressive acts.
28 (8)(6) "Arbitration" means a process whereby a neutral
29 third person or panel, called an arbitrator or an arbitration
30 panel, considers the facts and arguments presented by the
31
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1 parties and renders a decision which may be binding or
2 nonbinding.
3 (9)(7) "Authorized agent" or "designee" of the
4 department means an employee, volunteer, or other person or
5 agency determined by the state to be eligible for state-funded
6 risk management coverage, that is a person or agency assigned
7 or designated by the department of Juvenile Justice or the
8 Department of Children and Family Services, as appropriate, to
9 perform duties or exercise powers pursuant to this chapter and
10 includes contract providers and their employees for purposes
11 of providing services to and managing cases of children in
12 need of services and families in need of services.
13 (10) "Caregiver" means the parent, legal custodian,
14 adult household member, or other person responsible for a
15 child's welfare as defined in subsection (47).
16 (8) "Caretaker/homemaker" means an authorized agent of
17 the Department of Children and Family Services who shall
18 remain in the child's home with the child until a parent,
19 legal guardian, or relative of the child enters the home and
20 is capable of assuming and agrees to assume charge of the
21 child.
22 (11)(9) "Case plan" or "plan" means a document, as
23 described in s. 39.601 39.4031, prepared by the department
24 with input from all parties, including parents, guardians ad
25 litem, legal custodians, caregivers, and the child. The case
26 plan, that follows the child from the provision of voluntary
27 services through any dependency, foster care, or termination
28 of parental rights proceeding or related activity or process.
29 (12)(10) "Child" or "juvenile" or "youth" means any
30 unmarried person under the age of 18 years who has not been
31 emancipated by order of the court and who has been alleged or
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1 found or alleged to be dependent, in need of services, or from
2 a family in need of services; or any married or unmarried
3 person who is charged with a violation of law occurring prior
4 to the time that person reached the age of 18 years.
5 (13) "Child protection team" means a team of
6 professionals established by the department to receive
7 referrals from the protective investigators and protective
8 supervision staff of the department and to provide specialized
9 and supportive services to the program in processing child
10 abuse, abandonment, or neglect cases. A child protection team
11 shall provide consultation to other programs of the department
12 and other persons regarding child abuse, abandonment, or
13 neglect cases.
14 (14)(11) "Child who is found to be dependent" means a
15 child who, pursuant to this chapter, is found by the court:
16 (a) To have been abandoned, abused, or neglected by
17 the child's parent or parents, legal custodians, or
18 caregivers; or other custodians.
19 (b) To have been surrendered to the department of
20 Children and Family Services, the former Department of Health
21 and Rehabilitative Services, or a licensed child-placing
22 agency for purpose of adoption;.
23 (c) To have been voluntarily placed with a licensed
24 child-caring agency, a licensed child-placing agency, an adult
25 relative, the department of Children and Family Services, or
26 the former Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services,
27 after which placement, under the requirements of part II of
28 this chapter, a case plan has expired and the parent or
29 parents, legal custodians, or caregivers have failed to
30 substantially comply with the requirements of the plan;.
31
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1 (d) To have been voluntarily placed with a licensed
2 child-placing agency for the purposes of subsequent adoption,
3 and a natural parent or parents has signed a consent pursuant
4 to the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure;.
5 (e) To have no parent, legal custodian, or caregiver
6 responsible adult relative to provide supervision and care;
7 or.
8 (f) To be at substantial risk of imminent abuse,
9 abandonment, or neglect by the parent or parents, legal
10 custodians, or caregivers or the custodian.
11 (15)(12) "Child support" means a court-ordered
12 obligation, enforced under chapter 61 and ss.
13 409.2551-409.2597, for monetary support for the care,
14 maintenance, training, and education of a child.
15 (16)(13) "Circuit" means any of the 20 judicial
16 circuits as set forth in s. 26.021.
17 (17)(14) "Comprehensive assessment" or "assessment"
18 means the gathering of information for the evaluation of a
19 juvenile offender's or a child's and caregiver's physical,
20 psychiatric, psychological or mental health, educational,
21 vocational, and social condition and family environment as
22 they relate to the child's and caregiver's need for
23 rehabilitative and treatment services, including substance
24 abuse treatment services, mental health services,
25 developmental services, literacy services, medical services,
26 family services, and other specialized services, as
27 appropriate.
28 (18)(15) "Court," unless otherwise expressly stated,
29 means the circuit court assigned to exercise jurisdiction
30 under this chapter.
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1 (19)(16) "Department," as used in this chapter, means
2 the Department of Children and Family Services.
3 (20)(17) "Diligent efforts by a parent, legal
4 custodian, or caregiver" means a course of conduct which
5 results in a reduction in risk to the child in the child's
6 home that would allow the child to be safely placed
7 permanently back in the home as set forth in the case plan.
8 (21)(18) "Diligent efforts of social service agency"
9 means reasonable efforts to provide social services or
10 reunification services made by any social service agency as
11 defined in this section that is a party to a case plan.
12 (22)(19) "Diligent search" means the efforts of a
13 social service agency to locate a parent or prospective parent
14 whose identity or location is unknown, or a relative made
15 known to the social services agency by the parent or custodian
16 of a child. When the search is for a parent, prospective
17 parent, or relative of a child in the custody of the
18 department, this search must be initiated as soon as the
19 social service agency is made aware of the existence of such
20 parent, with the search progress reported at each court
21 hearing until the parent is either identified and located or
22 the court excuses further search. prospective parent, or
23 relative. A diligent search shall include interviews with
24 persons who are likely to have information about the identity
25 or location of the person being sought, comprehensive database
26 searches, and records searches, including searches of
27 employment, residence, utilities, Armed Forces, vehicle
28 registration, child support enforcement, law enforcement, and
29 corrections records, and any other records likely to result in
30 identifying and locating the person being sought. The initial
31 diligent search must be completed within 90 days after a child
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1 is taken into custody. After the completion of the initial
2 diligent search, the department, unless excused by the court,
3 shall have a continuing duty to search for relatives with whom
4 it may be appropriate to place the child, until such relatives
5 are found or until the child is placed for adoption.
6 (23)(20) "Disposition hearing" means a hearing in
7 which the court determines the most appropriate family support
8 dispositional services in the least restrictive available
9 setting provided for under s. 39.408(3), in dependency cases,
10 or s. 39.469, in termination of parental rights cases.
11 (24) "District" means any one of the 15 service
12 districts of the department established pursuant to s. 20.19.
13 (25)(21) "District administrator" means the chief
14 operating officer of each service district of the department
15 of Children and Family Services as defined in s. 20.19(7)(6)
16 and, where appropriate, includes any each district
17 administrator whose service district falls within the
18 boundaries of a judicial circuit.
19 (26) "Expedited termination of parental rights" means
20 proceedings wherein a case plan with the goal of reunification
21 is not being offered.
22 (27) "False report" means a report of abuse, neglect,
23 or abandonment of a child to the central abuse hotline, which
24 report is maliciously made for the purpose of:
25 (a) Harassing, embarrassing, or harming another
26 person;
27 (b) Personal financial gain for the reporting person;
28 (c) Acquiring custody of a child; or
29 (d) Personal benefit for the reporting person in any
30 other private dispute involving a child.
31
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1 The term "false report" does not include a report of abuse,
2 neglect, or abandonment of a child made in good faith to the
3 central abuse hotline.
4 (28)(22) "Family" means a collective body of persons,
5 consisting of a child and a parent, legal guardian, adult
6 custodian, caregiver, or adult relative, in which:
7 (a) The persons reside in the same house or living
8 unit; or
9 (b) The parent, legal guardian, adult custodian,
10 caregiver, or adult relative has a legal responsibility by
11 blood, marriage, or court order to support or care for the
12 child.
13 (29)(23) "Foster care" means care provided a child in
14 a foster family or boarding home, group home, agency boarding
15 home, child care institution, or any combination thereof.
16 (30) "Harm" to a child's health or welfare can occur
17 when the parent, legal custodian, or caregiver responsible for
18 the child's welfare:
19 (a) Inflicts or allows to be inflicted upon the child
20 physical, mental, or emotional injury. In determining whether
21 harm has occurred, the following factors must be considered in
22 evaluating any physical, mental, or emotional injury to a
23 child: the age of the child; any prior history of injuries to
24 the child; the location of the injury on the body of the
25 child; the multiplicity of the injury; and the type of trauma
26 inflicted. Such injury includes, but is not limited to:
27 1. Willful acts that produce the following specific
28 injuries:
29 a. Sprains, dislocations, or cartilage damage.
30 b. Bone or skull fractures.
31 c. Brain or spinal cord damage.
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1 d. Intracranial hemorrhage or injury to other internal
2 organs.
3 e. Asphyxiation, suffocation, or drowning.
4 f. Injury resulting from the use of a deadly weapon.
5 g. Burns or scalding.
6 h. Cuts, lacerations, punctures, or bites.
7 i. Permanent or temporary disfigurement.
8 j. Permanent or temporary loss or impairment of a body
9 part or function.
10
11 As used in this subparagraph, the term "willful" refers to the
12 intent to perform an action, not to the intent to achieve a
13 result or to cause an injury.
14 2. Purposely giving a child poison, alcohol, drugs, or
15 other substances that substantially affect the child's
16 behavior, motor coordination, or judgment or that result in
17 sickness or internal injury. For the purposes of this
18 subparagraph, the term "drugs" means prescription drugs not
19 prescribed for the child or not administered as prescribed,
20 and controlled substances as outlined in Schedule I or
21 Schedule II of s. 893.03.
22 3. Leaving a child without adult supervision or
23 arrangement appropriate for the child's age or mental or
24 physical condition, so that the child is unable to care for
25 the child's own needs or another's basic needs or is unable to
26 exercise good judgment in responding to any kind of physical
27 or emotional crisis.
28 4. Inappropriate or excessively harsh disciplinary
29 action that is likely to result in physical injury, mental
30 injury as defined in this section, or emotional injury. The
31 significance of any injury must be evaluated in light of the
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1 following factors: the age of the child; any prior history of
2 injuries to the child; the location of the injury on the body
3 of the child; the multiplicity of the injury; and the type of
4 trauma inflicted. Corporal discipline may be considered
5 excessive or abusive when it results in any of the following
6 or other similar injuries:
7 a. Sprains, dislocations, or cartilage damage.
8 b. Bone or skull fractures.
9 c. Brain or spinal cord damage.
10 d. Intracranial hemorrhage or injury to other internal
11 organs.
12 e. Asphyxiation, suffocation, or drowning.
13 f. Injury resulting from the use of a deadly weapon.
14 g. Burns or scalding.
15 h. Cuts, lacerations, punctures, or bites.
16 i. Permanent or temporary disfigurement.
17 j. Permanent or temporary loss or impairment of a body
18 part or function.
19 k. Significant bruises or welts.
20 (b) Commits, or allows to be committed, sexual
21 battery, as defined in chapter 794, or lewd or lascivious
22 acts, as defined in chapter 800, against the child.
23 (c) Allows, encourages, or forces the sexual
24 exploitation of a child, which includes allowing, encouraging,
25 or forcing a child to:
26 1. Solicit for or engage in prostitution; or
27 2. Engage in a sexual performance, as defined by
28 chapter 827.
29 (d) Exploits a child, or allows a child to be
30 exploited, as provided in s. 450.151.
31
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1 (e) Abandons the child. Within the context of the
2 definition of "harm," the term "abandons the child" means that
3 the parent or legal custodian of a child or, in the absence of
4 a parent or legal custodian, the person responsible for the
5 child's welfare, while being able, makes no provision for the
6 child's support and makes no effort to communicate with the
7 child, which situation is sufficient to evince a willful
8 rejection of parental obligation. If the efforts of such a
9 parent or legal custodian or person primarily responsible for
10 the child's welfare to support and communicate with the child
11 are only marginal efforts that do not evince a settled purpose
12 to assume all parental duties, the child may be determined to
13 have been abandoned.
14 (f) Neglects the child. Within the context of the
15 definition of "harm," the term "neglects the child" means that
16 the parent or other person responsible for the child's welfare
17 fails to supply the child with adequate food, clothing,
18 shelter, or health care, although financially able to do so or
19 although offered financial or other means to do so. However,
20 a parent, legal custodian, or caregiver who, by reason of the
21 legitimate practice of religious beliefs, does not provide
22 specified medical treatment for a child may not be considered
23 abusive or neglectful for that reason alone, but such an
24 exception does not:
25 1. Eliminate the requirement that such a case be
26 reported to the department;
27 2. Prevent the department from investigating such a
28 case; or
29 3. Preclude a court from ordering, when the health of
30 the child requires it, the provision of medical services by a
31 physician, as defined in this section, or treatment by a duly
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1 accredited practitioner who relies solely on spiritual means
2 for healing in accordance with the tenets and practices of a
3 well-recognized church or religious organization.
4 (g) Exposes a child to a controlled substance or
5 alcohol. Exposure to a controlled substance or alcohol is
6 established by:
7 1. Use by the mother of a controlled substance or
8 alcohol during pregnancy when the child, at birth, is
9 demonstrably adversely affected by such usage; or
10 2. Continued chronic and severe use of a controlled
11 substance or alcohol by a parent when the child is
12 demonstrably adversely affected by such usage.
13
14 As used in this paragraph, the term "controlled substance"
15 means prescription drugs not prescribed for the parent or not
16 administered as prescribed and controlled substances as
17 outlined in Schedule I or Schedule II of s. 893.03.
18 (h) Uses mechanical devices, unreasonable restraints,
19 or extended periods of isolation to control a child.
20 (i) Engages in violent behavior that demonstrates a
21 wanton disregard for the presence of a child and could
22 reasonably result in serious injury to the child.
23 (j) Negligently fails to protect a child in his or her
24 care from inflicted physical, mental, or sexual injury caused
25 by the acts of another.
26 (k) Has allowed a child's sibling to die as a result
27 of abuse, abandonment, or neglect.
28 (31)(24) "Health and human services board" means the
29 body created in each service district of the department of
30 Children and Family Services pursuant to the provisions of s.
31 20.19(8)(7).
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1 (32) "Institutional child abuse or neglect" means
2 situations of known or suspected child abuse or neglect in
3 which the person allegedly perpetrating the child abuse or
4 neglect is an employee of a private school, public or private
5 day care center, residential home, institution, facility, or
6 agency or any other person at such institution responsible for
7 the child's care.
8 (33)(25) "Judge" means the circuit judge exercising
9 jurisdiction pursuant to this chapter.
10 (34)(26) "Legal custody" means a legal status created
11 by court order or letter of guardianship which vests in a
12 custodian of the person or guardian, whether an agency or an
13 individual, the right to have physical custody of the child
14 and the right and duty to protect, train, and discipline the
15 child and to provide him or her with food, shelter, education,
16 and ordinary medical, dental, psychiatric, and psychological
17 care. The legal custodian is the person or entity in whom the
18 legal right to custody is vested.
19 (35) "Legal guardianship" means a judicially created
20 relationship between the child and caregiver which is intended
21 to be permanent and self-sustaining and is provided pursuant
22 to the procedures in chapter 744.
23 (36)(27) "Licensed child-caring agency" means a
24 person, society, association, or agency licensed by the
25 department of Children and Family Services to care for,
26 receive, and board children.
27 (37)(28) "Licensed child-placing agency" means a
28 person, society, association, or institution licensed by the
29 department of Children and Family Services to care for,
30 receive, or board children and to place children in a licensed
31 child-caring institution or a foster or adoptive home.
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1 (38)(29) "Licensed health care professional" means a
2 physician licensed under chapter 458, an osteopathic physician
3 licensed under chapter 459, a nurse licensed under chapter
4 464, a physician assistant certified under chapter 458 or
5 chapter 459, or a dentist licensed under chapter 466.
6 (39)(30) "Likely to injure oneself" means that, as
7 evidenced by violent or other actively self-destructive
8 behavior, it is more likely than not that within a 24-hour
9 period the child will attempt to commit suicide or inflict
10 serious bodily harm on himself or herself.
11 (40)(31) "Likely to injure others" means that it is
12 more likely than not that within a 24-hour period the child
13 will inflict serious and unjustified bodily harm on another
14 person.
15 (41)(32) "Long-term relative custodian" means an adult
16 relative who is a party to a long-term custodial relationship
17 created by a court order pursuant to this chapter s.
18 39.41(2)(a)5.
19 (42)(33) "Long-term relative custody" or "long-term
20 custodial relationship" means the relationship that a juvenile
21 court order creates between a child and an adult relative of
22 the child or other caregiver an adult nonrelative approved by
23 the court when the child cannot be placed in the custody of a
24 natural parent and termination of parental rights is not
25 deemed to be in the best interest of the child. Long-term
26 relative custody confers upon the long-term relative or other
27 caregiver nonrelative custodian the right to physical custody
28 of the child, a right which will not be disturbed by the court
29 except upon request of the caregiver custodian or upon a
30 showing that a material change in circumstances necessitates a
31 change of custody for the best interest of the child. A
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1 long-term relative or other caregiver nonrelative custodian
2 shall have all of the rights and duties of a natural parent,
3 including, but not limited to, the right and duty to protect,
4 train, and discipline the child and to provide the child with
5 food, shelter, and education, and ordinary medical, dental,
6 psychiatric, and psychological care, unless these rights and
7 duties are otherwise enlarged or limited by the court order
8 establishing the long-term custodial relationship.
9 (43)(34) "Mediation" means a process whereby a neutral
10 third person called a mediator acts to encourage and
11 facilitate the resolution of a dispute between two or more
12 parties. It is an informal and nonadversarial process with
13 the objective of helping the disputing parties reach a
14 mutually acceptable and voluntary agreement. In mediation,
15 decisionmaking authority rests with the parties. The role of
16 the mediator includes, but is not limited to, assisting the
17 parties in identifying issues, fostering joint problem
18 solving, and exploring settlement alternatives.
19 (44) "Mental injury" means an injury to the
20 intellectual or psychological capacity of a child as evidenced
21 by a discernible and substantial impairment in the ability to
22 function within the normal range of performance and behavior.
23 (45)(35) "Necessary medical treatment" means care
24 which is necessary within a reasonable degree of medical
25 certainty to prevent the deterioration of a child's condition
26 or to alleviate immediate pain of a child.
27 (46)(36) "Neglect" occurs when the parent or legal
28 custodian of a child or, in the absence of a parent or legal
29 custodian, the caregiver person primarily responsible for the
30 child's welfare deprives a child of, or allows a child to be
31 deprived of, necessary food, clothing, shelter, or medical
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1 treatment or permits a child to live in an environment when
2 such deprivation or environment causes the child's physical,
3 mental, or emotional health to be significantly impaired or to
4 be in danger of being significantly impaired. The foregoing
5 circumstances shall not be considered neglect if caused
6 primarily by financial inability unless actual services for
7 relief have been offered to and rejected by such person. A
8 parent, legal custodian, or caregiver guardian legitimately
9 practicing religious beliefs in accordance with a recognized
10 church or religious organization who thereby does not provide
11 specific medical treatment for a child shall not, for that
12 reason alone, be considered a negligent parent, legal
13 custodian, or caregiver guardian; however, such an exception
14 does not preclude a court from ordering the following services
15 to be provided, when the health of the child so requires:
16 (a) Medical services from a licensed physician,
17 dentist, optometrist, podiatrist, or other qualified health
18 care provider; or
19 (b) Treatment by a duly accredited practitioner who
20 relies solely on spiritual means for healing in accordance
21 with the tenets and practices of a well-recognized church or
22 religious organization.
23
24 For the purpose of protective investigations, neglect of a
25 child includes the acts or omissions of the parent, legal
26 custodian, or caregiver.
27 (47) "Other person responsible for a child's welfare"
28 includes the child's legal guardian, legal custodian, or
29 foster parent; an employee of a private school, public or
30 private child day care center, residential home, institution,
31 facility, or agency; or any other person legally responsible
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1 for the child's welfare in a residential setting; and also
2 includes an adult sitter or relative entrusted with a child's
3 care. For the purpose of departmental investigative
4 jurisdiction, this definition does not include law enforcement
5 officers, or employees of municipal or county detention
6 facilities or the Department of Corrections, while acting in
7 an official capacity.
8 (48)(37) "Next of kin" means an adult relative of a
9 child who is the child's brother, sister, grandparent, aunt,
10 uncle, or first cousin.
11 (49)(38) "Parent" means a woman who gives birth to a
12 child and a man whose consent to the adoption of the child
13 would be required under s. 63.062(1)(b). If a child has been
14 legally adopted, the term "parent" means the adoptive mother
15 or father of the child. The term does not include an
16 individual whose parental relationship to the child has been
17 legally terminated, or an alleged or prospective parent,
18 unless the parental status falls within the terms of either s.
19 39.4051(7) or s. 63.062(1)(b).
20 (50)(39) "Participant," for purposes of a shelter
21 proceeding, dependency proceeding, or termination of parental
22 rights proceeding, means any person who is not a party but who
23 should receive notice of hearings involving the child,
24 including foster parents or caregivers, identified prospective
25 parents, grandparents entitled to priority for adoption
26 consideration under s. 63.0425, actual custodians of the
27 child, and any other person whose participation may be in the
28 best interest of the child. Participants may be granted leave
29 by the court to be heard without the necessity of filing a
30 motion to intervene.
31
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1 (51)(40) "Party," for purposes of a shelter
2 proceeding, dependency proceeding, or termination of parental
3 rights proceeding, means the parent or legal custodian of the
4 child, the petitioner, the department, the guardian ad litem
5 or the representative of the guardian ad litem program when
6 the program one has been appointed, and the child. The
7 presence of the child may be excused by order of the court
8 when presence would not be in the child's best interest.
9 Notice to the child may be excused by order of the court when
10 the age, capacity, or other condition of the child is such
11 that the notice would be meaningless or detrimental to the
12 child.
13 (52) "Physical injury" means death, permanent or
14 temporary disfigurement, or impairment of any bodily part.
15 (53) "Physician" means any licensed physician,
16 dentist, podiatrist, or optometrist and includes any intern or
17 resident.
18 (54)(41) "Preliminary screening" means the gathering
19 of preliminary information to be used in determining a child's
20 need for further evaluation or assessment or for referral for
21 other substance abuse services through means such as
22 psychosocial interviews; urine and breathalyzer screenings;
23 and reviews of available educational, delinquency, and
24 dependency records of the child.
25 (55)(42) "Preventive services" means social services
26 and other supportive and rehabilitative services provided to
27 the parent of the child, the legal custodian guardian of the
28 child, or the caregiver custodian of the child and to the
29 child for the purpose of averting the removal of the child
30 from the home or disruption of a family which will or could
31 result in the placement of a child in foster care. Social
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1 services and other supportive and rehabilitative services
2 shall promote the child's need for physical, mental, and
3 emotional health and a safe, continuous, stable, living
4 environment, and shall promote family autonomy, and shall
5 strengthen family life, as the first priority whenever
6 possible.
7 (56)(43) "Prospective parent" means a person who
8 claims to be, or has been identified as, a person who may be a
9 mother or a father of a child.
10 (57)(44) "Protective investigation" means the
11 acceptance of a report alleging child abuse, abandonment, or
12 neglect, as defined in this chapter s. 415.503, by the central
13 abuse hotline or the acceptance of a report of other
14 dependency by the department local children, youth, and
15 families office of the Department of Children and Family
16 Services; the investigation and classification of each report;
17 the determination of whether action by the court is warranted;
18 the determination of the disposition of each report without
19 court or public agency action when appropriate; and the
20 referral of a child to another public or private agency when
21 appropriate; and the recommendation by the protective
22 investigator of court action when appropriate.
23 (58)(45) "Protective investigator" means an authorized
24 agent of the department of Children and Family Services who
25 receives and, investigates, and classifies reports of child
26 abuse, abandonment, or neglect as defined in s. 415.503; who,
27 as a result of the investigation, may recommend that a
28 dependency petition be filed for the child under the criteria
29 of paragraph (11)(a); and who performs other duties necessary
30 to carry out the required actions of the protective
31 investigation function.
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1 (59)(46) "Protective supervision" means a legal status
2 in dependency cases, child-in-need-of-services cases, or
3 family-in-need-of-services cases which permits the child to
4 remain safely in his or her own home or other placement under
5 the supervision of an agent of the department and which must
6 be reviewed by Department of Juvenile Justice or the
7 Department of Children and Family Services, subject to being
8 returned to the court during the period of supervision.
9 (47) "Protective supervision case plan" means a
10 document that is prepared by the protective supervision
11 counselor of the Department of Children and Family Services,
12 is based upon the voluntary protective supervision of a case
13 pursuant to s. 39.403(2)(b), or a disposition order entered
14 pursuant to s. 39.41(2)(a)3., and that:
15 (a) Is developed in conference with the parent,
16 guardian, or custodian of the child and, if appropriate, the
17 child and any court-appointed guardian ad litem.
18 (b) Is written simply and clearly in the principal
19 language, to the extent possible, of the parent, guardian, or
20 custodian of the child and in English.
21 (c) Is subject to modification based on changing
22 circumstances and negotiations among the parties to the plan
23 and includes, at a minimum:
24 1. All services and activities ordered by the court.
25 2. Goals and specific activities to be achieved by all
26 parties to the plan.
27 3. Anticipated dates for achieving each goal and
28 activity.
29 4. Signatures of all parties to the plan.
30
31
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1 (d) Is submitted to the court in cases where a
2 dispositional order has been entered pursuant to s.
3 39.41(2)(a)3.
4 (60)(48) "Relative" means a grandparent,
5 great-grandparent, sibling, first cousin, aunt, uncle,
6 great-aunt, great-uncle, niece, or nephew, whether related by
7 the whole or half blood, by affinity, or by adoption. The term
8 does not include a stepparent.
9 (61)(49) "Reunification services" means social
10 services and other supportive and rehabilitative services
11 provided to the parent of the child, the legal custodian
12 guardian of the child, or the caregiver custodian of the
13 child, whichever is applicable, to the child, and where
14 appropriate to the foster parents of the child, for the
15 purpose of enabling a child who has been placed in out-of-home
16 foster care to safely return to his or her family at the
17 earliest possible time. The health and safety of the child
18 shall be the paramount goal of social services and other
19 supportive and rehabilitative services. Such services shall
20 promote the child's need for physical, mental, and emotional
21 health and a safe, continuous, stable, living environment, and
22 shall promote family autonomy, and shall strengthen family
23 life, as a first priority whenever possible.
24 (62) "Secretary" means the Secretary of Children and
25 Family Services.
26 (63) "Sexual abuse of a child" means one or more of
27 the following acts:
28 (a) Any penetration, however slight, of the vagina or
29 anal opening of one person by the penis of another person,
30 whether or not there is the emission of semen.
31
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1 (b) Any sexual contact between the genitals or anal
2 opening of one person and the mouth or tongue of another
3 person.
4 (c) Any intrusion by one person into the genitals or
5 anal opening of another person, including the use of any
6 object for this purpose, except that this does not include any
7 act intended for a valid medical purpose.
8 (d) The intentional touching of the genitals or
9 intimate parts, including the breasts, genital area, groin,
10 inner thighs, and buttocks, or the clothing covering them, of
11 either the child or the perpetrator, except that this does not
12 include:
13 1. Any act which may reasonably be construed to be a
14 normal caregiver responsibility, any interaction with, or
15 affection for a child; or
16 2. Any act intended for a valid medical purpose.
17 (e) The intentional masturbation of the perpetrator's
18 genitals in the presence of a child.
19 (f) The intentional exposure of the perpetrator's
20 genitals in the presence of a child, or any other sexual act
21 intentionally perpetrated in the presence of a child, if such
22 exposure or sexual act is for the purpose of sexual arousal or
23 gratification, aggression, degradation, or other similar
24 purpose.
25 (g) The sexual exploitation of a child, which includes
26 allowing, encouraging, or forcing a child to:
27 1. Solicit for or engage in prostitution; or
28 2. Engage in a sexual performance, as defined by
29 chapter 827.
30 (64)(50) "Shelter" means a place for the temporary
31 care of a child who is alleged to be or who has been found to
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1 be dependent, a child from a family in need of services, or a
2 child in need of services, pending court disposition before or
3 after adjudication. or after execution of a court order.
4 "Shelter" may include a facility which provides 24-hour
5 continual supervision for the temporary care of a child who is
6 placed pursuant to s. 984.14.
7 (65)(51) "Shelter hearing" means a hearing in which
8 the court determines whether probable cause exists to keep a
9 child in shelter status pending further investigation of the
10 case provided for under s. 984.14 in
11 family-in-need-of-services cases or child-in-need-of-services
12 cases.
13 (66)(52) "Social service agency" means the department
14 of Children and Family Services, a licensed child-caring
15 agency, or a licensed child-placing agency.
16 (53) "Staff-secure shelter" means a facility in which
17 a child is supervised 24 hours a day by staff members who are
18 awake while on duty. The facility is for the temporary care
19 and assessment of a child who has been found to be dependent,
20 who has violated a court order and been found in contempt of
21 court, or whom the Department of Children and Family Services
22 is unable to properly assess or place for assistance within
23 the continuum of services provided for dependent children.
24 (67)(54) "Substance abuse" means using, without
25 medical reason, any psychoactive or mood-altering drug,
26 including alcohol, in such a manner as to induce impairment
27 resulting in dysfunctional social behavior.
28 (68)(55) "Substantial compliance" means that the
29 circumstances which caused the creation of the case plan
30 placement in foster care have been significantly remedied to
31 the extent that the well-being and safety of the child will
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1 not be endangered upon the child's remaining with or being
2 returned to the child's parent, legal custodian, or caregiver
3 or guardian.
4 (69)(56) "Taken into custody" means the status of a
5 child immediately when temporary physical control over the
6 child is attained by a person authorized by law, pending the
7 child's release or placement, detention, placement, or other
8 disposition as authorized by law.
9 (70)(57) "Temporary legal custody" means the
10 relationship that a juvenile court creates between a child and
11 an adult relative of the child, legal custodian, or caregiver
12 adult nonrelative approved by the court, or other person until
13 a more permanent arrangement is ordered. Temporary legal
14 custody confers upon the custodian the right to have temporary
15 physical custody of the child and the right and duty to
16 protect, train, and discipline the child and to provide the
17 child with food, shelter, and education, and ordinary medical,
18 dental, psychiatric, and psychological care, unless these
19 rights and duties are otherwise enlarged or limited by the
20 court order establishing the temporary legal custody
21 relationship.
22 (71) "Victim" means any child who has sustained or is
23 threatened with physical, mental, or emotional injury
24 identified in a report involving child abuse, neglect, or
25 abandonment, or child-on-child sexual abuse.
26 Section 5. Section 39.455, Florida Statutes, is
27 renumbered as section 39.011, Florida Statutes, and amended to
28 read:
29 39.011 39.455 Immunity from liability.--
30 (1) In no case shall employees or agents of the
31 department or a social service agency acting in good faith be
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1 liable for damages as a result of failing to provide services
2 agreed to under the case plan or permanent placement plan
3 unless the failure to provide such services occurs as a result
4 of bad faith or malicious purpose or occurs in a manner
5 exhibiting wanton and willful disregard of human rights,
6 safety, or property.
7 (2) The inability or failure of the department or of a
8 social service agency or the employees or agents of the social
9 service agency to provide the services agreed to under the
10 case plan or permanent placement plan shall not render the
11 state or the social service agency liable for damages unless
12 such failure to provide services occurs in a manner exhibiting
13 wanton or willful disregard of human rights, safety, or
14 property.
15 (3) A member or agent of a citizen review panel acting
16 in good faith is not liable for damages as a result of any
17 review or recommendation with regard to a foster care or
18 shelter care matter unless such member or agent exhibits
19 wanton and willful disregard of human rights or safety, or
20 property.
21 Section 6. Section 39.012, Florida Statutes, is
22 amended to read:
23 39.012 Rules for implementation.--The department of
24 Children and Family Services shall adopt rules for the
25 efficient and effective management of all programs, services,
26 facilities, and functions necessary for implementing this
27 chapter. Such rules may not conflict with the Florida Rules of
28 Juvenile Procedure. All rules and policies must conform to
29 accepted standards of care and treatment.
30 Section 7. Section 39.0121, Florida Statutes, is
31 created to read:
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1 39.0121 Specific rulemaking authority.--Pursuant to
2 the requirements of s. 120.536, the department is specifically
3 authorized to adopt, amend, and repeal administrative rules
4 which implement or interpret law or policy, or describe the
5 procedure and practice requirements necessary to implement
6 this chapter, including, but not limited to, the following:
7 (1) Background screening of department employees and
8 applicants; criminal records checks of prospective foster and
9 adoptive parents; and drug testing of protective
10 investigators.
11 (2) Reporting of child abuse, neglect, and
12 abandonment; reporting of child-on-child sexual abuse; false
13 reporting; child protective investigations; taking a child
14 into protective custody; and shelter procedures.
15 (3) Confidentiality and retention of department
16 records; access to records; and record requests.
17 (4) Department and client trust funds.
18 (5) Child protection teams and services, and eligible
19 cases.
20 (6) Consent to and provision of medical care and
21 treatment for children in the care of the department.
22 (7) Federal funding requirements and procedures;
23 foster care and adoption subsidies; subsidized independent
24 living; and subsidized child care.
25 (8) Agreements with law enforcement and other state
26 agencies; access to the National Crime Information Center
27 (NCIC); and access to the parent locator service.
28 (9) Licensing, registration, and certification of
29 child day care providers, shelter and foster homes, and
30 residential child-caring and child-placing agencies.
31
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1 (10) The Family Builders Program, the Intensive Crisis
2 Counseling Program, and any other early intervention programs
3 and kinship care assistance programs.
4 (11) Department contracts, pilot programs, and
5 demonstration projects.
6 (12) Legal and casework procedures, including, but not
7 limited to, mediation, diligent search, stipulations,
8 consents, surrenders, and default, with respect to dependency,
9 termination of parental rights, adoption, guardianship, and
10 kinship care proceedings.
11 (13) Legal and casework management of cases involving
12 in-home supervision and out-of-home care, including judicial
13 reviews, administrative reviews, case plans, and any other
14 documentation or procedures required by federal or state law.
15 (14) Injunctions and other protective orders,
16 domestic-violence-related cases, and certification of domestic
17 violence centers.
18 Section 8. Section 39.40, Florida Statutes, is
19 renumbered as section 39.013, Florida Statutes, and amended to
20 read:
21 39.013 39.40 Procedures and jurisdiction; right to
22 counsel.--
23 (1) All procedures, including petitions, pleadings,
24 subpoenas, summonses, and hearings, in this chapter dependency
25 cases shall be according to the Florida Rules of Juvenile
26 Procedure unless otherwise provided by law. Parents must be
27 informed by the court of their right to counsel in dependency
28 proceedings at each stage of the dependency proceedings.
29 Parents who are unable to afford counsel must be appointed
30 counsel.
31
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1 (2) The circuit court shall have exclusive original
2 jurisdiction of all proceedings under parts III, IV, V, and VI
3 of this chapter, of a child voluntarily placed with a licensed
4 child-caring agency, a licensed child-placing agency, or the
5 department, and of the adoption of children whose parental
6 rights have been terminated pursuant to this chapter.
7 Jurisdiction attaches when the initial shelter petition,
8 dependency petition, or termination of parental rights
9 petition is filed or when a child is taken into the custody of
10 the department. The circuit court may assume jurisdiction over
11 any such proceeding regardless of whether the child was in the
12 physical custody of both parents, was in the sole legal or
13 physical custody of only one parent, caregiver, or of some
14 other person, or was in the physical or legal custody of no
15 person when the event or condition occurred that brought the
16 child to the attention of the court. When the court obtains
17 jurisdiction of any child who has been found to be dependent
18 is obtained, the court shall retain jurisdiction, unless
19 relinquished by its order, until the child reaches 18 years of
20 age.
21 (3) When a child is under the jurisdiction of the
22 circuit court pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, the
23 juvenile court, as a division of the circuit court, may
24 exercise the general and equitable jurisdiction over
25 guardianship proceedings pursuant to the provisions of chapter
26 744, and proceedings for temporary custody of minor children
27 by extended family pursuant to the provisions of chapter 751.
28 (4)(3) The court shall expedite the resolution of the
29 placement issue in cases involving a child who under 4 years
30 of age when the child has been removed from the family and
31 placed in a shelter.
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1 (5)(4) The court shall expedite the judicial handling
2 of all cases when the child has been removed from the family
3 and placed in a shelter, and of all cases involving a child
4 under 4 years of age.
5 (6)(5) It is the intent of the Legislature that
6 Children removed from their homes shall be provided equal
7 treatment with respect to goals, objectives, services, and
8 case plans, without regard to the location of their
9 placement., and that placement shall be in a safe environment
10 where drugs and alcohol are not abused. It is the further
11 intent of the Legislature that, when children are removed from
12 their homes, disruption to their education be minimized to the
13 extent possible.
14 (7) For any child who remains in the custody or under
15 the supervision of the department, the court shall, within the
16 6-month period before the child's 18th birthday, hold a
17 hearing to review the progress of the child while in the
18 custody or under the supervision of the department.
19 (8)(a) At each stage of the proceedings under this
20 chapter, the court shall advise the parent, legal custodian,
21 or caregiver of the right to counsel. The court shall appoint
22 counsel for indigent persons. The court shall ascertain
23 whether the right to counsel is understood. When right to
24 counsel is waived, the court shall determine whether the
25 waiver is knowing and intelligent. The court shall enter its
26 findings in writing with respect to the appointment or waiver
27 of counsel for indigent parties or the waiver of counsel by
28 nonindigent parties.
29 (b) Once counsel has entered an appearance or been
30 appointed by the court to represent the parent of the child,
31 the attorney shall continue to represent the parent throughout
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1 the proceedings. If the attorney-client relationship is
2 discontinued, the court shall advise the parent of the right
3 to have new counsel retained or appointed for the remainder of
4 the proceedings.
5 (c)1. No waiver of counsel may be accepted if it
6 appears that the parent, legal custodian, or caregiver is
7 unable to make an intelligent and understanding choice because
8 of mental condition, age, education, experience, the nature or
9 complexity of the case, or other factors.
10 2. A waiver of counsel made in court must be of
11 record.
12 3. If a waiver of counsel is accepted at any hearing
13 or proceeding, the offer of assistance of counsel must be
14 renewed by the court at each subsequent stage of the
15 proceedings at which the parent, legal custodian, or caregiver
16 appears without counsel.
17 (d) This subsection does not apply to any parent who
18 has voluntarily executed a written surrender of the child and
19 consents to the entry of a court order terminating parental
20 rights.
21 (9) The time limitations in this chapter do not
22 include:
23 (a) Periods of delay resulting from a continuance
24 granted at the request or with the consent of the child's
25 counsel or the child's guardian ad litem, if one has been
26 appointed by the court, or, if the child is of sufficient
27 capacity to express reasonable consent, at the request or with
28 the consent of the child.
29 (b) Periods of delay resulting from a continuance
30 granted at the request of the attorney for the department, if
31 the continuance is granted:
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1 1. Because of an unavailability of evidence material
2 to the case when the attorney for the department has exercised
3 due diligence to obtain such evidence and there are
4 substantial grounds to believe that such evidence will be
5 available within 30 days. However, if the department is not
6 prepared to present its case within 30 days, the parent or
7 guardian may move for issuance of an order to show cause or
8 the court on its own motion may impose appropriate sanctions,
9 which may include dismissal of the petition.
10 2. To allow the attorney for the department additional
11 time to prepare the case and additional time is justified
12 because of an exceptional circumstance.
13 (c) Reasonable periods of delay necessary to
14 accomplish notice of the hearing to the child's parents;
15 however, the petitioner shall continue regular efforts to
16 provide notice to the parents during such periods of delay.
17 (d) Reasonable periods of delay resulting from a
18 continuance granted at the request of the parent or legal
19 custodian of a subject child.
20 (10) Court-appointed counsel representing indigent
21 parents or legal guardians at shelter hearings shall be paid
22 from state funds appropriated by general law.
23 Section 9. Section 39.4057, Florida Statutes, is
24 renumbered as section 39.0131, Florida Statutes.
25 Section 10. Section 39.411, Florida Statutes, is
26 renumbered as section 39.0132, Florida Statutes, and
27 subsections (3) and (4) of said section are amended to read:
28 39.0132 39.411 Oaths, records, and confidential
29 information.--
30 (3) The clerk shall keep all court records required by
31 this part separate from other records of the circuit court.
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1 All court records required by this part shall not be open to
2 inspection by the public. All records shall be inspected only
3 upon order of the court by persons deemed by the court to have
4 a proper interest therein, except that, subject to the
5 provisions of s. 63.162, a child and the parents, or legal
6 custodians, or caregivers of the child and their attorneys,
7 guardian ad litem, law enforcement agencies, and the
8 department and its designees shall always have the right to
9 inspect and copy any official record pertaining to the child.
10 The court may permit authorized representatives of recognized
11 organizations compiling statistics for proper purposes to
12 inspect and make abstracts from official records, under
13 whatever conditions upon their use and disposition the court
14 may deem proper, and may punish by contempt proceedings any
15 violation of those conditions.
16 (4) All information obtained pursuant to this part in
17 the discharge of official duty by any judge, employee of the
18 court, authorized agent of the department, correctional
19 probation officer, or law enforcement agent shall be
20 confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1)
21 and shall not be disclosed to anyone other than the authorized
22 personnel of the court, the department and its designees,
23 correctional probation officers, law enforcement agents,
24 guardian ad litem, and others entitled under this chapter to
25 receive that information, except upon order of the court.
26 Section 11. Section 39.414, Florida Statutes, is
27 renumbered as section 39.0133, Florida Statutes.
28 Section 12. Sections 39.415 and 39.474, Florida
29 Statutes, are renumbered as section 39.0134, Florida Statutes,
30 and amended to read:
31 39.0134 39.415 Appointed counsel; compensation.--
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1 (1) If counsel is entitled to receive compensation for
2 representation pursuant to a court appointment in a dependency
3 proceeding pursuant to this chapter, such compensation shall
4 be established by each county not exceed $1,000 at the trial
5 level and $2,500 at the appellate level.
6 39.474 Appointed counsel; compensation.--
7 (2) If counsel is entitled to receive compensation for
8 representation pursuant to court appointment in a termination
9 of parental rights proceeding, such compensation shall not
10 exceed $1,000 at the trial level and $2,500 at the appellate
11 level.
12 Section 13. Section 39.418, Florida Statutes, is
13 renumbered as section 39.0135, Florida Statutes, and amended
14 to read:
15 39.0135 39.418 Operations and Maintenance Trust
16 Fund.--Effective July 1, 1996, The department of Children and
17 Family Services shall deposit all child support payments made
18 to the department pursuant to this chapter s. 39.41(2) into
19 the Operations and Maintenance Trust Fund. The purpose of
20 this funding is to care for children who are committed to the
21 temporary legal custody of the department pursuant to s.
22 39.41(2)(a)8.
23 Section 14. Part II of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
24 consisting of sections 39.201, 39.202, 39.203, 39.204, 39.205,
25 and 39.206, Florida Statutes, shall be entitled to read:
26 PART II
27 REPORTING CHILD ABUSE
28 Section 15. Section 415.504, Florida Statutes, is
29 renumbered as section 39.201, Florida Statutes, and amended to
30 read:
31
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1 39.201 415.504 Mandatory reports of child abuse,
2 abandonment, or neglect; mandatory reports of death; central
3 abuse hotline.--
4 (1) Any person, including, but not limited to, any:
5 (a) Physician, osteopathic physician, medical
6 examiner, chiropractor, nurse, or hospital personnel engaged
7 in the admission, examination, care, or treatment of persons;
8 (b) Health or mental health professional other than
9 one listed in paragraph (a);
10 (c) Practitioner who relies solely on spiritual means
11 for healing;
12 (d) School teacher or other school official or
13 personnel;
14 (e) Social worker, day care center worker, or other
15 professional child care, foster care, residential, or
16 institutional worker; or
17 (f) Law enforcement officer,
18
19 who knows, or has reasonable cause to suspect, that a child is
20 an abused, abandoned, or neglected child shall report such
21 knowledge or suspicion to the department in the manner
22 prescribed in subsection (2).
23 (2)(a) Each report of known or suspected child abuse,
24 abandonment, or neglect pursuant to this section, except those
25 solely under s. 827.04(3)(4), shall be made immediately to the
26 department's central abuse hotline on the single statewide
27 toll-free telephone number, and, if the report is of an
28 instance of known or suspected child abuse by a noncaretaker,
29 the call shall be immediately electronically transferred to
30 the appropriate county sheriff's office by the central abuse
31 hotline. If the report is of an instance of known or
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1 suspected child abuse involving impregnation of a child under
2 16 years of age by a person 21 years of age or older solely
3 under s. 827.04(3)(4), the report shall be made immediately to
4 the appropriate county sheriff's office or other appropriate
5 law enforcement agency. If the report is of an instance of
6 known or suspected child abuse solely under s. 827.04(3)(4),
7 the reporting provisions of this subsection do not apply to
8 health care professionals or other persons who provide medical
9 or counseling services to pregnant children when such
10 reporting would interfere with the provision of medical
11 services.
12 (b) Reporters in occupation categories designated in
13 subsection (1) are required to provide their names to the
14 hotline staff. The names of reporters shall be entered into
15 the record of the report, but shall be held confidential as
16 provided in s. 39.202 415.51.
17 (c) Reports involving known or suspected institutional
18 child abuse or neglect shall be made and received in the same
19 manner as all other reports made pursuant to this section.
20 (d) Reports involving a known or suspected juvenile
21 sexual offender shall be made and received by the department.
22 1. The department shall determine the age of the
23 alleged juvenile sexual offender if known.
24 2. When the alleged juvenile sexual offender is 12
25 years of age or younger, the department shall proceed with an
26 investigation of the report pursuant to this part III,
27 immediately electronically transfer the call to the
28 appropriate law enforcement agency office by the central abuse
29 hotline, and send a written report of the allegation to the
30 appropriate county sheriff's office within 48 hours after the
31 initial report is made to the central abuse hotline.
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1 3. When the alleged juvenile sexual offender is 13
2 years of age or older, the department shall immediately
3 electronically transfer the call to the appropriate county
4 sheriff's office by the central abuse hotline, and send a
5 written report to the appropriate county sheriff's office
6 within 48 hours after the initial report to the central abuse
7 hotline.
8 (e) Hotline counselors shall receive periodic training
9 in encouraging reporters to provide their names when reporting
10 abuse, abandonment, or neglect. Callers shall be advised of
11 the confidentiality provisions of s. 39.202 415.51. The
12 department shall secure and install electronic equipment that
13 automatically provides to the hotline the number from which
14 the call is placed. This number shall be entered into the
15 report of abuse, abandonment, or neglect and become a part of
16 the record of the report, but shall enjoy the same
17 confidentiality as provided to the identity of the caller
18 pursuant to s. 39.202 415.51.
19 (3) Any person required to report or investigate cases
20 of suspected child abuse, abandonment, or neglect who has
21 reasonable cause to suspect that a child died as a result of
22 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect shall report his or her
23 suspicion to the appropriate medical examiner. The medical
24 examiner shall accept the report for investigation pursuant to
25 s. 406.11 and shall report his or her findings, in writing, to
26 the local law enforcement agency, the appropriate state
27 attorney, and the department. Autopsy reports maintained by
28 the medical examiner are not subject to the confidentiality
29 requirements provided for in s. 39.202 415.51.
30 (4)(a) The department shall establish and maintain a
31 central abuse hotline to receive all reports made pursuant to
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1 this section in writing or through a single statewide
2 toll-free telephone number, which any person may use to report
3 known or suspected child abuse, abandonment, or neglect at any
4 hour of the day or night, any day of the week. The central
5 abuse hotline shall be operated in such a manner as to enable
6 the department to:
7 (a)1. Immediately identify and locate prior reports or
8 cases of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect through
9 utilization of the department's automated tracking system.
10 (b)2. Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the
11 department's program for reporting and investigating suspected
12 abuse, abandonment, or neglect of children through the
13 development and analysis of statistical and other information.
14 (c)3. Track critical steps in the investigative
15 process to ensure compliance with all requirements for any
16 report of abuse, abandonment, or neglect.
17 (d)4. Maintain and produce aggregate statistical
18 reports monitoring patterns of both child abuse, child
19 abandonment, and child neglect. The department shall collect
20 and analyze child-on-child sexual abuse reports and include
21 the information in aggregate statistical reports.
22 (e)5. Serve as a resource for the evaluation,
23 management, and planning of preventive and remedial services
24 for children who have been subject to abuse, abandonment, or
25 neglect.
26 (f)6. Initiate and enter into agreements with other
27 states for the purpose of gathering and sharing information
28 contained in reports on child maltreatment to further enhance
29 programs for the protection of children.
30 (b) Upon receiving an oral or written report of known
31 or suspected child abuse or neglect, the central abuse hotline
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1 shall determine if the report requires an immediate onsite
2 protective investigation. For reports requiring an immediate
3 onsite protective investigation, the central abuse hotline
4 shall immediately notify the department's designated children
5 and families district staff responsible for protective
6 investigations to ensure that an onsite investigation is
7 promptly initiated. For reports not requiring an immediate
8 onsite protective investigation, the central abuse hotline
9 shall notify the department's designated children and families
10 district staff responsible for protective investigations in
11 sufficient time to allow for an investigation, or if the
12 district determines appropriate, a family services response
13 system approach to be commenced within 24 hours. When a
14 district decides to respond to a report of child abuse or
15 neglect with a family services response system approach, the
16 provisions of part III apply. If, in the course of assessing
17 risk and services or at any other appropriate time,
18 responsible district staff determines that the risk to the
19 child requires a child protective investigation, then the
20 department shall suspend its family services response system
21 activities and shall proceed with an investigation as
22 delineated in this part. At the time of notification of
23 district staff with respect to the report, the central abuse
24 hotline shall also provide information on any previous report
25 concerning a subject of the present report or any pertinent
26 information relative to the present report or any noted
27 earlier reports.
28 (c) Upon commencing an investigation under this part,
29 the child protective investigator shall inform any subject of
30 the investigation of the following:
31
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1 1. The names of the investigators and identifying
2 credentials from the department.
3 2. The purpose of the investigation.
4 3. The right to obtain his or her own attorney and
5 ways that the information provided by the subject may be used.
6 (d) The department shall make and keep records of all
7 cases brought before it pursuant to this part and shall
8 preserve the records pertaining to a child and family until 7
9 years after the last entry was made or until the child is 18
10 years of age. The department shall then destroy the records,
11 except where the child has been placed under the protective
12 supervision of the department, the court has made a finding of
13 dependency, or a criminal conviction has resulted from the
14 facts associated with the report and there is a likelihood
15 that future services of the department may be required.
16 (5) The department shall be capable of receiving and
17 investigating reports of known or suspected child abuse,
18 abandonment, or neglect 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If it
19 appears that the immediate safety or well-being of a child is
20 endangered, that the family may flee or the child will be
21 unavailable for purposes of conducting a child protective
22 investigation, or that the facts otherwise so warrant, the
23 department shall commence an investigation immediately,
24 regardless of the time of day or night. In all other child
25 abuse, abandonment, or neglect cases, a child protective
26 investigation shall be commenced within 24 hours after receipt
27 of the report. In an institutional investigation, the alleged
28 perpetrator may be represented by an attorney, at his or her
29 own expense, or accompanied by another person, if the person
30 or the attorney executes an affidavit of understanding with
31 the department and agrees to comply with the confidentiality
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1 provisions of s. 39.202. The absence of an attorney or other
2 person does not prevent the department from proceeding with
3 other aspects of the investigation, including interviews with
4 other persons. In institutional child abuse cases when the
5 institution is not operating and the child cannot otherwise be
6 located, the investigation shall commence immediately upon the
7 resumption of operation. If requested by a state attorney or
8 local law enforcement agency, the department shall furnish all
9 investigative reports to that agency.
10 (6)(e) Information in the central abuse hotline may
11 not be used for employment screening, except as provided in s.
12 39.202(2)(a) and (h). Information in the central abuse hotline
13 and the department's automated abuse information system may be
14 used by the department, its authorized agents or contract
15 providers, the Department of Health, or county agencies as
16 part of the licensure or registration process pursuant to ss.
17 402.301-402.319 and ss. 409.175-409.176. Access to the
18 information shall only be granted as set forth in s. 415.51.
19 (7)(5) This section does not require a professional
20 who is hired by or enters into a contract with the department
21 for the purpose of treating or counseling any person, as a
22 result of a report of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect, to
23 again report to the central abuse hotline the abuse,
24 abandonment, or neglect that was the subject of the referral
25 for treatment.
26 Section 16. Section 415.511, Florida Statutes, is
27 renumbered as section 39.203, Florida Statutes, and amended to
28 read:
29 39.203 415.511 Immunity from liability in cases of
30 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect.--
31
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1 (1)(a) Any person, official, or institution
2 participating in good faith in any act authorized or required
3 by this chapter ss. 415.502-415.514, or reporting in good
4 faith any instance of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect to
5 any law enforcement agency, shall be immune from any civil or
6 criminal liability which might otherwise result by reason of
7 such action.
8 (b) Except as provided in this chapter s.
9 415.503(10)(f), nothing contained in this section shall be
10 deemed to grant immunity, civil or criminal, to any person
11 suspected of having abused, abandoned, or neglected a child,
12 or committed any illegal act upon or against a child.
13 (2)(a) No resident or employee of a facility serving
14 children may be subjected to reprisal or discharge because of
15 his or her actions in reporting abuse, abandonment, or neglect
16 pursuant to the requirements of this section.
17 (b) Any person making a report under this section
18 shall have a civil cause of action for appropriate
19 compensatory and punitive damages against any person who
20 causes detrimental changes in the employment status of such
21 reporting party by reason of his or her making such report.
22 Any detrimental change made in the residency or employment
23 status of such person, including, but not limited to,
24 discharge, termination, demotion, transfer, or reduction in
25 pay or benefits or work privileges, or negative evaluations
26 within a prescribed period of time shall establish a
27 rebuttable presumption that such action was retaliatory.
28 Section 17. Section 415.512, Florida Statutes, is
29 renumbered as section 39.204, Florida Statutes, and amended to
30 read:
31
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1 39.204 415.512 Abrogation of privileged communications
2 in cases involving child abuse, abandonment, or neglect.--The
3 privileged quality of communication between husband and wife
4 and between any professional person and his or her patient or
5 client, and any other privileged communication except that
6 between attorney and client or the privilege provided in s.
7 90.505, as such communication relates both to the competency
8 of the witness and to the exclusion of confidential
9 communications, shall not apply to any communication involving
10 the perpetrator or alleged perpetrator in any situation
11 involving known or suspected child abuse, abandonment, or
12 neglect and shall not constitute grounds for failure to report
13 as required by s. 39.201 415.504 regardless of the source of
14 the information requiring the report, failure to cooperate
15 with the department in its activities pursuant to this chapter
16 ss. 415.502-415.514, or failure to give evidence in any
17 judicial proceeding relating to child abuse, abandonment, or
18 neglect.
19 Section 18. Section 415.513, Florida Statutes, is
20 renumbered as section 39.205, Florida Statutes, and amended to
21 read:
22 39.205 415.513 Penalties relating to abuse reporting
23 of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect.--
24 (1) A person who is required by s. 415.504 to report
25 known or suspected child abuse, abandonment, or neglect and
26 who knowingly and willfully fails to do so, or who knowingly
27 and willfully prevents another person from doing so, is guilty
28 of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided
29 in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
30 (2) A person who knowingly and willfully makes public
31 or discloses any confidential information contained in the
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1 central abuse hotline registry and tracking system or in the
2 records of any child abuse, abandonment, or neglect case,
3 except as provided in this chapter ss. 415.502-415.514, is
4 guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as
5 provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
6 (3) The department shall establish procedures for
7 determining whether a false report of child abuse,
8 abandonment, or neglect has been made and for submitting all
9 identifying information relating to such a report to the
10 appropriate law enforcement agency and shall report annually
11 to the Legislature the number of reports referred the state
12 attorney for prosecution.
13 (4) If the department or its authorized agent has
14 determined after its investigation that a report is false, the
15 department shall, with the consent of the alleged perpetrator,
16 refer the report to the local law enforcement agency having
17 jurisdiction for an investigation to determine whether
18 sufficient evidence exists to refer the case for prosecution
19 for filing a false report as defined in s. 39.01(27). During
20 the pendency of the investigation by the local law enforcement
21 agency, the department must notify the local law enforcement
22 agency of, and the local law enforcement agency must respond
23 to all subsequent reports concerning children in that same
24 family in accordance with s. 39.301. If the law enforcement
25 agency believes that there are indicators of abuse or neglect,
26 it must immediately notify the department, which must assure
27 the safety of the children. If the law enforcement agency
28 finds sufficient evidence for prosecution for filing a false
29 report, it must refer the case to the appropriate state
30 attorney for prosecution.
31
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1 (5)(4) A person who knowing and willfully makes a
2 false report of child abuse or neglect, or who advises another
3 to make a false report, is guilty of a felony of the third
4 misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s.
5 775.082 or s. 775.083. Anyone making a report who is acting
6 in good faith is immune from any liability under this
7 subsection.
8 (6)(5) Each state attorney shall establish written
9 procedures to facilitate the prosecution of persons under this
10 section, and shall report to the Legislature annually the
11 number of complaints that have resulted in the filing of an
12 information or indictment and the disposition of those
13 complaints under this section.
14 Section 19. Section 415.5131, Florida Statutes, is
15 renumbered as section 39.206, Florida Statutes, and amended to
16 read:
17 39.206 415.5131 Administrative fines for false report
18 of abuse, abandonment, or neglect of a child.--
19 (1) In addition to any other penalty authorized by
20 this section, chapter 120, or other law, the department may
21 impose a fine, not to exceed $10,000 $1,000 for each
22 violation, upon a person who knowingly and willfully makes a
23 false report of abuse, abandonment, or neglect of a child, or
24 a person who counsels another to make a false report.
25 (2) If the department alleges that a person has filed
26 a false report with the central abuse hotline registry and
27 tracking system, the department must file a Notice of Intent
28 which alleges the name, age, and address of the individual,
29 the facts constituting the allegation that the individual made
30 a false report, and the administrative fine the department
31
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1 proposes to impose on the person. Each time that a false
2 report is made constitutes a separate violation.
3 (3) The Notice of Intent to impose the administrative
4 fine must be served upon the person alleged to have filed the
5 false report and the person's legal counsel, if any. Such
6 Notice of Intent must be given by certified mail, return
7 receipt requested.
8 (4) Any person alleged to have filed the false report
9 is entitled to an administrative hearing, pursuant to chapter
10 120, before the imposition of the fine becomes final. The
11 person must request an administrative hearing within 60 days
12 after receipt of the Notice of Intent by filing a request with
13 the department. Failure to request an administrative hearing
14 within 60 days after receipt of the Notice of Intent
15 constitutes a waiver of the right to a hearing, making the
16 administrative fine final.
17 (5) At the hearing, the department must prove by a
18 preponderance of the clear and convincing evidence that the
19 person filed a false report with the central abuse hotline
20 registry and tracking system. The court shall advise any
21 person against whom a fine may be imposed of that person's
22 right to be represented by counsel at the hearing.
23 (6) In determining the amount of fine to be imposed,
24 if any, the following factors shall be considered:
25 (a) The gravity of the violation, including the
26 probability that serious physical or emotional harm to any
27 person will result or has resulted, the severity of the actual
28 or potential harm, and the nature of the false allegation.
29 (b) Actions taken by the false reporter to retract the
30 false report as an element of mitigation, or, in contrast, to
31 encourage an investigation on the basis of false information.
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1 (c) Any previous false reports filed by the same
2 individual.
3 (7) A decision by the department, following the
4 administrative hearing, to impose an administrative fine for
5 filing a false report constitutes final agency action within
6 the meaning of chapter 120. Notice of the imposition of the
7 administrative fine must be served upon the person and the
8 person's legal counsel, by certified mail, return receipt
9 requested, and must state that the person may seek judicial
10 review of the administrative fine pursuant to s. 120.68.
11 (8) All amounts collected under this section shall be
12 deposited into an appropriate trust fund of the department.
13 (9) A person who is determined to have filed a false
14 report of abuse, abandonment, or neglect is not entitled to
15 confidentiality. Subsequent to the conclusion of all
16 administrative or other judicial proceedings concerning the
17 filing of a false report, the name of the false reporter and
18 the nature of the false report shall be made public, pursuant
19 to s. 119.01(1). Such information shall be admissible in any
20 civil or criminal proceeding.
21 (10) Any person making a report who is acting in good
22 faith is immune from any liability under this section and
23 shall continue to be entitled to have the confidentiality of
24 their identity maintained.
25 Section 20. Part III of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
26 consisting of sections 39.301, 39.302, 39.303, 39.3035,
27 39.304, 39.305, 39.306, and 39.307, Florida Statutes, shall be
28 entitled to read:
29 PART III
30 PROTECTIVE INVESTIGATIONS
31
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1 Section 21. Section 39.301, Florida Statutes, is
2 created to read:
3 39.301 Initiation of protective investigations.--
4 (1) Upon receiving an oral or written report of known
5 or suspected child abuse, abandonment, or neglect, the central
6 abuse hotline shall determine if the report requires an
7 immediate onsite protective investigation. For reports
8 requiring an immediate onsite protective investigation, the
9 central abuse hotline shall immediately notify the
10 department's designated children and families district staff
11 responsible for protective investigations to ensure that an
12 onsite investigation is promptly initiated. For reports not
13 requiring an immediate onsite protective investigation, the
14 central abuse hotline shall notify the department's designated
15 children and families district staff responsible for
16 protective investigations in sufficient time to allow for an
17 investigation. At the time of notification of district staff
18 with respect to the report, the central abuse hotline shall
19 also provide information on any previous report concerning a
20 subject of the present report or any pertinent information
21 relative to the present report or any noted earlier reports.
22 (2)(a) Upon commencing an investigation under this
23 part, the child protective investigator shall inform any
24 subject of the investigation of the following:
25 1. The names of the investigators and identifying
26 credentials from the department.
27 2. The purpose of the investigation.
28 3. The right to obtain his or her own attorney and
29 ways that the information provided by the subject may be used.
30 4. The possible outcomes and services of the
31 department's response shall be explained to the caregiver.
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1 5. The right of the parent, legal custodian, or
2 caregiver to be involved to the fullest extent possible in
3 determining the nature of the allegation and the nature of any
4 identified problem.
5 (b) The department's training program shall ensure
6 that protective investigators know how to fully inform
7 parents, guardians, and caregivers of their rights and
8 options, including opportunities for audio or video recording
9 of investigators' interviews with parents, guardians,
10 caretakers, or children.
11 (3) An assessment of risk and the perceived needs for
12 the child and family shall be conducted in a manner that is
13 sensitive to the social, economic, and cultural environment of
14 the family.
15 (4) Protective investigations shall be performed by
16 the department or its agent.
17 (5) The person responsible for the investigation shall
18 make a preliminary determination as to whether the report or
19 complaint is complete, consulting with the attorney for the
20 department when necessary. In any case in which the person
21 responsible for the investigation finds that the report or
22 complaint is incomplete, he or she shall return it without
23 delay to the person or agency originating the report or
24 complaint or having knowledge of the facts, or to the
25 appropriate law enforcement agency having investigative
26 jurisdiction, and request additional information in order to
27 complete the report or complaint; however, the confidentiality
28 of any report filed in accordance with this chapter shall not
29 be violated.
30 (a) If it is determined that the report or complaint
31 is complete, after determining that such action would be in
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1 the best interests of the child, the attorney for the
2 department shall file a petition for dependency.
3 (b) If it is determined that the report or complaint
4 is complete, but the interests of the child and the public
5 will be best served by providing the child care or other
6 treatment voluntarily accepted by the child and the parents,
7 caregivers, or legal custodians, the protective investigator
8 may refer the child for such care or other treatment.
9 (c) If the person conducting the investigation refuses
10 to request the attorney for the department to file a petition
11 for dependency, the complainant shall be advised of the right
12 to file a petition pursuant to this part.
13 (6) For each report it receives, the department shall
14 perform an onsite child protective investigation to:
15 (a) Determine the composition of the family or
16 household, including the name, address, date of birth, social
17 security number, sex, and race of each child named in the
18 report; any siblings or other children in the same household
19 or in the care of the same adults; the parents, legal
20 custodians, or caregivers; and any other adults in the same
21 household.
22 (b) Determine whether there is indication that any
23 child in the family or household has been abused, abandoned,
24 or neglected; the nature and extent of present or prior
25 injuries, abuse, or neglect, and any evidence thereof; and a
26 determination as to the person or persons apparently
27 responsible for the abuse, abandonment, or neglect, including
28 the name, address, date of birth, social security number, sex,
29 and race of each such person.
30 (c) Determine the immediate and long-term risk to each
31 child by conducting state and federal records checks on the
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1 parents, legal custodians, or caregivers, and any other
2 persons in the same household. This information shall be used
3 solely for purposes supporting the detection, apprehension,
4 prosecution, pretrial release, post-trial release, or
5 rehabilitation of criminal offenders or persons accused of the
6 crimes of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect and shall not
7 be further disseminated or used for any other purpose. The
8 department's child protection investigators are hereby
9 designated a criminal justice agency for the purpose of
10 accessing criminal justice information to be used for
11 enforcing this state's laws concerning the crimes of child
12 abuse, abandonment, and neglect.
13 (d) Determine the immediate and long-term risk to each
14 child through utilization of standardized risk assessment
15 instruments.
16 (e) Based on the information obtained from the
17 caregiver, complete the risk-assessment instrument within 48
18 hours after the initial contact and, if needed, develop a case
19 plan.
20 (f) Determine the protective, treatment, and
21 ameliorative services necessary to safeguard and ensure the
22 child's safety and well-being and development, and cause the
23 delivery of those services through the early intervention of
24 the department or its agent.
25 (7) If the department or its agent is denied
26 reasonable access to a child by the parents, legal custodians,
27 or caregivers and the department deems that the best interests
28 of the child so require, it shall seek an appropriate court
29 order or other legal authority prior to examining and
30 interviewing the child.
31
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1 (8) If the department or its agent determines that a
2 child requires immediate or long-term protection through:
3 (a) Medical or other health care;
4 (b) Homemaker care, day care, protective supervision,
5 or other services to stabilize the home environment, including
6 intensive family preservation services through the Family
7 Builders Program, the Intensive Crisis Counseling Program, or
8 both; or
9 (c) Foster care, shelter care, or other substitute
10 care to remove the child from the custody of the parents,
11 legal guardians, or caregivers,
12
13 such services shall first be offered for voluntary acceptance
14 unless there are high-risk factors that may impact the ability
15 of the parents, legal guardians, or caregivers to exercise
16 judgment. Such factors may include the parents', legal
17 guardians', or caregivers' young age or history of substance
18 abuse or domestic violence. The parents, legal custodians, or
19 caregivers shall be informed of the right to refuse services,
20 as well as the responsibility of the department to protect the
21 child regardless of the acceptance or refusal of services. If
22 the services are refused and the department deems that the
23 child's need for protection so requires, the department shall
24 take the child into protective custody or petition the court
25 as provided in this chapter.
26 (9) When a child is taken into custody pursuant to
27 this section, the authorized agent of the department shall
28 request that the child's parent, caregiver, or legal custodian
29 disclose the names, relationships, and addresses of all
30 parents and prospective parents and all next of kin, so far as
31 are known.
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1 (10) No later than 30 days after receiving the initial
2 report, the local office of the department shall complete its
3 investigation.
4 (11) Immediately upon receipt of a report alleging, or
5 immediately upon learning during the course of an
6 investigation, that:
7 (a) The immediate safety or well-being of a child is
8 endangered;
9 (b) The family is likely to flee;
10 (c) A child died as a result of abuse, abandonment, or
11 neglect;
12 (d) A child is a victim of aggravated child abuse as
13 defined in s. 827.03; or
14 (e) A child is a victim of sexual battery or of sexual
15 abuse,
16
17 the department shall orally notify the jurisdictionally
18 responsible state attorney, and county sheriff's office or
19 local police department, and, as soon as practicable, transmit
20 the report to those agencies. The law enforcement agency
21 shall review the report and determine whether a criminal
22 investigation needs to be conducted and shall assume lead
23 responsibility for all criminal fact-finding activities. A
24 criminal investigation shall be coordinated, whenever
25 possible, with the child protective investigation of the
26 department. Any interested person who has information
27 regarding an offense described in this subsection may forward
28 a statement to the state attorney as to whether prosecution is
29 warranted and appropriate.
30 (12) In a child protective investigation or a criminal
31 investigation, when the initial interview with the child is
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1 conducted at school, the department or the law enforcement
2 agency may allow, notwithstanding the provisions of s.
3 39.0132(4), a school instructional staff member who is known
4 by the child to be present during the initial interview if:
5 (a) The department or law enforcement agency believes
6 that the school instructional staff member could enhance the
7 success of the interview by his or her presence; and
8 (b) The child requests or consents to the presence of
9 the school instructional staff member at the interview.
10
11 School instructional staff may only be present when authorized
12 by this subsection. Information received during the interview
13 or from any other source regarding the alleged abuse or
14 neglect of the child shall be confidential and exempt from the
15 provisions of s. 119.07(1), except as otherwise provided by
16 court order. A separate record of the investigation of the
17 abuse, abandonment, or neglect shall not be maintained by the
18 school or school instructional staff member. Violation of this
19 subsection constitutes a misdemeanor of the second degree,
20 punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
21 (13) Within 15 days after the completion of the
22 investigation of cases reported to him or her pursuant to this
23 section, the state attorney shall report his or her findings
24 to the department and shall include in such report a
25 determination of whether or not prosecution is justified and
26 appropriate in view of the circumstances of the specific case.
27 Section 22. Section 39.302, Florida Statutes, is
28 created to read:
29 39.302 Protective investigations of institutional
30 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect.--
31
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1 (1) The department shall conduct a child protective
2 investigation of each report of institutional child abuse,
3 abandonment, or neglect. Upon receipt of a report which
4 alleges that an employee or agent of the department, or any
5 other entity or person covered by s. 39.01(32) or (47), acting
6 in an official capacity, has committed an act of child abuse,
7 abandonment, or neglect, the department shall immediately
8 initiate a child protective investigation and orally notify
9 the appropriate state attorney, law enforcement agency, and
10 licensing agency. These agencies shall immediately conduct a
11 joint investigation, unless independent investigations are
12 more feasible. When a facility is exempt from licensing, the
13 department shall inform the owner or operator of the facility
14 of the report. Each agency conducting a joint investigation
15 shall be entitled to full access to the information gathered
16 by the department in the course of the investigation. In all
17 cases, the department shall make a full written report to the
18 state attorney within 3 days after making the oral report. A
19 criminal investigation shall be coordinated, whenever
20 possible, with the child protective investigation of the
21 department. Any interested person who has information
22 regarding the offenses described in this subsection may
23 forward a statement to the state attorney as to whether
24 prosecution is warranted and appropriate. Within 15 days after
25 the completion of the investigation, the state attorney shall
26 report the findings to the department and shall include in
27 such report a determination of whether or not prosecution is
28 justified and appropriate in view of the circumstances of the
29 specific case.
30 (2)(a) If in the course of the child protective
31 investigation, the department finds that a subject of a
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1 report, by continued contact with children in care,
2 constitutes a threatened harm to the physical health, mental
3 health, or welfare of the children, the department may
4 restrict a subject's access to the children pending the
5 outcome of the investigation. The department or its agent
6 shall employ the least restrictive means necessary to
7 safeguard the physical health, mental health, and welfare of
8 the children in care. This authority shall apply only to
9 child protective investigations in which there is some
10 evidence that child abuse, abandonment, or neglect has
11 occurred. A subject of a report whose access to children in
12 care has been restricted is entitled to petition the circuit
13 court for judicial review. The court shall enter written
14 findings of fact based upon the preponderance of evidence that
15 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect did occur and that the
16 department's restrictive action against a subject of the
17 report was justified in order to safeguard the physical
18 health, mental health, and welfare of the children in care.
19 The restrictive action of the department shall be effective
20 for no more than 90 days without a judicial finding supporting
21 the actions of the department.
22 (b) Upon completion of the department's child
23 protective investigation, the department may make application
24 to the circuit court for continued restrictive action against
25 any person necessary to safeguard the physical health, mental
26 health, and welfare of the children in care.
27 (3) Pursuant to the restrictive actions described in
28 subsection (2), in cases of institutional abuse, abandonment,
29 or neglect in which the removal of a subject of a report will
30 result in the closure of the facility, and when requested by
31 the owner of the facility, the department may provide
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1 appropriate personnel to assist in maintaining the operation
2 of the facility. The department may provide assistance when
3 it can be demonstrated by the owner that there are no
4 reasonable alternatives to such action. The length of the
5 assistance shall be agreed upon by the owner and the
6 department; however, the assistance shall not be for longer
7 than the course of the restrictive action imposed pursuant to
8 subsection (2). The owner shall reimburse the department for
9 the assistance of personnel provided.
10 (4) The department shall notify the human rights
11 advocacy committee in the appropriate district of the
12 department as to every report of institutional child abuse,
13 abandonment, or neglect in the district in which a client of
14 the department is alleged or shown to have been abused,
15 abandoned, or neglected, which notification shall be made
16 within 48 hours after the department commences its
17 investigation.
18 (5) The department shall notify the state attorney and
19 the appropriate law enforcement agency of any other child
20 abuse, abandonment, or neglect case in which a criminal
21 investigation is deemed appropriate by the department.
22 (6) In cases of institutional child abuse,
23 abandonment, or neglect in which the multiplicity of reports
24 of abuse, abandonment, or neglect or the severity of the
25 allegations indicates the need for specialized investigation
26 by the department in order to afford greater safeguards for
27 the physical health, mental health, and welfare of the
28 children in care, the department shall provide a team of
29 persons specially trained in the areas of child abuse,
30 abandonment, and neglect investigations, diagnosis, and
31 treatment to assist the local office of the department in
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1 expediting its investigation and in making recommendations for
2 restrictive actions and to assist in other ways deemed
3 necessary by the department in order to carry out the
4 provisions of this section. The specially trained team shall
5 also provide assistance to any investigation of the
6 allegations by local law enforcement and the Department of Law
7 Enforcement.
8 Section 23. Section 415.5055, Florida Statutes, is
9 renumbered as section 39.303, Florida Statutes, and amended to
10 read:
11 39.303 415.5055 Child protection teams; services;
12 eligible cases.--The department shall develop, maintain, and
13 coordinate the services of one or more multidisciplinary child
14 protection teams in each of the service districts of the
15 department. Such teams may be composed of representatives of
16 appropriate health, mental health, social service, legal
17 service, and law enforcement agencies. The Legislature finds
18 that optimal coordination of child protection teams and sexual
19 abuse treatment programs requires collaboration between the
20 Department of Health and the Department of Children and Family
21 Services. The two departments shall maintain an interagency
22 agreement that establishes protocols for oversight and
23 operations of child protection teams and sexual abuse
24 treatment programs. The Secretary of Health and the Director
25 of the Division of Children's Medical Services, in
26 consultation with the Secretary of Children and Family
27 Services, shall maintain the responsibility for the screening,
28 employment, and, if necessary, the termination of child
29 protection team medical directors, at headquarters and in the
30 15 districts. Child protection team medical directors shall be
31 responsible for oversight of the teams in the districts.
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1 (1) The department shall utilize and convene the teams
2 to supplement the assessment and protective supervision
3 activities of the children, youth, and families program of the
4 department. Nothing in this section shall be construed to
5 remove or reduce the duty and responsibility of any person to
6 report pursuant to this chapter s. 415.504 all suspected or
7 actual cases of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect or sexual
8 abuse of a child. The role of the teams shall be to support
9 activities of the program and to provide services deemed by
10 the teams to be necessary and appropriate to abused,
11 abandoned, and neglected children upon referral. The
12 specialized diagnostic assessment, evaluation, coordination,
13 consultation, and other supportive services that a child
14 protection team shall be capable of providing include, but are
15 not limited to, the following:
16 (a) Medical diagnosis and evaluation services,
17 including provision or interpretation of X rays and laboratory
18 tests, and related services, as needed, and documentation of
19 findings relative thereto.
20 (b) Telephone consultation services in emergencies and
21 in other situations.
22 (c) Medical evaluation related to abuse, abandonment,
23 or neglect, as defined by department policy or rule.
24 (d) Such psychological and psychiatric diagnosis and
25 evaluation services for the child or the child's parent or
26 parents, legal custodian or custodians guardian or guardians,
27 or other caregivers, or any other individual involved in a
28 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect case, as the team may
29 determine to be needed.
30 (e) Short-term psychological treatment. It is the
31 intent of the Legislature that short-term psychological
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1 treatment be limited to no more than 6 months' duration after
2 treatment is initiated, except that the appropriate district
3 administrator may authorize such treatment for individual
4 children beyond this limitation if the administrator deems it
5 appropriate.
6 (f) Expert medical, psychological, and related
7 professional testimony in court cases.
8 (g) Case staffings to develop, implement, and monitor
9 treatment plans for children whose cases have been referred to
10 the team. A child protection team may provide consultation
11 with respect to a child who has not been referred to the team,
12 but who is alleged or is shown to be abused, abandoned, or
13 neglected, which consultation shall be provided at the request
14 of a representative of the children, youth, and families
15 program or at the request of any other professional involved
16 with a child or the child's parent or parents, legal custodian
17 or custodians guardian or guardians, or other caregivers. In
18 every such child protection team case staffing, consultation,
19 or staff activity involving a child, a children, youth, and
20 families program representative shall attend and participate.
21 (h) Case service coordination and assistance,
22 including the location of services available from other public
23 and private agencies in the community.
24 (i) Such training services for program and other
25 department employees as is deemed appropriate to enable them
26 to develop and maintain their professional skills and
27 abilities in handling child abuse, abandonment, and neglect
28 cases.
29 (j) Educational and community awareness campaigns on
30 child abuse, abandonment, and neglect in an effort to enable
31
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1 citizens more successfully to prevent, identify, and treat
2 child abuse, abandonment, and neglect in the community.
3 (2) The child abuse, abandonment, and neglect cases
4 that are appropriate for referral by the children, youth, and
5 families program to child protection teams for support
6 services as set forth in subsection (1) include, but are not
7 limited to, cases involving:
8 (a) Bruises, burns, or fractures in a child under the
9 age of 3 years or in a nonambulatory child of any age.
10 (b) Unexplained or implausibly explained bruises,
11 burns, fractures, or other injuries in a child of any age.
12 (c) Sexual abuse of a child in which vaginal or anal
13 penetration is alleged or in which other unlawful sexual
14 conduct has been determined to have occurred.
15 (d) Venereal disease, or any other sexually
16 transmitted disease, in a prepubescent child.
17 (e) Reported malnutrition of a child and failure of a
18 child to thrive.
19 (f) Reported medical, physical, or emotional neglect
20 of a child.
21 (g) Any family in which one or more children have been
22 pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital or other health care
23 facility, or have been injured and later died, as a result of
24 suspected abuse, abandonment, or neglect, when any sibling or
25 other child remains in the home.
26 (h) Symptoms of serious emotional problems in a child
27 when emotional or other abuse, abandonment, or neglect is
28 suspected.
29 (3) All records and reports of the child protection
30 team are confidential and exempt from the provisions of ss.
31 119.07(1) and 455.241, and shall not be disclosed, except,
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1 upon request, to the state attorney, law enforcement, the
2 department, and necessary professionals, in furtherance of the
3 treatment or additional evaluative needs of the child or by
4 order of the court.
5 (3) In all instances in which a child protection team
6 is providing certain services to abused, abandoned, or
7 neglected children, other offices and units of the department
8 shall avoid duplicating the provision of those services.
9 Section 24. Section 39.3035, Florida Statutes, is
10 created to read:
11 39.3035 Child advocacy centers; standards; state
12 funding.--
13 (1) In order to become eligible for a full membership
14 in the Florida Network of Children's Advocacy Centers, Inc., a
15 child advocacy center in this state shall:
16 (a) Be a private, nonprofit incorporated agency or a
17 governmental entity.
18 (b) Be a child protection team with established
19 community protocols which meet all of the requirements of the
20 National Network of Children's Advocacy Centers, Inc.
21 (c) Have a neutral, child-focused facility where joint
22 department and law enforcement interviews take place with
23 children in appropriate cases of suspected child sexual abuse
24 or physical abuse. All multidisciplinary agencies shall have
25 a place to interact with the child as investigative or
26 treatment needs require.
27 (d) Have a minimum designated staff that is supervised
28 and approved by the local board of directors or governmental
29 entity.
30 (e) Have a multidisciplinary case review team that
31 meets on a regularly scheduled basis or as the caseload of the
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1 community requires. The team shall consist of representatives
2 from the Office of the State Attorney, the department, the
3 child protection team, mental health services, law
4 enforcement, and the child advocacy center staff. Medical
5 personnel and a victim's advocate may be part of the team.
6 (f) Provide case tracking of child abuse cases seen
7 through the center. A center shall also collect data on the
8 number of child abuse cases seen at the center, by sex, race,
9 age, and other relevant data; the number of cases referred for
10 prosecution; and the number of cases referred for mental
11 health therapy. Case records shall be subject to the
12 confidentiality provisions of s. 39.202.
13 (g) Provide referrals for medical exams and mental
14 health therapy. The center shall provide followup on cases
15 referred for mental health therapy.
16 (h) Provide training for various disciplines in the
17 community that deal with child abuse.
18 (i) Have an interagency commitment, in writing,
19 covering those aspects of agency participation in a
20 multidisciplinary approach to the handling of child sexual
21 abuse and serious physical abuse cases.
22 (2) Provide assurance that child advocacy center
23 employees and volunteers at the center are trained and
24 screened in accordance with s. 39.001(2).
25 (3) Any child advocacy center within this state that
26 meets the standards of subsection (1) and is certified by the
27 Florida Network of Children's Advocacy Centers, Inc., as being
28 a full member in the organization shall be eligible to receive
29 state funds that are appropriated by the Legislature.
30
31
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1 Section 25. Section 415.507, Florida Statutes, is
2 renumbered as section 39.304, Florida Statutes, and amended to
3 read:
4 39.304 415.507 Photographs, medical examinations, X
5 rays, and medical treatment of abused, abandoned, or neglected
6 child.--
7 (1) Any person required to investigate cases of
8 suspected child abuse, abandonment, or neglect may take or
9 cause to be taken photographs of the areas of trauma visible
10 on a child who is the subject of a report. If the areas of
11 trauma visible on a child indicate a need for a medical
12 examination, or if the child verbally complains or otherwise
13 exhibits distress as a result of injury through suspected
14 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect, or is alleged to have
15 been sexually abused, the person required to investigate may
16 cause the child to be referred for diagnosis to a licensed
17 physician or an emergency department in a hospital without the
18 consent of the child's parents, caregiver legal guardian, or
19 legal custodian. Such examination may be performed by an
20 advanced registered nurse practitioner licensed pursuant to
21 chapter 464. Any licensed physician, or advanced registered
22 nurse practitioner licensed pursuant to chapter 464, who has
23 reasonable cause to suspect that an injury was the result of
24 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect may authorize a
25 radiological examination to be performed on the child without
26 the consent of the child's parent, caregiver legal guardian,
27 or legal custodian.
28 (2) Consent for any medical treatment shall be
29 obtained in the following manner.
30 (a)1. Consent to medical treatment shall be obtained
31 from a parent or legal custodian guardian of the child; or
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1 2. A court order for such treatment shall be obtained.
2 (b) If a parent or legal custodian guardian of the
3 child is unavailable and his or her whereabouts cannot be
4 reasonably ascertained, and it is after normal working hours
5 so that a court order cannot reasonably be obtained, an
6 authorized agent of the department shall have the authority to
7 consent to necessary medical treatment for the child. The
8 authority of the department to consent to medical treatment in
9 this circumstance shall be limited to the time reasonably
10 necessary to obtain court authorization.
11 (c) If a parent or legal custodian guardian of the
12 child is available but refuses to consent to the necessary
13 treatment, a court order shall be required unless the
14 situation meets the definition of an emergency in s. 743.064
15 or the treatment needed is related to suspected abuse,
16 abandonment, or neglect of the child by a parent or legal
17 custodian guardian. In such case, the department shall have
18 the authority to consent to necessary medical treatment. This
19 authority is limited to the time reasonably necessary to
20 obtain court authorization.
21
22 In no case shall the department consent to sterilization,
23 abortion, or termination of life support.
24 (3) Any facility licensed under chapter 395 shall
25 provide to the department, its agent, or a child protection
26 team that contracts with the department any photograph or
27 report on examinations made or X rays taken pursuant to this
28 section, or copies thereof, for the purpose of investigation
29 or assessment of cases of abuse, abandonment, neglect, or
30 exploitation of children.
31
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1 (4)(3) Any photograph or report on examinations made
2 or X rays taken pursuant to this section, or copies thereof,
3 shall be sent to the department as soon as possible.
4 (5)(4) The county in which the child is a resident
5 shall bear the initial costs of the examination of the
6 allegedly abused, abandoned, or neglected child; however, the
7 parents, caregiver legal guardian, or legal custodian of the
8 child shall be required to reimburse the county for the costs
9 of such examination, other than an initial forensic physical
10 examination as provided in s. 960.28, and to reimburse the
11 department of Children and Family Services for the cost of the
12 photographs taken pursuant to this section. A medical
13 provider may not bill a child victim, directly or indirectly,
14 for the cost of an initial forensic physical examination.
15 (5) The court shall order a defendant or juvenile
16 offender who pleads guilty or nolo contendere to, or who is
17 convicted of or adjudicated delinquent for, a violation of
18 chapter 794 or chapter 800 to make restitution to the Crimes
19 Compensation Trust Fund or to the county, whichever paid for
20 the initial forensic physical examination, in an amount equal
21 to the compensation paid to the medical provider for the cost
22 of the initial forensic physical examination. The order may
23 be enforced by the department in the same manner as a judgment
24 in a civil action.
25 Section 26. Section 415.5095, Florida Statutes, is
26 renumbered as section 39.305, Florida Statutes, and amended to
27 read:
28 39.305 415.5095 Intervention and treatment in sexual
29 abuse cases; model plan.--
30 (1) The impact of sexual abuse on the child and family
31 has caused the Legislature to determine that special
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1 intervention and treatment must be offered in certain cases so
2 that the child can be protected from further abuse, the family
3 can be kept together, and the abuser can benefit from
4 treatment. To further this end, it is the intent of the
5 Legislature that special funding shall be available in those
6 communities where agencies and professionals are able to work
7 cooperatively to effectuate intervention and treatment in
8 intrafamily sexual abuse cases.
9 (2) The department of Children and Family Services
10 shall develop a model plan for community intervention and
11 treatment of intrafamily sexual abuse in conjunction with the
12 Department of Law Enforcement, the Department of Health, the
13 Department of Education, the Attorney General, the state
14 Guardian Ad Litem Program, the Department of Corrections,
15 representatives of the judiciary, and professionals and
16 advocates from the mental health and child welfare community.
17 Section 27. Section 39.306, Florida Statutes, is
18 created to read:
19 39.306 Child protective investigations; working
20 agreements with local law enforcement.--The department shall
21 enter into agreements with the jurisdictionally responsible
22 county sheriffs' offices and local police departments that
23 will assume the lead in conducting any potential criminal
24 investigations arising from allegations of child abuse,
25 abandonment, or neglect. The written agreement must specify
26 how the requirements of this chapter will be met. For the
27 purposes of such agreement, the jurisdictionally responsible
28 law enforcement entity is authorized to share Florida criminal
29 history information that is not otherwise exempt from s.
30 119.07(1) with the district personnel, authorized agent, or
31 contract provider directly responsible for the child
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1 protective investigation and emergency child placement. The
2 agencies entering into such agreement must comply with s.
3 943.0525. Criminal justice information provided by such law
4 enforcement entity shall be used only for the purposes
5 specified in the agreement and shall be provided at no charge.
6 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Department of
7 Law Enforcement shall provide to the department electronic
8 access to Florida criminal justice information which is
9 lawfully available and not exempt from s. 119.07(1), only for
10 the purpose of child protective investigations and emergency
11 child placement. As a condition of access to such
12 information, the department shall be required to execute an
13 appropriate user agreement addressing the access, use,
14 dissemination, and destruction of such information and to
15 comply with all applicable laws and regulations, and rules of
16 the Department of Law Enforcement.
17 Section 28. Section 415.50171, Florida Statutes, is
18 renumbered as section 39.307, Florida Statutes, and subsection
19 (1), paragraph (a) of subsection (2), and subsection (6) of
20 said section are amended to read:
21 39.307 415.50171 Family services response system;
22 Reports of child-on-child sexual abuse.--
23 (1) Subject to specific appropriation, Upon receiving
24 a report alleging juvenile sexual abuse as defined in s.
25 39.01(7)(b), the department shall assist the family in
26 receiving appropriate services 415.50165(7), district staff
27 shall, unless caregiver abuse or neglect is involved, use a
28 family services response system approach to address the
29 allegations of the report.
30 (2) District staff, at a minimum, shall adhere to the
31 following procedures:
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1 (a) The purpose of the response to a report alleging
2 juvenile sexual abuse behavior shall be explained to the
3 caregiver.
4 1. The purpose of the response shall be explained in a
5 manner consistent with legislative purpose and intent provided
6 in this chapter part.
7 2. The name and office telephone number of the person
8 responding shall be provided to the caregiver of the alleged
9 juvenile sexual offender and victim's caregiver.
10 3. The possible consequences of the department's
11 response, including outcomes and services, shall be explained
12 to the caregiver of the alleged juvenile sexual offender and
13 the victim's family or caregiver.
14 (6) At any time, as a result of additional
15 information, findings of facts, or changing conditions, the
16 department may pursue a child protective investigation as
17 provided in this chapter part IV.
18 Section 29. Part IV of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
19 consisting of sections 39.311, 39.312, 39.313, 39.314, 39.315,
20 39.316, 39.317, and 39.318, Florida Statutes, shall be
21 entitled to read:
22 PART IV
23 FAMILY BUILDERS PROGRAM
24 Section 30. Section 415.515, Florida Statutes, is
25 renumbered as section 39.311, Florida Statutes, and amended to
26 read:
27 39.311 415.515 Establishment of Family Builders
28 Program.--
29 (1) Any Family Builders Program that is established by
30 the department of Children and Family Services or the
31 Department of Juvenile Justice shall provide family
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1 preservation services to families whose children are at risk
2 of imminent out-of-home placement because they are dependent
3 or delinquent or are children in need of services, to reunite
4 families whose children have been removed and placed in foster
5 care, and to maintain adoptive families intact who are at risk
6 of fragmentation. The Family Builders Program shall provide
7 programs to achieve long-term changes within families that
8 will allow children to remain with their families as an
9 alternative to the more expensive and potentially
10 psychologically damaging program of out-of-home placement.
11 (2) The department of Children and Family Services and
12 the Department of Juvenile Justice may adopt rules to
13 implement the Family Builders Program.
14 Section 31. Section 415.516, Florida Statutes, is
15 renumbered as section 39.312, Florida Statutes, and amended to
16 read:
17 39.312 415.516 Goals.--The goals of any Family
18 Builders Program shall be to:
19 (1) Ensure child health and safety while working with
20 the family.
21 (2)(1) Help parents to improve their relationships
22 with their children and to provide better care, nutrition,
23 hygiene, discipline, protection, instruction, and supervision.
24 (3)(2) Help parents to provide a better household
25 environment for their children by improving household
26 maintenance, budgeting, and purchasing.
27 (4)(3) Provide part-time child care when parents are
28 unable to do so or need temporary relief.
29 (5)(4) Perform household maintenance, budgeting, and
30 purchasing when parents are unable to do so on their own or
31 need temporary relief.
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1 (6)(5) Assist parents and children to manage and
2 resolve conflicts.
3 (7)(6) Assist parents to meet the special physical,
4 mental, or emotional needs of their children and help parents
5 to deal with their own special physical, mental, or emotional
6 needs that interfere with their ability to care for their
7 children and to manage their households.
8 (8)(7) Help families to discover and gain access to
9 community resources to which the family or children might be
10 entitled and which would assist the family in meeting its
11 needs and the needs of the children, including the needs for
12 food, clothing, housing, utilities, transportation,
13 appropriate educational opportunities, employment, respite
14 care, and recreational and social activities.
15 (9)(8) Help families by providing cash or in-kind
16 assistance to meet their needs for food, clothing, housing, or
17 transportation when such needs prevent or threaten to prevent
18 parents from caring for their children, and when such needs
19 are not met by other sources in the community in a timely
20 fashion.
21 (9) Emphasize parental responsibility and facilitate
22 counseling for children at high risk of delinquent behavior
23 and their parents.
24 (10) Provide such additional reasonable services for
25 the prevention of maltreatment and unnecessary foster care as
26 may be needed in order to strengthen a family at risk.
27 Section 32. Section 415.517, Florida Statutes, is
28 renumbered as section 39.313, Florida Statutes, and amended to
29 read:
30 39.313 415.517 Contracting of services.--The
31 department may contract for the delivery of Family Builders
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1 Program services by professionally qualified persons or local
2 governments when it determines that it is in the family's best
3 interest. The service provider or program operator must
4 submit to the department monthly activity reports covering any
5 services rendered. These activity reports must include
6 project evaluation in relation to individual families being
7 served, as well as statistical data concerning families
8 referred for services who are not served due to the
9 unavailability of resources. The costs of program evaluation
10 are an allowable cost consideration in any service contract
11 negotiated in accordance with this section subsection.
12 Section 33. Section 415.518, Florida Statutes, is
13 renumbered as section 39.314, Florida Statutes, and amended to
14 read:
15 39.314 415.518 Eligibility for Family Builders Program
16 services.--Family Builders Program services must be made
17 available to a family at risk on a voluntary basis, provided
18 the family meets the eligibility requirements as established
19 by rule and there is space available in the program. All
20 members of the families who accept such services are
21 responsible for cooperating fully with the family preservation
22 plan developed for each family under s. 39.315 this section.
23 Families in which children are at imminent risk of sexual
24 abuse or physical endangerment perpetrated by a member of
25 their immediate household are not eligible to receive family
26 preservation services unless the perpetrator is in, or has
27 agreed to enter, a program for treatment and the safety of the
28 children may be enhanced through participation in the Family
29 Builders Program.
30 Section 34. Section 415.519, Florida Statutes, is
31 renumbered as section 39.315, Florida Statutes.
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1 Section 35. Section 415.520, Florida Statutes, is
2 renumbered as section 39.316, Florida Statutes, and subsection
3 (3) of said section is amended to read:
4 39.316 415.520 Qualifications of Family Builders
5 Program workers.--
6 (3) Caseworkers must successfully complete at least 40
7 hours of intensive training prior to providing direct services
8 service under this program. Paraprofessional aides and
9 supervisors must, within 90 days after hiring, complete a
10 training program prescribed by the department on child abuse,
11 abandonment, and neglect and an overview of the children,
12 youth, and families program components and service delivery
13 system. Program supervisors and caseworkers must thereafter
14 complete at least 40 hours of additional training each year in
15 accordance with standards established by the department.
16 Section 36. Section 415.521, Florida Statutes, is
17 renumbered as section 39.317, Florida Statutes.
18 Section 37. Section 415.522, Florida Statutes, is
19 renumbered as section 39.318, Florida Statutes, and amended to
20 read:
21 39.318 415.522 Funding.--The department is authorized
22 to use appropriate state, federal, and private funds within
23 its budget for operating the Family Builders Program. For
24 each child served, the cost of providing home-based services
25 described in this part act must not exceed the costs of
26 out-of-home care which otherwise would be incurred.
27 Section 38. Part V of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
28 consisting of sections 39.395, 39.401, 39.402, 39.407, and
29 39.4075, Florida Statutes, shall be entitled to read:
30 PART V
31 TAKING CHILDREN INTO CUSTODY
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1 AND SHELTER HEARINGS
2 Section 39. Section 39.395, Florida Statutes, is
3 created to read:
4 39.395 Taking a child into protective custody; medical
5 or hospital personnel.--Any person in charge of a hospital or
6 similar institution or any physician or licensed health care
7 professional treating a child may, after receiving oral or
8 written authorization from a court of competent jurisdiction,
9 keep that child in his or her custody without the consent of
10 the parents, caregiver, or legal custodian, whether or not
11 additional medical treatment is required, if the circumstances
12 are such, or if the condition of the child is such, that
13 continuing the child in the child's place of residence or in
14 the care or custody of the parents, caregiver, or legal
15 custodian presents an imminent danger to the child's life or
16 physical or mental health. Any such person taking a child into
17 protective custody shall immediately notify the department,
18 whereupon the department shall immediately begin a child
19 protective investigation in accordance with the provisions of
20 this chapter and shall make every reasonable effort to
21 immediately notify the parents, caregiver, or legal custodian
22 that such child has been taken into protective custody. If the
23 department determines, according to the criteria set forth in
24 this chapter, that the child should remain in protective
25 custody longer than 24 hours, it shall petition the court for
26 an order authorizing such custody in the same manner as if the
27 child were placed in a shelter. The department shall attempt
28 to avoid the placement of a child in an institution whenever
29 possible.
30
31
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1 Section 40. Section 39.401, Florida Statutes, as
2 amended by chapter 97-276, Laws of Florida, is amended to
3 read:
4 39.401 Taking a child alleged to be dependent into
5 custody; law enforcement officers and authorized agents of the
6 department.--
7 (1) A child may only be taken into custody:
8 (a) Pursuant to an order of the circuit court issued
9 pursuant to the provisions of this part, based upon sworn
10 testimony, either before or after a petition is filed; or.
11 (b) By a law enforcement officer, or an authorized
12 agent of the department, if the officer or authorized agent
13 has probable cause to support a finding of reasonable grounds
14 for removal and has received oral or written authorization
15 from a court of competent jurisdiction that removal is
16 necessary to protect the child. Reasonable grounds for removal
17 are as follows:
18 1. That the child has been abused, neglected, or
19 abandoned, or is suffering from or is in imminent danger of
20 illness or injury as a result of abuse, neglect, or
21 abandonment;
22 2. That the parent, legal custodian, caregiver, or
23 responsible adult relative custodian of the child has
24 materially violated a condition of placement imposed by the
25 court; or
26 3. That the child has no parent, legal custodian,
27 caregiver, or responsible adult relative immediately known and
28 available to provide supervision and care.
29 4. That the child is in imminent danger, in which case
30 the child may be taken into custody without a court order by a
31
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1 law enforcement officer or an authorized agent of the
2 department.
3 (2) If the law enforcement officer takes person taking
4 the child into custody is not an authorized agent of the
5 department, that officer person shall:
6 (a) Release the child to:
7 1. The parent, caregiver, or guardian, legal custodian
8 of the child;,
9 2. A responsible adult approved by the court when
10 limited to temporary emergency situations;,
11 3. A responsible adult relative who shall be given
12 priority consideration over a nonrelative placement when this
13 is in the best interests of the child;, or
14 4. A responsible adult approved by the department;
15 within 3 days following such release, the person taking the
16 child into custody shall make a full written report to the
17 department for cases involving allegations of abandonment,
18 abuse, or neglect or other dependency cases; or
19 (b) Deliver the child to an authorized agent of the
20 department, stating the facts by reason of which the child was
21 taken into custody and sufficient information to establish
22 probable cause that the child is abandoned, abused, or
23 neglected, or otherwise dependent and make a full written
24 report to the department within 3 days.
25
26 For cases involving allegations of abandonment, abuse, or
27 neglect, or other dependency cases, within 3 days after such
28 release or within 3 days after delivering the child to an
29 authorized agent of the department, the law enforcement
30 officer who took the child into custody shall make a full
31 written report to the department.
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1 (3) If the child is taken into custody by, or is
2 delivered to, an authorized agent of the department, the
3 authorized agent shall review the facts supporting the removal
4 with an attorney representing the department legal staff prior
5 to the emergency shelter hearing. The purpose of this review
6 shall be to determine whether probable cause exists for the
7 filing of a an emergency shelter petition pursuant to s.
8 39.402(1). If the facts are not sufficient to support the
9 filing of a shelter petition, the child shall immediately be
10 returned to the custody of the parent, caregiver, or legal
11 custodian. If the facts are sufficient to support the filing
12 of the shelter petition, and the child has not been returned
13 to the custody of the parent, caregiver, or legal custodian,
14 the department shall file the shelter petition and schedule a
15 shelter hearing pursuant to s. 39.402(1), such hearing to be
16 held within 24 hours after the removal of the child. While
17 awaiting the emergency shelter hearing, the authorized agent
18 of the department may place the child in licensed shelter care
19 or may release the child to a parent, guardian, legal
20 custodian, caregiver, or responsible adult relative who shall
21 be given priority consideration over a licensed nonrelative
22 placement, or responsible adult approved by the department
23 when this is in the best interests of the child. Any placement
24 of a child which is not in a licensed shelter must be preceded
25 by a local and state criminal records check, as well as a
26 search of the department's automated abuse information system,
27 on all members of the household, to assess the child's safety
28 within the home. In addition, the department may authorize
29 placement of a housekeeper/homemaker in the home of a child
30 alleged to be dependent until the parent or legal custodian
31 assumes care of the child.
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1 (4) When a child is taken into custody pursuant to
2 this section, the department of Children and Family Services
3 shall request that the child's parent, caregiver, or legal
4 custodian disclose the names, relationships, and addresses of
5 all parents and prospective parents and all next of kin of the
6 child, so far as are known.
7 Section 41. Section 39.402, Florida Statutes, as
8 amended by chapter 97-276, Laws of Florida, is amended to
9 read:
10 39.402 Placement in a shelter.--
11 (1) Unless ordered by the court under this chapter, a
12 child taken into custody shall not be placed in a shelter
13 prior to a court hearing unless there are reasonable grounds
14 for removal and removal is necessary to protect the child.
15 Reasonable grounds for removal are as follows:
16 (a) The child has been abused, neglected, or
17 abandoned, or is suffering from or is in imminent danger of
18 illness or injury as a result of abuse, neglect, or
19 abandonment;
20 (b) The custodian of the child has materially violated
21 a condition of placement imposed by the court; or
22 (c) The child has no parent, legal custodian,
23 caregiver, or responsible adult relative immediately known and
24 available to provide supervision and care.
25 (2) A child taken into custody may be placed or
26 continued in a shelter only if one or more of the criteria in
27 subsection (1) applies and the court has made a specific
28 finding of fact regarding the necessity for removal of the
29 child from the home and has made a determination that the
30 provision of appropriate and available services will not
31 eliminate the need for placement.
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1 (3) Whenever a child is taken into custody, the
2 department shall immediately notify the parents or legal
3 custodians, shall provide the parents or legal custodians with
4 a statement setting forth a summary of procedures involved in
5 dependency cases, and shall notify them of their right to
6 obtain their own attorney.
7 (4) If the department determines that placement in a
8 shelter is necessary under subsections (1) and (2), the
9 authorized agent of the department shall authorize placement
10 of the child in a shelter.
11 (5)(a) The parents or legal custodians of the child
12 shall be given actual notice of the date, time, and location
13 of the emergency shelter hearing. If the parents or legal
14 custodians are outside the jurisdiction of the court, are not
15 known, or cannot be located or refuse or evade service, they
16 shall be given such notice as best ensures their actual
17 knowledge of the date, time, and location of the emergency
18 shelter hearing. The person providing or attempting to
19 provide notice to the parents or legal custodians shall, if
20 the parents or legal custodians are not present at the
21 hearing, advise the court either in person or by sworn
22 affidavit, of the attempts made to provide notice and the
23 results of those attempts.
24 (b) The parents or legal custodians shall be given
25 written notice that:
26 (b) At the emergency shelter hearing, the department
27 must establish probable cause that reasonable grounds for
28 removal exist and that the provision of appropriate and
29 available services will not eliminate the need for placement.
30
31
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1 1.(c) They will The parents or legal custodians shall
2 be given an opportunity to be heard and to present evidence at
3 the emergency shelter hearing; and.
4 2. They have the right to be represented by counsel,
5 and, if indigent, the right to be represented by appointed
6 counsel, at the shelter hearing and at each subsequent hearing
7 or proceeding, pursuant to the procedures set forth in s.
8 39.013.
9 (6)(5)(a) The circuit court, or the county court, if
10 previously designated by the chief judge of the circuit court
11 for such purpose, shall hold the shelter hearing.
12 (b) The shelter petition filed with the court must
13 address each condition required to be determined by the court
14 in paragraphs (8)(a) and (b) subsection (7).
15 (7)(6) A child may not be removed from the home or
16 continued out of the home pending disposition if, with the
17 provision of appropriate and available early intervention or
18 preventive services, including services provided in the home,
19 the child could safely remain at home. If the child's safety
20 and well-being are in danger, the child shall be removed from
21 danger and continue to be removed until the danger has passed.
22 If the child has been removed from the home and the reasons
23 for his or her removal have been remedied, the child may be
24 returned to the home. If the court finds that the prevention
25 or reunification efforts of the department will allow the
26 child to remain safely at home, the court shall allow the
27 child to remain in the home.
28 (8)(7)(a) A child may not be held in a shelter longer
29 than 24 hours unless an order so directing is entered by the
30 court after a an emergency shelter hearing. In the interval
31 until the shelter hearing is held, the decision to place the
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1 child in a shelter or release the child from a shelter lies
2 with the protective investigator. At the emergency shelter
3 hearing, the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem to
4 represent the child unless the court finds that such
5 representation is unnecessary.
6 (b) The parents or legal custodians of the child shall
7 be given such notice as best ensures their actual knowledge of
8 the time and place of the shelter hearing and shall be given
9 an opportunity to be heard and to present evidence at the
10 emergency shelter hearing. The failure to provide notice to a
11 party or participant does not invalidate an order placing a
12 child in a shelter if the court finds that the petitioner has
13 made a good faith effort to provide such notice. The court
14 shall require the parents or legal custodians present at the
15 hearing to provide to the court on the record the names,
16 addresses, and relationships of all parents, prospective
17 parents, and next of kin of the child, so far as are known.
18 (c) At the shelter hearing, the court shall:
19 1. Appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the child,
20 unless the court finds that such representation is
21 unnecessary;
22 2. Inform the parents or legal custodians of their
23 right to counsel to represent them at the shelter hearing and
24 at each subsequent hearing or proceeding, and the right of the
25 parents to appointed counsel, pursuant to the procedures set
26 forth in s. 39.013; and
27 3. Give the parents or legal custodians an opportunity
28 to be heard and to present evidence.
29 (d) At the shelter hearing, the department must
30 establish probable cause that reasonable grounds for removal
31
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1 exist and that the provision of appropriate and available
2 services will not eliminate the need for placement.
3 (e) At the shelter hearing, each party shall provide
4 to the court a permanent mailing address. The court shall
5 advise each party that this address will be used by the court
6 and the petitioner for notice purposes unless and until the
7 party notifies the court and the petitioner in writing of a
8 new mailing address.
9 (f)(b) The order for placement of a child in shelter
10 care must identify the parties present at the hearing and must
11 contain written findings:
12 1. That placement in shelter care is necessary based
13 on the criteria in subsections (1) and (2).
14 2. That placement in shelter care is in the best
15 interest of the child.
16 3. That continuation of the child in the home is
17 contrary to the welfare of the child because the home
18 situation presents a substantial and immediate danger to the
19 child's physical, mental, or emotional health or safety child
20 which cannot be mitigated by the provision of preventive
21 services.
22 4. That based upon the allegations of the petition for
23 placement in shelter care, there is probable cause to believe
24 that the child is dependent.
25 5. That the department has made reasonable efforts to
26 prevent or eliminate the need for removal of the child from
27 the home. A finding of reasonable effort by the department to
28 prevent or eliminate the need for removal may be made and the
29 department is deemed to have made reasonable efforts to
30 prevent or eliminate the need for removal if:
31
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1 a. The first contact of the department with the family
2 occurs during an emergency.
3 b. The appraisal of the home situation by the
4 department indicates that the home situation presents a
5 substantial and immediate danger to the child's physical,
6 mental, or emotional health or safety child which cannot be
7 mitigated by the provision of preventive services.
8 c. The child cannot safely remain at home, either
9 because there are no preventive services that can ensure the
10 health and safety of the child or because, even with
11 appropriate and available services being provided, the health
12 and safety of the child cannot be ensured.
13 6. That the court notified the parents or legal
14 custodians of the subsequent dependency proceedings, including
15 scheduled hearings, and of the importance of the active
16 participation of the parents or legal custodians in those
17 subsequent proceedings and hearings.
18 7. That the court notified the parents or legal
19 custodians of their right to counsel to represent them at the
20 shelter hearing and at each subsequent hearing or proceeding,
21 and the right of the parents to appointed counsel, pursuant to
22 the procedures set forth in s. 39.013.
23 (c) The failure to provide notice to a party or
24 participant does not invalidate an order placing a child in a
25 shelter if the court finds that the petitioner has made a good
26 faith effort to provide such notice.
27 (d) In the interval until the shelter hearing is held
28 under paragraph (a), the decision to place the child in a
29 shelter or release the child from a shelter lies with the
30 protective investigator in accordance with subsection (3).
31
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1 (9) At any shelter hearing, the court shall determine
2 visitation rights absent a clear and convincing showing that
3 visitation is not in the best interest of the child.
4 (10) The shelter hearing order shall contain a written
5 determination as to whether the department has made a
6 reasonable effort to prevent or eliminate the need for removal
7 or continued removal of the child from the home. If the
8 department has not made such an effort, the court shall order
9 the department to provide appropriate and available services
10 to ensure the protection of the child in the home when such
11 services are necessary for the child's health and safety.
12 (8) A child may not be held in a shelter under an
13 order so directing for more than 21 days unless an order of
14 adjudication for the case has been entered by the court. The
15 parent, guardian, or custodian of the child must be notified
16 of any order directing placement of the child in an emergency
17 shelter and, upon request, must be afforded a hearing within
18 48 hours, excluding Sundays and legal holidays, to review the
19 necessity for continued placement in the shelter for any time
20 periods as provided in this section. At any arraignment
21 hearing or determination of emergency shelter care, the court
22 shall determine visitation rights absent a clear and
23 convincing showing that visitation is not in the best interest
24 of the child, and the court shall make a written determination
25 as to whether the department has made a reasonable effort to
26 prevent or eliminate the need for removal or continued removal
27 of the child from the home. If the department has not made
28 such an effort, the court shall order the department to
29 provide appropriate and available services to assure the
30 protection of the child in the home when such services are
31 necessary for the child's safety. Within 7 days after the
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1 child is taken into custody, a petition alleging dependency
2 must be filed and, within 14 days after the child is taken
3 into custody, an arraignment hearing must be held for the
4 child's parent, guardian, or custodian to admit, deny, or
5 consent to the findings of dependency alleged in the petition.
6 (11)(12) If a When any child is placed in a shelter
7 pursuant to under a court order following a shelter hearing,
8 the court shall prepare a shelter hearing order requiring the
9 parents of the child, or the guardian of the child's estate,
10 if possessed of assets which under law may be disbursed for
11 the care, support, and maintenance of the child, to pay, to
12 the department or institution having custody of the child,
13 fees as established by the department. When the order affects
14 the guardianship estate, a certified copy of the order shall
15 be delivered to the judge having jurisdiction of the
16 guardianship estate.
17 (12) In the event the shelter hearing is conducted by
18 a judge other than the juvenile court judge, the juvenile
19 court judge shall hold a shelter review on the status of the
20 child within 2 working days after the shelter hearing.
21 (13)(9) A child may not be held in a shelter under an
22 order so directing for more than 60 days without an
23 adjudication of dependency. A child may not be held in a
24 shelter for more than 30 days after the entry of an order of
25 adjudication unless an order of disposition under s. 39.41 has
26 been entered by the court.
27 (14)(10) The time limitations in this section
28 subsection (8) do not include:
29 (a) Periods of delay resulting from a continuance
30 granted at the request or with the consent of the child's
31 counsel or the child's guardian ad litem, if one has been
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1 appointed by the court, or, if the child is of sufficient
2 capacity to express reasonable consent, at the request or with
3 the consent of the child's attorney or the child's guardian ad
4 litem, if one has been appointed by the court, and the child.
5 (b) Periods of delay resulting from a continuance
6 granted at the request of the attorney for the department, if
7 the continuance is granted:
8 1. Because of an unavailability of evidence material
9 to the case when the attorney for the department has exercised
10 due diligence to obtain such evidence and there are
11 substantial grounds to believe that such evidence will be
12 available within 30 days. However, if the department is not
13 prepared to present its case within 30 days, the parent or
14 legal custodian guardian may move for issuance of an order to
15 show cause or the court on its own motion may impose
16 appropriate sanctions, which may include dismissal of the
17 petition.
18 2. To allow the attorney for the department additional
19 time to prepare the case and additional time is justified
20 because of an exceptional circumstance.
21 (c) Reasonable periods of delay necessary to
22 accomplish notice of the hearing to the child's parents or
23 legal custodians; however, the petitioner shall continue
24 regular efforts to provide notice to the parents or legal
25 custodians during such periods of delay.
26 (d) Reasonable periods of delay resulting from a
27 continuance granted at the request of the parent or legal
28 custodian of a subject child.
29 (15) At the conclusion of a shelter hearing, the court
30 shall notify all parties in writing of the next scheduled
31 hearing to review the shelter placement. Such hearing shall be
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1 held no later than 30 days after placement of the child in
2 shelter status, in conjunction with the arraignment hearing.
3 (11) The court shall review the necessity for a
4 child's continued placement in a shelter in the same manner as
5 the initial placement decision was made and shall make a
6 determination regarding the continued placement:
7 (a) Within 24 hours after any violation of the time
8 requirements for the filing of a petition or the holding of an
9 arraignment hearing as prescribed in subsection (8); or
10 (b) Prior to the court's granting any delay as
11 specified in subsection (10).
12 Section 42. Section 39.407, Florida Statutes, is
13 amended to read:
14 39.407 Medical, psychiatric, and psychological
15 examination and treatment of child; physical or mental
16 examination of parent, guardian, or person requesting custody
17 of child.--
18 (1) When any child is taken into custody and is to be
19 detained in shelter care, the department is authorized to have
20 a medical screening performed on the child without
21 authorization from the court and without consent from a parent
22 or legal custodian guardian. Such medical screening shall be
23 performed by a licensed health care professional and shall be
24 to examine the child for injury, illness, and communicable
25 diseases and to determine the need for immunization. The
26 department shall by rule establish the invasiveness of the
27 medical procedures authorized to be performed under this
28 subsection. In no case does this subsection authorize the
29 department to consent to medical treatment for such children.
30 (2) When the department has performed the medical
31 screening authorized by subsection (1), or when it is
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1 otherwise determined by a licensed health care professional
2 that a child who is in the custody of the department, but who
3 has not been committed to the department pursuant to s. 39.41,
4 is in need of medical treatment, including the need for
5 immunization, consent for medical treatment shall be obtained
6 in the following manner:
7 (a)1. Consent to medical treatment shall be obtained
8 from a parent or legal custodian guardian of the child; or
9 2. A court order for such treatment shall be obtained.
10 (b) If a parent or legal custodian guardian of the
11 child is unavailable and his or her whereabouts cannot be
12 reasonably ascertained, and it is after normal working hours
13 so that a court order cannot reasonably be obtained, an
14 authorized agent of the department shall have the authority to
15 consent to necessary medical treatment, including
16 immunization, for the child. The authority of the department
17 to consent to medical treatment in this circumstance shall be
18 limited to the time reasonably necessary to obtain court
19 authorization.
20 (c) If a parent or legal custodian guardian of the
21 child is available but refuses to consent to the necessary
22 treatment, including immunization, a court order shall be
23 required unless the situation meets the definition of an
24 emergency in s. 743.064 or the treatment needed is related to
25 suspected abuse, abandonment, or neglect of the child by a
26 parent, caregiver, or legal custodian or guardian. In such
27 case, the department shall have the authority to consent to
28 necessary medical treatment. This authority is limited to the
29 time reasonably necessary to obtain court authorization.
30
31
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1 In no case shall the department consent to sterilization,
2 abortion, or termination of life support.
3 (3) A judge may order a child in the physical custody
4 of the department to be examined by a licensed health care
5 professional. The judge may also order such child to be
6 evaluated by a psychiatrist or a psychologist, by a district
7 school board educational needs assessment team, or, if a
8 developmental disability is suspected or alleged, by the
9 developmental disability diagnostic and evaluation team of the
10 department. If it is necessary to place a child in a
11 residential facility for such evaluation, then the criteria
12 and procedure established in s. 394.463(2) or chapter 393
13 shall be used, whichever is applicable. The educational needs
14 assessment provided by the district school board educational
15 needs assessment team shall include, but not be limited to,
16 reports of intelligence and achievement tests, screening for
17 learning disabilities and other handicaps, and screening for
18 the need for alternative education as defined in s. 230.23
19 230.2315(2).
20 (4) A judge may order a child in the physical custody
21 of the department to be treated by a licensed health care
22 professional based on evidence that the child should receive
23 treatment. The judge may also order such child to receive
24 mental health or retardation services from a psychiatrist,
25 psychologist, or other appropriate service provider. If it is
26 necessary to place the child in a residential facility for
27 such services, then the procedures and criteria established in
28 s. 394.467 or chapter 393 shall be used, whichever is
29 applicable. A child may be provided mental health or
30 retardation services in emergency situations, pursuant to the
31
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1 procedures and criteria contained in s. 394.463(1) or chapter
2 393, whichever is applicable.
3 (5) When a child is in the physical custody of the
4 department, a licensed health care professional shall be
5 immediately called if there are indications of physical injury
6 or illness, or the child shall be taken to the nearest
7 available hospital for emergency care.
8 (6) Except as otherwise provided herein, nothing in
9 this section shall be deemed to eliminate the right of a
10 parent, legal custodian guardian, or the child to consent to
11 examination or treatment for the child.
12 (7) Except as otherwise provided herein, nothing in
13 this section shall be deemed to alter the provisions of s.
14 743.064.
15 (8) A court shall not be precluded from ordering
16 services or treatment to be provided to the child by a duly
17 accredited practitioner who relies solely on spiritual means
18 for healing in accordance with the tenets and practices of a
19 church or religious organization, when required by the child's
20 health and when requested by the child.
21 (9) Nothing in this section shall be construed to
22 authorize the permanent sterilization of the child unless such
23 sterilization is the result of or incidental to medically
24 necessary treatment to protect or preserve the life of the
25 child.
26 (10) For the purpose of obtaining an evaluation or
27 examination, or receiving treatment as authorized pursuant to
28 this section subsection, no child alleged to be or found to be
29 dependent shall be placed in a detention home or other program
30 used primarily for the care and custody of children alleged or
31 found to have committed delinquent acts.
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1 (11) The parents or legal custodian guardian of a
2 child in the physical custody of the department remain
3 financially responsible for the cost of medical treatment
4 provided to the child even if either one or both of the
5 parents or if the legal custodian guardian did not consent to
6 the medical treatment. After a hearing, the court may order
7 the parents or legal custodian guardian, if found able to do
8 so, to reimburse the department or other provider of medical
9 services for treatment provided.
10 (12) Nothing in this section alters the authority of
11 the department to consent to medical treatment for a dependent
12 child when the child has been committed to the department
13 pursuant to s. 39.41, and the department has become the legal
14 custodian of the child.
15 (13) At any time after the filing of a shelter
16 petition or petition for dependency, when the mental or
17 physical condition, including the blood group, of a parent,
18 caregiver, legal custodian guardian, or other person
19 requesting custody of a child is in controversy, the court may
20 order the person to submit to a physical or mental examination
21 by a qualified professional. The order may be made only upon
22 good cause shown and pursuant to notice and procedures as set
23 forth by the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure.
24 Section 43. Section 39.4033, Florida Statutes, is
25 renumbered as section 39.4075, Florida Statutes, and amended
26 to read:
27 39.4075 39.4033 Referral of a dependency case to
28 mediation.--
29 (1) At any stage in a dependency proceeding, the case
30 staffing committee or any party may request the court to refer
31
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1 the parties to mediation in accordance with chapter 44 and
2 rules and procedures developed by the Supreme Court.
3 (2) A court may refer the parties to mediation. When
4 such services are available, the court must determine whether
5 it is in the best interests of the child to refer the parties
6 to mediation.
7 (3) The department shall advise the parties parents or
8 legal guardians that they are responsible for contributing to
9 the cost of the dependency family mediation to the extent of
10 their ability to pay.
11 (4) This section applies only to courts in counties in
12 which dependency mediation programs have been established and
13 does not require the establishment of such programs in any
14 county.
15 Section 44. Part VI of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
16 consisting of sections 39.501, 39.502, 39.503, 39.504, 39.505,
17 39.506, 39.507, 39.508, 39.5085, 39.509, and 39.510, Florida
18 Statutes, shall be entitled to read:
19 PART VI
20 PETITION, ARRAIGNMENT, ADJUDICATION,
21 AND DISPOSITION
22 Section 45. Section 39.404, Florida Statutes, is
23 renumbered as section 39.501, Florida Statutes, and amended to
24 read:
25 39.501 39.404 Petition for dependency.--
26 (1) All proceedings seeking an adjudication that a
27 child is dependent shall be initiated by the filing of a
28 petition by an attorney for the department, or any other
29 person who has knowledge of the facts alleged or is informed
30 of them and believes that they are true.
31
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1 (2) The purpose of a petition seeking the adjudication
2 of a child as a dependent child is the protection of the child
3 and not the punishment of the person creating the condition of
4 dependency.
5 (3)(a) The petition shall be in writing, shall
6 identify and list all parents, if known, and all current
7 caregivers or legal custodians of the child, and shall be
8 signed by the petitioner under oath stating the petitioner's
9 good faith in filing the petition. When the petition is filed
10 by the department, it shall be signed by an attorney for the
11 department.
12 (b) The form of the petition and its contents shall be
13 determined by rules of juvenile procedure adopted by the
14 Supreme Court.
15 (c) The petition must specifically set forth the acts
16 or omissions upon which the petition is based and the identity
17 of the person or persons alleged to have committed the acts or
18 omissions, if known. The petition need not contain allegations
19 of acts or omissions by both parents.
20 (d) The petitioner must state in the petition, if
21 known, whether:
22 1. A parent, legal custodian, or caregiver person
23 responsible for the child's welfare named in the petition has
24 previously unsuccessfully participated in voluntary services
25 offered by the department;
26 2. A parent or, legal custodian, or person responsible
27 for the child's welfare named in the petition has participated
28 in mediation and whether a mediation agreement exists;
29 3. A parent or, legal custodian, or person responsible
30 for the child's welfare has rejected the voluntary services
31 offered by the department; or
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1 4. The department has determined that voluntary
2 services are not appropriate for this family and the reasons
3 for such determination.
4 (4) When a child has been placed in shelter status by
5 order of the court the child has been taken into custody, a
6 petition alleging dependency must be filed within 7 days upon
7 demand of a party, but no later than 21 days after the shelter
8 hearing after the date the child is taken into custody. In all
9 other cases, the petition must be filed within a reasonable
10 time after the date the child was referred to protective
11 investigation under s. 39.403. The child's parent, guardian,
12 or custodian must be served with a copy of the petition at
13 least 72 hours before the arraignment hearing.
14 (5) A petition for termination of parental rights
15 under s. 39.464 may be filed at any time.
16 Section 46. Section 39.405, Florida Statutes, as
17 amended by chapter 97-276, Laws of Florida, is renumbered as
18 section 39.502, Florida Statutes, and amended to read:
19 39.502 39.405 Notice, process, and service.--
20 (1) Unless parental rights have been terminated, all
21 parents and legal custodians must be notified of all
22 proceedings or hearings involving the child. Notice in cases
23 involving shelter hearings and hearings resulting from medical
24 emergencies must be that most likely to result in actual
25 notice to the parents and legal custodians. In all other
26 dependency proceedings, notice must be provided in accordance
27 with subsections (4) through (9).
28 (2) Personal appearance of any person in a hearing
29 before the court obviates the necessity of serving process on
30 that person.
31
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1 (3) Upon the filing of a petition containing
2 allegations of facts which, if true, would establish that the
3 child is a dependent child, and upon the request of the
4 petitioner, the clerk or deputy clerk shall issue a summons.
5 (4) The summons shall require the person on whom it is
6 served to appear for a hearing at a time and place specified,
7 not less than 24 hours after service of the summons. A copy
8 of the petition shall be attached to the summons.
9 (5) The summons shall be directed to, and shall be
10 served upon, all parties other than the petitioner.
11 (6) It is the duty of the petitioner or moving party
12 to notify all participants and parties known to the petitioner
13 or moving party of all hearings subsequent to the initial
14 hearing unless notice is contained in prior court orders and
15 these orders were provided to the participant or party. Proof
16 of notice or provision of orders may be provided by certified
17 mail with a signed return receipt.
18 (7) Service of the summons and service of pleadings,
19 papers, and notices subsequent to the summons on persons
20 outside this state must be made pursuant to s. 61.1312.
21 (8) It is not necessary to the validity of a
22 proceeding covered by this part that the parents, caregivers,
23 or legal custodians be present if their identity or residence
24 is unknown after a diligent search has been made, but in this
25 event the petitioner shall file an affidavit of diligent
26 search prepared by the person who made the search and inquiry,
27 and the court may appoint a guardian ad litem for the child.
28 (9) When an affidavit of diligent search has been
29 filed under subsection (8), the petitioner shall continue to
30 search for and attempt to serve the person sought until
31 excused from further search by the court. The petitioner shall
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1 report on the results of the search at each court hearing
2 until the person is identified or located or further search is
3 excused by the court.
4 (10)(9) Service by publication shall not be required
5 for dependency hearings and the failure to serve a party or
6 give notice to a participant shall not affect the validity of
7 an order of adjudication or disposition if the court finds
8 that the petitioner has completed a diligent search for that
9 party or participant.
10 (11)(10) Upon the application of a party or the
11 petitioner, the clerk or deputy clerk shall issue, and the
12 court on its own motion may issue, subpoenas requiring
13 attendance and testimony of witnesses and production of
14 records, documents, and other tangible objects at any hearing.
15 (12)(11) All process and orders issued by the court
16 shall be served or executed as other process and orders of the
17 circuit court and, in addition, may be served or executed by
18 authorized agents of the department or the guardian ad litem.
19 (13)(12) Subpoenas may be served within the state by
20 any person over 18 years of age who is not a party to the
21 proceeding and, in addition, may be served by authorized
22 agents of the department.
23 (14)(13) No fee shall be paid for service of any
24 process or other papers by an agent of the department or the
25 guardian ad litem. If any process, orders, or any other papers
26 are served or executed by any sheriff, the sheriff's fees
27 shall be paid by the county.
28 (14) Failure of a person served with notice to respond
29 or appear at the arraignment hearing constitutes the person's
30 consent to a dependency adjudication. The document containing
31 the notice to respond or appear must contain, in type at least
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1 as large as the balance of the document, the following or
2 substantially similar language: "FAILURE TO RESPOND TO THIS
3 NOTICE OR TO APPEAR AT THIS HEARING CONSTITUTES CONSENT TO THE
4 ADJUDICATION OF THIS CHILD (OR THESE CHILDREN) AS DEPENDENT
5 CHILDREN AND MAY ULTIMATELY RESULT IN LOSS OF CUSTODY OF THIS
6 CHILD."
7 (15) A party who is identified as a person with mental
8 illness or with a developmental disability developmentally
9 disabled person must be informed by the court of the
10 availability of advocacy services through the department, the
11 Association for Retarded Citizens, or other appropriate mental
12 health or developmental disability advocacy groups and
13 encouraged to seek such services.
14 (16) If the party to whom an order is directed is
15 present or represented at the final hearing, service of the
16 order is not required.
17 (17) The parent or legal custodian of the child, the
18 attorney for the department, the guardian ad litem, and all
19 other parties and participants shall be given reasonable
20 notice of all hearings provided for under this part.
21 (18) In all proceedings under this chapter, the court
22 shall provide to the parent or legal custodian of the child,
23 at the conclusion of any hearing, a written notice containing
24 the date of the next scheduled hearing. The court shall also
25 include the date of the next hearing in any order issued by
26 the court.
27 Section 47. Section 39.4051, Florida Statutes, as
28 amended by chapter 97-276, Laws of Florida, is renumbered as
29 section 39.503, Florida Statutes, and amended to read:
30 39.503 39.4051 Identity or location of parent or legal
31 custodian unknown; special procedures.--
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1 (1) If the identity or location of a parent or legal
2 custodian is unknown and a petition for dependency or shelter
3 is filed, the court shall conduct the following inquiry of the
4 parent or legal custodian who is available, or, if no parent
5 or legal custodian is available, of any relative or custodian
6 of the child who is present at the hearing and likely to have
7 the information:
8 (a) Whether the mother of the child was married at the
9 probable time of conception of the child or at the time of
10 birth of the child.
11 (b) Whether the mother was cohabiting with a male at
12 the probable time of conception of the child.
13 (c) Whether the mother has received payments or
14 promises of support with respect to the child or because of
15 her pregnancy from a man who claims to be the father.
16 (d) Whether the mother has named any man as the father
17 on the birth certificate of the child or in connection with
18 applying for or receiving public assistance.
19 (e) Whether any man has acknowledged or claimed
20 paternity of the child in a jurisdiction in which the mother
21 resided at the time of or since conception of the child, or in
22 which the child has resided or resides.
23 (2) The information required in subsection (1) may be
24 supplied to the court or the department in the form of a sworn
25 affidavit by a person having personal knowledge of the facts.
26 (3) If the inquiry under subsection (1) identifies any
27 person as a parent or prospective parent, the court shall
28 require notice of the hearing to be provided to that person.
29 (4) If the inquiry under subsection (1) fails to
30 identify any person as a parent or prospective parent, the
31 court shall so find and may proceed without further notice.
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1 (5) If the inquiry under subsection (1) identifies a
2 parent or prospective parent, and that person's location is
3 unknown, the court shall direct the department to shall
4 conduct a diligent search for that person before the
5 scheduling of a disposition hearing regarding the dependency
6 of the child unless the court finds that the best interest of
7 the child requires proceeding without notice to the person
8 whose location is unknown.
9 (6) The diligent search required by subsection (5)
10 must include, at a minimum, inquiries of all relatives of the
11 parent or prospective parent made known to the petitioner,
12 inquiries of all offices of program areas of the department
13 likely to have information about the parent or prospective
14 parent, inquiries of other state and federal agencies likely
15 to have information about the parent or prospective parent,
16 inquiries of appropriate utility and postal providers, and
17 inquiries of appropriate law enforcement agencies. Pursuant to
18 s. 453 of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 653(c)(B)(4), the
19 department, as the state agency administering Titles IV-B and
20 IV-E of the act, shall be provided access to the federal and
21 state parent locator service for diligent search activities.
22 (7) Any agency contacted by a petitioner with a
23 request for information pursuant to subsection (6) shall
24 release the requested information to the petitioner without
25 the necessity of a subpoena or court order.
26 (8) If the inquiry and diligent search identifies a
27 prospective parent, that person must be given the opportunity
28 to become a party to the proceedings by completing a sworn
29 affidavit of parenthood and filing it with the court or the
30 department. A prospective parent who files a sworn affidavit
31 of parenthood while the child is a dependent child but no
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1 later than at the time of or prior to the adjudicatory hearing
2 in any termination of parental rights proceeding for the child
3 shall be considered a parent for all purposes under this
4 section unless the other parent contests the determination of
5 parenthood. If the known parent contests the recognition of
6 the prospective parent as a parent, the prospective parent
7 shall not be recognized as a parent until proceedings under
8 chapter 742 have been concluded. However, the prospective
9 parent shall continue to receive notice of hearings as a
10 participant pending results of the chapter 742 proceedings.
11 Section 48. Section 39.4055, Florida Statutes, is
12 renumbered as section 39.504, Florida Statutes, and
13 subsections (2) and (4) of said section are amended to read:
14 39.504 39.4055 Injunction pending disposition of
15 petition for dependency; penalty.--
16 (2)(a) Notice shall be provided to the parties as set
17 forth in the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, unless the
18 child is reported to be in imminent danger, in which case the
19 court may issue an injunction immediately. A judge may issue
20 an emergency injunction pursuant to this section without
21 notice at times when the court is closed for the transaction
22 of judicial business. When such an immediate injunction is
23 issued, the court shall hold a hearing on the next day of
24 judicial business either to dissolve the injunction or to
25 continue or modify it in accordance with the other provisions
26 of this section.
27 (b) A judge may issue an emergency injunction pursuant
28 to this section at times when the court is closed for the
29 transaction of judicial business. The court shall hold a
30 hearing on the next day of judicial business either to
31
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1 dissolve the emergency injunction or to continue or modify it
2 in accordance with the other provisions of this section.
3 (4) A copy of any injunction issued pursuant to this
4 section shall be delivered to the protected party, or a parent
5 or caregiver or an individual acting in the place of a parent
6 who is not the respondent, and to any law enforcement agency
7 having jurisdiction to enforce such injunction. Upon delivery
8 of the injunction to the appropriate law enforcement agency,
9 the agency shall have the duty and responsibility to enforce
10 the injunction.
11 Section 49. Section 39.406, Florida Statutes, is
12 renumbered as section 39.505, Florida Statutes, and amended to
13 read:
14 39.505 39.406 No answer required.--No answer to the
15 petition or any other pleading need be filed by any child,
16 parent, or legal custodian, but any matters which might be set
17 forth in an answer or other pleading may be pleaded orally
18 before the court or filed in writing as any such person may
19 choose. Notwithstanding the filing of an answer or any
20 pleading, the respondent child or parent shall, prior to an
21 adjudicatory hearing, be advised by the court of the right to
22 counsel and shall be given an opportunity to deny the
23 allegations in the petition for dependency or to enter a plea
24 to allegations in the petition before the court.
25 Section 50. Subsection (1) of section 39.408, Florida
26 Statutes, is renumbered as section 39.506, Florida Statutes,
27 and amended to read:
28 39.506 39.408 Arraignment hearings for dependency
29 cases.--
30 (1) ARRAIGNMENT HEARING.--
31
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1 (a) When a child has been detained by order of the
2 court, an arraignment hearing must be held, within 7 days
3 after the date of filing of the dependency petition 14 days
4 from the date the child is taken into custody, for the parent,
5 guardian, or legal custodian to admit, deny, or consent to
6 findings of dependency alleged in the petition. If the parent,
7 guardian, or legal custodian admits or consents to the
8 findings in the petition, the court shall proceed as set forth
9 in the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure. However, if the
10 parent, guardian, or legal custodian denies any of the
11 allegations of the petition, the court shall hold an
12 adjudicatory hearing within 30 days after 7 days from the date
13 of the arraignment hearing unless a continuance is granted
14 pursuant to this chapter s. 39.402(11).
15 (2)(b) When a child is in the custody of the parent,
16 guardian, or legal custodian, upon the filing of a petition
17 the clerk shall set a date for an arraignment hearing within a
18 reasonable time after the date of the filing. If the parent,
19 guardian, or legal custodian admits or consents to an
20 adjudication, the court shall proceed as set forth in the
21 Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure. However, if the parent,
22 guardian, or legal custodian denies any of the allegations of
23 dependency, the court shall hold an adjudicatory hearing
24 within a reasonable time after the date of the arraignment
25 hearing.
26 (3) Failure of a person served with notice to respond
27 or appear at the arraignment hearing constitutes the person's
28 consent to a dependency adjudication. The document containing
29 the notice to respond or appear must contain, in type at least
30 as large as the balance of the document, the following or
31 substantially similar language: "FAILURE TO RESPOND TO THIS
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1 NOTICE OR TO PERSONALLY APPEAR AT THE ARRAIGNMENT HEARING
2 CONSTITUTES CONSENT TO THE ADJUDICATION OF THIS CHILD (OR
3 CHILDREN) AS A DEPENDENT CHILD (OR CHILDREN) AND MAY
4 ULTIMATELY RESULT IN LOSS OF CUSTODY OF THIS CHILD (OR
5 CHILDREN)."
6 (4) At the arraignment hearing, each party shall
7 provide to the court a permanent mailing address. The court
8 shall advise each party that this address will be used by the
9 court and the petitioner for notice purposes unless and until
10 the party notifies the court and the petitioner in writing of
11 a new mailing address.
12 (5)(c) If at the arraignment hearing the parent,
13 guardian, or legal custodian consents or admits to the
14 allegations in the petition, the court shall proceed to hold a
15 dispositional hearing no more than 15 days after the date of
16 the arraignment hearing unless a continuance is necessary at
17 the earliest practicable time that will allow for the
18 completion of a predisposition study.
19 (6) At any arraignment hearing, the court shall order
20 visitation rights absent a clear and convincing showing that
21 visitation is not in the best interest of the child.
22 (7) The court shall review whether the department has
23 made a reasonable effort to prevent or eliminate the need for
24 removal or continued removal of the child from the home. If
25 the court determines that the department has not made such an
26 effort, the court shall order the department to provide
27 appropriate and available services to assure the protection of
28 the child in the home when such services are necessary for the
29 child's physical, mental, or emotional health and safety.
30 (8) At the arraignment hearing, and no more than 15
31 days thereafter, the court shall review the necessity for the
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1 child's continued placement in the shelter. The court shall
2 also make a written determination regarding the child's
3 continued placement in shelter within 24 hours after any
4 violation of the time requirements for the filing of a
5 petition or prior to the court's granting any continuance as
6 specified in subsection (5).
7 (9) At the conclusion of the arraignment hearing, all
8 parties shall be notified in writing by the court of the date,
9 time, and location for the next scheduled hearing.
10 Section 51. Subsection (2) of section 39.408, Florida
11 Statutes, and section 39.409, Florida Statutes, are renumbered
12 as section 39.507, Florida Statutes, and amended to read:
13 39.507 39.408 Adjudicatory hearings; orders of
14 adjudication Hearings for dependency cases.--
15 (2) ADJUDICATORY HEARING.--
16 (1)(a) The adjudicatory hearing shall be held as soon
17 as practicable after the petition for dependency is filed and
18 in accordance with the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure,
19 but no later than 30 days after the arraignment reasonable
20 delay . shall, whenever practicable, be granted. If the child
21 is in custody, the time limitations provided in s. 39.402 and
22 subsection (1) of this section apply.
23 (b) Adjudicatory hearings shall be conducted by the
24 judge without a jury, applying the rules of evidence in use in
25 civil cases and adjourning the hearings from time to time as
26 necessary. In a hearing on a petition in which it is alleged
27 that the child is dependent, a preponderance of evidence will
28 be required to establish the state of dependency. Any evidence
29 presented in the dependency hearing which was obtained as the
30 result of an anonymous call must be independently
31 corroborated. In no instance shall allegations made in an
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1 anonymous report of abuse, abandonment, or neglect be
2 sufficient to support an adjudication of dependency in the
3 absence of corroborating evidence.
4 (2)(c) All hearings, except as provided in this
5 section, shall be open to the public, and a person may not be
6 excluded except on special order of the judge, who may close
7 any hearing to the public upon determining that the public
8 interest or the welfare of the child is best served by so
9 doing. However, the parents shall be allowed to obtain
10 discovery pursuant to the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure.
11 However, nothing in this subsection paragraph shall be
12 construed to affect the provisions of s. 39.202 415.51(9).
13 Hearings involving more than one child may be held
14 simultaneously when the children involved are related to each
15 other or were involved in the same case. The child and the
16 parents, caregivers, or legal custodians of the child may be
17 examined separately and apart from each other.
18 (3) Except as otherwise specifically provided, nothing
19 in this section prohibits the publication of the proceedings
20 in a hearing.
21 39.409 Orders of adjudication.--
22 (4)(1) If the court finds at the adjudicatory hearing
23 that the child named in a petition is not dependent, it shall
24 enter an order so finding and dismissing the case.
25 (5)(2) If the court finds that the child named in the
26 petition is dependent, but finds that no action other than
27 supervision in the child's home is required, it may enter an
28 order briefly stating the facts upon which its finding is
29 based, but withholding an order of adjudication and placing
30 the child's home under the supervision of the department. If
31 the court later finds that the parents, caregivers, or legal
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1 custodians of the child have not complied with the conditions
2 of supervision imposed, the court may, after a hearing to
3 establish the noncompliance, but without further evidence of
4 the state of dependency, enter an order of adjudication and
5 shall thereafter have full authority under this chapter to
6 provide for the child as adjudicated.
7 (6)(3) If the court finds that the child named in a
8 petition is dependent, but shall elect not to proceed under
9 subsection (5) (2), it shall incorporate that finding in an
10 order of adjudication entered in the case, briefly stating the
11 facts upon which the finding is made, and the court shall
12 thereafter have full authority under this chapter to provide
13 for the child as adjudicated.
14 (7) At the conclusion of the adjudicatory hearing, if
15 the child named in the petition is found dependent, the court
16 shall schedule the disposition hearing within 30 days after
17 the filing of the adjudicatory order. All parties shall be
18 notified in writing by the court of the date, time, and
19 location of the disposition hearing.
20 (8)(4) An order of adjudication by a court that a
21 child is dependent shall not be deemed a conviction, nor shall
22 the child be deemed to have been found guilty or to be a
23 criminal by reason of that adjudication, nor shall that
24 adjudication operate to impose upon the child any of the civil
25 disabilities ordinarily imposed by or resulting from
26 conviction or disqualify or prejudice the child in any civil
27 service application or appointment.
28 Section 52. Subsections (3) and (4) of section 39.408,
29 Florida Statutes, and section 39.41, Florida Statutes, as
30 amended by chapter 97-276, Laws of Florida, are renumbered as
31 section 39.508, Florida Statutes, and amended to read:
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1 39.508 39.408 Disposition hearings; powers of
2 disposition Hearings for dependency cases.--
3 (1)(3) DISPOSITION HEARING.--At the disposition
4 hearing, if the court finds that the facts alleged in the
5 petition for dependency were proven in the adjudicatory
6 hearing, or if the parents, caregivers, or legal custodians
7 have consented to the finding of dependency or admitted the
8 allegations in the petition, have failed to appear for the
9 arraignment hearing after proper notice, or have not been
10 located despite a diligent search having been conducted, the
11 court shall receive and consider a case plan and a
12 predisposition study, which must be in writing and presented
13 by an authorized agent of the department.
14 (2)(a) The predisposition study shall cover for any
15 dependent child all factors specified in s. 61.13(3), and must
16 also provide the court with the following documented
17 information:
18 (a)1. An assessment defining the dangers and risks of
19 returning the child home, including a description of the
20 changes in and resolutions to the initial risks.
21 (b)2. A description of what risks are still present
22 and what resources are available and will be provided for the
23 protection and safety of the child.
24 (c)3. A description of the benefits of returning the
25 child home.
26 (d)4. A description of all unresolved issues.
27 (e)5. An abuse registry history and criminal records
28 check for all caregivers caretakers, family members, and
29 individuals residing within the household.
30
31
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1 (f)6. The complete child protection team report and
2 recommendation or, if no report exists, a statement reflecting
3 that no report has been made.
4 (g)7. All opinions or recommendations from other
5 professionals or agencies that provide evaluative, social,
6 reunification, or other services to the family.
7 (h)8. The availability of appropriate prevention and
8 reunification services for the family to prevent the removal
9 of the child from the home or to reunify the child with the
10 family after removal, including the availability of family
11 preservation services through the Family Builders Program, the
12 Intensive Crisis Counseling Program, or both.
13 (i)9. The inappropriateness of other prevention and
14 reunification services that were available.
15 (j)10. The efforts by the department to prevent
16 out-of-home placement of the child or, when applicable, to
17 reunify the family if appropriate services were available,
18 including the application of intensive family preservation
19 services through the Family Builders Program, the Intensive
20 Crisis Counseling Program, or both.
21 (k)11. Whether the services were provided to the
22 family and child.
23 (l)12. If the services were provided, whether they
24 were sufficient to meet the needs of the child and the family
25 and to enable the child to remain safely at home or to be
26 returned home.
27 (m)13. If the services were not provided, the reasons
28 for such lack of action.
29 (n)14. The need for, or appropriateness of, continuing
30 the services if the child remains in the custody of the family
31 or if the child is placed outside the home.
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1 (o)15. Whether family mediation was provided.
2 16. Whether a multidisciplinary case staffing was
3 conducted and, if so, the results.
4 (p)17. If the child has been removed from the home and
5 there is a parent, caregiver, or legal custodian who may be
6 considered for custody pursuant to this section s. 39.41(1), a
7 recommendation as to whether placement of the child with that
8 parent, caregiver, or legal custodian would be detrimental to
9 the child.
10 (q) If the child has been removed from the home and
11 will be remaining with a relative or caregiver, a home study
12 report shall be included in the predisposition report.
13
14 Any other relevant and material evidence, including other
15 written or oral reports, may be received by the court in its
16 effort to determine the action to be taken with regard to the
17 child and may be relied upon to the extent of its probative
18 value, even though not competent in an adjudicatory hearing.
19 Except as otherwise specifically provided, nothing in this
20 section prohibits the publication of proceedings in a hearing.
21 (3)(a) Prior to recommending to the court any
22 out-of-home placement for a child other than placement in a
23 licensed shelter or foster home, the department shall conduct
24 a study of the home of the proposed caregivers, which must
25 include, at a minimum:
26 1. An interview with the proposed adult caregivers to
27 assess their ongoing commitment and ability to care for the
28 child.
29 2. Records checks through the department's automated
30 abuse information system, and local and statewide criminal and
31 juvenile records checks through the Department of Law
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1 Enforcement, on all household members 12 years of age or older
2 and any other persons made known to the department who are
3 frequent visitors in the home.
4 3. An assessment of the physical environment of the
5 home.
6 4. A determination of the financial security of the
7 proposed caregivers.
8 5. A determination of suitable child care arrangements
9 if the proposed caregivers are employed outside of the home.
10 6. Documentation of counseling and information
11 provided to the proposed caregivers regarding the dependency
12 process and possible outcomes.
13 7. Documentation that information regarding support
14 services available in the community has been provided to the
15 caregivers.
16 (b) The department shall not place the child or
17 continue the placement of the child in the home of the
18 proposed caregivers if the results of the home study are
19 unfavorable.
20 (4)(b) If placement of the child with anyone other
21 than the child's parent, caregiver, or legal custodian is
22 being considered, the predisposition study shall include the
23 designation of a specific length of time as to when custody by
24 the parent, caregiver, or legal custodian will be
25 reconsidered.
26 (c) A copy of the predisposition study must be
27 furnished to all parties no later than 48 hours before the
28 disposition hearing.
29 (5)(d) The predisposition study may not be made before
30 the adjudication of dependency unless the parents, caregivers,
31 or legal custodians of the child consent.
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1 (6) A case plan and predisposition study must be filed
2 with the court and served upon the parents, caregivers, or
3 legal custodians of the child, provided to the representative
4 of the guardian ad litem program, if the program has been
5 appointed, and provided to all other parties not less than 72
6 hours before the disposition hearing. All such case plans must
7 be approved by the court. If the court does not approve the
8 case plan at the disposition hearing, the court must set a
9 hearing within 30 days after the disposition hearing to review
10 and approve the case plan.
11 (7) The initial judicial review must be held no later
12 than 90 days after the date of the disposition hearing or
13 after the date of the hearing at which the court approves the
14 case plan, but in no event shall the review be held later than
15 6 months after the date of the child's removal from the home.
16
17 Any other relevant and material evidence, including other
18 written or oral reports, may be received by the court in its
19 effort to determine the action to be taken with regard to the
20 child and may be relied upon to the extent of its probative
21 value, even though not competent in an adjudicatory hearing.
22 Except as provided in paragraph (2)(c), nothing in this
23 section prohibits the publication of proceedings in a hearing.
24 (4) NOTICE OF HEARINGS.--The parent or legal custodian
25 of the child, the attorney for the department, the guardian ad
26 litem, and all other parties and participants shall be given
27 reasonable notice of all hearings provided for under this
28 section.
29 39.41 Powers of disposition.--
30 (8)(1) When any child is adjudicated by a court to be
31 dependent, and the court finds that removal of the child from
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1 the custody of a parent, legal custodian, or caregiver is
2 necessary, the court shall first determine whether there is a
3 parent with whom the child was not residing at the time the
4 events or conditions arose that brought the child within the
5 jurisdiction of the court who desires to assume custody of the
6 child and, if such parent requests custody, the court shall
7 place the child with the parent unless it finds that such
8 placement would endanger the safety, and well-being, or
9 physical, mental, or emotional health of the child. Any party
10 with knowledge of the facts may present to the court evidence
11 regarding whether the placement will endanger the safety, and
12 well-being, or physical, mental, or emotional health of the
13 child. If the court places the child with such parent, it may
14 do either of the following:
15 (a) Order that the parent become the legal and
16 physical custodian of the child. The court may also provide
17 for reasonable visitation by the noncustodial parent. The
18 court shall then terminate its jurisdiction over the child.
19 The custody order shall continue unless modified by a
20 subsequent order of the court. The order of the juvenile court
21 shall be filed in any dissolution or other custody action or
22 proceeding between the parents.
23 (b) Order that the parent assume custody subject to
24 the jurisdiction of the juvenile court. The court may order
25 that reunification services be provided to the parent,
26 caregiver, or legal custodian or guardian from whom the child
27 has been removed, that services be provided solely to the
28 parent who is assuming physical custody in order to allow that
29 parent to retain later custody without court jurisdiction, or
30 that services be provided to both parents, in which case the
31 court shall determine at every review hearing which parent, if
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1 either, shall have custody of the child. The standard for
2 changing custody of the child from one parent to another or to
3 a relative or caregiver must meet the home study criteria and
4 court approval pursuant to this chapter at the review hearings
5 shall be the same standard as applies to changing custody of
6 the child in a custody hearing following a decree of
7 dissolution of marriage.
8 (9)(2)(a) When any child is adjudicated by a court to
9 be dependent, the court having jurisdiction of the child has
10 the power, by order, to:
11 1. Require the parent, caregiver, or legal guardian,
12 or custodian, and the child when appropriate, to participate
13 in treatment and services identified as necessary.
14 2. Require the parent, caregiver, or legal guardian,
15 or custodian, and the child when appropriate, to participate
16 in mediation if the parent, caregiver, or legal guardian, or
17 custodian refused to participate in mediation under s.
18 39.4033.
19 3. Place the child under the protective supervision of
20 an authorized agent of the department, either in the child's
21 own home or, the prospective custodian being willing, in the
22 home of a relative of the child or of a caregiver an adult
23 nonrelative approved by the court, or in some other suitable
24 place under such reasonable conditions as the court may
25 direct. Whenever the child is placed under protective
26 supervision pursuant to this section, the department shall
27 prepare a case plan and shall file it with the court.
28 Protective supervision continues until the court terminates it
29 or until the child reaches the age of 18, whichever date is
30 first. Protective supervision shall may be terminated by the
31 court whenever the court determines that permanency has been
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1 achieved for the child the child's placement, whether with a
2 parent, another relative, a legal custodian, or a caregiver,
3 or a nonrelative, is stable and that protective supervision is
4 no longer needed. The termination of supervision may be with
5 or without retaining jurisdiction, at the court's discretion,
6 and shall in either case be considered a permanency option for
7 the child. The order terminating supervision by the
8 department of Children and Family Services shall set forth the
9 powers of the custodian of the child and shall include the
10 powers ordinarily granted to a guardian of the person of a
11 minor unless otherwise specified.
12 4. Place the child in the temporary legal custody of
13 an adult relative or caregiver an adult nonrelative approved
14 by the court who is willing to care for the child.
15 5.a. When the parents have failed to comply with a
16 case plan and the court determines at a judicial review
17 hearing, or at an adjudication hearing held pursuant to s.
18 39.453, or at a hearing held pursuant to subparagraph (1)(a)7.
19 of this section, that neither reunification, termination of
20 parental rights, nor adoption is in the best interest of the
21 child, the court may place the child in the long-term custody
22 of an adult relative or caregiver adult nonrelative approved
23 by the court willing to care for the child, if the following
24 conditions are met:
25 (I) A case plan describing the responsibilities of the
26 relative or caregiver nonrelative, the department, and any
27 other party must have been submitted to the court.
28 (II) The case plan for the child does not include
29 reunification with the parents or adoption by the relative or
30 caregiver.
31
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1 (III) The child and the relative or caregiver
2 nonrelative custodian are determined not to need protective
3 supervision or preventive services to ensure the stability of
4 the long-term custodial relationship, or the department
5 assures the court that protective supervision or preventive
6 services will be provided in order to ensure the stability of
7 the long-term custodial relationship.
8 (IV) Each party to the proceeding agrees that a
9 long-term custodial relationship does not preclude the
10 possibility of the child returning to the custody of the
11 parent at a later date.
12 (V) The court has considered the reasonable preference
13 of the child if the court has found the child to be of
14 sufficient intelligence, understanding, and experience to
15 express a preference.
16 (VI) The court has considered the recommendation of
17 the guardian ad litem if one has been appointed.
18 b. The court shall retain jurisdiction over the case,
19 and the child shall remain in the long-term custody of the
20 relative or caregiver nonrelative approved by the court until
21 the order creating the long-term custodial relationship is
22 modified by the court. The court may relieve the department of
23 the responsibility for supervising the placement of the child
24 whenever the court determines that the placement is stable and
25 that such supervision is no longer needed. Notwithstanding
26 the retention of jurisdiction, the placement shall be
27 considered a permanency option for the child when the court
28 relieves the department of the responsibility for supervising
29 the placement. The order terminating supervision by the
30 department of Children and Family Services shall set forth the
31 powers of the custodian of the child and shall include the
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1 powers ordinarily granted to a guardian of the person of a
2 minor unless otherwise specified. The court may modify the
3 order terminating supervision of the long-term relative or
4 caregiver nonrelative placement if it finds that a party to
5 the proceeding has shown a material change in circumstances
6 which causes the long-term relative or caregiver nonrelative
7 placement to be no longer in the best interest of the child.
8 6.a. Approve placement of the child in long-term
9 out-of-home foster care, when the following conditions are
10 met:
11 (I) The foster child is 16 years of age or older,
12 unless the court determines that the history or condition of a
13 younger child makes long-term out-of-home foster care the most
14 appropriate placement.
15 (II) The child demonstrates no desire to be placed in
16 an independent living arrangement pursuant to this subsection.
17 (III) The department's social services study pursuant
18 to part VIII s. 39.453(6)(a) recommends long-term out-of-home
19 foster care.
20 b. Long-term out-of-home foster care under the above
21 conditions shall not be considered a permanency option.
22 c. The court may approve placement of the child in
23 long-term out-of-home foster care, as a permanency option,
24 when all of the following conditions are met:
25 (I) The child is 14 years of age or older,
26 (II) The child is living in a licensed home and the
27 foster parents desire to provide care for the child on a
28 permanent basis and the foster parents and the child do not
29 desire adoption,
30 (III) The foster family has made a commitment to
31 provide for the child until he or she reaches the age of
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1 majority and to prepare the child for adulthood and
2 independence, and
3 (IV) The child has remained in the home for a
4 continuous period of no less than 12 months.
5 (V) The foster parents and the child view one another
6 as family and consider living together as the best place for
7 the child to be on a permanent basis.
8 (VI) The department's social services study recommends
9 such placement and finds the child's well-being has been
10 promoted through living with the foster parents.
11 d. Notwithstanding the retention of jurisdiction and
12 supervision by the department, long-term out-of-home foster
13 care placements made pursuant to sub-subparagraph (2)(a)6.c.
14 of this section shall be considered a permanency option for
15 the child. For purposes of this subsection, supervision by
16 the department shall be defined as a minimum of semiannual
17 visits. The order placing the child in long-term out-of-home
18 foster care as a permanency option shall set forth the powers
19 of the custodian of the child and shall include the powers
20 ordinarily granted to a guardian of the person of a minor
21 unless otherwise specified. The court may modify the
22 permanency option of long-term out-of-home foster care if it
23 finds that a party to the proceeding has shown a material
24 change in circumstances which causes the placement to be no
25 longer in the best interests of the child.
26 e. Approve placement of the child in an independent
27 living arrangement for any foster child 16 years of age or
28 older, if it can be clearly established that this type of
29 alternate care arrangement is the most appropriate plan and
30 that the health, safety, and well-being of the child will not
31 be jeopardized by such an arrangement. While in independent
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1 living situations, children whose legal custody has been
2 awarded to the department or a licensed child-caring or
3 child-placing agency, or who have been voluntarily placed with
4 such an agency by a parent, guardian, relative, or adult
5 nonrelative approved by the court, continue to be subject to
6 court review provisions.
7 7. Commit the child to a licensed child-caring agency
8 willing to receive the child. Continued commitment to the
9 licensed child-caring agency, as well as all other proceedings
10 under this section pertaining to the child, are also governed
11 by part V of this chapter.
12 7.8. Commit the child to the temporary legal custody
13 of the department. Such commitment invests in the department
14 all rights and responsibilities of a legal custodian. The
15 department shall not return any child to the physical care and
16 custody of the person from whom the child was removed, except
17 for short visitation periods, without the approval of the
18 court. The term of such commitment continues until terminated
19 by the court or until the child reaches the age of 18. After
20 the child is committed to the temporary custody of the
21 department, all further proceedings under this section are
22 also governed by part V of this chapter.
23 8.9.a. Change the temporary legal custody or the
24 conditions of protective supervision at a postdisposition
25 hearing subsequent to the initial detention hearing, without
26 the necessity of another adjudicatory hearing. A child who has
27 been placed in the child's own home under the protective
28 supervision of an authorized agent of the department, in the
29 home of a relative, in the home of a legal custodian or
30 caregiver nonrelative, or in some other place may be brought
31 before the court by the agent of the department who is
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1 supervising the placement or by any other interested person,
2 upon the filing of a petition alleging a need for a change in
3 the conditions of protective supervision or the placement. If
4 the parents or other custodians deny the need for a change,
5 the court shall hear all parties in person or by counsel, or
6 both. Upon the admission of a need for a change or after such
7 hearing, the court shall enter an order changing the
8 placement, modifying the conditions of protective supervision,
9 or continuing the conditions of protective supervision as
10 ordered. The standard for changing custody of the child from
11 one parent to another or to a relative or caregiver must meet
12 the home study criteria and court approval pursuant to this
13 chapter.
14 b. In cases where the issue before the court is
15 whether a child should be reunited with a parent, the court
16 shall determine whether the parent has substantially complied
17 with the terms of the case plan to the extent that the
18 well-being and safety, well-being, and physical, mental, and
19 emotional health of the child is not endangered by the return
20 of the child to the home.
21 10. Approve placement of the child in an independent
22 living arrangement for any foster child 16 years of age or
23 older, if it can be clearly established that this type of
24 alternate care arrangement is the most appropriate plan and
25 that the safety and welfare of the child will not be
26 jeopardized by such an arrangement. While in independent
27 living situations, children whose legal custody has been
28 awarded to the department or a licensed child-caring or
29 child-placing agency, or who have been voluntarily placed with
30 such an agency by a parent, guardian, relative, or adult
31
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1 nonrelative approved by the court, continue to be subject to
2 the court review provisions of s. 39.453.
3 (b) The court shall, in its written order of
4 disposition, include all of the following:
5 1. The placement or custody of the child as provided
6 in paragraph (a).
7 2. Special conditions of placement and visitation.
8 3. Evaluation, counseling, treatment activities, and
9 other actions to be taken by the parties, if ordered.
10 4. The persons or entities responsible for supervising
11 or monitoring services to the child and family.
12 5. Continuation or discharge of the guardian ad litem,
13 as appropriate.
14 6. The date, time, and location of the next scheduled
15 review hearing, which must occur within 90 days after the
16 disposition hearing or within the earlier of:
17 a. Six months after the date of the last review
18 hearing; or
19 b. Six months after the date of the child's removal
20 from his or her home, if no review hearing has been held since
21 the child's removal from the home. The period of time or date
22 for any subsequent case review required by law.
23 7. Other requirements necessary to protect the health,
24 safety, and well-being of the child, to preserve the stability
25 of the child's educational placement, and to promote family
26 preservation or reunification whenever possible.
27 (c) If the court finds that the prevention or
28 reunification efforts of the department will allow the child
29 to remain safely at home or be safely returned to the home,
30 the court shall allow the child to remain in or return to the
31 home after making a specific finding of fact that the reasons
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1 for removal have been remedied to the extent that the child's
2 safety, and well-being, and physical, mental, and emotional
3 health will not be endangered.
4 (d)(5)(a) If the court commits the child to the
5 temporary legal custody of the department, the disposition
6 order must include a written determination that the child
7 cannot safely remain at home with reunification or family
8 preservation services and that removal of the child is
9 necessary to protect the child. If the child has been removed
10 before the disposition hearing, the order must also include a
11 written determination as to whether, after removal, the
12 department has made a reasonable effort to reunify the family.
13 The department has the burden of demonstrating that it has
14 made reasonable efforts under this paragraph subsection.
15 1.(b) For the purposes of this paragraph subsection,
16 the term "reasonable effort" means the exercise of reasonable
17 diligence and care by the department to provide the services
18 delineated in the case plan.
19 2.(c) In support of its determination as to whether
20 reasonable efforts have been made, the court shall:
21 a.1. Enter written findings as to whether or not
22 prevention or reunification efforts were indicated.
23 b.2. If prevention or reunification efforts were
24 indicated, include a brief written description of what
25 appropriate and available prevention and reunification efforts
26 were made.
27 c.3. Indicate in writing why further efforts could or
28 could not have prevented or shortened the separation of the
29 family.
30
31
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1 3.(d) A court may find that the department has made a
2 reasonable effort to prevent or eliminate the need for removal
3 if:
4 a.1. The first contact of the department with the
5 family occurs during an emergency.
6 b.2. The appraisal by the department of the home
7 situation indicates that it presents a substantial and
8 immediate danger to the child's safety or physical, mental, or
9 emotional health child which cannot be mitigated by the
10 provision of preventive services.
11 c.3. The child cannot safely remain at home, either
12 because there are no preventive services that can ensure the
13 health and safety of the child or, even with appropriate and
14 available services being provided, the health and safety of
15 the child cannot be ensured.
16 4.(e) A reasonable effort by the department for
17 reunification of the family has been made if the appraisal of
18 the home situation by the department indicates that the
19 severity of the conditions of dependency is such that
20 reunification efforts are inappropriate. The department has
21 the burden of demonstrating to the court that reunification
22 efforts were inappropriate.
23 5.(f) If the court finds that the prevention or
24 reunification effort of the department would not have
25 permitted the child to remain safely at home, the court may
26 commit the child to the temporary legal custody of the
27 department or take any other action authorized by this chapter
28 part.
29 (10)(3)(a) When any child is adjudicated by the court
30 to be dependent and temporary legal custody of the child has
31 been placed with an adult relative, legal custodian, or
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1 caregiver or adult nonrelative approved by the court willing
2 to care for the child, a licensed child-caring agency, or the
3 department, the court shall, unless a parent has voluntarily
4 executed a written surrender for purposes of adoption, order
5 the parents, or the guardian of the child's estate if
6 possessed of assets which under law may be disbursed for the
7 care, support, and maintenance of the child, to pay child
8 support to the adult relative, legal custodian, or caregiver
9 or nonrelative caring for the child, the licensed child-caring
10 agency, or the department. The court may exercise jurisdiction
11 over all child support matters, shall adjudicate the financial
12 obligation, including health insurance, of the child's parents
13 or guardian, and shall enforce the financial obligation as
14 provided in chapter 61. The state's child support enforcement
15 agency shall enforce child support orders under this section
16 in the same manner as child support orders under chapter 61.
17 (b) Placement of the child pursuant to subsection (8)
18 (1) shall not be contingent upon issuance of a support order.
19 (11)(4)(a) If the court does not commit the child to
20 the temporary legal custody of an adult relative, legal
21 custodian, or caregiver or adult nonrelative approved by the
22 court, the disposition order shall include the reasons for
23 such a decision and shall include a determination as to
24 whether diligent efforts were made by the department to locate
25 an adult relative, legal custodian, or caregiver willing to
26 care for the child in order to present that placement option
27 to the court instead of placement with the department.
28 (b) If diligent efforts are a diligent search is made
29 to locate an adult relative willing and able to care for the
30 child but, because no suitable relative is found, the child is
31 placed with the department or a legal custodian or caregiver
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1 nonrelative custodian, both the department and the court shall
2 consider transferring temporary legal custody to an a willing
3 adult relative or adult nonrelative approved by the court at a
4 later date, but neither the department nor the court is
5 obligated to so place the child if it is in the child's best
6 interest to remain in the current placement. For the purposes
7 of this paragraph, "diligent efforts to locate an adult
8 relative" means a search similar to the diligent search for a
9 parent, but without the continuing obligation to search after
10 an initial adequate search is completed.
11 (12)(6) An agency granted legal custody shall have the
12 right to determine where and with whom the child shall live,
13 but an individual granted legal custody shall exercise all
14 rights and duties personally unless otherwise ordered by the
15 court.
16 (13)(7) In carrying out the provisions of this
17 chapter, the court may order the natural parents, caregivers,
18 or legal custodians guardian of a child who is found to be
19 dependent to participate in family counseling and other
20 professional counseling activities deemed necessary for the
21 rehabilitation of the child.
22 (14)(8) With respect to a child who is the subject in
23 proceedings under part V of this chapter, the court shall
24 issue to the department an order to show cause why it should
25 not return the child to the custody of the natural parents,
26 legal custodians, or caregivers upon expiration of the case
27 plan, or sooner if the parents, legal custodians, or
28 caregivers have substantially complied with the case plan.
29 (15)(9) The court may at any time enter an order
30 ending its jurisdiction over any child, except that, when a
31 child has been returned to the parents under subsection (14)
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1 (8), the court shall not terminate its jurisdiction over the
2 child until 6 months after the child's return. Based on a
3 report of the department or agency or the child's guardian ad
4 litem, and any other relevant factors, the court shall then
5 determine whether its jurisdiction should be continued or
6 terminated in such a case; if its jurisdiction is to be
7 terminated, the court shall enter an order to that effect.
8 Section 53. Section 39.5085, Florida Statutes, is
9 created to read:
10 39.5085 Relative Caregiver Program.--
11 (1) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting
12 this section to:
13 (a) Recognize family relationships in which a
14 grandparent or other relative is the head of a household that
15 includes a child otherwise at risk of foster care placement.
16 (b) Enhance family preservation and stability by
17 recognizing that most children in such placements with
18 grandparents and other relatives do not need intensive
19 supervision of the placement by the courts or by the
20 department.
21 (c) Provide additional placement options and
22 incentives that will achieve permanency and stability for many
23 children who are otherwise at risk of foster care placement
24 because of abuse, abandonment, or neglect, but who may
25 successfully be able to be placed by the dependency court in
26 the care of such relatives.
27 (d) Reserve the limited casework and supervisory
28 resources of the courts and the department for those cases in
29 which children do not have the option for safe, stable care
30 within the family.
31
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1 (2)(a) The Department of Children and Family Services
2 shall establish and operate the Relative-Caregiver Program
3 pursuant to eligibility guidelines established in this section
4 as further implemented by rule of the department. The
5 Relative-Caregiver Program shall, within the limits of
6 available funding, provide financial assistance to relatives
7 who are within the fifth degree by blood or marriage to the
8 parent or stepparent of a child and who are caring full-time
9 for that child in the role of substitute parent as a result of
10 a departmental determination of child abuse, neglect, or
11 abandonment and subsequent placement with the relative
12 pursuant to chapter 39. Such placement may be either
13 court-ordered temporary legal custody to the relative pursuant
14 to s. 39.508(9), or court-ordered placement in the home of a
15 relative under protective supervision of the department
16 pursuant to s. 39.508(9). The Relative-Caregiver Program
17 shall offer financial assistance to caregivers who are
18 relatives and who would be unable to serve in that capacity
19 without the relative-caregiver payment because of financial
20 burden, thus exposing the child to the trauma of placement in
21 a shelter or in foster care.
22 (b) Caregivers who are relatives and who receive
23 assistance under this section must be capable, as determined
24 by a home study, of providing a physically safe environment
25 and a stable, supportive home for the children under their
26 care, and must assure that the children's well-being is met,
27 including, but not limited to, the provision of immunizations,
28 education, and mental health services as needed.
29 (c) Relatives who qualify for and participate in the
30 Relative-Caregiver Program are not required to meet foster
31 care licensing requirements under s. 409.175.
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1 (d) Relatives who are caring for children placed with
2 them by the child protection system shall receive a special
3 monthly relative-caregiver benefit established by rule of the
4 department. The amount of the special benefit payment shall
5 be based on the child's age within a payment schedule
6 established by rule of the department and subject to
7 availability of funding. The statewide average monthly rate
8 for children judicially placed with relatives who are not
9 licensed as foster homes may not exceed 82 percent of the
10 statewide average foster care rate, nor may the cost of
11 providing the assistance described in this section to any
12 relative-caregiver exceed the cost of providing out-of-home
13 care in emergency shelter or foster care.
14 (e) Children receiving cash benefits under this
15 section are not eligible to simultaneously receive WAGES cash
16 benefits under chapter 414.
17 (f) Within available funding, the Relative-Caregiver
18 Program shall provide relative-caregivers with family support
19 and preservation services, flexible funds in accordance with
20 s. 409.165, subsidized child care, and other available
21 services in order to support the child's safety, growth, and
22 healthy development. Children living with relative-caregivers
23 who are receiving assistance under this section shall be
24 eligible for medicaid coverage.
25 (g) The department may use appropriate available
26 state, federal, and private funds to operate the
27 Relative-Caregiver Program.
28 Section 54. Section 39.4105, Florida Statutes, is
29 renumbered as section 39.509, Florida Statutes, and amended to
30 read:
31
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1 39.509 39.4105 Grandparents rights.--Notwithstanding
2 any other provision of law, a maternal or paternal grandparent
3 as well as a stepgrandparent is entitled to reasonable
4 visitation with his or her grandchild who has been adjudicated
5 a dependent child and taken from the physical custody of the
6 his or her parent, custodian, legal guardian, or caregiver
7 unless the court finds that such visitation is not in the best
8 interest of the child or that such visitation would interfere
9 with the goals of the case plan pursuant to s. 39.451.
10 Reasonable visitation may be unsupervised and, where
11 appropriate and feasible, may be frequent and continuing.
12 (1) Grandparent visitation may take place in the home
13 of the grandparent unless there is a compelling reason for
14 denying such a visitation. The department's caseworker shall
15 arrange the visitation to which a grandparent is entitled
16 pursuant to this section. The state shall not charge a fee
17 for any costs associated with arranging the visitation.
18 However, the grandparent shall pay for the child's cost of
19 transportation when the visitation is to take place in the
20 grandparent's home. The caseworker shall document the reasons
21 for any decision to restrict a grandparent's visitation.
22 (2) A grandparent entitled to visitation pursuant to
23 this section shall not be restricted from appropriate displays
24 of affection to the child, such as appropriately hugging or
25 kissing his or her grandchild. Gifts, cards, and letters from
26 the grandparent and other family members shall not be denied
27 to a child who has been adjudicated a dependent child.
28 (3) Any attempt by a grandparent to facilitate a
29 meeting between the child who has been adjudicated a dependent
30 child and the child's parent, custodian, legal guardian, or
31
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1 caregiver in violation of a court order shall automatically
2 terminate future visitation rights of the grandparent.
3 (4) When the child has been returned to the physical
4 custody of his or her parent or permanent custodian, legal
5 guardian, or caregiver, the visitation rights granted pursuant
6 to this section shall terminate.
7 (5) The termination of parental rights does not affect
8 the rights of grandparents unless the court finds that such
9 visitation is not in the best interest of the child or that
10 such visitation would interfere with the goals of permanency
11 planning for the child.
12 (6)(5) In determining whether grandparental visitation
13 is not in the child's best interest, consideration may be
14 given to the finding of guilt, regardless of adjudication, or
15 entry or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to charges under
16 the following statutes, or similar statutes of other
17 jurisdictions: s. 787.04, relating to removing minors from
18 the state or concealing minors contrary to court order; s.
19 794.011, relating to sexual battery; s. 798.02, relating to
20 lewd and lascivious behavior; chapter 800, relating to
21 lewdness and indecent exposure; or chapter 827, relating to
22 the abuse of children. Consideration may also be given to a
23 finding of confirmed abuse, abandonment, or neglect under ss.
24 415.101-415.113 or this chapter and ss. 415.502-415.514.
25 Section 55. Section 39.413, Florida Statutes, is
26 renumbered as section 39.510, Florida Statutes, and subsection
27 (1) of said section is amended to read:
28 39.510 39.413 Appeal.--
29 (1) Any child, any parent, guardian ad litem,
30 caregiver, or legal custodian of any child, any other party to
31 the proceeding who is affected by an order of the court, or
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1 the department may appeal to the appropriate district court of
2 appeal within the time and in the manner prescribed by the
3 Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure. Appointed counsel shall
4 be compensated as provided in this chapter s. 39.415.
5 Section 56. Part VII of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
6 consisting of sections 39.601, 39.602, and 39.603, Florida
7 Statutes, shall be entitled to read:
8 PART VII
9 CASE PLANS
10 Section 57. Sections 39.4031 and 39.451, Florida
11 Statutes, are renumbered as section 39.601, Florida Statutes,
12 and amended to read:
13 39.601 39.4031 Case plan requirements.--
14 (1) The department or agent of the department shall
15 develop a case plan for each child or child's family receiving
16 services pursuant to this chapter who is a party to any
17 dependency proceeding, activity, or process under this part.
18 A parent, caregiver, or legal guardian, or custodian of a
19 child may not be required nor coerced through threat of loss
20 of custody or parental rights to admit in the case plan to
21 abusing, neglecting, or abandoning a child. Where dependency
22 mediation services are available and appropriate to the best
23 interests of the child, the court may refer the case to
24 mediation for development of a case plan. This section does
25 not change the provisions of s. 39.807 39.464.
26 (2) The case plan must be:
27 (a) The case plan must be developed in conference with
28 the parent, caregiver, or legal guardian, or custodian of the
29 child and, if appropriate, the child and any court-appointed
30 guardian ad litem and, if appropriate, the child. Any parent
31 who believes that his or her perspective has not been
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1 considered in the development of a case plan may request
2 referral to mediation pursuant to s. 39.4033 when such
3 services are available.
4 (b) The case plan must be written simply and clearly
5 in English and, if English is not the principal language of
6 the child's parent, caregiver, or legal guardian, or
7 custodian, to the extent possible in such principal language.
8 (c) The case plan must describe the minimum number of
9 face-to-face meetings to be held each month between the
10 parents, caregivers, or legal custodians and the department's
11 caseworkers to review progress of the plan, to eliminate
12 barriers to progress, and to resolve conflicts or
13 disagreements.
14 (d)(c) The case plan must be subject to modification
15 based on changing circumstances.
16 (e)(d) The case plan must be signed by all parties.
17 (f)(e) The case plan must be reasonable, accurate, and
18 in compliance with the requirements of other court orders.
19 (2)(3) When the child or family is receiving services
20 in the child's home, the case plan must be developed within 30
21 days from the date of the department's initial contact with
22 the child, or within 30 days of the date of a disposition
23 order placing the child under the protective supervision of
24 the department in the child's own home, and must include, in
25 addition to the requirements in subsection (1) (2), at a
26 minimum:
27 (a) A description of the problem being addressed that
28 includes the behavior or act of a parent, legal custodian, or
29 caregiver resulting in risk to the child and the reason for
30 the department's intervention.
31
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1 (b) A description of the services to be provided to
2 the family and child specifically addressing the identified
3 problem, including:
4 1. Type of services or treatment.
5 2. Frequency of services or treatment.
6 3. Location of the delivery of the services.
7 4. The accountable department staff or service
8 provider.
9 5. The need for a multidisciplinary case staffing
10 under s. 39.4032.
11 (c) A description of the measurable objectives,
12 including timeframes for achieving objectives, addressing the
13 identified problem.
14 (3)(4) When the child is receiving services in a
15 placement outside the child's home or in foster care, the case
16 plan must be submitted to the court for approval at the
17 disposition hearing prepared within 30 days after placement
18 and also be approved by the court and must include, in
19 addition to the requirements in subsections (1) and (2) and
20 (3), at a minimum:
21 (a) A description of the permanency goal for the
22 child, including the type of placement. Reasonable efforts to
23 place a child for adoption or with a legal guardian may be
24 made concurrently with reasonable efforts to prevent removal
25 of the child from the home or make it possible for the child
26 to return safely home.
27 (b) A description of the type of home or institution
28 in which the child is to be placed.
29 (c) A description of the financial support obligation
30 to the child, including health insurance, of the child's
31 parent, parents, caregiver, or legal custodian or guardian.
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1 (d) A description of the visitation rights and
2 obligations of the parent or parents, caregiver, or legal
3 custodian during the period the child is in care.
4 (e) A discussion of the safety and appropriateness of
5 the child's placement, which placement is intended to be safe,
6 in the least restrictive and most family-like setting
7 available consistent with the best interest and special needs
8 of the child, and in as close proximity as possible to the
9 child's home. The plan must also establish the role for the
10 foster parents or custodians in the development of the
11 services which are to be provided to the child, foster
12 parents, or legal custodians. It must also address the child's
13 need for services while under the jurisdiction of the court
14 and implementation of these services in the case plan.
15 (f) A description of the efforts to be undertaken to
16 maintain the stability of the child's educational placement.
17 (g)(f) A discussion of the department's plans to carry
18 out the judicial determination made by the court, with respect
19 to the child, in accordance with this chapter and applicable
20 federal regulations.
21 (h)(g) A description of the plan for assuring that
22 services outlined in the case plan are provided to the child
23 and the child's parent or parents, legal custodians, or
24 caregivers, to improve the conditions in the family home and
25 facilitate either the safe return of the child to the home or
26 the permanent placement of the child.
27 (i)(h) A description of the plan for assuring that
28 services as outlined in the case plan are provided to the
29 child and the child's parent or parents, legal custodians, or
30 caregivers, to address the needs of the child and a discussion
31 of the appropriateness of the services.
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1 (j)(i) A description of the plan for assuring that
2 services are provided to the child and foster parents to
3 address the needs of the child while in foster care, which
4 shall include an itemized list of costs to be borne by the
5 parent or caregiver associated with any services or treatment
6 that the parent and child are expected to receive.
7 (k)(j) A written notice to the parent that failure of
8 the parent to substantially comply with the case plan may
9 result in the termination of parental rights, and that a
10 material failure to substantially comply may result in the
11 filing of a petition for termination of parental rights sooner
12 than the compliance periods set forth in the case plan itself.
13 The child protection team shall coordinate its effort with the
14 case staffing committee.
15 (l) In the case of a child for whom the permanency
16 plan is adoption or placement in another permanent home,
17 documentation of the steps the agency is taking to find an
18 adoptive family or other permanent living arrangement for the
19 child, to place the child with an adoptive family, with a fit
20 and willing relative, with a legal guardian, or in another
21 planned permanent living arrangement, and to finalize the
22 adoption or legal guardianship. At a minimum, such
23 documentation shall include child-specific recruitment efforts
24 such as the use of state, regional, and national adoption
25 exchanges, including electronic exchange systems.
26 (4)(5) In the event that the parents, legal
27 custodians, or caregivers are unwilling or unable to
28 participate in the development of a case plan, the department
29 shall document that unwillingness or inability to participate.
30 Such documentation must be provided and provide in writing to
31 the parent, legal custodians, or caregivers when available for
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1 the court record, and then the department shall prepare a case
2 plan conforming as nearly as possible with the requirements
3 set forth in this section. The unwillingness or inability of
4 the parents, legal custodians, or caregivers to participate in
5 the development of a case plan shall not in itself bar the
6 filing of a petition for dependency or for termination of
7 parental rights. The parents, legal custodians, or caregivers,
8 if available, must be provided a copy of the case plan and be
9 advised that they may, at any time prior to the filing of a
10 petition for termination of parental rights, enter into a case
11 plan and that they may request judicial review of any
12 provision of the case plan with which they disagree at any
13 court review hearing set for the child.
14 (5)(6) The services delineated in the case plan must
15 be designed to improve the conditions in the family home and
16 aid in maintaining the child in the home, to facilitate the
17 safe return of the child to the family home, or to facilitate
18 the permanent placement of the child. The service intervention
19 must be the least intrusive possible into the life of the
20 family, must focus on clearly defined objectives, and must
21 provide the most efficient path to quick reunification or
22 permanent placement, with the child's health and safety being
23 paramount. To the extent possible, the service intervention
24 must be grounded in outcome evaluation results that
25 demonstrate success in the reunification or permanent
26 placement process. In designing service interventions,
27 generally recognized standards of the professions involved in
28 the process must be taken into consideration.
29 (6) After jurisdiction attaches, all case plans must
30 be filed with the court and a copy provided to the parents,
31 caregivers, or legal custodians of the child, to the
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1 representative of the guardian ad litem program if the program
2 has been appointed, and to all other parties, not less than 72
3 hours before the disposition hearing. All such case plans must
4 be approved by the court. The department shall also file with
5 the court all case plans prepared before jurisdiction of the
6 court attached. If the court does not accept the case plan,
7 the court shall require the parties to make necessary
8 modifications to the plan. An amended plan must be submitted
9 to the court for review and approval within 30 days after the
10 hearing on the case plan.
11 39.451 Case planning for children in foster care.--
12 (1) In presenting the case plan to the court, the
13 purpose of a case plan is to ensure permanency for children
14 through recording the actions to be taken by the parties
15 involved in order to quickly assure the safe return of the
16 child to the parents or, if this is not possible, the
17 termination of parental rights and the placement of the child
18 with the department or a licensed child-placing agency for the
19 purpose of finding a permanent adoptive home. Permanent
20 adoptive placement is the primary permanency goal when a child
21 is permanently placed with the department or a licensed
22 child-placing agency. If it is not possible to find a
23 permanent adoptive home, the case plan must record the actions
24 taken for preparing the child for alternative permanency goals
25 or placements such as long-term foster care or independent
26 living.
27 (7)(2) The case plan must be limited to as short a
28 period as possible for the accomplishment of its provisions.
29 Unless extended under s. 39.453(8), the plan expires no later
30 than 12 18 months after the date the child was initially
31
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1 removed from the home or the date the case plan was accepted
2 by the court, whichever comes first.
3 (8)(3) The case plan must meet applicable federal and
4 state requirements as provided in s. 39.4031.
5 (9)(4)(a) In each case in which the custody of a child
6 has been vested, either voluntarily or involuntarily, in the
7 department and the child has been placed in out-of-home foster
8 care, a case plan must be prepared within 60 30 days after the
9 department removes the child from the home, and shall be
10 submitted to the court before the disposition hearing, with a
11 hearing scheduled for the court to review and accept or modify
12 the plan within an additional 30 days. If the preparation of a
13 case plan, in conference with the parents and other pertinent
14 parties, cannot be completed before the disposition hearing
15 accomplished within 30 days, for good cause shown, the court
16 may grant an extension not to exceed 30 days and set a hearing
17 to review and accept the case plan.
18 (b) The parent or parents, legal custodians, or
19 caregivers may receive assistance from any person, or social
20 service agency in the preparation of the case plan.
21 (c) The social service agency, the department, and the
22 court, when applicable, shall inform the parent or parents,
23 legal custodians, or caregivers of the right to receive such
24 assistance, including the right to assistance of counsel.
25 (d)(c) Before the signing of the case plan, the
26 authorized agent of the department shall explain it to all
27 persons involved in its implementation, including, when
28 appropriate, the child.
29 (e)(d) After the case plan has been agreed upon and
30 signed by the parties involved, a copy of the plan must be
31 given immediately to the natural parents, the department or
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1 agency, the foster parents or caregivers, the legal custodian,
2 the caregiver, the representative of the guardian ad litem
3 program if the program is appointed, and any other parties
4 identified by the court, including the child, if appropriate.
5 (f)(e) The case plan may be amended at any time if all
6 parties are in agreement regarding the revisions to the plan
7 and the plan is submitted to the court with a memorandum of
8 explanation. The case plan may also be amended by the court or
9 upon motion of any party at a hearing, based on competent
10 evidence demonstrating the need for the amendment. A copy of
11 the amended plan must be immediately given to the parties
12 specified in paragraph (e)(d).
13 (5) The case plan must be submitted to the court and
14 all parties for review and acceptance or modification at least
15 72 hours prior to a court hearing. If the court does not
16 accept any of the requirements of the case plan, the court
17 shall require the parties to make necessary modifications to
18 the plan. An amended plan must be submitted to the court for
19 review and approval within a time certain specified by the
20 court.
21 (10)(6) A case plan must be prepared, but need not be
22 submitted to the court, for a child who will be in care no
23 longer than 30 days unless that child is placed in out-of-home
24 foster care a second time within a 12-month period.
25 Section 58. Subsections (1), (2), (3), and (4) of
26 section 39.452, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as section
27 39.602, Florida Statutes, and amended to read:
28 39.602 39.452 Case planning when parents, legal
29 custodians, or caregivers do not participate and the child is
30 in out-of-home foster care.--
31
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1 (1)(a) In the event the parents, legal custodians, or
2 caregivers will not or cannot participate in preparation of a
3 case plan, the department shall submit a full explanation of
4 the circumstances and a plan for the permanent placement of
5 the child to the court within 30 days after the child has been
6 removed from the home and placed in temporary foster care and
7 schedule a court hearing within 30 days after submission of
8 the plan to the court to review and accept or modify the plan.
9 If preparation cannot be accomplished within 30 days, for good
10 cause shown, the court may grant extensions not to exceed 15
11 days each for the filing, the granting of which shall be for
12 similar reason to that contained in s. 39.451(4)(a).
13 (b) In the full explanation of the circumstances
14 submitted to the court, the department shall state the nature
15 of its efforts to secure such persons' parental participation
16 in the preparation of a case plan.
17 (2) In a case in which the physical, emotional, or
18 mental condition or physical location of the parent is the
19 basis for the parent's nonparticipation, it is the burden of
20 the department to provide substantial evidence to the court
21 that such condition or location has rendered the parent unable
22 or unwilling to participate in the preparation of a case plan,
23 either pro se or through counsel. The supporting documentation
24 must be submitted to the court at the time the plan is filed.
25 (3) The plan must include, but need not be limited to,
26 the specific services to be provided by the department, the
27 goals and plans for the child, and the time for accomplishing
28 the provisions of the plan and for accomplishing permanence
29 for the child.
30 (4)(a) At least 72 Seventy-two hours prior to the
31 filing of a plan, all parties each parent must be provided
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1 with a copy of the plan developed by the department. If the
2 location of one or both parents is unknown, this must be
3 documented in writing and included in the plan submitted to
4 the court. After the filing of the plan, if the location of
5 an absent parent becomes known, that parent must be served
6 with a copy of the plan.
7 (b) Before the filing of the plan, the department
8 shall advise each parent, both orally and in writing, that the
9 failure of the parents to substantially comply with a plan
10 which has reunification as its primary goal may result in the
11 termination of parental rights, but only after notice and
12 hearing as provided in this chapter part VI. If, after the
13 plan has been submitted to the court, an absent parent is
14 located, the department shall advise the parent, both orally
15 and in writing, that the failure of the parents to
16 substantially comply with a plan which has reunification as
17 its goal may result in termination of parental rights, but
18 only after notice and hearing as provided in this chapter part
19 VI. Proof of written notification must be filed with the
20 court.
21 Section 59. Subsection (5) of section 39.452, Florida
22 Statutes, is renumbered as section 39.603, Florida Statutes,
23 and amended to read:
24 39.603 39.452 Court approvals of case planning when
25 parents do not participate and the child is in foster care.--
26 (5)(a) The court shall set a hearing, with notice to
27 all parties, on the plan or any provisions of the plan, within
28 30 days after the plan has been received by the court. If the
29 location of a parent is unknown, the notice must be directed
30 to the last permanent address of record.
31
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1 (1)(b) At the hearing on the plan, which shall occur
2 in conjunction with the disposition hearing unless otherwise
3 directed by the court, the court shall determine:
4 (a)1. All parties who were notified and are in
5 attendance at the hearing, either in person or through a legal
6 representative. The court shall appoint a guardian ad litem
7 under Rule 1.210, Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, to
8 represent the interests of any parent, if the location of the
9 parent is known but the parent is not present at the hearing
10 and the development of the plan is based upon the physical,
11 emotional, or mental condition or physical location of the
12 parent.
13 (b)2. If the plan is consistent with previous orders
14 of the court placing the child in care.
15 (c)3. If the plan is consistent with the requirements
16 for the content of a plan as specified in this chapter
17 subsection (3).
18 (d)4. In involuntary placements, whether each parent
19 was notified of the right to counsel at each stage of the
20 dependency proceedings, in accordance with the Florida Rules
21 of Juvenile Procedure.
22 (e)5. Whether each parent whose location was known was
23 notified of the right to participate in the preparation of a
24 case plan and of the right to receive assistance from any
25 other person in the preparation of the case plan.
26 (f)6. Whether the plan is meaningful and designed to
27 address facts and circumstances upon which the court based the
28 finding of dependency in involuntary placements or the plan is
29 meaningful and designed to address facts and circumstances
30 upon which the child was placed in out-of-home foster care
31 voluntarily.
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1 (2)(c) When the court determines any of the elements
2 considered at the hearing related to the plan have not been
3 met, the court shall require the parties to make necessary
4 amendments to the plan. The amended plan must be submitted to
5 the court for review and approval within a time certain
6 specified by the court. A copy of the amended plan must also
7 be provided to each parent, if the location of the parent is
8 known.
9 (3)(d) A parent who has not participated in the
10 development of a case plan must be served with a copy of the
11 plan developed by the department, if the parent can be
12 located, at least 48 72 hours prior to the court hearing. Any
13 parent is entitled to, and may seek, a court review of the
14 plan prior to the initial 6 months' review and must be
15 informed of this right by the department at the time the
16 department serves the parent with a copy of the plan. If the
17 location of an absent parent becomes known to the department,
18 the department shall inform the parent of the right to a court
19 review at the time the department serves the parent with a
20 copy of the case plan.
21 Section 60. Part VIII of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
22 consisting of sections 39.701, 39.702, 39.703, and 39.704,
23 Florida Statutes, shall be entitled to read:
24 PART VIII
25 JUDICIAL REVIEWS
26 Section 61. Section 39.453, Florida Statutes, is
27 renumbered as section 39.701, Florida Statutes, and amended to
28 read:
29 39.701 39.453 Judicial review.--
30 (1)(a) The court shall have continuing jurisdiction in
31 accordance with this section and shall review the status of
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1 the child as required by this subsection or more frequently if
2 the court deems it necessary or desirable.
3 (b) The court shall retain jurisdiction over a child
4 returned to its parents, caregivers, or legal guardians for a
5 period of 6 months, but, at that time, based on a report of
6 the social service agency and the guardian ad litem, if one
7 has been appointed, and any other relevant factors, the court
8 shall make a determination as to whether its jurisdiction
9 shall continue or be terminated.
10 (c) After termination of parental rights, the court
11 shall retain jurisdiction over any child for whom custody is
12 given to a social service agency until the child is adopted.
13 The jurisdiction of the court after termination of parental
14 rights and custody is given to the agency is for the purpose
15 of reviewing the status of the child and the progress being
16 made toward permanent adoptive placement. As part of this
17 continuing jurisdiction, for good cause shown by the guardian
18 ad litem for the child, the court may review the
19 appropriateness of the adoptive placement of the child.
20 (2)(a) The court shall review the status of the child
21 and shall hold a hearing as provided in this part subsection
22 (7). The court may dispense with the attendance of the child
23 at the hearing, but may not dispense with the hearing or the
24 presence of other parties to the review unless before the
25 review a hearing is held before a citizen review panel.
26 (b) Citizen review panels may be established under s.
27 39.4531 to conduct hearings to a review of the status of a
28 child. The court shall select the cases appropriate for
29 referral to the citizen review panels and may order the
30 attendance of the parties at the review panel hearings.
31 However, any party may object to the referral of a case to a
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1 citizen review panel. Whenever such an objection has been
2 filed with the court, the court shall review the substance of
3 the objection and may conduct the review itself or refer the
4 review to a citizen review panel. All parties retain the right
5 to take exception to the findings or recommended orders of a
6 citizen review panel in accordance with Rule 1.490(h), Florida
7 Rules of Civil Procedure.
8 (c) Notice of a hearing by a citizen review panel must
9 be provided as set forth in subsection (5). At the conclusion
10 of a citizen review panel hearing, each party may propose a
11 recommended order to the chairperson of the panel. Thereafter,
12 the citizen review panel shall submit its report, copies of
13 the proposed recommended orders, and a copy of the panel's
14 recommended order to the court. The citizen review panel's
15 recommended order must be limited to the dispositional options
16 available to the court in subsection (8). Each party may file
17 exceptions to the report and recommended order of the citizen
18 review panel in accordance with Rule 1.490, Florida Rules of
19 Civil Procedure.
20 (3)(a) The initial judicial review must be held no
21 later than 90 days after the date of the disposition hearing
22 or after the date of the hearing at which the court approves
23 the case plan, but in no event shall the review be held later
24 than 6 months after the date the child was removed from the
25 home. Citizen review panels shall not conduct more than two
26 consecutive reviews without the child and the parties coming
27 before the court for a judicial review. If the child remains
28 in shelter or foster care, subsequent judicial reviews must be
29 held at least every 6 months after the date of the most recent
30 judicial review until the child is 13 years old and has been
31 in foster care at least 18 months.
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1 (b) If the court extends any the case plan beyond 12
2 18 months, judicial reviews must be held at least every 6
3 months for children under the age of 13 and at least annually
4 for children age 13 and older.
5 (c) If the child is placed in the custody of the
6 department or a licensed child-placing agency for the purpose
7 of adoptive placement, judicial reviews must be held at least
8 every 6 months until adoptive placement, to determine the
9 appropriateness of the current placement and the progress made
10 toward adoptive placement.
11 (d) If the department and the court have established a
12 formal agreement that includes specific authorization for
13 particular cases, the department may conduct administrative
14 reviews instead of the judicial reviews for children in
15 out-of-home foster care. Notices of such administrative
16 reviews must be provided to all parties. However, an
17 administrative review may not be substituted for the first
18 judicial review, and in every case the court must conduct a
19 judicial review at least every 6 12 months. Any party
20 dissatisfied with the results of an administrative review may
21 petition for a judicial review.
22 (e) The clerk of the circuit court shall schedule
23 judicial review hearings in order to comply with the mandated
24 times cited in this section paragraphs (a)-(d).
25 (f) In each case in which a child has been voluntarily
26 placed with the licensed child-placing agency, the agency
27 shall notify the clerk of the court in the circuit where the
28 child resides of such placement within 5 working days.
29 Notification of the court is not required for any child who
30 will be in out-of-home foster care no longer than 30 days
31 unless that child is placed in out-of-home foster care a
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1 second time within a 12-month period. If the child is returned
2 to the custody of the parents, caregiver, or legal custodian
3 or guardian before the scheduled review hearing or if the
4 child is placed for adoption, the child-placing agency shall
5 notify the court of the child's return or placement within 5
6 working days, and the clerk of the court shall cancel the
7 review hearing.
8 (4) The court shall schedule the date, time, and
9 location of the next judicial review in the judicial review
10 order. The social service agency shall file a petition for
11 review with the court within 10 calendar days after the
12 judicial review hearing. The petition must include a statement
13 of the dispositional alternatives available to the court. The
14 petition must accompany the notice of the hearing served upon
15 persons specified in subsection (5).
16 (5) Notice of a judicial review hearing or a citizen
17 review panel the hearing, and a copy of the motion for
18 judicial review petition, including a statement of the
19 dispositional alternatives available to the court, must be
20 served by the court upon:
21 (a) The social service agency charged with the
22 supervision of care, custody, or guardianship of the child, if
23 that agency is not the movant petitioner.
24 (b) The foster parent or parents or caregivers
25 caretakers in whose home the child resides.
26 (c) The parent, caregiver, or legal custodian
27 guardian, or relative from whom the care and custody of the
28 child have been transferred.
29 (d) The guardian ad litem for the child, or the
30 representative of the guardian ad litem program if the program
31 one has been appointed.
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1 (e) Any preadoptive parent.
2 (f)(e) Such other persons as the court may in its
3 discretion direct.
4 (6)(a) Prior to every judicial review hearing or
5 citizen review panel hearing, the social service agency shall
6 make an investigation and social study concerning all
7 pertinent details relating to the child and shall furnish to
8 the court or citizen review panel a written report that
9 includes, but is not limited to:
10 1. A description of the type of placement the child is
11 in at the time of the hearing, including the safety of the
12 child and the continuing necessity for and appropriateness of
13 the placement.
14 2. Documentation of the diligent efforts made by all
15 parties to the case plan to comply with each applicable
16 provision of the plan.
17 3. The amount of fees assessed and collected during
18 the period of time being reported.
19 4. The services provided to the foster family or
20 caregivers caretakers in an effort to address the needs of the
21 child as indicated in the case plan.
22 5. A statement that concerning whether the parent or
23 legal custodian guardian, though able to do so, did not comply
24 substantially with the provisions of the case plan and the
25 agency recommendations or a statement that the parent or legal
26 custodian guardian did substantially comply with such
27 provisions.
28 6. A statement from the foster parent or parents or
29 caregivers caretakers providing any material evidence
30 concerning the return of the child to the parent or parents or
31 legal custodians.
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1 7. A statement concerning the frequency, duration, and
2 results of the parent-child visitation, if any, and the agency
3 recommendations for an expansion or restriction of future
4 visitation.
5 8. The number of times a child has been removed from
6 his or her home and placed elsewhere, the number and types of
7 placements that have occurred, and the reason for the changes
8 in placement.
9 9. The number of times a child's educational placement
10 has been changed, the number and types of educational
11 placements which have occurred, and the reason for any change
12 in placement.
13 (b) A copy of the social service agency's written
14 report must be provided to the attorney of record of the
15 parent, parents, or legal custodians guardian; to the parent,
16 parents, or legal custodians guardian; to the foster parents
17 or caregivers caretakers; to each citizen review panel
18 established under s. 39.4531; and to the guardian ad litem for
19 the child, or the representative of the guardian ad litem
20 program if the program one has been appointed by the court, at
21 least 48 hours before the judicial review hearing, or citizen
22 review panel hearing if such a panel has been established
23 under s. 39.4531. The requirement for providing parents or
24 legal custodians guardians with a copy of the written report
25 does not apply to those parents or legal custodians guardians
26 who have voluntarily surrendered their child for adoption.
27 (c) In a case in which the child has been permanently
28 placed with the social service agency, the agency shall
29 furnish to the court a written report concerning the progress
30 being made to place the child for adoption. If, as stated in
31 s. 39.451(1), the child cannot be placed for adoption, a
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1 report on the progress made by the child in alternative
2 permanency goals or placements, including, but not limited to,
3 long-term foster care, independent living, custody to a
4 relative or caregiver adult nonrelative approved by the court
5 on a permanent basis with or without legal guardianship, or
6 custody to a foster parent or caregiver on a permanent basis
7 with or without legal guardianship, must be submitted to the
8 court. The report must be submitted to the court at least 48
9 hours before each scheduled judicial review.
10 (d) In addition to or in lieu of any written statement
11 provided to the court, the foster parent or caregivers, or any
12 preadoptive parent, caretakers shall be given the opportunity
13 to address the court with any information relevant to the best
14 interests of the child at any judicial review hearing.
15 (7) The court, and any citizen review panel
16 established under s. 39.4531, shall take into consideration
17 the information contained in the social services study and
18 investigation and all medical, psychological, and educational
19 records that support the terms of the case plan; testimony by
20 the social services agency, the parent or legal custodian
21 guardian, the foster parent or caregivers caretakers, the
22 guardian ad litem if one has been appointed for the child, and
23 any other person deemed appropriate; and any relevant and
24 material evidence submitted to the court, including written
25 and oral reports to the extent of their probative value. In
26 its deliberations, the court, and any citizen review panel
27 established under s. 39.4531, shall seek to determine:
28 (a) If the parent or legal custodian guardian was
29 advised of the right to receive assistance from any person or
30 social service agency in the preparation of the case plan.
31
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1 (b) If the parent or legal custodian guardian has been
2 advised of the right to have counsel present at the judicial
3 review or citizen review hearings. If not so advised, the
4 court or citizen review panel shall advise the parent or legal
5 custodian guardian of such right.
6 (c) If a guardian ad litem needs to be appointed for
7 the child in a case in which a guardian ad litem has not
8 previously been appointed or if there is a need to continue a
9 guardian ad litem in a case in which a guardian ad litem has
10 been appointed.
11 (d) The compliance or lack of compliance of all
12 parties with applicable items of the case plan, including the
13 parents' compliance with child support orders.
14 (e) The compliance or lack of compliance with a
15 visitation contract between the parent, caregiver, or legal
16 custodian or guardian and the social service agency for
17 contact with the child, including the frequency, duration, and
18 results of the parent-child visitation and the reason for any
19 noncompliance.
20 (f) The compliance or lack of compliance of the
21 parent, caregiver, or legal custodian or guardian in meeting
22 specified financial obligations pertaining to the care of the
23 child, including the reason for failure to comply if such is
24 the case.
25 (g) The appropriateness of the child's current
26 placement, including whether the child is in a setting which
27 is as family-like and as close to the parent's home as
28 possible, consistent with the child's best interests and
29 special needs, and including maintaining stability in the
30 child's educational placement.
31
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1 (h) A projected date likely for the child's return
2 home or other permanent placement.
3 (i) When appropriate, the basis for the unwillingness
4 or inability of the parent, caregiver, or legal custodian or
5 guardian to become a party to a case plan. The court and the
6 citizen review panel shall determine if the nature of the
7 location or the condition of the parent and the efforts of the
8 social service agency to secure party parental participation
9 in a case plan were sufficient.
10 (8)(a) Based upon the criteria set forth in subsection
11 (7) and the recommended order of the citizen review panel, if
12 any established under s. 39.4531, the court shall determine
13 whether or not the social service agency shall initiate
14 proceedings to have a child declared a dependent child, return
15 the child to the parent, legal custodian, or caregiver,
16 continue the child in out-of-home foster care for a specified
17 period of time, or initiate termination of parental rights
18 proceedings for subsequent placement in an adoptive home.
19 Modifications to the plan must be handled as prescribed in s.
20 39.601 39.451. If the court finds that the prevention or
21 reunification efforts of the department will allow the child
22 to remain safely at home or be safely returned to the home,
23 the court shall allow the child to remain in or return to the
24 home after making a specific finding of fact that the reasons
25 for removal have been remedied to the extent that the child's
26 safety, and well-being, and physical, mental, and emotional
27 health will not be endangered.
28 (b) The court shall return the child to the custody of
29 the parents, legal custodians, or caregivers at any time it
30 determines that they have substantially complied with the
31 plan, if the court is satisfied that reunification will not be
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1 detrimental to the child's safety, and well-being, and
2 physical, mental, and emotional health.
3 (c) If, in the opinion of the court, the social
4 service agency has not complied with its obligations as
5 specified in the written case plan, the court may find the
6 social service agency in contempt, shall order the social
7 service agency to submit its plans for compliance with the
8 agreement, and shall require the social service agency to show
9 why the child could should not safely be returned immediately
10 to the home of the parents, legal custodians, or caregivers or
11 legal guardian.
12 (d) The court may extend the time limitation of the
13 case plan, or may modify the terms of the plan, based upon
14 information provided by the social service agency, and the
15 guardian ad litem, if one has been appointed, the natural
16 parent or parents, and the foster parents, and any other
17 competent information on record demonstrating the need for the
18 amendment. If the court extends the time limitation of the
19 case plan, the court must make specific findings concerning
20 the frequency of past parent-child visitation, if any, and the
21 court may authorize the expansion or restriction of future
22 visitation. Modifications to the plan must be handled as
23 prescribed in s. 39.601 39.451. Any extension of a case plan
24 must comply with the time requirements and other requirements
25 specified by this chapter part.
26 (e) If, at any judicial review, the court finds that
27 the parents have failed to substantially comply with the case
28 plan to the degree that further reunification efforts are
29 without merit and not in the best interest of the child, it
30 may authorize the filing of a petition for termination of
31
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1 parental rights, whether or not the time period as contained
2 in the case plan for substantial compliance has elapsed.
3 (f) No later than 12 months after the date that the
4 child was placed in shelter care, the court shall conduct a
5 judicial review. At this hearing, if the child is not returned
6 to the physical custody of the parents, caregivers, or legal
7 custodians, the case plan may be extended with the same goals
8 only if the court finds that the situation of the child is so
9 extraordinary that the plan should be extended. The case plan
10 must document steps the department is taking to find an
11 adoptive parent or other permanent living arrangement for the
12 child. If, at the time of the 18-month judicial review or
13 citizen review, the child is not returned to the physical
14 custody of the natural parents, the case plan may be extended
15 only if, at the time of the judicial review or citizen review,
16 the court finds that the situation of the child is so
17 extraordinary that the plan should be extended. The extension
18 must be in accordance with subsection (3).
19 (g) The court may issue a protective order in
20 assistance, or as a condition, of any other order made under
21 this part. In addition to the requirements included in the
22 case plan, the protective order may set forth requirements
23 relating to reasonable conditions of behavior to be observed
24 for a specified period of time by a person or agency who is
25 before the court; and such order may require any such person
26 or agency to make periodic reports to the court containing
27 such information as the court in its discretion may prescribe.
28 Section 62. Section 39.4531, Florida Statutes, is
29 renumbered as section 39.702, Florida Statutes, and amended to
30 read:
31 39.702 39.4531 Citizen review panels.--
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1 (1) Citizen review panels may be established in each
2 judicial circuit and shall be authorized by an administrative
3 order executed by the chief judge of each circuit. The court
4 shall administer an oath of office to each citizen review
5 panel member which shall authorize the panel member to
6 participate in citizen review panels and make recommendations
7 to the court pursuant to the provisions of this section.
8 (2) Citizen review panels shall be administered by an
9 independent not-for-profit agency. For the purpose of this
10 section, an organization that has filed for nonprofit status
11 under the provisions of s. 501(c)(3) of the United States
12 Internal Revenue Code is an independent not-for-profit agency
13 for a period of 1 year after the date of filing. At the end
14 of that 1-year period, in order to continue conducting citizen
15 reviews, the organization must have qualified for nonprofit
16 status under s. 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal
17 Revenue Code and must submit to the chief judge of the circuit
18 court a consumer's certificate of exemption that was issued to
19 the organization by the Florida Department of Revenue and a
20 report of the organization's progress. If the agency has not
21 qualified for nonprofit status, the court must rescind its
22 administrative order that authorizes the agency to conduct
23 citizen reviews. All independent not-for-profit agencies
24 conducting citizen reviews must submit citizen review annual
25 reports to the court.
26 (3) For the purpose of this section, a citizen review
27 panel shall be composed of five volunteer members and shall
28 conform with the requirements of this chapter section. The
29 presence of three members at a panel hearing shall constitute
30 a quorum. Panel members shall serve without compensation.
31
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1 (4)(3) Based on the information provided to each
2 citizen review panel pursuant to s. 39.701 39.453, each
3 citizen review panel shall provide the court with a report and
4 recommendations regarding the placement and dispositional
5 alternatives the court shall consider before issuing a
6 judicial review order.
7 (5)(4) The An independent not-for-profit agency
8 authorized to administer each citizen review panel shall:
9 (a) In collaboration with the department, develop
10 policies to assure that citizen review panels comply with all
11 applicable state and federal laws.
12 (b) Establish policies for the recruitment, selection,
13 retention, and terms of volunteer panel members. Final
14 selection of citizen review panel members shall, to the extent
15 possible, reflect the multicultural composition of the
16 community which they serve. A criminal background check and
17 personal reference check shall be conducted on each citizen
18 review panel member prior to the member serving on a citizen
19 review panel.
20 (c) In collaboration with the department, develop,
21 implement, and maintain a training program for citizen review
22 volunteers and provide training for each panel member prior to
23 that member serving on a review panel. Such training may
24 include, but shall not be limited to, instruction on
25 dependency laws, departmental policies, and judicial
26 procedures.
27 (d) Ensure that all citizen review panel members have
28 read, understood, and signed an oath of confidentiality
29 relating to the citizen review hearings and written or verbal
30 information provided to the panel members for review hearings.
31
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1 (e) Establish policies to avoid actual or perceived
2 conflicts of interest by panel members during the review
3 process and to ensure accurate, fair reviews of each child
4 dependency case.
5 (f) Establish policies to ensure ongoing communication
6 with the department and the court.
7 (g) Establish policies to ensure adequate
8 communication with the parent, caregiver, or legal custodian
9 or guardian, the foster parent or caregiver, the guardian ad
10 litem, and any other person deemed appropriate.
11 (h) Establish procedures that encourage attendance and
12 participation of interested persons and parties, including the
13 biological parents, foster parents or caregivers, or a
14 relative or nonrelative with whom the child is placed, at
15 citizen review hearings.
16 (i) Coordinate with existing citizen review panels to
17 ensure consistency of operating procedures, data collection,
18 and analysis, and report generation.
19 (j) Make recommendations as necessary to the court
20 concerning attendance of essential persons at the review and
21 other issues pertinent to an effective review process.
22 (k) Ensure consistent methods of identifying barriers
23 to the permanent placement of the child and delineation of
24 findings and recommendations to the court.
25 (6)(5) The department and agents of the department
26 shall submit information to the citizen review panel when
27 requested and shall address questions asked by the citizen
28 review panel to identify barriers to the permanent placement
29 of each child.
30
31
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1 Section 63. Section 39.454, Florida Statutes, is
2 renumbered as section 39.703, Florida Statutes, and amended to
3 read:
4 39.703 39.454 Initiation of termination of parental
5 rights proceedings.--
6 (1) If, in preparation for any judicial review hearing
7 under this chapter part, it is the opinion of the social
8 service agency that the parents or legal guardian of the child
9 have not complied with their responsibilities as specified in
10 the written case plan although able to do so, the social
11 service agency shall state its intent to initiate proceedings
12 to terminate parental rights, unless the social service agency
13 can demonstrate to the court that such a recommendation would
14 not be in the child's best interests. If it is the intent of
15 the department or licensed child-placing agency to initiate
16 proceedings to terminate parental rights, the department or
17 licensed child-placing agency shall file a petition for
18 termination of parental rights no later than 3 months after
19 the date of the previous judicial review hearing. If the
20 petition cannot be filed within 3 months, the department or
21 licensed child-placing agency shall provide a written report
22 to the court outlining the reasons for delay, the progress
23 made in the termination of parental rights process, and the
24 anticipated date of completion of the process.
25 (2) If, at the time of the 12-month 18-month judicial
26 review hearing, a child is not returned to the physical
27 custody of the natural parents, caregivers, or legal
28 custodians, the social service agency shall initiate
29 termination of parental rights proceedings under part VI of
30 this chapter within 30 days. Only if the court finds that the
31 situation of the child is so extraordinary and that the best
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1 interests of the child will be met by such action at the time
2 of the judicial review may the case plan be extended. If the
3 court decides to extend the plan, the court shall enter
4 detailed findings justifying the decision to extend, as well
5 as the length of the extension. A termination of parental
6 rights petition need not be filed if: the child is being
7 cared for by a relative who chooses not to adopt the child;
8 the court determines that filing such a petition would not be
9 in the best interests of the child; or the state has not
10 provided the child's family, when reasonable efforts to return
11 a child are required, consistent with the time period in the
12 state's case plan, such services as the state deems necessary
13 for the safe return of the child to his or her home. Failure
14 to initiate termination of parental rights proceedings at the
15 time of the 12-month 18-month judicial review or within 30
16 days after such review does not prohibit initiating
17 termination of parental rights proceedings at any other time.
18 Section 64. Section 39.456, Florida Statutes, is
19 renumbered as section 39.704, Florida Statutes, and amended to
20 read:
21 39.704 39.456 Exemptions from judicial
22 review.--Judicial review This part does not apply to:
23 (1) Minors who have been placed in adoptive homes by
24 the department or by a licensed child-placing agency; or
25 (2) Minors who are refugees or entrants to whom
26 federal regulations apply and who are in the care of a social
27 service agency.; or
28 (3) Minors who are the subjects of termination of
29 parental rights cases pursuant to s. 39.464.
30 Section 65. Part IX of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
31 consisting of sections 39.801, 39.802, 39.803, 39.804, 39.805,
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1 39.806, 39.807, 39.808, 39.809, 39.810, 39.811, 39.812,
2 39.813, 39.814, 39.815, 39.816, and 39.817, Florida Statutes,
3 shall be entitled to read:
4 PART IX
5 TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS
6 Section 66. Sections 39.46 and 39.462, Florida
7 Statutes, are renumbered as section 39.801, Florida Statutes,
8 and amended to read:
9 39.801 39.46 Procedures and jurisdiction; notice;
10 service of process.--
11 (1) All procedures, including petitions, pleadings,
12 subpoenas, summonses, and hearings, in termination of parental
13 rights proceedings shall be according to the Florida Rules of
14 Juvenile Procedure unless otherwise provided by law.
15 (2) The circuit court shall have exclusive original
16 jurisdiction of a proceeding involving termination of parental
17 rights.
18 39.462 Process and services.--
19 (3)(1) Before the court may terminate parental rights,
20 in addition to the other requirements set forth in this part,
21 the following requirements must be met:
22 (a) Notice of the date, time, and place of the
23 advisory hearing for the petition to terminate parental rights
24 and a copy of the petition must be personally served upon the
25 following persons, specifically notifying them that a petition
26 has been filed:
27 1. The parents of the child.
28 2. The caregivers or legal custodians or guardian of
29 the child.
30
31
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1 3. If the parents who would be entitled to notice are
2 dead or unknown, a living relative of the child, unless upon
3 diligent search and inquiry no such relative can be found.
4 4. Any person who has physical custody of the child.
5 5. Any grandparent entitled to priority for adoption
6 under s. 63.0425.
7 6. Any prospective parent who has been identified
8 under s. 39.503 or s. 39.803 s. 39.4051 or s. 39.4625.
9 7. The guardian ad litem for the child or the
10 representative of the guardian ad litem program, if the
11 program one has been appointed.
12
13 The document containing the notice to respond or appear must
14 contain, in type at least as large as the type in the balance
15 of the document, the following or substantially similar
16 language: "FAILURE TO PERSONALLY RESPOND TO THIS NOTICE OR TO
17 APPEAR AT THIS ADVISORY HEARING CONSTITUTES CONSENT TO THE
18 TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS OF THIS CHILD (OR THESE
19 CHILDREN)."
20 (b) If a person required to be served with notice as
21 prescribed in paragraph (a) cannot be served, notice of
22 hearings must be given as prescribed by the rules of civil
23 procedure, and service of process must be made as specified by
24 law or civil actions.
25 (c) Notice as prescribed by this section may be
26 waived, in the discretion of the judge, with regard to any
27 person to whom notice must be given under this subsection if
28 the person executes, before two witnesses and a notary public
29 or other officer authorized to take acknowledgments, a written
30 surrender of the child to a licensed child-placing agency or
31 the department.
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1 (d) If the person served with notice under this
2 section fails to respond or appear at the advisory hearing,
3 the failure to respond or appear shall constitute consent for
4 termination of parental rights by the person given notice.
5 (4)(2) Upon the application of any party, the clerk or
6 deputy clerk shall issue, and the court on its own motion may
7 issue, subpoenas requiring the attendance and testimony of
8 witnesses and the production of records, documents, or other
9 tangible objects at any hearing.
10 (5)(3) All process and orders issued by the court must
11 be served or executed as other process and orders of the
12 circuit court and, in addition, may be served or executed by
13 authorized agents of the department or the guardian ad litem.
14 (6)(4) Subpoenas may be served within the state by any
15 person over 18 years of age who is not a party to the
16 proceeding.
17 (7)(5) A fee may not be paid for service of any
18 process or other papers by an agent of the department or the
19 guardian ad litem. If any process, orders, or other papers are
20 served or executed by any sheriff, the sheriff's fees must be
21 paid by the county.
22 Section 67. Sections 39.461 and 39.4611, Florida
23 Statutes, are renumbered as section 39.802, Florida Statutes,
24 and amended to read:
25 39.802 39.461 Petition for termination of parental
26 rights; filing; elements.--
27 (1) All proceedings seeking an adjudication to
28 terminate parental rights pursuant to this chapter must be
29 initiated by the filing of an original petition by the
30 department, the guardian ad litem, or a licensed child-placing
31 agency or by any other person who has knowledge of the facts
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1 alleged or is informed of them and believes that they are
2 true.
3 (2) The form of the petition is governed by the
4 Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure. The petition must be in
5 writing and signed by the petitioner under oath stating the
6 petitioner's good faith in filing the petition.
7 (3) When a petition for termination of parental rights
8 has been filed, the clerk of the court shall set the case
9 before the court for an advisory hearing.
10 39.4611 Elements of petition for termination of
11 parental rights.--
12 (4)(1) A petition for termination of parental rights
13 filed under this chapter must contain facts supporting the
14 following allegations:
15 (a) That at least one of the grounds listed in s.
16 39.806 39.464 has been met.
17 (b) That the parents of the child were informed of
18 their right to counsel at all hearings that they attend and
19 that a dispositional order adjudicating the child dependent
20 was entered in any prior dependency proceeding relied upon in
21 offering a parent a case plan as described in s. 39.806
22 39.464.
23 (c) That the manifest best interests of the child, in
24 accordance with s. 39.810 39.4612, would be served by the
25 granting of the petition.
26 (5)(2) When a petition for termination of parental
27 rights is filed under s. 39.806(1) 39.464(1), a separate
28 petition for dependency need not be filed and the department
29 need not offer the parents a case plan with a goal of
30 reunification, but may instead file with the court a case plan
31 with a goal of termination of parental rights to allow
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1 continuation of services until the termination is granted or
2 until further orders of the court are issued.
3 (6)(3) The fact that a child has been previously
4 adjudicated dependent as alleged in a petition for termination
5 of parental rights may be proved by the introduction of a
6 certified copy of the order of adjudication or the order of
7 disposition of dependency.
8 (7)(4) The fact that the parent of a child was
9 informed of the right to counsel in any prior dependency
10 proceeding as alleged in a petition for termination of
11 parental rights may be proved by the introduction of a
12 certified copy of the order of adjudication or the order of
13 disposition of dependency containing a finding of fact that
14 the parent was so advised.
15 (8)(5) Whenever the department has entered into a case
16 plan with a parent with the goal of reunification, and a
17 petition for termination of parental rights based on the same
18 facts as are covered in the case plan is filed prior to the
19 time agreed upon in the case plan for the performance of the
20 case plan, the petitioner must allege and prove by clear and
21 convincing evidence that the parent has materially breached
22 the provisions of the case plan.
23 Section 68. Section 39.803, Florida Statutes, is
24 created to read:
25 39.803 Identity or location of parent unknown after
26 filing of termination of parental rights petition; special
27 procedures.--
28 (1) If the identity or location of a parent is unknown
29 and a petition for termination of parental rights is filed,
30 the court shall conduct the following inquiry of the parent
31 who is available, or, if no parent is available, of any
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1 relative, caregiver, or legal custodian of the child who is
2 present at the hearing and likely to have the information:
3 (a) Whether the mother of the child was married at the
4 probable time of conception of the child or at the time of
5 birth of the child.
6 (b) Whether the mother was cohabiting with a male at
7 the probable time of conception of the child.
8 (c) Whether the mother has received payments or
9 promises of support with respect to the child or because of
10 her pregnancy from a man who claims to be the father.
11 (d) Whether the mother has named any man as the father
12 on the birth certificate of the child or in connection with
13 applying for or receiving public assistance.
14 (e) Whether any man has acknowledged or claimed
15 paternity of the child in a jurisdiction in which the mother
16 resided at the time of or since conception of the child, or in
17 which the child has resided or resides.
18 (2) The information required in subsection (1) may be
19 supplied to the court or the department in the form of a sworn
20 affidavit by a person having personal knowledge of the facts.
21 (3) If the inquiry under subsection (1) identifies any
22 person as a parent or prospective parent, the court shall
23 require notice of the hearing to be provided to that person.
24 (4) If the inquiry under subsection (1) fails to
25 identify any person as a parent or prospective parent, the
26 court shall so find and may proceed without further notice.
27 (5) If the inquiry under subsection (1) identifies a
28 parent or prospective parent, and that person's location is
29 unknown, the court shall direct the department to conduct a
30 diligent search for that person before scheduling an
31 adjudicatory hearing regarding the dependency of the child
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1 unless the court finds that the best interest of the child
2 requires proceeding without actual notice to the person whose
3 location is unknown.
4 (6) The diligent search required by subsection (5)
5 must include, at a minimum, inquiries of all known relatives
6 of the parent or prospective parent, inquiries of all offices
7 of program areas of the department likely to have information
8 about the parent or prospective parent, inquiries of other
9 state and federal agencies likely to have information about
10 the parent or prospective parent, inquiries of appropriate
11 utility and postal providers, and inquiries of appropriate law
12 enforcement agencies.
13 (7) Any agency contacted by petitioner with a request
14 for information pursuant to subsection (6) shall release the
15 requested information to the petitioner without the necessity
16 of a subpoena or court order.
17 (8) If the inquiry and diligent search identifies a
18 prospective parent, that person must be given the opportunity
19 to become a party to the proceedings by completing a sworn
20 affidavit of parenthood and filing it with the court or the
21 department. A prospective parent who files a sworn affidavit
22 of parenthood while the child is a dependent child but no
23 later than at the time of or prior to the adjudicatory hearing
24 in the termination of parental rights proceeding for the child
25 shall be considered a parent for all purposes under this
26 section.
27 Section 69. Section 39.4627, Florida Statutes, is
28 renumbered as section 39.804, Florida Statutes.
29 Section 70. Section 39.463, Florida Statutes, is
30 renumbered as section 39.805, Florida Statutes, and amended to
31 read:
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1 39.805 39.463 No answer required.--No answer to the
2 petition or any other pleading need be filed by any child,
3 parent, caregiver, or legal custodian, but any matters which
4 might be set forth in an answer or other pleading may be
5 pleaded orally before the court or filed in writing as any
6 such person may choose. Notwithstanding the filing of any
7 answer or any pleading, the child or parent shall, prior to
8 the adjudicatory hearing, be advised by the court of the right
9 to counsel and shall be given an opportunity to deny the
10 allegations in the petition for termination of parental rights
11 or to enter a plea to allegations in the petition before the
12 court.
13 Section 71. Section 39.464, Florida Statutes, as
14 amended by chapter 97-276, Laws of Florida, is renumbered as
15 section 39.806, Florida Statutes, and amended to read:
16 39.806 39.464 Grounds for termination of parental
17 rights.--
18 (1) The department, the guardian ad litem, a licensed
19 child-placing agency, or any person who has knowledge of the
20 facts alleged or who is informed of said facts and believes
21 that they are true, may petition for the termination of
22 parental rights under any of the following circumstances:
23 (a) When the parent or parents voluntarily executed a
24 written surrender of the child and consented to the entry of
25 an order giving custody of the child to the department or to a
26 licensed child-placing agency for subsequent adoption and the
27 department or licensed child-placing agency is willing to
28 accept custody of the child.
29 1. The surrender document must be executed before two
30 witnesses and a notary public or other person authorized to
31 take acknowledgments.
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1 2. The surrender and consent may be withdrawn after
2 acceptance by the department or licensed child-placing agency
3 only after a finding by the court that the surrender and
4 consent were obtained by fraud or duress.
5 (b) When the identity or location of the parent or
6 parents is unknown and, if the court requires a diligent
7 search pursuant to s. 39.4625, cannot be ascertained by
8 diligent search as provided in s. 39.4625 within 90 days.
9 (c) When the parent or parents engaged in conduct
10 toward the child or toward other children that demonstrates
11 that the continuing involvement of the parent or parents in
12 the parent-child relationship threatens the life, safety or
13 well-being, or physical, mental, or emotional health of the
14 child irrespective of the provision of services. Provision of
15 services may be is evidenced by proof that services were
16 provided through a previous plan or offered as a case plan
17 from a child welfare agency.
18 (d) When the parent of a child is incarcerated in a
19 state or federal correctional institution and:
20 1. The period of time for which the parent is expected
21 to be incarcerated will constitute a substantial portion of
22 the period of time before the child will attain the age of 18
23 years;
24 2. The incarcerated parent has been determined by the
25 court to be a violent career criminal as defined in s.
26 775.084, a habitual violent felony offender as defined in s.
27 775.084, or a sexual predator as defined in s. 775.21; has
28 been convicted of first degree or second degree murder in
29 violation of s. 782.04 or a sexual battery that constitutes a
30 capital, life, or first degree felony violation of s. 794.011;
31 or has been convicted of an offense in another jurisdiction
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1 which is substantially similar to one of the offenses listed
2 in this paragraph. As used in this section, the term
3 "substantially similar offense" means any offense that is
4 substantially similar in elements and penalties to one of
5 those listed in this paragraph, and that is in violation of a
6 law of any other jurisdiction, whether that of another state,
7 the District of Columbia, the United States or any possession
8 or territory thereof, or any foreign jurisdiction; and
9 3. The court determines by clear and convincing
10 evidence that continuing the parental relationship with the
11 incarcerated parent would be harmful to the child and, for
12 this reason, that termination of the parental rights of the
13 incarcerated parent is in the best interest of the child.
14 (e)(f) A petition for termination of parental rights
15 may also be filed when a child has been adjudicated dependent,
16 a case plan has been filed with the court, and the child
17 continues to be abused, neglected, or abandoned by the
18 parents. In this case, the failure of the parents to
19 substantially comply for a period of 12 months after an
20 adjudication of the child as a dependent child constitutes
21 evidence of continuing abuse, neglect, or abandonment unless
22 the failure to substantially comply with the case plan was due
23 either to the lack of financial resources of the parents or to
24 the failure of the department to make reasonable efforts to
25 reunify the family. Such 12-month period may begin to run only
26 after the entry of a disposition order placing the custody of
27 the child with the department or a person other than the
28 parent and the approval by subsequent filing with the court of
29 a case plan with a goal of reunification with the parent.
30 (f)(e) When the parent or parents engaged in egregious
31 conduct or had the opportunity and capability to prevent and
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1 knowingly failed to prevent egregious conduct that threatens
2 the life, safety, or physical, mental, or emotional health
3 that endangers the life, health, or safety of the child or the
4 child's sibling or had the opportunity and capability to
5 prevent egregious conduct that threatened the life, health, or
6 safety of the child or the child's sibling and knowingly
7 failed to do so.
8 1. As used in this subsection, the term "sibling"
9 means another child who resides with or is cared for by the
10 parent or parents regardless of whether the child is related
11 legally or by consanguinity.
12 2. As used in this subsection, the term "egregious
13 conduct abuse" means abuse, abandonment, neglect, or any other
14 conduct of the parent or parents that is deplorable, flagrant,
15 or outrageous by a normal standard of conduct. Egregious
16 conduct abuse may include an act or omission that occurred
17 only once but was of such intensity, magnitude, or severity as
18 to endanger the life of the child.
19 (g) When the parent or parents have subjected the
20 child to aggravated child abuse as defined in s. 827.03,
21 sexual battery or sexual abuse as defined in s. 39.01, or
22 chronic abuse.
23 (h) When the parent or parents have committed murder
24 or voluntary manslaughter of another child of the parent, or a
25 felony assault that results in serious bodily injury to the
26 child or another child of the parent, or aided or abetted,
27 attempted, conspired, or solicited to commit such a murder or
28 voluntary manslaughter or felony assault.
29 (i) When the parental rights of the parent to a
30 sibling have been terminated involuntarily.
31
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1 (2) Reasonable efforts to preserve and reunify
2 families shall not be required if a court of competent
3 jurisdiction has determined that any of the events described
4 in paragraphs (1)(e)-(i) have occurred.
5 (3)(2) When a petition for termination of parental
6 rights is filed under subsection (1), a separate petition for
7 dependency need not be filed and the department need not offer
8 the parents a case plan with a goal of reunification, but may
9 instead file with the court a case plan with a goal of
10 termination of parental rights to allow continuation of
11 services until the termination is granted or until further
12 orders of the court are issued.
13 (4) When an expedited termination of parental rights
14 petition is filed, reasonable efforts shall be made to place
15 the child in a timely manner in accordance with the permanency
16 plan, and to complete whatever steps are necessary to finalize
17 the permanent placement of the child.
18 Section 72. Section 39.465, Florida Statutes, is
19 renumbered as section 39.807, Florida Statutes, and amended to
20 read:
21 39.807 39.465 Right to counsel; guardian ad litem.--
22 (1)(a) At each stage of the proceeding under this
23 part, the court shall advise the parent, guardian, or
24 custodian of the right to have counsel present. The court
25 shall appoint counsel for indigent insolvent persons. The
26 court shall ascertain whether the right to counsel is
27 understood and, where appropriate, is knowingly and
28 intelligently waived. The court shall enter its findings in
29 writing with respect to the appointment or waiver of counsel
30 for indigent insolvent parties.
31
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1 (b) Once counsel has been retained or, in appropriate
2 circumstances, appointed to represent the parent of the child,
3 the attorney shall continue to represent the parent throughout
4 the proceedings or until the court has approved discontinuing
5 the attorney-client relationship. If the attorney-client
6 relationship is discontinued, the court shall advise the
7 parent of the right to have new counsel retained or appointed
8 for the remainder of the proceedings.
9 (c)(b)1. No waiver of counsel may be accepted if it
10 appears that the parent, guardian, or custodian is unable to
11 make an intelligent and understanding choice because of mental
12 condition, age, education, experience, the nature or
13 complexity of the case, or other factors.
14 2. A waiver of counsel made in court must be of
15 record. A waiver made out of court must be in writing with not
16 less than two attesting witnesses and must be filed with the
17 court. The witnesses shall attest to the voluntary execution
18 of the waiver.
19 3. If a waiver of counsel is accepted at any stage of
20 the proceedings, the offer of assistance of counsel must be
21 renewed by the court at each subsequent stage of the
22 proceedings at which the parent, guardian, or custodian
23 appears without counsel.
24 (d)(c) This subsection does not apply to any parent
25 who has voluntarily executed a written surrender of the child
26 and consent to the entry of a court order therefor and who
27 does not deny the allegations of the petition.
28 (2)(a) The court shall appoint a guardian ad litem to
29 represent the child in any termination of parental rights
30 proceedings and shall ascertain at each stage of the
31 proceedings whether a guardian ad litem has been appointed.
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1 (b) The guardian ad litem has the following
2 responsibilities:
3 1. To investigate the allegations of the petition and
4 any subsequent matters arising in the case and, unless excused
5 by the court, to file a written report. This report must
6 include a statement of the wishes of the child and the
7 recommendations of the guardian ad litem and must be provided
8 to all parties and the court at least 48 hours before the
9 disposition hearing.
10 2. To be present at all court hearings unless excused
11 by the court.
12 3. To represent the interests of the child until the
13 jurisdiction of the court over the child terminates or until
14 excused by the court.
15 4. To perform such other duties and undertake such
16 other responsibilities as the court may direct.
17 (c) A guardian ad litem is not required to post bond
18 but shall file an acceptance of the office.
19 (d) A guardian ad litem is entitled to receive service
20 of pleadings and papers as provided by the Florida Rules of
21 Juvenile Procedure.
22 (e) This subsection does not apply to any voluntary
23 relinquishment of parental rights proceeding.
24 Section 73. Section 39.466, Florida Statutes, is
25 renumbered as section 39.808, Florida Statutes, and amended to
26 read:
27 39.808 39.466 Advisory hearing; pretrial status
28 conference.--
29 (1) An advisory hearing on the petition to terminate
30 parental rights must be held as soon as possible after all
31 parties have been served with a copy of the petition and a
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1 notice of the date, time, and place of the advisory hearing
2 for the petition.
3 (2) At the hearing the court shall inform the parties
4 of their rights under s. 39.807 39.465, shall appoint counsel
5 for the parties in accordance with legal requirements, and
6 shall appoint a guardian ad litem to represent the interests
7 of the child if one has not already been appointed.
8 (3) The court shall set a date for an adjudicatory
9 hearing to be held within 45 days after the advisory hearing,
10 unless all of the necessary parties agree to some other
11 hearing date.
12 (4) An advisory hearing may not be held if a petition
13 is filed seeking an adjudication voluntarily to terminate
14 parental rights. Adjudicatory hearings for petitions for
15 voluntary termination must be held within 21 days after the
16 filing of the petition. Notice of the use of this subsection
17 must be filed with the court at the same time as the filing of
18 the petition to terminate parental rights.
19 (5) Not less than 10 days before the adjudicatory
20 hearing, the court shall conduct a prehearing status
21 conference to determine the order in which each party may
22 present witnesses or evidence, the order in which
23 cross-examination and argument shall occur, and any other
24 matters that may aid in the conduct of the adjudicatory
25 hearing to prevent any undue delay in the conduct of the
26 adjudicatory hearing.
27 Section 74. Section 39.467, Florida Statutes, is
28 renumbered as section 39.809, Florida Statutes, and
29 subsections (1) and (4) of said section are amended to read:
30 39.809 39.467 Adjudicatory hearing.--
31
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1 (1) In a hearing on a petition for termination of
2 parental rights, the court shall consider the elements
3 required for termination as set forth in s. 39.4611. Each of
4 these elements must be established by clear and convincing
5 evidence before the petition is granted.
6 (4) All hearings involving termination of parental
7 rights are confidential and closed to the public. Hearings
8 involving more than one child may be held simultaneously when
9 the children involved are related to each other or were
10 involved in the same case. The child and the parents or legal
11 custodians may be examined separately and apart from each
12 other.
13 Section 75. Section 39.4612, Florida Statutes, is
14 renumbered as section 39.810, Florida Statutes, and subsection
15 (3) of said section is amended to read:
16 39.810 39.4612 Manifest best interests of the
17 child.--In a hearing on a petition for termination of parental
18 rights, the court shall consider the manifest best interests
19 of the child. This consideration shall not include a
20 comparison between the attributes of the parents and those of
21 any persons providing a present or potential placement for the
22 child. For the purpose of determining the manifest best
23 interests of the child, the court shall consider and evaluate
24 all relevant factors, including, but not limited to:
25 (3) The capacity of the parent or parents to care for
26 the child to the extent that the child's safety, well-being,
27 and physical, mental, and emotional health and well-being will
28 not be endangered upon the child's return home.
29 Section 76. Section 39.469, Florida Statutes, is
30 renumbered as section 39.811, Florida Statutes, and amended to
31 read:
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1 39.811 39.469 Powers of disposition; order of
2 disposition.--
3 (1) If the court finds that the grounds for
4 termination of parental rights have not been established by
5 clear and convincing evidence, the court shall:
6 (a) If grounds for dependency have been established,
7 adjudicate or readjudicate the child dependent and:
8 1. Enter an order placing or continuing the child in
9 out-of-home foster care under a case plan; or
10 2. Enter an order returning the child to the parent or
11 parents. The court shall retain jurisdiction over a child
12 returned to the parent or parents or legal guardians for a
13 period of 6 months, but, at that time, based on a report of
14 the social service agency and any other relevant factors, the
15 court shall make a determination as to whether its
16 jurisdiction shall continue or be terminated.
17 (b) If grounds for dependency have not been
18 established, dismiss the petition.
19 (2) If the child is in out-of-home foster care custody
20 of the department and the court finds that the grounds for
21 termination of parental rights have been established by clear
22 and convincing evidence, the court shall, by order, place the
23 child in the custody of the department for the purpose of
24 adoption or place the child in the custody of a licensed
25 child-placing agency for the purpose of adoption.
26 (3) If the child is in the custody of one parent and
27 the court finds that the grounds for termination of parental
28 rights have been established for the remaining parent by clear
29 and convincing evidence, the court shall enter an order
30 terminating the rights of the parent for whom the grounds have
31 been established and placing the child in the custody of the
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1 remaining parent, granting that parent sole parental
2 responsibility for the child.
3 (4) If the child is neither in the custody of the
4 department of Children and Family Services nor in the custody
5 of a parent and the court finds that the grounds for
6 termination of parental rights have been established for
7 either or both parents, the court shall enter an order
8 terminating parental rights for the parent or parents for whom
9 the grounds for termination have been established and placing
10 the child with an appropriate custodian. If the parental
11 rights of both parents have been terminated, or if the
12 parental rights of only one parent have been terminated and
13 the court makes specific findings based on evidence presented
14 that placement with the remaining parent is likely to be
15 harmful to the child, the court may order that the child be
16 placed with a custodian other than the department after
17 hearing evidence of the suitability of such intended
18 placement. Suitability of the intended placement includes the
19 fitness and capabilities of the proposed intended placement,
20 with primary consideration being given to the welfare of the
21 child; the fitness and capabilities of the proposed custodian
22 to function as the primary caregiver caretaker for a
23 particular child; and the compatibility of the child with the
24 home in which the child is intended to be placed. If the
25 court orders that a child be placed with a custodian under
26 this subsection, the court shall appoint such custodian as the
27 guardian for the child as provided in s. 744.3021. The court
28 may modify the order placing the child in the custody of the
29 custodian and revoke the guardianship established under s.
30 744.3021 if the court subsequently finds that a party to the
31 proceeding other than a parent whose rights have been
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1 terminated has shown a material change in circumstances which
2 causes the placement to be no longer in the best interest of
3 the child.
4 (5) If the court terminates parental rights, the court
5 shall enter a written order of disposition briefly stating the
6 facts upon which its decision to terminate the parental rights
7 is made. An order of termination of parental rights, whether
8 based on parental consent or after notice served as prescribed
9 in this part, permanently deprives the parents or legal
10 guardian of any right to the child.
11 (6) The parental rights of one parent may be severed
12 without severing the parental rights of the other parent only
13 under the following circumstances:
14 (a) If the child has only one surviving parent;
15 (b) If the identity of a prospective parent has been
16 established as unknown after sworn testimony;
17 (c) If the parent whose rights are being terminated
18 became a parent through a single-parent adoption;
19 (d) If the protection of the child demands termination
20 of the rights of a single parent; or
21 (e) If the parent whose rights are being terminated
22 meets the criteria specified in s. 39.806(1)(d) 39.464(1)(d).
23 (7)(a) The termination of parental rights does not
24 affect the rights of grandparents unless the court finds that
25 continued visitation is not in the best interests of the child
26 or that such visitation would interfere with the goals of
27 permanency planning for the child.
28 (b) If the court terminates parental rights, it may
29 order that the parents or relatives of the parent whose rights
30 are terminated be allowed to maintain some contact with the
31 child pending adoption if the best interests of the child
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1 support this continued contact, except as provided in
2 paragraph (a). If the court orders such continued contact, the
3 nature and frequency of the contact must be set forth in
4 written order and may be reviewed upon motion of any party,
5 including a prospective adoptive parent if a child has been
6 placed for adoption. If a child is placed for adoption, the
7 nature and frequency of the contact must be reviewed by the
8 court at the time the child is adopted.
9 (8) If the court terminates parental rights, it shall,
10 in its order of disposition, provide for a hearing, to be
11 scheduled no later than 30 days after the date of disposition,
12 in which the department or the licensed child-placing agency
13 shall provide to the court a plan for permanency for the
14 child. Reasonable efforts must be made to place the child in a
15 timely manner in accordance with the permanency plan, and to
16 complete whatever steps are necessary to finalize the
17 permanent placement of the child. Thereafter, until the
18 adoption of the child is finalized or the child reaches the
19 age of 18 years, whichever occurs first, the court shall hold
20 hearings at 6-month intervals to review the progress being
21 made toward permanency for the child.
22 (9) After termination of parental rights, the court
23 shall retain jurisdiction over any child for whom custody is
24 given to a social service agency until the child is adopted.
25 The court shall review the status of the child's placement and
26 the progress being made toward permanent adoptive placement.
27 As part of this continuing jurisdiction, for good cause shown
28 by the guardian ad litem for the child, the court may review
29 the appropriateness of the adoptive placement of the child.
30
31
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1 Section 77. Section 39.47, Florida Statutes, is
2 renumbered as section 39.812, Florida Statutes, and amended to
3 read:
4 39.812 39.47 Post disposition relief.--
5 (1) A licensed child-placing agency or the department
6 which is given custody of a child for subsequent adoption in
7 accordance with this chapter may place the child in a family
8 home for prospective subsequent adoption and the licensed
9 child-placing agency or the department may thereafter become a
10 party to any proceeding for the legal adoption of the child
11 and appear in any court where the adoption proceeding is
12 pending and consent to the adoption; and that consent alone
13 shall in all cases be sufficient.
14 (2) In any subsequent adoption proceeding, the parents
15 and legal guardian shall not be entitled to any notice
16 thereof, nor shall they be entitled to knowledge at any time
17 after the order terminating parental rights is entered of the
18 whereabouts of the child or of the identity or location of any
19 person having the custody of or having adopted the child,
20 except as provided by order of the court pursuant to this
21 chapter or chapter 63; and in any habeas corpus or other
22 proceeding involving the child brought by any parent or legal
23 guardian of the child, no agent or contract provider of the
24 licensed child-placing agency or department shall be compelled
25 to divulge that information, but may be compelled to produce
26 the child before a court of competent jurisdiction if the
27 child is still subject to the guardianship of the licensed
28 child-placing agency or department.
29 (3) The entry of the custody order to the department
30 or licensed child-placing agency shall not entitle the
31 licensed child-placing agency or department to guardianship of
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1 the estate or property of the child, but the licensed
2 child-placing agency or department shall be the guardian of
3 the person of the child.
4 (4) The court shall retain jurisdiction over any child
5 for whom custody is given to a licensed child-placing agency
6 or to the department until the child is adopted. After custody
7 of a child for subsequent adoption has been given to an agency
8 or the department, the court has jurisdiction for the purpose
9 of reviewing the status of the child and the progress being
10 made toward permanent adoptive placement. As part of this
11 continuing jurisdiction, for good cause shown by the guardian
12 ad litem for the child, the court may review the
13 appropriateness of the adoptive placement of the child.
14 (5) The Legislature finds that children are most
15 likely to realize their potential when they have the ability
16 provided by good permanent families rather than spending long
17 periods of time in temporary placements or unnecessary
18 institutions. It is the intent of the Legislature that
19 decisions be consistent with the child's best interests and
20 that the department make proper adoptive placements as
21 expeditiously as possible following a final judgment
22 terminating parental rights.
23 Section 78. Section 39.813, Florida Statutes, is
24 created to read:
25 39.813 Continuing jurisdiction.--The court which
26 terminates the parental rights of a child who is the subject
27 of termination proceedings pursuant to this chapter shall
28 retain exclusive jurisdiction in all matters pertaining to the
29 child's adoption pursuant to chapter 63.
30 Section 79. Section 39.471, Florida Statutes, is
31 renumbered as section 39.814, Florida Statutes.
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1 Section 80. Section 39.473, Florida Statutes, is
2 renumbered as section 39.815, Florida Statutes, and subsection
3 (1) of said section is amended to read:
4 39.815 39.473 Appeal.--
5 (1) Any child, any parent or, guardian ad litem, or
6 legal custodian of any child, any other party to the
7 proceeding who is affected by an order of the court, or the
8 department may appeal to the appropriate district court of
9 appeal within the time and in the manner prescribed by the
10 Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure. The district court of
11 appeal shall give an appeal from an order terminating parental
12 rights priority in docketing and shall render a decision on
13 the appeal as expeditiously as possible. Appointed counsel
14 shall be compensated as provided in s. 39.0134 39.474.
15 Section 81. Section 39.816, Florida Statutes, is
16 created to read:
17 39.816 Authorization for pilot and demonstration
18 projects.--
19 (1) Contingent upon receipt of a federal grant or
20 contract pursuant to s. 473A(i) of the Social Security Act, 42
21 U.S.C. 673A(i), enacted November 19, 1997, the department is
22 authorized to establish one or more pilot projects for the
23 following purposes:
24 (a) The development of best practice guidelines for
25 expediting termination of parental rights.
26 (b) The development of models to encourage the use of
27 concurrent planning.
28 (c) The development of specialized units and expertise
29 in moving children toward adoption as a permanency goal.
30
31
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1 (d) The development of risk-assessment tools to
2 facilitate early identification of the children who will be at
3 risk of harm if returned home.
4 (e) The development of models to encourage the
5 fast-tracking of children who have not attained 1 year of age,
6 into preadoptive placements.
7 (f) The development of programs that place children
8 into preadoptive families without waiting for termination of
9 parental rights.
10 (2) Contingent upon receipt of federal authorization
11 and funding pursuant to s. 1130(a) of the Social Security Act,
12 42 U.S.C. 1320a-9, enacted November 19, 1997, the department
13 is authorized to establish one or more demonstration projects
14 for the following purposes:
15 (a) Identifying and addressing barriers that result in
16 delays to adoptive placements for children in out-of-home
17 care.
18 (b) Identifying and addressing parental substance
19 abuse problems that endanger children and result in the
20 placement of children in out-of-home care. This purpose may be
21 accomplished through the placement of children with their
22 parents in residential treatment facilities, including
23 residential treatment facilities for post-partum depression,
24 that are specifically designed to serve parents and children
25 together, in order to promote family reunification, and that
26 can ensure the health and safety of the children.
27 (c) Addressing kinship care.
28 Section 82. Section 39.817, Florida Statutes, is
29 created to read:
30 39.817 Foster care privatization demonstration pilot
31 project.--A pilot project shall be established through The
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1 Ounce of Prevention Fund of Florida to contract with a private
2 entity for a foster care privatization demonstration project.
3 No more then 30 children with a goal of family reunification
4 shall be accepted into the program on a no-eject-or-reject
5 basis as identified by the department. Sibling groups shall be
6 kept together in one placement in their own communities.
7 Foster care parents shall be paid employees of the program.
8 The program shall provide for public/private partnerships,
9 community collaboration, counseling, and medical and legal
10 assistance, as needed. For purposes of identifying measurable
11 outcomes, the pilot project shall be located in a department
12 district with an integrated district management which was
13 selected as a family transition program site, has a population
14 of less than 500,000, has a total caseload of no more than
15 400, with and without board payment, and has a total foster
16 care case load of no more than 250.
17 Section 83. Part X of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
18 consisting of sections 39.820, 39.821, 39.822, 39.823, 39.824,
19 39.825, 39.826, 39.827, 39.828, 39.829, and 39.8295, Florida
20 Statutes, shall be entitled to read:
21 PART X
22 GUARDIANS AD LITEM AND GUARDIAN ADVOCATES
23 Section 84. Section 39.820, Florida Statutes, is
24 created to read:
25 39.820 Definitions.--As used in this part, the term:
26 (1) "Guardian ad litem" as referred to in any civil or
27 criminal proceeding includes the following: a certified
28 guardian ad litem program, a duly certified volunteer, a staff
29 attorney, contract attorney, or certified pro bono attorney
30 working on behalf of a guardian ad litem or the program; staff
31 members of a program office; a court-appointed attorney; or a
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1 responsible adult who is appointed by the court to represent
2 the best interests of a child in a proceeding as provided for
3 by law, including, but not limited to, this chapter, who is a
4 party to any judicial proceeding as a representative of the
5 child, and who serves until discharged by the court.
6 (2) "Guardian advocate" means a person appointed by
7 the court to act on behalf of a drug dependent newborn
8 pursuant to the provisions of this part.
9 Section 85. Section 415.5077, Florida Statutes, is
10 renumbered as section 39.821, Florida Statutes.
11 Section 86. Section 415.508, Florida Statutes, is
12 renumbered as section 39.822, Florida Statutes, and amended to
13 read:
14 39.822 415.508 Appointment of guardian ad litem for
15 abused, abandoned, or neglected child.--
16 (1) A guardian ad litem shall be appointed by the
17 court at the earliest possible time to represent the child in
18 any child abuse, abandonment, or neglect judicial proceeding,
19 whether civil or criminal. Any person participating in a
20 civil or criminal judicial proceeding resulting from such
21 appointment shall be presumed prima facie to be acting in good
22 faith and in so doing shall be immune from any liability,
23 civil or criminal, that otherwise might be incurred or
24 imposed.
25 (2) In those cases in which the parents are
26 financially able, the parent or parents of the child shall
27 reimburse the court, in part or in whole, for the cost of
28 provision of guardian ad litem services. Reimbursement to the
29 individual providing guardian ad litem services shall not be
30 contingent upon successful collection by the court from the
31 parent or parents.
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1 (3) The guardian ad litem or the program
2 representative shall review all disposition recommendations
3 and changes in placements, and must be present at all critical
4 stages of the dependency proceeding or submit a written report
5 of recommendations to the court.
6 Section 87. Section 415.5082, Florida Statutes, is
7 renumbered as section 39.823, Florida Statutes, and amended to
8 read:
9 39.823 415.5082 Guardian advocates for drug dependent
10 newborns.--The Legislature finds that increasing numbers of
11 drug dependent children are born in this state. Because of
12 the parents' continued dependence upon drugs, the parents may
13 temporarily leave their child with a relative or other adult
14 or may have agreed to voluntary family services under s.
15 39.301(8) 415.505(1)(e). The relative or other adult may be
16 left with a child who is likely to require medical treatment
17 but for whom they are unable to obtain medical treatment. The
18 purpose of this section is to provide an expeditious method
19 for such relatives or other responsible adults to obtain a
20 court order which allows them to provide consent for medical
21 treatment and otherwise advocate for the needs of the child
22 and to provide court review of such authorization.
23 Section 88. Section 415.5083, Florida Statutes, is
24 renumbered as section 39.824, Florida Statutes, and amended to
25 read:
26 39.824 415.5083 Procedures and jurisdiction.--
27 (1) The Supreme Court is requested to adopt rules of
28 juvenile procedure by October 1, 1989, to implement this part
29 ss. 415.5082-415.5089. All procedures, including petitions,
30 pleadings, subpoenas, summonses, and hearings in cases for the
31 appointment of a guardian advocate shall be according to the
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1 Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure unless otherwise provided
2 by law.
3 (2) The circuit court shall have exclusive original
4 jurisdiction of a proceeding in which appointment of a
5 guardian advocate is sought. The court shall retain
6 jurisdiction over a child for whom a guardian advocate is
7 appointed until specifically relinquished by court order.
8 Section 89. Section 415.5084, Florida Statutes, is
9 renumbered as section 39.825, Florida Statutes.
10 Section 90. Section 415.5085, Florida Statutes, is
11 renumbered as section 39.826, Florida Statutes.
12 Section 91. Section 415.5086, Florida Statutes, is
13 renumbered as section 39.827, Florida Statutes, and amended to
14 read:
15 39.827 415.5086 Hearing for appointment of a guardian
16 advocate.--
17 (1) When a petition for appointment of a guardian
18 advocate has been filed with the circuit court, the hearing
19 shall be held within 14 days unless all parties agree to a
20 continuance. If a child is in need of necessary medical
21 treatment as defined in s. 39.01, the court shall hold a
22 hearing within 24 hours.
23 (2) At the hearing, the parents have the right to be
24 present, to present testimony, to call and cross-examine
25 witnesses, to be represented by counsel at their own expense,
26 and to object to the appointment of the guardian advocate.
27 (3) The hearing shall be conducted by the judge
28 without a jury, applying the rules of evidence in use in civil
29 cases. In a hearing on a petition for appointment of a
30 guardian advocate, the moving party shall prove all the
31
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1 elements in s. 39.828 415.5087 by a preponderance of the
2 evidence.
3 (4) The hearing under this section shall remain
4 confidential and closed to the public. The clerk shall keep
5 all court records required by this part ss. 415.5082-415.5089
6 separate from other records of the circuit court. All court
7 records required by this part ss. 415.5082-415.5089 shall be
8 confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1).
9 All records shall be inspected only upon order of the court by
10 persons deemed by the court to have a proper interest therein,
11 except that a child and the parents or custodians of the child
12 and their attorneys and the department and its designees shall
13 always have the right to inspect and copy any official record
14 pertaining to the child. The court may permit authorized
15 representatives of recognized organizations compiling
16 statistics for proper purposes to inspect and make abstracts
17 from official records, under whatever conditions upon their
18 use and disposition the court may deem proper, and may punish
19 by contempt proceedings any violation of those conditions.
20 All information obtained pursuant to this part ss.
21 415.5082-415.5089 in the discharge of official duty by any
22 judge, employee of the court, or authorized agent of the
23 department, shall be confidential and exempt from the
24 provisions of s. 119.07(1) and shall not be disclosed to
25 anyone other than the authorized personnel of the court or the
26 department and its designees, except upon order of the court.
27 Section 92. Section 415.5087, Florida Statutes, is
28 renumbered as section 39.828, Florida Statutes, and amended to
29 read:
30 39.828 415.5087 Grounds for appointment of a guardian
31 advocate.--
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1 (1) The court shall appoint the person named in the
2 petition as a guardian advocate with all the powers and duties
3 specified in s. 39.829 415.5088 for an initial term of 1 year
4 upon a finding that:
5 (a) The child named in the petition is or was a drug
6 dependent newborn as described in s. 39.01(30)(g).
7 415.503(10)(a)2.;
8 (b) The parent or parents of the child have
9 voluntarily relinquished temporary custody of the child to a
10 relative or other responsible adult;
11 (c) The person named in the petition to be appointed
12 the guardian advocate is capable of carrying out the duties as
13 provided in s. 39.829 415.5088; and
14 (d) A petition to adjudicate the child dependent
15 pursuant to this chapter 39 has not been filed.
16 (2) The appointment of a guardian advocate does not
17 remove from the parents the right to consent to medical
18 treatment for their child. The appointment of a guardian
19 advocate does not prevent the filing of a subsequent petition
20 under this chapter 39 to have the child adjudicated dependent.
21 Section 93. Section 415.5088, Florida Statutes, is
22 renumbered as section 39.829, Florida Statutes.
23 Section 94. Section 415.5089, Florida Statutes, is
24 renumbered as section 39.8295, Florida Statutes, and amended
25 to read:
26 39.8295 415.5089 Review and removal of guardian
27 advocate.--
28 (1) At the end of the initial 1-year appointment, the
29 court shall review the status of the child's care, health, and
30 medical condition for the purpose of determining whether to
31 reauthorize the appointment of the guardian advocate. If the
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1 court finds that all of the elements of s. 39.828 415.5087 are
2 still met the court shall reauthorize the guardian advocate
3 for another year.
4 (2) At any time, the court may, upon its own motion,
5 or upon the motion of the department, a family member, or
6 other interested person remove a guardian advocate. A
7 guardian advocate shall be removed if the court finds that the
8 guardian advocate is not properly discharging his or her
9 responsibilities or is acting in a manner inconsistent with
10 his or her appointment, that the parents have assumed parental
11 responsibility to provide for the child, or that the child has
12 been adjudicated dependent pursuant to this chapter 39.
13 Section 95. Part XI of chapter 39, Florida Statutes,
14 consisting of sections 39.901, 39.902, 39.903, 39.904, 39.905,
15 39.906, and 39.908, Florida Statutes, shall be entitled to
16 read:
17 PART XI
18 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
19 Section 96. Section 415.601, Florida Statutes, is
20 renumbered as section 39.901, Florida Statutes.
21 Section 97. Section 415.602, Florida Statutes, is
22 renumbered as section 39.902, Florida Statutes, and amended to
23 read:
24 39.902 415.602 Definitions of terms used in ss.
25 415.601-415.608.--As used in this part ss. 415.601-415.608,
26 the term:
27 (1) "Department" means the Department of Children and
28 Family Services.
29 (2) "District" means a service district of the
30 department as created in s. 20.19.
31
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1 (1)(3) "Domestic violence" means any assault, battery,
2 sexual assault, sexual battery, or any criminal offense
3 resulting in physical injury or death of one family or
4 household member by another who is or was residing in the same
5 single dwelling unit.
6 (2)(4) "Domestic violence center" means an agency that
7 provides services to victims of domestic violence, as its
8 primary mission.
9 (3)(5) "Family or household member" means spouses,
10 former spouses, adults related by blood or marriage, persons
11 who are presently residing together as if a family or who have
12 resided together in the past as if a family, and persons who
13 have a child in common regardless of whether they have been
14 married or have resided together at any time.
15 Section 98. Section 415.603, Florida Statutes, is
16 renumbered as section 39.903, Florida Statutes, and subsection
17 (1) of said section is amended to read:
18 39.903 415.603 Duties and functions of the department
19 with respect to domestic violence.--
20 (1) The department shall:
21 (a) Develop by rule criteria for the approval or
22 rejection of certification or funding of domestic violence
23 centers.
24 (b) Develop by rule minimum standards for domestic
25 violence centers to ensure the health and safety of the
26 clients in the centers.
27 (c) Receive and approve or reject applications for
28 certification of domestic violence centers, and receive and
29 approve or reject applications for funding of domestic
30 violence centers. When approving funding for a newly certified
31 domestic violence center, the department shall make every
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1 effort to minimize any adverse economic impact on existing
2 certified centers or services provided within the same
3 district. In order to minimize duplication of services, the
4 department shall make every effort to encourage subcontracting
5 relationships with existing centers within the district. If
6 any of the required services are exempted by the department
7 under s. 39.905(1)(c) 415.605(1)(c), the center shall not
8 receive funding for those services.
9 (d) Evaluate each certified domestic violence center
10 annually to ensure compliance with the minimum standards. The
11 department has the right to enter and inspect the premises of
12 certified domestic violence centers at any reasonable hour in
13 order to effectively evaluate the state of compliance of these
14 centers with this part ss. 415.601-415.608 and rules relating
15 to this part those sections.
16 (e) Adopt rules to implement this part ss.
17 415.601-415.608.
18 (f) Promote the involvement of certified domestic
19 violence centers in the coordination, development, and
20 planning of domestic violence programming in the districts and
21 the state.
22 Section 99. Section 415.604, Florida Statutes, is
23 renumbered as section 39.904, Florida Statutes, and amended to
24 read:
25 39.904 415.604 Report to the Legislature on the status
26 of domestic violence cases.--On or before January 1 of each
27 year, the department of Children and Family Services shall
28 furnish to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
29 House of Representatives a report on the status of domestic
30 violence in this state, which report shall include, but is not
31 limited to, the following:
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1 (1) The incidence of domestic violence in this state.
2 (2) An identification of the areas of the state where
3 domestic violence is of significant proportions, indicating
4 the number of cases of domestic violence officially reported,
5 as well as an assessment of the degree of unreported cases of
6 domestic violence.
7 (3) An identification and description of the types of
8 programs in the state that assist victims of domestic violence
9 or persons who commit domestic violence, including information
10 on funding for the programs.
11 (4) The number of persons who are treated by or
12 assisted by local domestic violence programs that receive
13 funding through the department.
14 (5) A statement on the effectiveness of such programs
15 in preventing future domestic violence.
16 (6) An inventory and evaluation of existing prevention
17 programs.
18 (7) A listing of potential prevention efforts
19 identified by the department; the estimated annual cost of
20 providing such prevention services, both for a single client
21 and for the anticipated target population as a whole; an
22 identification of potential sources of funding; and the
23 projected benefits of providing such services.
24 Section 100. Section 415.605, Florida Statutes, is
25 renumbered as section 39.905, Florida Statutes, and
26 subsections (1) and (2) and paragraph (a) of subsection (6) of
27 said section are amended, to read:
28 39.905 415.605 Domestic violence centers.--
29 (1) Domestic violence centers certified under this
30 part ss. 415.601-415.608 must:
31
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1 (a) Provide a facility which will serve as a center to
2 receive and house persons who are victims of domestic
3 violence. For the purpose of this part ss. 415.601-415.608,
4 minor children and other dependents of a victim, when such
5 dependents are partly or wholly dependent on the victim for
6 support or services, may be sheltered with the victim in a
7 domestic violence center.
8 (b) Receive the annual written endorsement of local
9 law enforcement agencies.
10 (c) Provide minimum services which include, but are
11 not limited to, information and referral services, counseling
12 and case management services, temporary emergency shelter for
13 more than 24 hours, a 24-hour hotline, training for law
14 enforcement personnel, assessment and appropriate referral of
15 resident children, and educational services for community
16 awareness relative to the incidence of domestic violence, the
17 prevention of such violence, and the care, treatment, and
18 rehabilitation for persons engaged in or subject to domestic
19 violence. If a 24-hour hotline, professional training, or
20 community education is already provided by a certified
21 domestic violence center within a district, the department may
22 exempt such certification requirements for a new center
23 serving the same district in order to avoid duplication of
24 services.
25 (d) Participate in the provision of orientation and
26 training programs developed for law enforcement officers,
27 social workers, and other professionals and paraprofessionals
28 who work with domestic violence victims to better enable such
29 persons to deal effectively with incidents of domestic
30 violence.
31
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1 (e) Establish and maintain a board of directors
2 composed of at least three citizens, one of whom must be a
3 member of a local, municipal, or county law enforcement
4 agency.
5 (f) Comply with rules adopted pursuant to this part
6 ss. 415.601-415.608.
7 (g) File with the department a list of the names of
8 the domestic violence advocates who are employed or who
9 volunteer at the domestic violence center who may claim a
10 privilege under s. 90.5036 to refuse to disclose a
11 confidential communication between a victim of domestic
12 violence and the advocate regarding the domestic violence
13 inflicted upon the victim. The list must include the title of
14 the position held by the advocate whose name is listed and a
15 description of the duties of that position. A domestic
16 violence center must file amendments to this list as
17 necessary.
18 (h) Demonstrate local need and ability to sustain
19 operations through a history of 18 consecutive months'
20 operation as a domestic violence center, including 12 months'
21 operation of an emergency shelter as provided in paragraph (c)
22 defined in paragraph (1)(a), and a business plan which
23 addresses future operations and funding of future operations.
24 (i) If its center is a new center applying for
25 certification, demonstrate that the services provided address
26 a need identified in the most current statewide needs
27 assessment approved by the department.
28 (2) If the department finds that there is failure by a
29 center to comply with the requirements established under this
30 part ss. 415.601-415.608 or with the rules adopted pursuant
31
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1 thereto, the department may deny, suspend, or revoke the
2 certification of the center.
3 (6) In order to receive state funds, a center must:
4 (a) Obtain certification pursuant to this part ss.
5 415.601-415.608. However, the issuance of a certificate will
6 not obligate the department to provide funding.
7 Section 101. Section 415.606, Florida Statutes, is
8 renumbered as section 39.906, Florida Statutes.
9 Section 102. Section 415.608, Florida Statutes, is
10 renumbered as section 39.908, Florida Statutes.
11 Section 103. Subsections (4) through (20) of section
12 20.19, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (5)
13 through (21), respectively, paragraph (b) of present
14 subsection (4), paragraph (o) of present subsection (7), and
15 paragraph (c) of present subsection (20) are amended, and a
16 new subsection (4) is added to said section, to read:
17 20.19 Department of Children and Family
18 Services.--There is created a Department of Children and
19 Family Services.
20 (4) CERTIFICATION PROGRAMS FOR DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEES.--
21 The department is authorized to create certification programs
22 for family safety and preservation employees and agents to
23 ensure that only qualified employees and agents provide child
24 protection services. The department is authorized to develop
25 rules that include qualifications for certification, including
26 training and testing requirements, continuing education
27 requirements for ongoing certification, and decertification
28 procedures to be used to determine when an individual no
29 longer meets the qualifications for certification and to
30 implement the decertification of an employee or agent.
31 (5)(4) PROGRAM OFFICES.--
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1 (b) The following program offices are established and
2 may be consolidated, restructured, or rearranged by the
3 secretary; provided any such consolidation, restructuring, or
4 rearranging is for the purpose of encouraging service
5 integration through more effective and efficient performance
6 of the program offices or parts thereof:
7 1. Economic Self-Sufficiency Program Office.--The
8 responsibilities of this office encompass income support
9 programs within the department, such as temporary assistance
10 to families with dependent children, food stamps, welfare
11 reform, and state supplementation of the supplemental security
12 income (SSI) program.
13 2. Developmental Services Program Office.--The
14 responsibilities of this office encompass programs operated by
15 the department for developmentally disabled persons.
16 Developmental disabilities include any disability defined in
17 s. 393.063.
18 3. Children and Families Program Office.--The
19 responsibilities of this program office encompass early
20 intervention services for children and families at risk;
21 intake services for protective investigation of abandoned,
22 abused, and neglected children; interstate compact on the
23 placement of children programs; adoption; child care;
24 out-of-home care programs and other specialized services to
25 families; and child protection and sexual abuse treatment
26 teams created under chapter 39 415, excluding medical
27 direction functions.
28 4. Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Program
29 Office.--The responsibilities of this office encompass all
30 alcohol, drug abuse, and mental health programs operated by
31 the department.
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1 (7) HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES BOARDS.--
2 (o) Health and human services boards have the
3 following responsibilities, with respect to those programs and
4 services assigned to the districts, as developed jointly with
5 the district administrator:
6 1. Establish district outcome measures consistent with
7 statewide outcomes.
8 2. Conduct district needs assessments using
9 methodologies consistent with those established by the
10 secretary.
11 3. Negotiate with the secretary a district performance
12 agreement that:
13 a. Identifies current resources and services
14 available;
15 b. Identifies unmet needs and gaps in services;
16 c. Establishes service and funding priorities;
17 d. Establishes outcome measures for the district; and
18 e. Identifies expenditures and the number of clients
19 to be served, by service.
20 4. Provide budget oversight, including development and
21 approval of the district's legislative budget request.
22 5. Provide policy oversight, including development and
23 approval of district policies and procedures.
24 6. Act as a focal point for community participation in
25 department activities such as:
26 a. Assisting in the integration of all health and
27 social services within the community;
28 b. Assisting in the development of community
29 resources;
30 c. Advocating for community programs and services;
31
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1 d. Receiving and addressing concerns of consumers and
2 others; and
3 e. Advising the district administrator on the
4 administration of service programs throughout the district.
5 7. Advise the district administrator on ways to
6 integrate the delivery of family and health care services at
7 the local level.
8 8. Make recommendations which would enhance district
9 productivity and efficiency, ensure achievement of performance
10 standards, and assist the district in improving the
11 effectiveness of the services provided.
12 9. Review contract provider performance reports.
13 10. Immediately upon appointment of the membership,
14 develop bylaws that clearly identify and describe operating
15 procedures for the board. At a minimum, the bylaws must
16 specify notice requirements for all regular and special
17 meetings of the board, the number of members required to
18 constitute a quorum, and the number of affirmative votes of
19 members present and voting that are required to take official
20 and final action on a matter before the board.
21 11.a. Determine the board's internal organizational
22 structure, including the designation of standing committees.
23 In order to foster the coordinated and integrated delivery of
24 family services in its community, a local board shall use a
25 committee structure that is based on issues, such as children,
26 housing, transportation, or health care. Each such committee
27 must include consumers, advocates, providers, and department
28 staff from every appropriate program area. In addition, each
29 board and district administrator shall jointly identify
30 community entities, including, but not limited to, the Area
31
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1 Agency on Aging, and resources outside the department to be
2 represented on the committees of the board.
3 b. The district juvenile justice boards established in
4 s. 985.413 39.025 constitute the standing committee on issues
5 relating to planning, funding, or evaluation of programs and
6 services relating to the juvenile justice continuum.
7 12. Participate with the secretary in the selection of
8 a district administrator according to the provisions of
9 paragraph (10)(9)(b).
10 13. Complete an annual evaluation of the district and
11 review the evaluation at a meeting of the board at which the
12 public has an opportunity to comment.
13 14. Provide input to the secretary on the annual
14 evaluation of the district administrator. The board may
15 request that the secretary submit a written report on the
16 actions to be taken to address negative aspects of the
17 evaluation. At any time, the board may recommend to the
18 secretary that the district administrator be discharged. Upon
19 receipt of such a recommendation, the secretary shall make a
20 formal reply to the board stating the action to be taken with
21 respect to the board's recommendation.
22 15. Elect a chair and other officers, as specified in
23 the bylaws, from among the members of the board.
24 (20) INNOVATION ZONES.--The health and human services
25 board may propose designation of an innovation zone for any
26 experimental, pilot, or demonstration project that furthers
27 the legislatively established goals of the department. An
28 innovation zone is a defined geographic area such as a
29 district, county, municipality, service delivery area, school
30 campus, or neighborhood providing a laboratory for the
31 research, development, and testing of the applicability and
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1 efficacy of model programs, policy options, and new
2 technologies for the department.
3 (c) The Statewide Health and Human Services Board, in
4 conjunction with the secretary, shall develop a family
5 services innovation transfer network for the purpose of
6 providing information on innovation zone research and projects
7 or other effective initiatives in family services to the
8 health and human services boards established under subsection
9 (8) (7).
10 Section 104. Paragraph (h) of subsection (1) of
11 section 20.43, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
12 20.43 Department of Health.--There is created a
13 Department of Health.
14 (1) The purpose of the Department of Health is to
15 promote and protect the health of all residents and visitors
16 in the state through organized state and community efforts,
17 including cooperative agreements with counties. The
18 department shall:
19 (h) Provide medical direction for child protection
20 team and sexual abuse treatment functions created under
21 chapter 39 415.
22 Section 105. Paragraph (b)2. of subsection (2) of
23 section 61.13, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
24 61.13 Custody and support of children; visitation
25 rights; power of court in making orders.--
26 (2)
27 (b)
28 2. The court shall order that the parental
29 responsibility for a minor child be shared by both parents
30 unless the court finds that shared parental responsibility
31 would be detrimental to the child. Evidence that a parent has
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1 been convicted of a felony of the third degree or higher
2 involving domestic violence, as defined in s. 741.28 and
3 chapter 775, or meets the criteria of s. 39.806(1)(d)
4 39.464(1)(d), creates a rebuttable presumption of detriment to
5 the child. If the presumption is not rebutted, shared parental
6 responsibility, including visitation, residence of the child,
7 and decisions made regarding the child, may not be granted to
8 the convicted parent. However, the convicted parent is not
9 relieved of any obligation to provide financial support. If
10 the court determines that shared parental responsibility would
11 be detrimental to the child, it may order sole parental
12 responsibility and make such arrangements for visitation as
13 will best protect the child or abused spouse from further
14 harm. Whether or not there is a conviction of any offense of
15 domestic violence or child abuse or the existence of an
16 injunction for protection against domestic violence, the court
17 shall consider evidence of domestic violence or child abuse as
18 evidence of detriment to the child.
19 a. In ordering shared parental responsibility, the
20 court may consider the expressed desires of the parents and
21 may grant to one party the ultimate responsibility over
22 specific aspects of the child's welfare or may divide those
23 responsibilities between the parties based on the best
24 interests of the child. Areas of responsibility may include
25 primary residence, education, medical and dental care, and any
26 other responsibilities that the court finds unique to a
27 particular family.
28 b. The court shall order "sole parental
29 responsibility, with or without visitation rights, to the
30 other parent when it is in the best interests of" the minor
31 child.
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1 c. The court may award the grandparents visitation
2 rights with a minor child if it is in the child's best
3 interest. Grandparents have legal standing to seek judicial
4 enforcement of such an award. This section does not require
5 that grandparents be made parties or given notice of
6 dissolution pleadings or proceedings, nor do grandparents have
7 legal standing as "contestants" as defined in s. 61.1306. A
8 court may not order that a child be kept within the state or
9 jurisdiction of the court solely for the purpose of permitting
10 visitation by the grandparents.
11 Section 106. Section 61.401, Florida Statutes, is
12 amended to read:
13 61.401 Appointment of guardian ad litem.--In an action
14 for dissolution of marriage, modification, parental
15 responsibility, custody, or visitation, if the court finds it
16 is in the best interest of the child, the court may appoint a
17 guardian ad litem to act as next friend of the child,
18 investigator or evaluator, not as attorney or advocate. The
19 court in its discretion may also appoint legal counsel for a
20 child to act as attorney or advocate; however, the guardian
21 and the legal counsel shall not be the same person. In such
22 actions which involve an allegation of child abuse,
23 abandonment, or neglect as defined in s. 39.01 415.503(3),
24 which allegation is verified and determined by the court to be
25 well-founded, the court shall appoint a guardian ad litem for
26 the child. The guardian ad litem shall be a party to any
27 judicial proceeding from the date of the appointment until the
28 date of discharge.
29 Section 107. Section 61.402, Florida Statutes, is
30 amended to read:
31
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1 61.402 Qualifications of guardians ad litem.--A
2 guardian ad litem must be either a citizen certified by the
3 Guardian Ad Litem Program to act in family law cases or an
4 attorney who is a member in good standing of The Florida Bar.
5 Prior to certifying a guardian ad litem to be appointed under
6 this chapter, the Guardian Ad Litem Program must conduct a
7 security background investigation as provided in s. 39.821
8 415.5077.
9 Section 108. Subsection (4) of section 63.052, Florida
10 Statutes, is amended to read:
11 63.052 Guardians designated; proof of commitment.--
12 (4) If a child is voluntarily surrendered to an
13 intermediary for subsequent adoption and the adoption does not
14 become final within 180 days, the intermediary must report to
15 the court on the status of the child and the court may at that
16 time proceed under s. 39.701 39.453 or take action reasonably
17 necessary to protect the best interest of the child.
18 Section 109. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of
19 section 63.092, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
20 63.092 Report to the court of intended placement by an
21 intermediary; preliminary study.--
22 (2) PRELIMINARY HOME STUDY.--Before placing the minor
23 in the intended adoptive home, a preliminary home study must
24 be performed by a licensed child-placing agency, a licensed
25 professional, or agency described in s. 61.20(2), unless the
26 petitioner is a stepparent, a spouse of the birth parent, or a
27 relative. The preliminary study shall be completed within 30
28 days after the receipt by the court of the intermediary's
29 report, but in no event may the child be placed in the
30 prospective adoptive home prior to the completion of the
31 preliminary study unless ordered by the court. If the
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1 petitioner is a stepparent, a spouse of the birth parent, or a
2 relative, the preliminary home study may be required by the
3 court for good cause shown. The department is required to
4 perform the preliminary home study only if there is no
5 licensed child-placing agency, licensed professional, or
6 agency described in s. 61.20(2), in the county where the
7 prospective adoptive parents reside. The preliminary home
8 study must be made to determine the suitability of the
9 intended adoptive parents and may be completed prior to
10 identification of a prospective adoptive child. A favorable
11 preliminary home study is valid for 1 year after the date of
12 its completion. A child must not be placed in an intended
13 adoptive home before a favorable preliminary home study is
14 completed unless the adoptive home is also a licensed foster
15 home under s. 409.175. The preliminary home study must
16 include, at a minimum:
17 (b) Records checks of the department's central abuse
18 registry under chapter 415 and statewide criminal records
19 correspondence checks pursuant to s. 435.045 through the
20 Department of Law Enforcement on the intended adoptive
21 parents;
22
23 If the preliminary home study is favorable, a minor may be
24 placed in the home pending entry of the judgment of adoption.
25 A minor may not be placed in the home if the preliminary home
26 study is unfavorable. If the preliminary home study is
27 unfavorable, the intermediary or petitioner may, within 20
28 days after receipt of a copy of the written recommendation,
29 petition the court to determine the suitability of the
30 intended adoptive home. A determination as to suitability
31 under this subsection does not act as a presumption of
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1 suitability at the final hearing. In determining the
2 suitability of the intended adoptive home, the court must
3 consider the totality of the circumstances in the home.
4 Section 110. Subsection (2) of section 90.5036,
5 Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
6 90.5036 Domestic violence advocate-victim privilege.--
7 (2) A victim has a privilege to refuse to disclose,
8 and to prevent any other person from disclosing, a
9 confidential communication made by the victim to a domestic
10 violence advocate or any record made in the course of
11 advising, counseling, or assisting the victim. The privilege
12 applies to confidential communications made between the victim
13 and the domestic violence advocate and to records of those
14 communications only if the advocate is registered under s.
15 39.905 415.605 at the time the communication is made. This
16 privilege includes any advice given by the domestic violence
17 advocate in the course of that relationship.
18 Section 111. Section 154.067, Florida Statutes, is
19 amended to read:
20 154.067 Child abuse and neglect cases; duties.--The
21 Department of Health shall adopt a rule requiring every county
22 health department, as described in s. 154.01, to adopt a
23 protocol that, at a minimum, requires the county health
24 department to:
25 (1) Incorporate in its health department policy a
26 policy that every staff member has an affirmative duty to
27 report, pursuant to chapter 39 415, any actual or suspected
28 case of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect; and
29 (2) In any case involving suspected child abuse,
30 abandonment, or neglect, designate, at the request of the
31 department, a staff physician to act as a liaison between the
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1 county health department and the Department of Children and
2 Family Services office that is investigating the suspected
3 abuse, abandonment, or neglect, and the child protection team,
4 as defined in s. 39.01 415.503, when the case is referred to
5 such a team.
6 Section 112. Subsection (15) of section 213.053,
7 Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
8 213.053 Confidentiality and information sharing.--
9 (15) The department may disclose confidential taxpayer
10 information contained in returns, reports, accounts, or
11 declarations filed with the department by persons subject to
12 any state or local tax to the child support enforcement
13 program, to assist in the location of parents who owe or
14 potentially owe a duty of support pursuant to Title IV-D of
15 the Social Security Act, their assets, their income, and their
16 employer, and to the Department of Children and Family
17 Services for the purpose of diligent search activities
18 pursuant to chapter 39. Nothing in this subsection authorizes
19 the disclosure of information if such disclosure is prohibited
20 by federal law. Employees of the child support enforcement
21 program and of the Department of Children and Family Services
22 are bound by the same requirements of confidentiality and the
23 same penalties for violation of the requirements as the
24 department.
25 Section 113. Paragraph (a) of subsection (8) of
26 section 216.136, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
27 216.136 Consensus estimating conferences; duties and
28 principals.--
29 (8) CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM ESTIMATING CONFERENCE.--
30
31
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1 (a) Duties.--The Child Welfare System Estimating
2 Conference shall develop the following information relating to
3 the child welfare system:
4 1. Estimates and projections of the number of initial
5 and additional reports of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect
6 made to the central abuse hotline registry and tracking system
7 maintained by the Department of Children and Family Health and
8 Rehabilitative Services as established in s. 39.201(4)
9 415.504(4)(a).
10 2. Estimates and projections of the number of children
11 who are alleged to be victims of child abuse, abandonment, or
12 neglect and are in need of placement in a an emergency
13 shelter.
14
15 In addition, the conference shall develop other official
16 information relating to the child welfare system of the state
17 which the conference determines is needed for the state
18 planning and budgeting system. The Department of Children and
19 Family Health and Rehabilitative Services shall provide
20 information on the child welfare system requested by the Child
21 Welfare System Estimating Conference, or individual conference
22 principals, in a timely manner.
23 Section 114. Section 232.50, Florida Statutes, is
24 amended to read:
25 232.50 Child abuse, abandonment, and neglect
26 policy.--Every school board shall by March 1, 1985:
27 (1) Post in a prominent place in each school a notice
28 that, pursuant to chapter 39 415, all employees or agents of
29 the district school board have an affirmative duty to report
30 all actual or suspected cases of child abuse, abandonment, or
31 neglect, have immunity from liability if they report such
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1 cases in good faith, and have a duty to comply with child
2 protective investigations and all other provisions of law
3 relating to child abuse, abandonment, and neglect. The notice
4 shall also include the statewide toll-free telephone number of
5 the state abuse registry.
6 (2) Provide that the superintendent, or the
7 superintendent's designee, at the request of the Department of
8 Children and Family Health and Rehabilitative Services, will
9 act as a liaison to the Department of Children and Family
10 Health and Rehabilitative Services and the child protection
11 team, as defined in s. 39.01 415.503, when in a case of
12 suspected child abuse, abandonment, or neglect or an unlawful
13 sexual offense involving a child the case is referred to such
14 a team; except that this subsection may in no instance be
15 construed as relieving or restricting the Department of
16 Children and Family Health and Rehabilitative Services from
17 discharging its duty and responsibility under the law to
18 investigate and report every suspected or actual case of child
19 abuse, abandonment, or neglect or unlawful sexual offense
20 involving a child.
21
22 Each district school board shall comply with the provisions of
23 this section, and such board shall notify the Department of
24 Education and the Department of Children and Family Health and
25 Rehabilitative Services of its compliance by March 1, 1985.
26 Section 115. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of
27 section 318.21, Florida Statutes, as amended by section 2(1)
28 of chapter 97-235, Laws of Florida, is amended to read:
29 318.21 Disposition of civil penalties by county
30 courts.--All civil penalties received by a county court
31
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1 pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be
2 distributed and paid monthly as follows:
3 (2) Of the remainder:
4 (a) Fifteen and six-tenths percent shall be paid to
5 the General Revenue Fund of the state, except that the first
6 $300,000 shall be deposited into the Grants and Donations
7 Trust Fund in the Department of Children and Family Services
8 for administrative costs, training costs, and costs associated
9 with the implementation and maintenance of Florida foster care
10 citizen review panels as provided for in s. 39.702 39.4531.
11 Section 116. Effective July 1, 1999, paragraph (a) of
12 subsection (2) of section 318.21, as amended by section 3(1)
13 of chapter 97-235, Laws of Florida, is amended to read:
14 318.21 Disposition of civil penalties by county
15 courts.--All civil penalties received by a county court
16 pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be
17 distributed and paid monthly as follows:
18 (2) Of the remainder:
19 (a) Ten and six-tenths percent shall be paid to the
20 General Revenue Fund of the state, except that the first
21 $300,000 shall be deposited into the Grants and Donations
22 Trust Fund in the Department of Children and Family Services
23 for administrative costs, training costs, and costs associated
24 with the implementation and maintenance of Florida foster care
25 citizen review panels as provided for in s. 39.702 39.4531.
26 Section 117. Effective July 1, 2000, paragraph (a) of
27 subsection (2) of section 318.21, Florida Statutes, as amended
28 by section 4(1) of chapter 97-235, Laws of Florida, is amended
29 to read:
30 318.21 Disposition of civil penalties by county
31 courts.--All civil penalties received by a county court
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1 pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be
2 distributed and paid monthly as follows:
3 (2) Of the remainder:
4 (a) Five and six-tenths percent shall be paid to the
5 General Revenue Fund of the state, except that the first
6 $300,000 shall be deposited into the Grants and Donations
7 Trust Fund in the Department of Children and Family Services
8 for administrative costs, training costs, and costs associated
9 with the implementation and maintenance of Florida foster care
10 citizen review panels as provided for in s. 39.702 39.4531.
11 Section 118. Effective July 1, 2001, paragraph (a) of
12 subsection (2) of section 318.21, Florida Statutes, as amended
13 by section 5(1) of chapter 97-235, Laws of Florida, is amended
14 to read:
15 318.21 Disposition of civil penalties by county
16 courts.--All civil penalties received by a county court
17 pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be
18 distributed and paid monthly as follows:
19 (2) Of the remainder:
20 (a) Twenty and six-tenths percent shall be paid to the
21 County Article V Trust Fund, except that the first $300,000
22 shall be deposited into the Grants and Donations Trust Fund in
23 the Department of Children and Family Services for
24 administrative costs, training costs, and costs associated
25 with the implementation and maintenance of Florida foster care
26 citizen review panels as provided for in s. 39.702 39.4531.
27 Section 119. Effective July 1, 2002, paragraph (a) of
28 subsection (2) of section 318.21, Florida Statutes, as amended
29 by section 6 of chapter 97-235, Laws of Florida, is amended to
30 read:
31
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1 318.21 Disposition of civil penalties by county
2 courts.--All civil penalties received by a county court
3 pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be
4 distributed and paid monthly as follows:
5 (2) Of the remainder:
6 (a) Twenty and six-tenths percent shall be paid to the
7 General Revenue Fund of the state, except that the first
8 $300,000 shall be deposited into the Grants and Donations
9 Trust Fund in the Department of Children and Family Services
10 for administrative costs, training costs, and costs associated
11 with the implementation and maintenance of Florida foster care
12 citizen review panels as provided for in s. 39.702 39.4531.
13 Section 120. Paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of
14 section 384.29, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
15 384.29 Confidentiality.--
16 (1) All information and records held by the department
17 or its authorized representatives relating to known or
18 suspected cases of sexually transmissible diseases are
19 strictly confidential and exempt from the provisions of s.
20 119.07(1). Such information shall not be released or made
21 public by the department or its authorized representatives, or
22 by a court or parties to a lawsuit upon revelation by
23 subpoena, except under the following circumstances:
24 (e) When made to the proper authorities as required by
25 chapter 39 or chapter 415.
26 Section 121. Paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of
27 section 392.65, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
28 392.65 Confidentiality.--
29 (1) All information and records held by the department
30 or its authorized representatives relating to known or
31 suspected cases of tuberculosis or exposure to tuberculosis
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1 shall be strictly confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1).
2 Such information shall not be released or made public by the
3 department or its authorized representatives or by a court or
4 parties to a lawsuit, except that release may be made under
5 the following circumstances:
6 (e) When made to the proper authorities as required by
7 chapter 39 or chapter 415.
8 Section 122. The introductory paragraph of subsection
9 (14) of section 393.063, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
10 393.063 Definitions.--For the purposes of this
11 chapter:
12 (14) "Direct service provider," also known as
13 "caregiver" in chapters 39 and chapter 415 or "caretaker" in
14 provisions relating to employment security checks, means a
15 person 18 years of age or older who has direct contact with
16 individuals with developmental disabilities and is unrelated
17 to the individuals with developmental disabilities.
18 Section 123. Section 395.1023, Florida Statutes, is
19 amended to read:
20 395.1023 Child abuse and neglect cases; duties.--Each
21 licensed facility shall adopt a protocol that, at a minimum,
22 requires the facility to:
23 (1) Incorporate a facility policy that every staff
24 member has an affirmative duty to report, pursuant to chapter
25 39 415, any actual or suspected case of child abuse,
26 abandonment, or neglect; and
27 (2) In any case involving suspected child abuse,
28 abandonment, or neglect, designate, at the request of the
29 department, a staff physician to act as a liaison between the
30 hospital and the Department of Children and Family Services
31 office which is investigating the suspected abuse,
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1 abandonment, or neglect, and the child protection team, as
2 defined in s. 39.01 415.503, when the case is referred to such
3 a team.
4
5 Each general hospital and appropriate specialty hospital shall
6 comply with the provisions of this section and shall notify
7 the agency and the department of its compliance by sending a
8 copy of its policy to the agency and the department as
9 required by rule. The failure by a general hospital or
10 appropriate specialty hospital to comply shall be punished by
11 a fine not exceeding $1,000, to be fixed, imposed, and
12 collected by the agency. Each day in violation is considered
13 a separate offense.
14 Section 124. Section 400.4174, Florida Statutes, is
15 amended to read:
16 400.4174 Reports of abuse in facilities.--When an
17 employee, volunteer, administrator, or owner of a facility has
18 a confirmed report of adult abuse, neglect, or exploitation,
19 as defined in s. 415.102, or a judicially determined report of
20 child abuse, abandonment, or neglect, as defined in s. 39.01
21 415.503, and the protective investigator knows that the
22 individual is an employee, volunteer, administrator, or owner
23 of a facility, the agency shall be notified of the confirmed
24 report.
25 Section 125. Paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of
26 section 400.556, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
27 400.556 Denial, suspension, revocation of license;
28 administrative fines; investigations and inspections.--
29 (2) Each of the following actions by the owner of an
30 adult day care center or by its operator or employee is a
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1 ground for action by the agency against the owner of the
2 center or its operator or employee:
3 (c) A confirmed report of adult abuse, neglect, or
4 exploitation, as defined in s. 415.102, or a report of child
5 abuse, abandonment, or neglect, as defined in s. 39.01
6 415.503, which report has been upheld following a hearing held
7 pursuant to chapter 120 or a waiver of such hearing.
8 Section 126. Paragraph (a) of subsection (8) of
9 section 402.165, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
10 402.165 Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee;
11 confidential records and meetings.--
12 (8)(a) In the performance of its duties, the Statewide
13 Human Rights Advocacy Committee shall have:
14 1. Authority to receive, investigate, seek to
15 conciliate, hold hearings on, and act on complaints which
16 allege any abuse or deprivation of constitutional or human
17 rights of clients.
18 2. Access to all client records, files, and reports
19 from any program, service, or facility that is operated,
20 funded, licensed, or regulated by the Department of Children
21 and Family Health and Rehabilitative Services and any records
22 which are material to its investigation and which are in the
23 custody of any other agency or department of government. The
24 committee's investigation or monitoring shall not impede or
25 obstruct matters under investigation by law enforcement or
26 judicial authorities. Access shall not be granted if a
27 specific procedure or prohibition for reviewing records is
28 required by federal law and regulation which supersedes state
29 law. Access shall not be granted to the records of a private
30 licensed practitioner who is providing services outside
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1 agencies and facilities and whose client is competent and
2 refuses disclosure.
3 3. Standing to petition the circuit court for access
4 to client records which are confidential as specified by law.
5 The petition shall state the specific reasons for which the
6 committee is seeking access and the intended use of such
7 information. The court may authorize committee access to such
8 records upon a finding that such access is directly related to
9 an investigation regarding the possible deprivation of
10 constitutional or human rights or the abuse of a client.
11 Original client files, records, and reports shall not be
12 removed from the Department of Children and Family Health and
13 Rehabilitative Services or agency facilities. Under no
14 circumstance shall the committee have access to confidential
15 adoption records in accordance with the provisions of ss.
16 39.0132 39.411, 63.022, and 63.162. Upon completion of a
17 general investigation of practices and procedures of the
18 Department of Children and Family Health and Rehabilitative
19 Services, the committee shall report its findings to that
20 department.
21 Section 127. Paragraph (a) of subsection (8) of
22 section 402.166, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
23 402.166 District human rights advocacy committees;
24 confidential records and meetings.--
25 (8)(a) In the performance of its duties, a district
26 human rights advocacy committee shall have:
27 1. Access to all client records, files, and reports
28 from any program, service, or facility that is operated,
29 funded, licensed, or regulated by the Department of Children
30 and Family Health and Rehabilitative Services and any records
31 which are material to its investigation and which are in the
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1 custody of any other agency or department of government. The
2 committee's investigation or monitoring shall not impede or
3 obstruct matters under investigation by law enforcement or
4 judicial authorities. Access shall not be granted if a
5 specific procedure or prohibition for reviewing records is
6 required by federal law and regulation which supersedes state
7 law. Access shall not be granted to the records of a private
8 licensed practitioner who is providing services outside
9 agencies and facilities and whose client is competent and
10 refuses disclosure.
11 2. Standing to petition the circuit court for access
12 to client records which are confidential as specified by law.
13 The petition shall state the specific reasons for which the
14 committee is seeking access and the intended use of such
15 information. The court may authorize committee access to such
16 records upon a finding that such access is directly related to
17 an investigation regarding the possible deprivation of
18 constitutional or human rights or the abuse of a client.
19 Original client files, records, and reports shall not be
20 removed from Department of Children and Family Health and
21 Rehabilitative Services or agency facilities. Upon no
22 circumstances shall the committee have access to confidential
23 adoption records in accordance with the provisions of ss.
24 39.0132 39.411, 63.022, and 63.162. Upon completion of a
25 general investigation of practices and procedures of the
26 Department of Children and Family Health and Rehabilitative
27 Services, the committee shall report its findings to that
28 department.
29 Section 128. Section 409.1672, Florida Statutes, is
30 amended to read:
31
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1 409.1672 Incentives for department employees.--In
2 order to promote accomplishing the goal of family
3 preservation, family reunification, or permanent placement of
4 a child in an adoptive home, the department may, pursuant to
5 s. 110, chapter 92-142, Laws of Florida, or subsequent
6 legislative authority and within existing resources, develop
7 monetary performance incentives such as bonuses, salary
8 increases, and educational enhancements for department
9 employees engaged in positions and activities related to the
10 child welfare system under chapter 39, chapter 415, or this
11 chapter who demonstrate outstanding work in these areas.
12 Section 129. Subsection (8) and paragraph (c) of
13 subsection (9) of section 409.176, Florida Statutes, are
14 amended to read:
15 409.176 Registration of residential child-caring
16 agencies and family foster homes.--
17 (8) The provisions of chapters 39 415 and 827
18 regarding child abuse, abandonment, and neglect and the
19 provisions of s. 409.175 and chapter 435 regarding screening
20 apply to any facility registered under this section.
21 (9) The qualified association may deny, suspend, or
22 revoke the registration of a Type II facility which:
23 (c) Violates the provisions of chapter 39 415 or
24 chapter 827 regarding child abuse, abandonment, and neglect or
25 the provisions of s. 409.175 or chapter 435 regarding
26 screening.
27
28 The qualified association shall notify the department within
29 10 days of the suspension or revocation of the registration of
30 any Type II facility registered under this section.
31
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1 Section 130. Paragraph (b) of subsection (10) of
2 section 409.2554, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
3 409.2554 Definitions.--As used in ss.
4 409.2551-409.2598, the term:
5 (10) "Support" means:
6 (b) Support for a child who is placed under the
7 custody of someone other than the custodial parent pursuant to
8 s. 39.508 39.41.
9 Section 131. Section 409.2577, Florida Statutes, is
10 amended to read:
11 409.2577 Parent locator service.--The department shall
12 establish a parent locator service to assist in locating
13 parents who have deserted their children and other persons
14 liable for support of dependent children. The department
15 shall use all sources of information available, including the
16 Federal Parent Locator Service, and may request and shall
17 receive information from the records of any person or the
18 state or any of its political subdivisions or any officer
19 thereof. Any agency as defined in s. 120.52, any political
20 subdivision, and any other person shall, upon request, provide
21 the department any information relating to location, salary,
22 insurance, social security, income tax, and employment history
23 necessary to locate parents who owe or potentially owe a duty
24 of support pursuant to Title IV-D of the Social Security Act.
25 This provision shall expressly take precedence over any other
26 statutory nondisclosure provision which limits the ability of
27 an agency to disclose such information, except that law
28 enforcement information as provided in s. 119.07(3)(i) is not
29 required to be disclosed, and except that confidential
30 taxpayer information possessed by the Department of Revenue
31 shall be disclosed only to the extent authorized in s.
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1 213.053(15). Nothing in this section requires the disclosure
2 of information if such disclosure is prohibited by federal
3 law. Information gathered or used by the parent locator
4 service is confidential and exempt from the provisions of s.
5 119.07(1). Additionally, the department is authorized to
6 collect any additional information directly bearing on the
7 identity and whereabouts of a person owing or asserted to be
8 owing an obligation of support for a dependent child.
9 Information gathered or used by the parent locator service is
10 confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1).
11 The department may make such information available only to
12 public officials and agencies of this state; political
13 subdivisions of this state; the custodial parent, legal
14 guardian, attorney, or agent of the child; and other states
15 seeking to locate parents who have deserted their children and
16 other persons liable for support of dependents, for the sole
17 purpose of establishing, modifying, or enforcing their
18 liability for support, and shall make such information
19 available to the Department of Children and Family Services
20 for the purpose of diligent search activities pursuant to
21 chapter 39. If the department has reasonable evidence of
22 domestic violence or child abuse and the disclosure of
23 information could be harmful to the custodial parent or the
24 child of such parent, the child support program director or
25 designee shall notify the Department of Children and Family
26 Services and the Secretary of the United States Department of
27 Health and Human Services of this evidence. Such evidence is
28 sufficient grounds for the department to disapprove an
29 application for location services.
30 Section 132. Subsection (29) of section 409.912,
31 Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
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1 409.912 Cost-effective purchasing of health care.--The
2 agency shall purchase goods and services for Medicaid
3 recipients in the most cost-effective manner consistent with
4 the delivery of quality medical care. The agency shall
5 maximize the use of prepaid per capita and prepaid aggregate
6 fixed-sum basis services when appropriate and other
7 alternative service delivery and reimbursement methodologies,
8 including competitive bidding pursuant to s. 287.057, designed
9 to facilitate the cost-effective purchase of a case-managed
10 continuum of care. The agency shall also require providers to
11 minimize the exposure of recipients to the need for acute
12 inpatient, custodial, and other institutional care and the
13 inappropriate or unnecessary use of high-cost services.
14 (29) Each managed care plan that is under contract
15 with the agency to provide health care services to Medicaid
16 recipients shall annually conduct a background check with the
17 Florida Department of Law Enforcement of all persons with
18 ownership interest of 5 percent or more or executive
19 management responsibility for the managed care plan and shall
20 submit to the agency information concerning any such person
21 who has been found guilty of, regardless of adjudication, or
22 has entered a plea of nolo contendere or guilty to, any of the
23 offenses listed in s. 435.03 or has a confirmed report of
24 abuse, neglect, or exploitation pursuant to part I of chapter
25 415.
26 Section 133. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of
27 section 409.9126, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
28 409.9126 Children with special health care needs.--
29 (1) As used in this section:
30 (a) "Children's Medical Services network" means an
31 alternative service network that includes health care
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1 providers and health care facilities specified in chapter 391
2 and ss. 39.303, 383.15-383.21, and 383.216, and 415.5055.
3 Section 134. Paragraph (f) of subsection (5) of
4 section 414.065, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
5 414.065 Work requirements.--
6 (5) CONTINUATION OF TEMPORARY CASH ASSISTANCE FOR
7 CHILDREN; PROTECTIVE PAYEES.--
8 (f) If the department is unable to designate a
9 qualified protective payee or authorized representative, a
10 referral shall be made under the provisions of chapter 39 415
11 for protective intervention.
12 Section 135. Section 435.045, Florida Statutes, is
13 created to read:
14 435.045 Requirements for prospective foster or
15 adoptive parents.--
16 (1) Unless an election provided for in subsection (2)
17 is made with respect to the state, the department shall
18 conduct criminal records checks equivalent to the level 2
19 screening required in s. 435.04(1) for any prospective foster
20 or adoptive parent before the foster or adoptive parent may be
21 finally approved for placement of a child on whose behalf
22 foster care maintenance payments or adoption assistance
23 payments under s. 471 of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C.
24 671, are to be made. Approval shall not be granted:
25 (a) In any case in which a record check reveals a
26 felony conviction for child abuse, abandonment, or neglect;
27 for spousal abuse; for a crime against children, including
28 child pornography, or for a crime involving violence,
29 including rape, sexual assault, or homicide but not including
30 other physical assault or battery, if the department finds
31
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1 that a court of competent jurisdiction has determined that the
2 felony was committed at any time; and
3 (b) In any case in which a record check reveals a
4 felony conviction for physical assault, battery, or a
5 drug-related offense, if the department finds that a court of
6 competent jurisdiction has determined that the felony was
7 committed within the past 5 years.
8 (2) For purposes of this section, and ss. 39.401(3)
9 and 39.508(9)(b) and (10)(a), the department and its
10 authorized agents or contract providers are hereby designated
11 a criminal justice agency for the purposes of accessing
12 criminal justice information, including National Crime
13 Information Center information, to be used for enforcing
14 Florida's laws concerning the crimes of child abuse,
15 abandonment, and neglect. This information shall be used
16 solely for purposes supporting the detection, apprehension,
17 prosecution, pretrial release, posttrial release, or
18 rehabilitation of criminal offenders or persons accused of the
19 crimes of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect and shall not
20 be further disseminated or used for any other purposes.
21 (3) Subsection (2) shall not apply if the Governor has
22 notified the Secretary of the United States Department of
23 Health and Human Services in writing that the state has
24 elected to make subsection (2) inapplicable to the state, or
25 if the Legislature, by law, has elected to make subsection (2)
26 inapplicable to the state.
27 Section 136. Section 447.401, Florida Statutes, is
28 amended to read:
29 447.401 Grievance procedures.--Each public employer
30 and bargaining agent shall negotiate a grievance procedure to
31 be used for the settlement of disputes between employer and
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1 employee, or group of employees, involving the interpretation
2 or application of a collective bargaining agreement. Such
3 grievance procedure shall have as its terminal step a final
4 and binding disposition by an impartial neutral, mutually
5 selected by the parties; however, when the issue under appeal
6 is an allegation of abuse