HB 1121 2003
1	CHAMBER ACTION
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6	The Committee on Future of Florida's Families recommends the
7	following:
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9	Committee Substitute
10	Remove the entire bill and insert:
11	A bill to be entitled
12	An act relating to children in custody of the state;
13	requiring the Department of Children and Family Services
14	to enter into interagency agreements with public or
15	private entities for delivery of services to children in
16	care or custody or under the supervision of the
17	department; requiring an agreement between the department
18	and the Department of Education; requiring an agreement
19	between the department and district school boards;
20	specifying provisions of each agreement; requiring access
21	to certain information; providing training components;
22	providing for interpretation of the act; providing an
23	effective date.
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25	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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27	Section 1. The Department of Children and Family Services
28	shall enter into agreements, contracts, or other arrangements
29	with public or private entities for the purpose of facilitating
30	the delivery of any services or programs to children in the care
31	or custody or under the supervision of the department, avoiding
32	duplication of services or programs, or combining resources to
33	maximize the availability or delivery of services or programs.
34	(1) The Department of Children and Family Services shall
35	enter into an agreement with the Department of Education
36	regarding the education and related care of children known to
37	the department who are in shelter care, foster care, or out-of-
38	home care, placed with a relative caregiver, or under protective
39	supervision of the department. Such agreement shall be designed
40	to provide educational access to children known to the
41	Department of Children and Family Services.
42	(2) The Department of Children and Family Services or
43	community based care lead agencies shall enter into agreements
44	with district school boards or other local educational entities
45	regarding the education and related services of children in the
46	temporary or permanent custody of the department. The
47	interagency agreement between each school district and the
48	applicable Department of Children and Family Services district
49	or community based care lead agency for such district shall
50	include, but not be limited to:
51	(a) Responsibility by the Department of Children and
52	Family Services or community based care lead agency for
53	enrolling the child in school or continuing the child's
54	enrollment at the same school to avoid disruption of education
55	from the time of shelter until other appropriate arrangements
56	can be made.
57	(b) A requirement that the Department of Children and
58	Family Services or community based care lead agency request the
59	school district in which a child in its custody is enrolled to
60	identify all educational and other school and school district-
61	provided services that the school district believes are
62	reasonably necessary to meet the child's educational needs. The
63	department or community based care lead agency shall notify the
64	school and school district in which the child is enrolled of the
65	name and phone number of the child's caregiver and caseworker
66	for child safety purposes. The Department of Children and Family
67	Services shall be responsible for familiarizing its agents with
68	the services and information available through the Department of
69	Education and local school districts, including, but not limited
70	to, the current Sunshine State Standards, the Surrogate Parent
71	Training Manual, and other resources accessible through the
72	Department of Education or local school districts to facilitate
73	educational access for a child in the care of the Department of
74	Children and Family Services.
75	(c) A protocol for the Department of Children and Family
76	Services or community based care lead agency to share
77	information about a child with the school district, consistent
78	with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, since the
79	sharing of information will assist each agency in obtaining
80	education and related services for the benefit of the child.
81	(d) Whether transportation is available for a child in
82	state custody when such transportation will avoid a change in
83	school assignment due to a change in residential placement.
84	Recognizing that continued enrollment in the same school
85	throughout the child’s time in out-of-home care is preferable
86	unless enrollment in the same school would be unsafe or
87	otherwise impractical, the Department of Children and Family
88	Services or community based care lead agency and the Department
89	of Education shall assess the availability of funding for
90	transportation, including, but not limited to, whether the child
91	qualifies under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act or
92	the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
93	(e) Cooperation in accessing the services and supports
94	needed for a child who has or is suspected of having a
95	disability to receive an appropriate education consistent with
96	the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and state
97	implementing laws, rules, and assurances.
98	(f) Coordination of services for a child who has or is
99	suspected of having a disability, to include:
100	1. Referral for screening.
101	2. Sharing of evaluations between the school district and
102	the Department of Children and Family Services or community
103	based care lead agency where appropriate.
104	3. Provision of education and related services appropriate
105	for the child's needs and abilities.
106	4. Coordination of services and plans between the school
107	and the residential setting to avoid duplication or conflicting
108	service plans.
109	5. Appointment of a surrogate parent, consistent with the
110	Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, for educational
111	purposes for a child who qualifies as soon as the child is
112	determined to be dependent and without a parent to act for the
113	child. The surrogate parent shall be appointed by the school
114	district without regard to where the child is placed so that one
115	surrogate parent can follow the child's education during his or
116	her entire time in state custody.
117	6. For each child 14 years of age and older, transition
118	planning by the Department of Children and Family Services or
119	community based care lead agency and all providers, including
120	the department's independent living program staff, to meet the
121	requirements of the local school district for educational
122	purposes.
123	(g) Provision of individualized student intervention or an
124	individual educational plan when a determination has been made
125	through legally appropriate criteria that intervention services
126	are required.
127	(3) The Department of Children and Family Services or
128	community based care lead agency shall provide notification and
129	access to the school district of the department's or community
130	based care lead agency's case planning for a child, both at the
131	time of plan development and plan review, to enable the school
132	district to provide information regarding the child during these
133	critical processes if the school district deems it desirable and
134	appropriate.
135	(4) The Department of Children and Family Services shall
136	coordinate with the Department of Education and the local school
137	districts with respect to training required to implement this
138	section in order to offer opportunities for education personnel
139	to participate in such training. Such coordination shall
140	include, but not be limited to, notice of training sessions,
141	opportunities to purchase training materials, proposals to avoid
142	duplication of services by offering joint training, and
143	incorporation of materials available from the Department of
144	Education and local school districts into the Department of
145	Children and Family Services training when appropriate. The
146	Department of Children and Family Services training components
147	shall include the following:
148	(a) Training for surrogate parents to include the effects
149	of abuse, neglect, and removal from home on the child's ability
150	to learn.
151	(b) Training for parents in cases in which reunification
152	is the goal or for preadoptive parents when adoption is the
153	goal, so that parents learn how to access the services the child
154	needs and the importance of their involvement in the child's
155	education.
156	(c) Training for caseworkers and foster parents to include
157	information on the child's right to an education, the role of an
158	education in the child's development and adjustment, the proper
159	ways to access education and related services for the child, and
160	the importance and strategies for parental involvement in
161	education for the success of the child.
162	(d) Training of Department of Children and Family Services
163	contractors and school-leased contractors with respect to the
164	education of children and related issues.
165	Section 2. The provisions of this act establish goals and
166	not rights. Nothing in this act shall be interpreted as
167	requiring the delivery of any particular service or level of
168	service in excess of existing appropriations. No person shall
169	have a cause of action against the state or any of its
170	subdivisions, agencies, contractors, subcontractors, or agents
171	based upon the passage of this act or failure by the Legislature
172	to provide adequate funding for the achievement of these goals.
173	Nothing in this act shall require the expenditure of funds to
174	meet the goals established in this act except funds specifically
175	appropriated for such purpose.
176	Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2003.