Florida Senate - 2009                                    SB 1054
       
       
       
       By Senator Crist
       
       
       
       
       12-00466A-09                                          20091054__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to homelessness; amending s. 420.507,
    3         F.S.; conforming a cross-reference; amending s.
    4         420.621, F.S.; revising, providing, and deleting
    5         definitions; amending s. 420.622, F.S.; increasing and
    6         revising membership on the Council on Homelessness;
    7         removing a member from an obsolete organization;
    8         correcting the name of a member organization on the
    9         council; revising the date of an annual report;
   10         creating s. 420.6275, F.S.; creating the Housing First
   11         program; providing legislative findings and intent;
   12         providing methodology; providing components of the
   13         program; providing that local continuums of care that
   14         adopt the program be given funding priority; directing
   15         the State Office on Homelessness to develop procedures
   16         for identifying and giving priority; creating s.
   17         420.628, F.S.; providing legislative findings and
   18         intent relating to young adults leaving foster care;
   19         amending s. 1003.01, F.S.; revising a definition;
   20         amending ss. 1003.21 and 1003.22, F.S.; conforming
   21         terminology; providing an effective date.
   22         
   23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   24         
   25         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (22) of section
   26  420.507, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   27         420.507 Powers of the corporation.—The corporation shall
   28  have all the powers necessary or convenient to carry out and
   29  effectuate the purposes and provisions of this part, including
   30  the following powers which are in addition to all other powers
   31  granted by other provisions of this part:
   32         (22) To develop and administer the State Apartment
   33  Incentive Loan program. In developing and administering that
   34  program, the corporation may:
   35         (a) Make first, second, and other subordinated mortgage
   36  loans including variable or fixed rate loans subject to
   37  contingent interest for all State Apartment Incentive Loans
   38  provided for in this chapter based upon available cash flow of
   39  the projects. The corporation shall make loans exceeding 25
   40  percent of project cost available only to nonprofit
   41  organizations and public bodies that which are able to secure
   42  grants, donations of land, or contributions from other sources
   43  and to projects meeting the criteria of subparagraph 1. Mortgage
   44  loans shall be made available at the following rates of
   45  interest:
   46         1. Zero to 3 percent interest for sponsors of projects that
   47  set aside at least 80 percent of their total units for residents
   48  qualifying as farmworkers as defined in this part, or commercial
   49  fishing workers as defined in this part, or the homeless as
   50  defined in s. 420.621 420.621(4) over the life of the loan.
   51         2. Zero to 3 percent interest based on the pro rata share
   52  of units set aside for homeless residents if the total of such
   53  units is less than 80 percent of the units in the borrower's
   54  project.
   55         3. One to 9 percent interest for sponsors of projects
   56  targeted at populations other than farmworkers, commercial
   57  fishing workers, or and the homeless.
   58         Section 2. Section 420.621, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   59  read:
   60         420.621 Definitions; ss. 420.621-420.627.—As used in ss.
   61  420.621-420.628 420.621-420.627, the term following terms shall
   62  have the following meanings, unless the context otherwise
   63  requires:
   64         (1)“Continuum of care” means the community components
   65  needed to organize and deliver housing and services to meet the
   66  specific needs of people who are homeless as they move to stable
   67  housing and maximum self-sufficiency. It includes action steps
   68  to end homelessness and prevent a return to homelessness.
   69         (2)“Council on Homelessness” means the council created in
   70  s. 420.622.
   71         (1)“AFDC means Aid to Families with Dependent Children as
   72  administered under chapter 409.
   73         (3)(2) “Department” means the Department of Children and
   74  Family Services.
   75         (4)(3) “District” means a service district of the
   76  department of Children and Family Services, as set forth in s.
   77  20.19.
   78         (5)(4)“Homeless,” applied to an individual, or “individual
   79  experiencing homelessness” means “Homeless refers to an
   80  individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime
   81  residence and includes or an individual who has a primary
   82  nighttime residence that is:
   83         (a) Is sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of
   84  housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason;
   85         (b)Is living in a motel, hotel, travel trailer park, or
   86  camping ground due to a lack of alternative adequate
   87  accommodations;
   88         (c)Is living in an emergency or transitional shelter; A
   89  supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to
   90  provide temporary living accommodations, including welfare
   91  hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the
   92  mentally ill;
   93         (b)An institution that provides a temporary residence for
   94  individuals intended to be institutionalized; or
   95         (d)(c)Has a primary nighttime residence that is a public
   96  or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a
   97  regular sleeping accommodation for human beings;
   98         (e)Is living in a car, park, public space, abandoned
   99  building, bus or train station, or similar setting; or
  100         (f)Is a migratory individual who qualifies as homeless
  101  because he or she is living in circumstances described in
  102  paragraphs (a)-(e).
  103  The terms do term does not refer to an any individual imprisoned
  104  or otherwise detained pursuant to state or federal law or to
  105  individuals or families who are sharing housing due to cultural
  106  preferences, voluntary arrangements, or traditional networks of
  107  support. The terms include an individual who has been released
  108  from jail, prison, the juvenile justice system, the child
  109  welfare system, a mental health and developmental disability
  110  facility, a residential addiction treatment program, or a
  111  hospital, for whom no subsequent residence has been identified,
  112  and who lacks the resources and support network to obtain
  113  housing.
  114         (6)(5) “Local coalition for the homeless” means a coalition
  115  established pursuant to s. 420.623.
  116         (7)(6) “New and temporary homeless” means those individuals
  117  or families who are homeless due to societal external factors,
  118  such as unemployment or other loss of income, personal or
  119  family-life crises, or the shortage of low-income housing.
  120         (8)(7)“State Office on Homelessness” means the state
  121  office created in s. 420.622 “Secretary means the secretary of
  122  the Department of Children and Family Services.
  123         Section 3. Subsections (2) and (9) of section 420.622,
  124  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  125         420.622 State Office on Homelessness; Council on
  126  Homelessness.—
  127         (2) The Council on Homelessness is created to consist of a
  128  17-member 15-member council of public and private agency
  129  representatives who shall develop policy and advise the State
  130  Office on Homelessness. The council members shall be: the
  131  Secretary of Children and Family Services, or his or her
  132  designee; the Secretary of Community Affairs, or his or her
  133  designee, to advise the council on issues related to rural
  134  development; the State Surgeon General, or his or her designee;
  135  the Executive Director of Veterans' Affairs, or his or her
  136  designee; the Secretary of Corrections, or his or her designee;
  137  the Secretary of Health Care Administration, or his or her
  138  designee; the Commissioner of Education, or his or her designee;
  139  the Director of Workforce Florida, Inc., or his or her designee;
  140  one representative of the Florida Association of Counties; one
  141  representative from the Florida League of Cities; one
  142  representative of the Florida Coalition for Supportive Housing
  143  Coalition; the Executive Director of the Florida Housing Finance
  144  Corporation, or his or her designee; one representative of the
  145  Florida Coalition for the Homeless; one representative of the
  146  Florida State Rural Development Council; and four members
  147  appointed by the Governor. The council members shall be
  148  volunteer, nonpaid persons and shall be reimbursed for travel
  149  expenses only. The appointed members of the council shall be
  150  appointed to serve staggered 2-year terms, and the council shall
  151  meet at least four times per year. The importance of minority,
  152  gender, and geographic representation must be considered when
  153  appointing members to the council.
  154         (9) The council shall, by June 30 December 31 of each year,
  155  beginning in 2010, issue to the Governor, the President of the
  156  Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the
  157  Secretary of Children and Family Services an evaluation of the
  158  executive director's performance in fulfilling the statutory
  159  duties of the office, a report summarizing the council's
  160  recommendations to the office and the corresponding actions
  161  taken by the office, and any recommendations to the Legislature
  162  for proposals to reduce homelessness in this state.
  163         Section 4. Section 420.6275, Florida Statutes, is created
  164  to read:
  165         420.6275Housing First.—
  166         (1)LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT.—
  167         (a)The Legislature finds that many communities plan to
  168  manage homelessness rather than plan to end it.
  169         (b)The Legislature also finds that for most of the past
  170  two decades, public and private solutions to homelessness have
  171  focused on providing individuals and families who are
  172  experiencing homelessness with emergency shelter, transitional
  173  housing, or a combination of both. While emergency shelter
  174  programs may provide critical access to services for individuals
  175  and families in crisis, they often fail to address their long
  176  term needs.
  177         (c)The Legislature further finds that Housing First is an
  178  alternative approach to the current system of emergency shelter
  179  or transitional housing which tends to reduce the length of time
  180  of homelessness and has proven to be cost-effective.
  181         (d)It is therefore the intent of the Legislature to
  182  encourage homeless continuums of care to adopt the Housing First
  183  approach to ending homelessness for individuals and families.
  184         (2)HOUSING FIRST METHODOLOGY.—
  185         (a)The Housing First approach to homelessness differs from
  186  traditional approaches by providing housing assistance, case
  187  management, and support services responsive to individual or
  188  family needs after housing is obtained. By using this approach
  189  when appropriate, communities can significantly reduce the
  190  amount of time that individuals and families are homeless and
  191  prevent further episodes of homelessness. Housing First
  192  emphasizes that social services provided to enhance individual
  193  and family well-being can be more effective when people are in
  194  their own home, and:
  195         1.The housing is not time-limited.
  196         2.The housing is not contingent on compliance with
  197  services. Instead, participants must comply with a standard
  198  lease agreement and are provided with the services and support
  199  that are necessary to help them do so successfully.
  200         3.A background check and any rehabilitation necessary to
  201  combat an addiction related to alcoholism or substance abuse has
  202  been completed by the individual for whom assistance or support
  203  services are provided.
  204         (b)The Housing First approach addresses the societal
  205  causes of homelessness and advocates for the immediate return of
  206  individuals and families into housing and communities. Housing
  207  First provides a critical link between the emergency and
  208  transitional housing system and community-based social service,
  209  educational, and health care organizations and consists of four
  210  components:
  211         1.Crisis intervention and short-term stabilization.
  212         2.Screening, intake, and needs assessment.
  213         3.Provision of housing resources.
  214         4.Provision of case management.
  215         (3)CONTINUUMS OF CARE.—
  216         (a)Local homeless assistance continuums of care that adopt
  217  and implement the Housing First approach in their communities,
  218  as recognized by the State Office of Homelessness, shall receive
  219  priority in all funding opportunities provided through the state
  220  office to the lead agencies in their continuum of care area.
  221         (b)The State Office on Homelessness with the concurrence
  222  of the Council on Homelessness shall develop:
  223         1.A procedure for verifying through the lead agency the
  224  continuum of care's adoption and implementation of the Housing
  225  First approach;
  226         2.A process for giving scoring and ranking priority to
  227  funding applications submitted by lead agencies whose homeless
  228  continuums of care have adopted and implemented the Housing
  229  First approach in their community.
  230         Section 5. Section 420.628, Florida Statutes, is created to
  231  read:
  232         420.628Young adults leaving foster care; legislative
  233  findings.—
  234         (1)The Legislature finds that the transition from
  235  childhood to adulthood is filled with opportunity and risk. Most
  236  young people who receive adequate support make this transition
  237  successfully and become healthy adults who are prepared for work
  238  and are able to become responsible, fulfilled members of their
  239  families and communities.
  240         (2)The Legislature finds that there are also many young
  241  people who enter adulthood without the knowledge, skills,
  242  attitudes, habits, and relationships that enable them to be
  243  productive members of society. Those young people who, through
  244  no fault of their own, live in foster families, group homes, and
  245  institutions are among those at greatest risk.
  246         (3)The Legislature finds that these young people face
  247  numerous barriers to a successful transition to adulthood. Those
  248  barriers include changes in foster care placements and schools,
  249  limited opportunities for participation in age-appropriate
  250  activities, and the inability to achieve economic stability,
  251  make connections with permanent supportive adults or family, and
  252  access housing. The main barriers to safe and affordable housing
  253  for youth who leave foster care due to age are cost, lack of
  254  availability, the unwillingness of many landlords to rent to
  255  them, and their own lack of knowledge about how to be good
  256  tenants.
  257         (4)The Legislature also finds that young adults who
  258  emancipate from the child welfare system are at risk of becoming
  259  homeless and those who were formerly in foster care are
  260  disproportionately represented in the homeless population. Only
  261  about two-fifths of eligible young people receive independent
  262  living services and, of those who do, few receive adequate
  263  housing assistance. Without the stability of safe housing, other
  264  services, training, and opportunities may not be effective.
  265         (5)The Legislature further finds that research on young
  266  people who emancipate from foster care suggests a nexus between
  267  foster care involvement and later episodes of homelessness and
  268  that interventions in the foster care system might help to
  269  prevent homelessness. Responding to the needs of young people
  270  leaving the foster care system with developmentally appropriate
  271  supportive housing models organized in a continuum of decreasing
  272  supervision may increase their ability to live independently.
  273         (6)It is therefore the intent of the Legislature to
  274  encourage the Department of Children and Family Services, its
  275  agents, and community-based care providers operating pursuant to
  276  s. 409.1671 to develop and implement procedures designed to
  277  reduce the number of young adults who become homeless after
  278  leaving the child welfare system.
  279         Section 6. Subsection (12) of section 1003.01, Florida
  280  Statutes, is amended to read:
  281         1003.01 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term:
  282         (12) “Children and youths who are experiencing
  283  homelessness,” for programs authorized under subtitle B,
  284  Education for Homeless Children and Youths, of Title VII of the
  285  McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. ss. 11431 et
  286  seq., means children and youths who lack a fixed, regular, and
  287  adequate nighttime residence, and includes:
  288         (a)Children and youths who are sharing the housing of
  289  other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a
  290  similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, travel trailer
  291  parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative
  292  adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional
  293  shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster
  294  care placement.
  295         (b)Children and youths who have a primary nighttime
  296  residence that is a public or private place not designed for or
  297  ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human
  298  beings.
  299         (c)Children and youths who are living in cars, parks,
  300  public spaces, abandoned buildings, bus or train stations, or
  301  similar settings.
  302         (d)Migratory children who are living in circumstances
  303  described in paragraphs (a)-(c). “Homeless child” means:
  304         (a)One who lacks a fixed, regular nighttime residence;
  305         (b)One who has a primary nighttime residence that is:
  306         1.A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter
  307  designed to provide temporary living accommodations, including
  308  welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing
  309  for the mentally ill;
  310         2.An institution that provides a temporary residence for
  311  individuals intended to be institutionalized; or
  312         3.A public or private place not designed for, or
  313  ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human
  314  beings; or
  315         (c)One who temporarily resides with an adult other than
  316  his or her parent because the parent is suffering financial
  317  hardship.
  318  A child who is imprisoned, detained, or in the custody of the
  319  state pursuant to a state or federal law is not a homeless
  320  child.
  321         Section 7. Paragraph (f) of subsection (1) and paragraph
  322  (g) of subsection (4) of section 1003.21, Florida Statutes, are
  323  amended to read:
  324         1003.21 School attendance.—
  325         (1)
  326         (f) Children and youths who are experiencing homelessness
  327  Homeless children, as defined in s. 1003.01, must have access to
  328  a free public education and must be admitted to school in the
  329  school district in which they or their families live. School
  330  districts shall assist such homeless children in meeting to meet
  331  the requirements of subsection (4) and s. 1003.22, as well as
  332  local requirements for documentation.
  333         (4) Before admitting a child to kindergarten, the principal
  334  shall require evidence that the child has attained the age at
  335  which he or she should be admitted in accordance with the
  336  provisions of subparagraph (1)(a)2. The district school
  337  superintendent may require evidence of the age of any child whom
  338  he or she believes to be within the limits of compulsory
  339  attendance as provided for by law. If the first prescribed
  340  evidence is not available, the next evidence obtainable in the
  341  order set forth below shall be accepted:
  342         (g) If none of these evidences can be produced, an
  343  affidavit of age sworn to by the parent, accompanied by a
  344  certificate of age signed by a public health officer or by a
  345  public school physician, or, if neither of these are not is
  346  available in the county, by a licensed practicing physician
  347  designated by the district school board, which certificate
  348  states that the health officer or physician has examined the
  349  child and believes that the age as stated in the affidavit is
  350  substantially correct. Children and youths who are experiencing
  351  homelessness A homeless child, as defined in s. 1003.01, shall
  352  be given temporary exemption from this section for 30 school
  353  days.
  354         Section 8. Subsection (1) and paragraph (e) of subsection
  355  (5) of section 1003.22, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  356         1003.22 School-entry health examinations; immunization
  357  against communicable diseases; exemptions; duties of Department
  358  of Health.—
  359         (1) Each district school board and the governing authority
  360  of each private school shall require that each child who is
  361  entitled to admittance to kindergarten, or is entitled to any
  362  other initial entrance into a public or private school in this
  363  state, present a certification of a school-entry health
  364  examination performed within 1 year before prior to enrollment
  365  in school. Each district school board, and the governing
  366  authority of each private school, may establish a policy that
  367  permits a student up to 30 school days to present a
  368  certification of a school-entry health examination. Children and
  369  youths who are experiencing homelessness A homeless child, as
  370  defined in s. 1003.01, shall be given a temporary exemption for
  371  30 school days. Any district school board that establishes such
  372  a policy shall include provisions in its local school health
  373  services plan to assist students in obtaining the health
  374  examinations. However, a any child shall be exempted exempt from
  375  the requirement of a health examination upon written request of
  376  the parent of the child stating objections to the examination on
  377  religious grounds.
  378         (5) The provisions of this section shall not apply if:
  379         (e) An authorized school official issues a temporary
  380  exemption, for up to a period not to exceed 30 school days, to
  381  permit a student who transfers into a new county to attend class
  382  until his or her records can be obtained. Children and youths
  383  who are experiencing homelessness A homeless child, as defined
  384  in s. 1003.01, shall be given a temporary exemption for 30
  385  school days. The public school health nurse or authorized
  386  private school official is responsible for followup of each such
  387  student until proper documentation or immunizations are
  388  obtained. An exemption for 30 days may be issued for a student
  389  who enters a juvenile justice program to permit the student to
  390  attend class until his or her records can be obtained or until
  391  the immunizations can be obtained. An authorized juvenile
  392  justice official is responsible for followup of each student who
  393  enters a juvenile justice program until proper documentation or
  394  immunizations are obtained.
  395         Section 9. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.