Senate Bill sb2674e1
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1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the statewide and local
3 advocacy councils; amending s. 402.164, F.S.;
4 providing definitions; amending s. 402.165,
5 F.S.; requiring the Florida Statewide Advocacy
6 Council to be located in the Executive Office
7 of the Governor; removing the requirement for
8 the Department of Children and Family Services
9 to provide administrative support; revising the
10 membership of the statewide advocacy council;
11 providing priority consideration for certain
12 candidates for the statewide council; requiring
13 the Governor to select an executive director;
14 providing that such director shall serve at the
15 pleasure of the Governor; removing a
16 restriction on the preparation of the annual
17 budget; requiring the council to consult with
18 the Governor before generating a complaint;
19 revising council duties and responsibilities;
20 directing the council to establish interagency
21 agreements with certain state agencies;
22 requiring copies of certain files, records, and
23 reports to be provided to the council at the
24 agency's expense; amending s. 402.166, F.S.;
25 deleting references to administration by the
26 department; providing clarification for duties
27 performed by a local council; revising the
28 period in which the Governor may approve or
29 disapprove an appointment; removing authority
30 to review certain programs; providing that the
31 local council has the same authority to access
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1 records from facilities, programs, and clients
2 as does the statewide advocacy council;
3 amending s. 402.167, F.S.; directing each state
4 agency that provides client services to provide
5 certain information about the statewide
6 advocacy and local councils; transferring the
7 Florida Statewide Advocacy Council, certain
8 positions, local councils, and a toll-free
9 complaint line by a type two transfer from the
10 Department of Children and Family Services to
11 the Florida Statewide Advocacy Council;
12 directing the department to identify positions
13 to be transferred by a type two transfer to the
14 Florida Statewide Advocacy Council for support
15 of the local councils; providing an effective
16 date.
17
18 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
19
20 Section 1. Subsection (2) of section 402.164, Florida
21 Statutes, is amended to read:
22 402.164 Legislative intent; definitions.--
23 (2) As used in ss. 402.164-402.167, the term:
24 (a) "Access" means a visual inspection or the copying
25 of the records maintained by the state agency, facility,
26 provider, or contractor.
27 (b)(a) "Client" means a client as defined in s.
28 393.063, s. 394.67, s. 397.311, or s. 400.960, a forensic
29 client or client as defined in s. 916.106, a child or youth as
30 defined in s. 39.01, a child as defined in s. 827.01, a family
31 as defined in s. 414.0252, a participant as defined in s.
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1 400.551, a resident as defined in s. 400.402, a Medicaid
2 recipient or recipient as defined in s. 409.901, a child
3 receiving childcare as defined in s. 402.302, a disabled adult
4 as defined in s. 410.032 or s. 410.603, or a victim as defined
5 in s. 39.01 or s. 415.102 as each definition applies within
6 its respective chapter.
7 (c)(b) "Client services" means services which are
8 provided to a client by a state agency or a service provider
9 operated, funded, or contracted by the state.
10 (d) "Council" or "statewide council" means the Florida
11 Statewide Advocacy Council.
12 (e) "Local council" or "local advocacy council" means
13 one of the local advocacy councils located in this state,
14 under the supervision of the Florida Statewide Advocacy
15 Council.
16 Section 2. Section 402.165, Florida Statutes, is
17 amended to read:
18 402.165 Florida Statewide Advocacy Council;
19 confidential records and meetings.--
20 (1) The Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee
21 within the Department of Children and Family Services is
22 redesignated as The Florida Statewide Advocacy Council shall
23 be located in the Executive Office of the Governor, but may be
24 assigned by the Governor for administrative support purposes
25 to any Governor's agency. Members of the council shall
26 represent the interests of clients who are served by state
27 agencies that provide client services. The Department of
28 Children and Family Services shall provide administrative
29 support and service to the statewide council to the extent
30 requested by the executive director within available
31 resources. The statewide council is not subject to control,
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1 supervision, or direction by any state agency providing client
2 services the Department of Children and Family Services in the
3 performance of its duties. The council shall consist of not
4 less than 15 and not more than 20 residents of this state, one
5 from each service area designated by the statewide council,
6 who broadly represent the interests of the public and the
7 clients of the state agencies that provide client services.
8 The members shall be representative of four groups of state
9 residents as follows: a one provider who delivers client
10 services as defined in s. 402.164(2); a two nonsalaried
11 representative representatives of nonprofit agencies or civic
12 groups; a representative four representatives of consumer
13 groups who is are currently receiving, or has have received,
14 one or more client services within the past 4 years, at least
15 one of whom must be a consumer of one or more client services;
16 and two residents of the state who do not represent any of the
17 foregoing groups, but may represent a one of whom represents
18 the health-related profession or professions and one of whom
19 represents the legal profession. In appointing the
20 representative of the health-related professions, the
21 appointing authority shall give priority of consideration to a
22 physician licensed under chapter 458 or chapter 459; and, in
23 appointing the representative of the legal profession, the
24 appointing authority shall give priority of consideration to a
25 member in good standing of The Florida Bar. Of the remaining
26 members, no more than one shall be an elected official; no
27 more than one shall be a health professional; no more than one
28 shall be a legal professional; no more than one shall be a
29 provider; no more than two shall be nonsalaried
30 representatives of nonprofit agencies or civic groups; and no
31 more than one shall be an individual whose primary area of
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1 interest, experience, or expertise is a major client group of
2 a client services group that is not represented on the council
3 at the time of appointment. Except for the member who is an
4 elected public official, each member of the statewide council
5 must be given priority consideration if he or she has have
6 served as a member of a local Florida advocacy council, with
7 priority consideration given to an applicant who has served a
8 full term on a local council. Persons related to each other
9 by consanguinity or affinity within the third degree may not
10 serve on the statewide council at the same time.
11 (2) Members of the statewide council shall be
12 appointed to serve terms of 4 years. A member may not serve
13 more than two full consecutive terms.
14 (3) If a member of the statewide council fails to
15 attend two-thirds of the regular council meetings during the
16 course of a year, the position held by the member may be
17 deemed vacant by the council. The Governor shall fill the
18 vacancy according pursuant to subsection (4). If a member of
19 the statewide council violates this section or procedures
20 adopted under this section, the council may recommend to the
21 Governor that the member be removed.
22 (4) The Governor may shall fill a each vacancy on the
23 statewide council from a list of nominees submitted by the
24 statewide council or appoint any qualified person. A list of
25 candidates may be submitted to the statewide council by the
26 local council in the service area from which the vacancy
27 occurs. Priority of consideration shall be given to the
28 appointment of an individual who is receiving one or more
29 client services and whose primary interest, experience, or
30 expertise lies with a major client group that is not
31 represented on the council at the time of the appointment. If
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1 an appointment is not made within 60 days after a vacancy
2 occurs on the statewide council, the vacancy may be filled by
3 a majority vote of the statewide council without further
4 action by the Governor. A person who is employed by any state
5 agency in client services may not be appointed to the
6 statewide council.
7 (5)(a) Members of the statewide council shall receive
8 no compensation, but are entitled to be reimbursed for per
9 diem and travel expenses in accordance with s. 112.061.
10 (b) The Governor council shall select an executive
11 director who shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor
12 council and shall perform the duties delegated to him or her
13 by the council. The compensation of the executive director
14 and staff shall be established in accordance with the rules of
15 the Selected Exempt Service.
16 (c) The council may apply for, receive, and accept
17 grants, gifts, donations, bequests, and other payments
18 including money or property, real or personal, tangible or
19 intangible, and service from any governmental or other public
20 or private entity or person and make arrangements as to the
21 use of same.
22 (d) The statewide council shall annually prepare a
23 budget request that, is not to be changed by department staff
24 after it is approved by the council, but shall be submitted to
25 the Governor for transmittal to the Legislature. The budget
26 shall include a request for funds to carry out the activities
27 of the statewide council and the local councils.
28 (6) The members of the statewide council shall elect a
29 chair and a vice chair to terms of 1 year. A person may not
30 serve as chair or vice chair for more than two full
31 consecutive terms.
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1 (7) The responsibilities of the statewide council
2 include, but are not limited to:
3 (a) Serving as an independent third-party mechanism
4 for protecting the constitutional and human rights of clients
5 within programs or facilities operated, funded, or contracted
6 by any state agency that provides client services.
7 (b) Monitoring, by site visit and through access to
8 inspection of records the delivery and use of services,
9 programs, or facilities operated, funded, or contracted by any
10 state agency that provides client services, for the purpose of
11 preventing abuse or deprivation of the constitutional and
12 human rights of clients. The statewide council may conduct an
13 unannounced site visit or monitoring visit that involves the
14 inspection of records if the visit is conditioned upon a
15 complaint. A complaint may be generated by the council
16 itself, after consulting with the Governor's office, if
17 information from any state agency that provides client
18 services or from other sources indicates a situation at the
19 program or facility that indicates possible abuse or neglect
20 or deprivation of the constitutional and human rights of
21 clients. The statewide council shall establish and follow
22 uniform criteria for the review of information and generation
23 of complaints. Routine program monitoring and reviews that do
24 not require an examination of records may be made unannounced.
25 (c) Receiving, investigating, and resolving reports of
26 abuse or deprivation of constitutional and human rights
27 referred to the statewide council by a local council. If a
28 matter constitutes a threat to the life, safety, or health of
29 clients or is multiservice-area multidistrict in scope, the
30 statewide council may exercise its such powers without the
31 necessity of a referral from a local council.
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1 (d) Reviewing existing programs or services and new or
2 revised programs of the state agencies that provide client
3 services and making recommendations as to how the rights of
4 clients are affected.
5 (e) Submitting an annual report to the Legislature, no
6 later than December 30 of each calendar year, concerning
7 activities, recommendations, and complaints reviewed or
8 developed by the council during the year.
9 (f) Conducting meetings at least six times a year at
10 the call of the chair and at other times at the call of the
11 Governor or by written request of six members of the council.
12 (g) Developing and adopting uniform procedures to be
13 used to carry out the purpose and responsibilities of the
14 statewide council and the local councils, which procedures
15 shall include, but need not be limited to, the following:
16 1. The responsibilities of the statewide council and
17 the local councils;
18 2. The organization and operation of the statewide
19 council and the local councils, including procedures for
20 replacing a member, formats for maintaining records of council
21 activities, and criteria for determining what constitutes a
22 conflict of interest for purposes of assigning and conducting
23 investigations and monitoring;
24 3. Uniform procedures for the statewide council and
25 the local councils relating to receiving and investigating
26 reports of abuse or deprivation of constitutional or human
27 rights;
28 4. The responsibilities and relationship of the local
29 councils to the statewide council;
30 5. The relationship of the statewide council to the
31 state agencies that receive and investigate reports of abuse
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1 and neglect of clients of state agencies, including the way in
2 which reports of findings and recommendations related to
3 reported abuse or neglect are given to the appropriate state
4 agency that provides client services;
5 6. Provision for cooperation with the State Long-Term
6 Care Ombudsman Council;
7 7. Procedures for appeal. An appeal to the statewide
8 council is made by a local council when a valid complaint is
9 not resolved at the local level. The statewide council may
10 appeal an unresolved complaint to the secretary or director of
11 the appropriate state agency that provides client services.
12 If, after exhausting all remedies, the statewide council is
13 not satisfied that the complaint can be resolved within the
14 state agency, the appeal may be referred to the Governor;
15 8. Uniform procedures for gaining access to and
16 maintaining confidential information; and
17 9. Definitions of misfeasance and malfeasance for
18 members of the statewide council and local councils.
19 (h) Supervising the operations of the local councils
20 and monitoring the performance and activities of all local
21 councils and providing technical assistance to members and
22 staff of local councils.
23 (i) Providing for the development and presentation of
24 a standardized training program for members of local councils.
25 (j) Developing and maintaining interagency agreements
26 between the council and the state agencies providing client
27 services. The interagency agreements shall address the
28 coordination of efforts and identify the roles and
29 responsibilities of the statewide and local councils and each
30 agency in fulfillment of their responsibilities, including
31 access to records.
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1 (8)(a) In the performance of its duties, the statewide
2 council shall have:
3 1. Authority to receive, investigate, seek to
4 conciliate, hold hearings on, and act on complaints that
5 allege any abuse or deprivation of constitutional or human
6 rights of persons who receive client services from any state
7 agency.
8 2. Access to all client records, files, and reports
9 from any program, service, or facility that is operated,
10 funded, or contracted by any state agency that provides client
11 services and any records that are material to its
12 investigation and are in the custody of any other agency or
13 department of government. The council's investigation or
14 monitoring shall not impede or obstruct matters under
15 investigation by law enforcement agencies or judicial
16 authorities. Access shall not be granted if a specific
17 procedure or prohibition for reviewing records is required by
18 federal law and regulation that supersedes state law. Access
19 shall not be granted to the records of a private licensed
20 practitioner who is providing services outside the state
21 agency, or outside a state facility, and whose client is
22 competent and refuses disclosure.
23 3. Standing to petition the circuit court for access
24 to client records that are confidential as specified by law.
25 The petition shall state the specific reasons for which the
26 council is seeking access and the intended use of such
27 information. The circuit court may authorize council access
28 to the such records upon a finding that such access is
29 directly related to an investigation regarding the possible
30 deprivation of constitutional or human rights or the abuse of
31 a client. Original client files, agency records, and reports
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1 may shall not be removed from a state agency, but copies must
2 be provided to the council and the local councils at the
3 agency's expense. Under no circumstance shall the council
4 have access to confidential adoption records once the adoption
5 is finalized by a court in accordance with ss. 39.0132,
6 63.022, and 63.162. Upon completion of a general
7 investigation of practices and procedures of a state agency,
8 the statewide council shall report its findings to that
9 agency.
10 (b) All information obtained or produced by the
11 statewide council that is made confidential by law, that
12 relates to the identity of any client or group of clients
13 subject to the protections of this section, or that relates to
14 the identity of an individual who provides information to the
15 council about abuse or about alleged violations of
16 constitutional or human rights, is confidential and exempt
17 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State
18 Constitution.
19 (c) Portions of meetings of the statewide council that
20 relate to the identity of any client or group of clients
21 subject to the protections of this section, that relate to the
22 identity of an individual who provides information to the
23 council about abuse or about alleged violations of
24 constitutional or human rights, or wherein testimony is
25 provided relating to records otherwise made confidential by
26 law, are exempt from s. 286.011 and s. 24(b), Art. I of the
27 State Constitution.
28 (d) All records prepared by members of the statewide
29 council that reflect a mental impression, investigative
30 strategy, or theory are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a),
31 Art. I of the State Constitution until the investigation is
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1 completed or until the investigation ceases to be active. For
2 purposes of this section, an investigation is considered
3 "active" while the such investigation is being conducted by
4 the statewide council with a reasonable, good faith belief
5 that it may lead to a finding of abuse or of a violation of
6 human rights. An investigation does not cease to be active so
7 long as the statewide council is proceeding with reasonable
8 dispatch and there is a good faith belief that action may be
9 initiated by the council or other administrative or law
10 enforcement agency.
11 (e) Any person who knowingly and willfully discloses
12 any such confidential information commits a misdemeanor of the
13 second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
14 775.083.
15 Section 3. Section 402.166, Florida Statutes, is
16 amended to read:
17 402.166 Florida local advocacy councils; confidential
18 records and meetings.--
19 (1) Each district human rights advocacy committee
20 within each service area of the Department of Children and
21 Family Services is redesignated as the Florida Local Advocacy
22 Council. The local councils are subject to direction from and
23 the supervision of the statewide council. The statewide
24 council Department of Children and Family Services shall
25 assign staff to provide administrative support to the local
26 councils, and staff assigned to these positions shall perform
27 the functions required by the local councils without
28 interference from the department. The local councils shall
29 direct the activities of staff assigned to them to the extent
30 necessary for the local councils to carry out their duties.
31 The number and areas of responsibility of the local councils,
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1 not to exceed 46 councils statewide, shall be determined by
2 the statewide council and shall be consistent with judicial
3 circuit boundaries. Local councils shall meet at facilities
4 under their jurisdiction whenever possible.
5 (2) Each local council shall have no fewer than 7
6 members and no more than 15 members, no more than 4 of whom
7 are or have been recipients of one or more client services
8 within the last 4 years, except that one member of this group
9 may be an immediate relative or legal representative of a
10 current or former client; two providers who deliver client
11 services as defined in s. 402.164(2); and two representatives
12 of professional organizations, one of whom represents the
13 health-related professions and one of whom represents the
14 legal profession. Priority of consideration shall be given to
15 the appointment of at least one medical or osteopathic
16 physician, as defined in chapters 458 and 459, and one member
17 in good standing of The Florida Bar. Priority of consideration
18 shall also be given to the appointment of an individual who is
19 receiving client services and whose primary interest,
20 experience, or expertise lies with a major client group not
21 represented on the local council at the time of the
22 appointment. A person who is employed in client services by
23 any state agency may not be appointed to the local council. No
24 more than three individuals who are providing contracted
25 services for clients to any state agency may serve on the same
26 local council at the same time. Persons related to each other
27 by consanguinity or affinity within the third degree may not
28 serve on the same local council at the same time. All members
29 of local councils must successfully complete a standardized
30 training course for council members within 3 months after
31 their appointment to a local council. A member may not be
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1 assigned to an investigation that requires access to
2 confidential information prior to the completion of the
3 training course. After he or she completes the required
4 training course, a member of a local council may not be
5 prevented from participating in any activity of that local
6 council, including investigations and monitoring, except due
7 to a conflict of interest as described in the procedures
8 established by the statewide council under pursuant to
9 subsection (7).
10 (3)(a) With respect to existing local councils, each
11 member shall serve a term of 4 years. Upon expiration of a
12 term and in the case of any other vacancy, the local council
13 shall appoint a replacement by majority vote of the local
14 council, subject to the approval of the Governor. A member
15 may serve no more than two full consecutive terms.
16 (b)1. The Governor shall appoint the first four
17 members of any newly created local council; and those four
18 members shall select the remaining members, subject to
19 approval of the Governor. If any of the first four members
20 are not appointed within 60 days after a request is submitted
21 to the Governor, those members may be appointed by a majority
22 vote of the statewide council without further action by the
23 Governor.
24 2. Members shall serve for no more than two full
25 consecutive terms of 4 years, except that at the time of
26 initial appointment, terms shall be staggered so that
27 approximately one-half of the members first appointed shall
28 serve for terms of 4 years and the remaining members shall
29 serve for terms of 2 years. Vacancies shall be filled as
30 provided in subparagraph 1.
31
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1 (c) If no action is taken by the Governor to approve
2 or disapprove a replacement of a member under pursuant to this
3 subsection within 60 30 days after the local council has
4 notified the Governor of the appointment, then the appointment
5 of the replacement may be considered approved by the Governor
6 statewide council.
7 (4) Each local council shall elect a chair and a vice
8 chair for a term of 1 year. A person may not serve as chair or
9 vice chair for more than two consecutive terms. The chair's
10 and vice chair's terms expire on September 30 of each year.
11 (5) If a local council member fails to attend
12 two-thirds of the regular local council meetings during the
13 course of a year, the local council may replace the member.
14 If a member of a local council violates this section or
15 procedures adopted under this section, the local council may
16 recommend to the Governor that the member be removed.
17 (6) A member of a local council shall receive no
18 compensation but is entitled to be reimbursed for per diem and
19 travel expenses as provided in s. 112.061. Members may be
20 provided reimbursement for long-distance telephone calls if
21 the such calls were necessary to an investigation of an abuse
22 or deprivation of constitutional or human rights.
23 (7) A local council shall first seek to resolve a
24 complaint with the appropriate local administration, agency,
25 or program; any matter not resolved by the local council shall
26 be referred to the statewide council. A local council shall
27 comply with appeal procedures established by the statewide
28 council. The duties, actions, and procedures of both new and
29 existing local councils shall conform to ss. 402.164-402.167.
30 The duties of each local council shall include, but are not
31 limited to:
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1 (a) Serving as an independent third-party mechanism
2 for protecting the constitutional and human rights of any
3 client within a program or facility operated, funded, or
4 contracted by a state agency providing client services in the
5 local services area.
6 (b) Monitoring by site visit and access to inspection
7 of records the delivery and use of services, programs, or
8 facilities operated, funded, or contracted by a state agency
9 that provides client services, for the purpose of preventing
10 abuse or deprivation of the constitutional and human rights of
11 clients. A local council may conduct an unannounced site
12 visit or monitoring visit that involves access to the
13 inspection of records if the visit is conditioned upon a
14 complaint. A complaint may be generated by the council itself
15 if information from a state agency that provides client
16 services or from other sources indicates a situation at the
17 program or facility that indicates possible abuse or neglect
18 or deprivation of constitutional and human rights of clients.
19 The local council shall follow uniform criteria established by
20 the statewide council for the review of information and
21 generation of complaints. Routine program monitoring and
22 reviews that do not require an examination of records may be
23 made unannounced.
24 (c) Receiving, investigating, and resolving reports of
25 abuse or deprivation of constitutional and human rights by a
26 state agency or contracted service provider in the local
27 service area.
28 (d) Reviewing and making recommendations regarding how
29 a client's constitutional or human rights might be affected by
30 the client's participation in a proposed research project,
31 prior to implementation of the project.
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1 (e) Reviewing existing programs and proposed new or
2 revised programs of client services and making recommendations
3 as to how these programs and services affect or might affect
4 the constitutional or human rights of clients.
5 (e)(f) Appealing to the statewide council any
6 complaint unresolved at the local level. Any matter that
7 constitutes a threat to the life, safety, or health of a
8 client or is multiservice area multidistrict in scope shall
9 automatically be referred to the statewide council.
10 (f)(g) Submitting an annual report by September 30 to
11 the statewide council concerning activities, recommendations,
12 and complaints reviewed or developed by the local council
13 during the year.
14 (g)(h) Conducting meetings at least six times a year
15 at the call of the chair and at other times at the call of the
16 Governor, at the call of the statewide council, or by written
17 request of a majority of the members of the local council.
18 (8)(a) In the performance of its duties, a local
19 council shall have the same authority to access client
20 records, state agency files, reports from any program or
21 service, records of contractors and providers, and records
22 from any facility operated, funded, or under contract with a
23 state agency as specified in s. 402.165(8)(a):
24 1. Access to all client records, files, and reports
25 from any program, service, or facility that is operated,
26 funded, or contracted by any state agency that provides client
27 services and any records that are material to its
28 investigation and are in the custody of any other agency or
29 department of government. The council's investigation or
30 monitoring shall not impede or obstruct matters under
31 investigation by law enforcement agencies or judicial
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1 authorities. Access shall not be granted if a specific
2 procedure or prohibition for reviewing records is required by
3 federal law and regulation that supersedes state law. Access
4 shall not be granted to the records of a private licensed
5 practitioner who is providing services outside state agencies
6 and facilities and whose client is competent and refuses
7 disclosure.
8 2. Standing to petition the circuit court for access
9 to client records that are confidential as specified by law.
10 The petition shall state the specific reasons for which the
11 council is seeking access and the intended use of such
12 information. The court may authorize access to such records
13 upon a finding that such access is directly related to an
14 investigation regarding the possible deprivation of
15 constitutional or human rights or the abuse of a client.
16 Original client files, records, and reports shall not be
17 removed from a state agency. Upon no circumstances shall the
18 council have access to confidential adoption records once the
19 adoption is finalized in court in accordance with ss. 39.0132,
20 63.022, and 63.162. Upon completion of a general investigation
21 of practices and procedures followed by a state agency in
22 providing client services, the council shall report its
23 findings to the appropriate state agency.
24 (b) All information obtained or produced by a local
25 council that is made confidential by law, that relates to the
26 identity of any client or group of clients subject to the
27 protection of this section, or that relates to the identity of
28 an individual who provides information to the local council
29 about abuse or about alleged violations of constitutional or
30 human rights, is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and
31 s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.
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1 (c) Portions of meetings of a local council that
2 relate to the identity of any client or group of clients
3 subject to the protections of this section, that relate to the
4 identity of an individual who provides information to the
5 local council about abuse or about alleged violations of
6 constitutional or human rights, or when wherein testimony is
7 provided relating to records otherwise made confidential by
8 law, are exempt from s. 286.011 and s. 24(b), Art. I of the
9 State Constitution.
10 (d) All records prepared by members of a local council
11 that reflect a mental impression, investigative strategy, or
12 theory are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of
13 the State Constitution until the investigation is completed or
14 until the investigation ceases to be active. For purposes of
15 this section, an investigation is considered "active" while
16 the such investigation is being conducted by a local council
17 with a reasonable, good faith belief that it may lead to a
18 finding of abuse or of a violation of constitutional or human
19 rights. An investigation does not cease to be active so long
20 as the local council is proceeding with reasonable dispatch
21 and there is a good faith belief that action may be initiated
22 by the local council or other administrative or law
23 enforcement agency.
24 (e) Any person who knowingly and willfully discloses
25 any such confidential information commits a misdemeanor of the
26 second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
27 775.083.
28 Section 4. Section 402.167, Florida Statutes, is
29 amended to read:
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1 402.167 Duties of state agencies that provide client
2 services relating to the Florida Statewide Advocacy Council
3 and the Florida local advocacy councils.--
4 (1) Each state agency that provides client services
5 shall adopt rules that are consistent with law, amended to
6 reflect any statutory changes, and that address at least the
7 following:
8 (a) Procedures by which staff of state agencies refer
9 reports of abuse of clients to the Florida local advocacy
10 councils.
11 (b) Procedures by which client information is made
12 available to members of the Florida Statewide Advocacy Council
13 and the Florida local advocacy councils.
14 (c) Procedures by which recommendations made by the
15 statewide and local councils will be incorporated into
16 policies and procedures of the state agencies.
17 (2) The Department of Children and Family Services
18 shall provide for the location of local councils in area
19 offices and shall provide necessary equipment and office
20 supplies, including, but not limited to, clerical and word
21 processing services, photocopiers, telephone services, and
22 stationery and other necessary supplies, and shall establish
23 the procedures by which council members are reimbursed for
24 authorized expenditures.
25 (3) The secretaries or directors of the state agencies
26 shall ensure the full cooperation and assistance of employees
27 of their respective state agencies with members and staff of
28 the statewide and local councils. The secretary or director of
29 each state agency providing client services shall notify its
30 contract, service, and treatment providers of the powers,
31 duties, and responsibilities of the statewide and local
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1 councils. Further, the Secretary of Children and Family
2 Services shall ensure that, to the extent possible, staff
3 assigned to the statewide council and local councils are free
4 of interference from or control by the department in
5 performing their duties relative to those councils.
6 Section 5. The Florida Statewide Advocacy Council, its
7 three full-time equivalent positions and associated expense
8 funding, the local councils, and the toll-free complaint line
9 are hereby transferred by a type two transfer, pursuant to
10 section 20.06(2), Florida Statutes, from the Department of
11 Children and Family Services to the Florida Statewide Advocacy
12 Council. The Department of Children and Family Services is
13 directed to identify 10 additional full-time equivalent
14 positions funded from the General Revenue Fund, which
15 positions are hereby transferred by a type two transfer,
16 pursuant to section 20.06(2), Florida Statutes, to the Florida
17 Statewide Advocacy Council for support of the local councils.
18 Section 6. This act shall take effect October 1, 2004.
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