Senate Bill sb0418c1

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    Florida Senate - 2004                            CS for SB 418

    By the Committee on Judiciary; and Senators Bullard, Diaz de
    la Portilla, Wilson and Bennett




    308-2043-04

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to child support enforcement;

  3         amending s. 409.2557, F.S.; providing that

  4         certain child enforcement demonstration

  5         projects are no longer demonstration projects,

  6         but local solutions to providing such

  7         enforcement; requiring local providers of child

  8         support enforcement services to comply with

  9         state and federal policies; providing duties

10         and responsibilities of the Department of

11         Revenue regarding funding and compliance

12         monitoring of these child support enforcement

13         services; providing an effective date.

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

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17         Section 1.  Subsection (2) of section 409.2557, Florida

18  Statutes, is amended to read:

19         409.2557  State agency for administering child support

20  enforcement program.--

21         (2)(a)  The department in its capacity as the state

22  Title IV-D agency shall have the authority to take actions

23  necessary to carry out the public policy of ensuring that

24  children are maintained from the resources of their parents to

25  the extent possible. The department's authority shall include,

26  but not be limited to, the establishment of paternity or

27  support obligations, as well as the modification, enforcement,

28  and collection of support obligations.

29         (b)1.  Notwithstanding s. 6 of chapter 85-178, Laws of

30  Florida, as amended by s. 156 of chapter 86-220, Laws of

31  Florida, any child support enforcement demonstration projects

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    Florida Senate - 2004                            CS for SB 418
    308-2043-04




 1  created under that law and still in operation on January 15,

 2  2004, are no longer considered demonstration projects but are

 3  locally administered child support enforcement programs in

 4  those counties. Effective July 1, 2004, the department shall

 5  enter into contracts on a cost-reimbursement basis to continue

 6  the funding of these operations as provided in the General

 7  Appropriations Act.

 8         2.  The programs must provide all services required by

 9  the state's Title IV-D plan, provide all services in

10  accordance with state and federal policies, and meet all state

11  and federal reporting requirements in a timely manner. The

12  operations of these programs are subject to review and audit

13  by state and federal officials responsible for the Title IV-D

14  program functions.

15         3.  The department may withhold funds or terminate a

16  program's contract if the program fails to comply with federal

17  Title IV-D program requirements.

18         4.  Regardless of whether services are provided

19  directly by the department or by contractual agreement with a

20  local agency, the department shall retain responsibility for

21  ensuring that all services required by the state Title IV-D

22  program are provided in accordance with applicable federal and

23  state laws.

24         Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

25  law.

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    Florida Senate - 2004                            CS for SB 418
    308-2043-04




 1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
 2                         Senate Bill 418

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 4  -    Corrects a cross-reference to a 1985 chapter law to
         clarify that the law was subsequently amended in a 1986
 5       chapter law and therefore that these child support
         programs are governed by the later version of the law
 6       which is being codified into statute by this bill.     

 7  -    Adds an effective date as to when the Department of
         Revenue and the programs must enter into
 8       cost-reimbursement contracts so as not to interfere with
         existing contracts with these locally administered child
 9       support programs.

10  -    Replaces the reference to these programs as "local
         solutions" with "locally administered" to avoid confusion
11       with "local requirements" and "local options" which
         pertain to obligations of counties to fund certain
12       programs under Revision 7 to Article V.

13  -    Refines statements regarding obligations of these
         programs to comply with title IV-D program requirements
14       to better mirror the language in the chapter law.

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