HB 0723

CS

CHAMBER ACTION

1	The Committee on Future of Florida's Families recommends the
2	following:
3
4	Committee Substitute
5	Remove the entire bill and insert:
6	A bill to be entitled
7	An act relating to foster care services; amending s.
8	20.19, F.S.; prohibiting members of community alliances
9	from receiving funds from the Department of Children and
10	Family Services or community-based care lead agencies;
11	amending s. 409.1671, F.S.; providing a restriction on the
12	level of child protective services provided; providing
13	requirements for a lead agency's board of directors;
14	revising requirements for the quality assurance program;
15	revising provisions requiring the department to develop a
16	proposal for the use of eligible lead community-based
17	providers to include foster care and related services;
18	specifying proposal requirements; extending a proposal
19	submission deadline; requiring the department to submit a
20	detailed operational plan prior to the release of funds;
21	removing limitations on the distribution program;
22	exempting certain lead community-based providers and their
23	subcontractors from state travel policies; providing an
24	effective date.
25
26	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
27
28	Section 1.  Paragraphs (f) through (j) of subsection (6) of
29	section 20.19, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as paragraphs
30	(g) through (k), respectively, and a new paragraph (f) is added
31	to said subsection to read:
32	20.19  Department of Children and Family Services.--There
33	is created a Department of Children and Family Services.
34	(6)  COMMUNITY ALLIANCES.--
35	(f)     Members of the community alliances may not receive
36	funds from either the department or a community-based care lead
37	agency.
38	Section 2.  Paragraph (e) of subsection (1), paragraph (a)
39	of subsection (4), and subsections (7) and (8) of section
40	409.1671, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (10) is
41	added to said section, to read:
42	409.1671  Foster care and related services;
43	privatization.--
44	(1)
45	(e)  As used in this section, the term "eligible lead
46	community-based provider" means a single agency with which the
47	department shall contract for the provision of child protective
48	services in a community that is no smaller than a county. The
49	secretary of the department may authorize more than one eligible
50	lead community-based provider within a single county when to do
51	so will result in more effective delivery of foster care and
52	related services. To compete for a privatization project, such
53	agency must have:
54	1.  The ability to coordinate, integrate, and manage all
55	child protective services in the designated community in
56	cooperation with child protective investigations.
57	2.  The ability to ensure continuity of care from entry to
58	exit for all children referred from the protective investigation
59	and court systems.
60	3.  The ability to provide directly, or contract for
61	through a local network of providers, all necessary child
62	protective services. Such agency shall directly provide no more
63	than 35 percent of all child protective services provided.
64	4.  The willingness to accept accountability for meeting
65	the outcomes and performance standards related to child
66	protective services established by the Legislature and the
67	Federal Government.
68	5.  The capability and the willingness to serve all
69	children referred to it from the protective investigation and
70	court systems, regardless of the level of funding allocated to
71	the community by the state, provided all related funding is
72	transferred.
73	6.  The willingness to ensure that each individual who
74	provides child protective services completes the training
75	required of child protective service workers by the Department
76	of Children and Family Services.
77	7.  The ability to maintain eligibility to receive all
78	federal child welfare funds, including Title IV-E and IV-A
79	funds, currently being used by the Department of Children and
80	Family Services.
81	8.  Written agreements with Healthy Families Florida lead
82	entities in their community, pursuant to s. 409.153, to promote
83	cooperative planning for the provision of prevention and
84	intervention services.
85	9.  A board of directors of which at least 51 percent of
86	its members reside in Florida and at least 51 percent of those
87	members residing in Florida must also reside within the service
88	area of the community-based care lead agency.
89	(4)(a)  The department, in consultation with the community-
90	based agencies that are undertaking the privatized projects,
91	shall establish a quality assurance program for privatized
92	services. The quality assurance program shall be based on
93	standards established by the Adoption and Safe Families Act as
94	well as a national accrediting organization such as the Council
95	on Accreditation of Services for Families and Children, Inc.
96	(COA) or CARF--the Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission. The
97	department may develop a request for proposal for such
98	oversight. This program must be developed and administered at a
99	statewide level. The Legislature intends that the department be
100	permitted to have limited flexibility to use funds for improving
101	quality assurance. To this end, the department may transfer up
102	to 0.125 percent of the total funds from categories used to pay
103	for these contractually provided services, but the total amount
104	of such transferred funds may not exceed $300,000 in any fiscal
105	year. When necessary, the department may establish, in
106	accordance with s. 216.177, additional positions that will be
107	exclusively devoted to these functions. Any positions required
108	under this paragraph may be established, notwithstanding ss.
109	216.262(1)(a) and 216.351. The department, in consultation with
110	the community-based agencies that are undertaking the privatized
111	projects, shall establish minimum thresholds for each component
112	of service, consistent with standards established by the
113	Legislature and the Federal Government. Each program operated
114	under contract with a community-based agency must be evaluated
115	annually by the department. The department shall, to the extent
116	possible, use independent financial audits provided by the
117	community-based care agency to eliminate or reduce the ongoing
118	contract and administrative reviews conducted by the department.
119	The department may suggest additional items to be included in
120	such independent financial audits to meet the department's
121	needs. Should the department determine that such independent
122	financial audits are inadequate, then other audits, as
123	necessary, may be conducted by the department. Nothing herein
124	shall abrogate the requirements of s. 215.97. The department
125	shall submit an annual report regarding quality performance,
126	outcome measure attainment, and cost efficiency to the President
127	of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
128	minority leader of each house of the Legislature, and the
129	Governor no later than January 31 of each year for each project
130	in operation during the preceding fiscal year.
131	(7)  The department, in consultation with existing lead
132	agencies, shall develop a proposal regarding the long-term use
133	and structure of a statewide community-based care risk pool for
134	the protection of shared earnings program which addresses the
135	financial risk to eligible lead community-based providers who
136	contract directly with the department for the delivery of foster
137	care and related services resulting from unanticipated caseload
138	growth or from significant changes in client mixes or services
139	eligible for federal reimbursement. The recommendations in the
140	statewide proposal must also be available to entities of the
141	department until the conversion to community-based care takes
142	place. At a minimum, the proposal must allow for use of federal
143	earnings received from child welfare programs, which earnings
144	are determined by the department to be in excess of the amount
145	appropriated in the General Appropriations Act, to be used for
146	specific purposes. The proposal must specify the necessary steps
147	to ensure the financial integrity of the risk program and the
148	continued availability of funding from federal, state, and local
149	sources. The proposal must also include recommendations that
150	permit the program to be available to entities of the department
151	providing child welfare services until full conversion to
152	community-based care takes place. The final proposal shall be
153	submitted to the Legislative Budget Commission for formal
154	adoption before October 1, 2004. If the Legislative Budget
155	Commission refuses to concur with the adoption of the proposal,
156	the department shall present its proposal in the form of
157	recommended legislation to the President of the Senate and the
158	Speaker of the House of Representatives before the commencement
159	of the next legislative session.
160	(a)  The These purposes for which the risk pool shall be
161	used include, but are not limited to:
162	1.(a)  Significant changes in the number or composition of
163	clients eligible to receive services.
164	2.(b)  Significant changes in the services that are
165	eligible for reimbursement.
166	3.(c)  Significant changes in the availability of federal
167	funds.
168	4.(d)  Shortfalls in state funds available for eligible or
169	ineligible services.
170	5.(e)  Significant changes in the mix of available funds.
171	6.(f)  Scheduled or unanticipated, but necessary, advances
172	to providers or other cash-flow issues.
173	7.(g)  Proposals to participate in optional Medicaid
174	services or other federal grant opportunities.
175	8.(h)  Appropriate incentive structures.
176	9.(i)  Continuity of care in the event of lead agency
177	failure, discontinuance of service, or financial misconduct.
178	10.  Payment for time-limited technical assistance and
179	consultation to lead agencies in the event of serious
180	performance or management problems.
181
182	The department shall further specify the necessary steps to
183	ensure the financial integrity of these dollars and their
184	continued availability on an ongoing basis. The final proposal
185	shall be submitted to the Legislative Budget Commission for
186	formal adoption before December 31, 2002. If the Legislative
187	Budget Commission refuses to concur with the adoption of the
188	proposal, the department shall present its proposal in the form
189	of recommended legislation to the President of the Senate and
190	the Speaker of the House of Representatives before the
191	commencement of the next legislative session.
192	(b)  For fiscal year 2004-2005 2003-2004 and annually
193	thereafter, the department of Children and Family Services may
194	also request in its annual legislative budget request, and the
195	Governor may recommend, that the funding necessary to carry out
196	paragraph (a) be (i) from excess federal earnings. The General
197	Appropriations Act shall include any funds appropriated to for
198	this purpose in a lump sum in the department. Prior to the
199	release of such funds, the department shall submit a detailed
200	operational plan, which must identify the sources of specific
201	funds to be used and the reasons justifying their use. The
202	release of these funds shall be subject to the notice and review
203	provisions of s. 216.177 but shall not require the approval of
204	the Legislative Budget Commission.
205	1.  Such Administered Funds Program, which funds shall
206	constitute partial security for lead agency contract performance
207	and shall be used. The department shall use this appropriation
208	to offset the need for a performance bond for that year after a
209	comparison of risk to the funds available. In no event shall
210	this performance bond exceed 2.5 percent of the annual contract
211	value.
212	2.  The department may separately require a bond to
213	mitigate the financial consequences of potential acts of
214	malfeasance, misfeasance, or criminal violations by the
215	provider. Prior to the release of any funds in the lump sum, the
216	department shall submit a detailed operational plan, which must
217	identify the sources of specific trust funds to be used. The
218	release of the trust fund shall be subject to the notice and
219	review provisions of s. 216.177. However, the release shall not
220	require approval of the Legislative Budget Commission.
221	(8)  Notwithstanding the provisions of s. 215.425, all
222	documented federal funds earned for the current fiscal year by
223	the department and community-based agencies which exceed the
224	amount appropriated by the Legislature shall be distributed to
225	all entities that contributed to the excess earnings based on a
226	schedule and methodology developed by the department and
227	approved by the Executive Office of the Governor. Distribution
228	shall be pro rata based on total earnings and shall be made only
229	to those entities that contributed to excess earnings. Excess
230	earnings of community-based agencies shall be used only in the
231	service district in which they were earned. Additional state
232	funds appropriated by the Legislature for community-based
233	agencies or made available pursuant to the budgetary amendment
234	process described in s. 216.177 shall be transferred to the
235	community-based agencies. The department shall amend a
236	community-based agency's contract to permit expenditure of the
237	funds. The distribution program applies only to entities that
238	were under privatization contracts as of July 1, 2002.
239	(10)  The eligible lead community-based providers and their
240	subcontractors shall be exempt from state travel policies as set
241	forth in s. 112.061(3)(a) for their travel expenses incurred in
242	order to comply with the requirements of this section.
243	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2004.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.