| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to adoption benefits; creating s. |
| 3 | 409.1663, F.S.; providing definitions; expanding a |
| 4 | monetary benefit paid to employees who adopt special needs |
| 5 | children and children in the custody of the state to |
| 6 | include employees of state universities, community |
| 7 | colleges, and school districts; clarifying that the |
| 8 | availability of the monetary benefit is subject to an |
| 9 | appropriation; authorizing the Department of Children and |
| 10 | Family Services to administer the program; providing for |
| 11 | rules; providing for parental leave; providing for |
| 12 | application and eligibility procedures; providing for the |
| 13 | transfer of funding from the department to nonstate public |
| 14 | entities; providing that application for the monetary |
| 15 | benefit will begin with the 2008 open enrollment period |
| 16 | and the availability of the benefit will begin in the |
| 17 | 2008-2009 fiscal year; repealing ss. 110.152, 110.15201, |
| 18 | 215.32(2)(c)5., and 373.6065, F.S., relating to the |
| 19 | present program that provides a monetary benefit only to |
| 20 | state agency employees and employees of a water management |
| 21 | district and that is administered by the Department of |
| 22 | Management Services; transferring resources allocated to |
| 23 | provide adoption benefits for state employees from the |
| 24 | Department of Management Services to the Department of |
| 25 | Children and Family Services by a type two transfer; |
| 26 | providing an effective date. |
| 27 |
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| 28 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 29 |
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| 30 | Section 1. Section 409.1663, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 31 | to read: |
| 32 | 409.1663 Adoption benefits for qualifying adoptive |
| 33 | employees of state agencies.-- |
| 34 | (1) As used in this section, the term: |
| 35 | (a) "Department" means the Department of Children and |
| 36 | Family Services. |
| 37 | (b) "Licensed child-placing agency" has the same meaning |
| 38 | as in s. 39.01. |
| 39 | (c) "Qualifying adoptive employee" means a full-time or |
| 40 | part-time employee of a state agency who is paid from regular |
| 41 | salary appropriations or who otherwise meets the employer's |
| 42 | definition of a regular rather than temporary employee and who |
| 43 | adopts a child pursuant to chapter 63. For purposes of this |
| 44 | section, the term includes instructional personnel, as defined |
| 45 | in s. 1012.01, employed by the Florida School for the Deaf and |
| 46 | the Blind. |
| 47 | (d) "Special needs child" has the same meaning as in s. |
| 48 | 409.166. |
| 49 | (e) "State agency" means a branch, department, or agency |
| 50 | of state government for which the Chief Financial Officer |
| 51 | processes payroll requisitions, a state university or community |
| 52 | college as defined in s. 1000.21, a school district unit as |
| 53 | defined in s. 1001.30, or a water management district as defined |
| 54 | in s. 373.019. |
| 55 | (2) A qualifying adoptive employee who adopts a special |
| 56 | needs child shall be eligible to receive a lump-sum monetary |
| 57 | benefit in the amount of $10,000 per child subject to applicable |
| 58 | taxes. Any qualifying adoptive employee who adopts a child whose |
| 59 | permanent custody has been awarded to the department or to a |
| 60 | licensed child-placing agency, other than a special needs child, |
| 61 | shall be eligible to receive a lump-sum monetary benefit in the |
| 62 | amount of $5,000 per child subject to applicable taxes. |
| 63 | (a) Benefits paid to a part-time employee must be prorated |
| 64 | based on the employee's full-time-equivalency status at the time |
| 65 | of applying for the benefits. |
| 66 | (b) Monetary benefits are limited to one award per child |
| 67 | adopted regardless of the number of adoptive parents or an |
| 68 | employee's change of employer. |
| 69 | (c) The payment of a lump-sum monetary benefit for |
| 70 | adopting a child under this section is subject to a specific |
| 71 | appropriation to the department for such purpose. |
| 72 | (3) A qualifying adoptive employee must apply to his or |
| 73 | her agency head to obtain the monetary benefit provided in |
| 74 | subsection (2). Applications must be on forms approved by the |
| 75 | department and must include a certified copy of the final order |
| 76 | of adoption naming the applicant as the adoptive parent. |
| 77 | (4) This section does not affect the right of any |
| 78 | qualifying adoptive employee who adopts a special needs child to |
| 79 | receive adoption assistance under s. 409.166 or any other |
| 80 | statute that provides financial incentives for the adoption of |
| 81 | children. |
| 82 | (5) Parental leave for qualifying adoptive employees must |
| 83 | be provided in accordance with the personnel policies and |
| 84 | procedures of the respective state agency employer. |
| 85 | (6) The department shall adopt rules to administer this |
| 86 | section. The rules may provide for an application process such |
| 87 | as, but not limited to, an open enrollment period during which |
| 88 | qualifying adoptive parents may apply for monetary benefits |
| 89 | under this section. |
| 90 | (7) A monetary benefit paid to a qualifying adoptive |
| 91 | employee employed in a state agency for which the Chief |
| 92 | Financial Officer processes payroll requisitions shall be |
| 93 | disbursed by the Chief Financial Office upon submission of a |
| 94 | payroll requisition by the department. The Chief Financial |
| 95 | Officer shall transfer funds from the department to a state |
| 96 | university, community college, school district unit, or water |
| 97 | management district to enable payment to the respective |
| 98 | qualifying adoptive employee through the respective payroll |
| 99 | systems as long as funds are available for such purpose. |
| 100 | (8) Each state agency shall develop a uniform procedure |
| 101 | for informing employees about this benefit and for assisting the |
| 102 | department in making eligibility determinations and processing |
| 103 | applications. Any procedure adopted by a state agency is valid |
| 104 | and enforceable so long as it does not conflict with the express |
| 105 | terms of this section. |
| 106 | Section 2. Participation by employees of a state |
| 107 | university, community college, or school district unit as |
| 108 | provided in this act shall commence with the 2008 open |
| 109 | enrollment period for adoption benefits to be funded in the |
| 110 | 2008-2009 fiscal year. |
| 111 | Section 3. Sections 110.152, 110.15201, 215.32(2)(c)5., |
| 112 | and 373.6065, Florida Statutes, are repealed. |
| 113 | Section 4. The resources provided to the Department of |
| 114 | Management Services for the adoption benefits for state |
| 115 | employees originally enacted in section 110.152, Florida |
| 116 | Statutes, are transferred to the Department of Children and |
| 117 | Family Services by a type two transfer pursuant to section |
| 118 | 20.06(2), Florida Statutes. |
| 119 | Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007. |