HB 1439

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to the confidential records of children
3	and vulnerable adults; creating s. 39.00145, F.S.;
4	requiring that the case file of a child under the
5	supervision or in the custody of the Department of
6	Children and Family Services be maintained in a complete
7	and accurate manner; specifying who has access to the case
8	file and records in the file; providing sanctions and
9	penalties for specified failure to provide records in a
10	case file or failure to provide access within a reasonable
11	time; authorizing the court to directly release the
12	child's records to certain entities; providing that
13	entities that have access to confidential information
14	concerning a child may share it with other entities that
15	provide services benefiting children; amending s. 39.202,
16	F.S.; limiting the public records exemption provided for
17	reports relating to child abandonment, abuse, or neglect
18	to personal identifying information in the reports;
19	revising the list of persons or entities that have access
20	to such information; authorizing the secretary of the
21	department to release certain records in the public
22	domain; amending s. 415.107, F.S.; limiting the public
23	records exemption provided for reports relating to adult
24	abuse, neglect, or exploitation to personal identifying
25	information in the reports; revising the list of persons
26	or entities that have access to such information;
27	authorizing the secretary of the department to release
28	certain records in the public domain; amending ss. 39.01
29	and 39.201, F.S.; conforming cross-references; providing
30	an effective date.
31
32	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
33
34	Section 1.  Section 39.00145, Florida Statutes, is created
35	to read:
36	39.00145  Records concerning children.--The case file of
37	every child under the supervision of or in the custody of the
38	department, the department's authorized agents, or providers
39	contracting with the department, including community-based care
40	lead agencies and their subcontracted providers, must be
41	maintained in a complete and accurate manner. Such file must
42	contain the child's case plan required under part VIII of this
43	chapter and the full name and street address of all shelters,
44	foster parents, group homes, treatment facilities, or locations
45	where the child is placed.
46	(1)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter,
47	all records in a child's case file must be made available for
48	inspection without cost to the child who is the subject of the
49	case file and the child's caregiver, guardian ad litem, or
50	attorney. A request for inspection by the child's attorney must
51	be submitted in writing.
52	(a)  The child and the child's caregiver, guardian ad
53	litem, or attorney shall be provided any records in the case
54	file or a complete and accurate copy of the records, at no cost,
55	upon the request of that child or the child's caregiver,
56	guardian ad litem, or attorney on behalf of the child.
57	(b)  The department shall release the information in a
58	manner and setting that is appropriate to the age and maturity
59	of the child and the nature of the information being released,
60	which may include the release of such information in a
61	therapeutic setting, if appropriate. This paragraph does not
62	deny the child access to his or her records.
63	(c)  If a child or the child's caregiver, guardian ad
64	litem, or attorney requests access to the child's case file, any
65	person or entity that fails to provide records in the case file
66	under assertion of a claim of exemption from the public records
67	requirements of chapter 119, or fails to provide access within a
68	reasonable time, is subject to sanctions and penalties under s.
69	119.10.
70	(2)  If a court determines that sharing information in the
71	child's case file is necessary to ensure access to appropriate
72	services for the child or for the safety of the child, the court
73	may approve the release of confidential records or information
74	contained in them. Any information that is released retains its
75	confidential or exempt status.
76	(3)  The placement of a child in shelter care or a finding
77	that a child is dependent pursuant to this chapter is a health
78	and safety emergency for the purpose of disclosure of records
79	under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.
80	(4)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all state
81	and local agencies and programs that provide services to
82	children or that are responsible for a child's safety, including
83	the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department of Health,
84	the Agency for Health Care Administration, the Agency for
85	Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Education, the
86	school districts, the Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office, and
87	any provider contracting with such agencies, may share with each
88	other confidential records or information that is confidential
89	or exempt from disclosure under chapter 119 if the records or
90	information is reasonably necessary to ensure access to
91	appropriate services for the child or for the safety of the
92	child. However:
93	(a)  Records or information made confidential by federal
94	law may not be shared.
95	(b)  This subsection does not apply to information
96	concerning clients and records of certified domestic violence
97	centers, which are confidential under s. 39.908 and privileged
98	under s. 90.5036.
99	Section 2.  Subsections (1) and (2) of section 39.202,
100	Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (9) is added to
101	that section, to read:
102	39.202  Confidentiality of reports and records in cases of
103	child abuse or neglect.--
104	(1)   All personal identifying information for the
105	following persons contained in records held by the department
106	relating to child abandonment, abuse, abandonment, or neglect is
107	In order to protect the rights of the child and the child's
108	parents or other persons responsible for the child's welfare,
109	All records held by the department concerning reports of child
110	abandonment, abuse, or neglect, including reports made to the
111	central abuse hotline and all records generated as a result of
112	such reports, shall be confidential and exempt from the
113	provisions of s. 119.07(1): and shall not be disclosed except as
114	specifically authorized by this chapter. Such exemption from s.
115	119.07(1) applies to information in the possession of those
116	entities granted access as set forth in this section.
117	(a)  The child or the child's siblings.
118	(b)  The child's caregiver, unless the caregiver is
119	arrested as a result of the report of child abuse, abandonment,
120	or neglect or is the subject of an injunction issued pursuant to
121	s. 39.504.
122	(c)  The reporter of the alleged abuse, abandonment, or
123	neglect.
124	(2)  Except as provided in subsection (4), access to the
125	personal identifying information of individuals listed in
126	subsection (1) such records, excluding the name of the reporter
127	which shall be released only as provided in subsection (5),
128	shall be granted only to the following persons, officials, and
129	agencies:
130	(a)  Any employee, authorized agent, or provider
131	contracting with the department; any agency that provides
132	services to the child or the child's family; and any federal,
133	state, or local governmental entity that needs the information
134	to carry out its legal responsibility to protect the child from
135	abuse, abandonment, or neglect.
136	(a)  Employees, authorized agents, or contract providers of
137	the department, the Department of Health, the Agency for Persons
138	with Disabilities, or county agencies responsible for carrying
139	out:
140	1.  Child or adult protective investigations;
141	2.  Ongoing child or adult protective services;
142	3.  Early intervention and prevention services;
143	4.  Healthy Start services;
144	5.  Licensure or approval of adoptive homes, foster homes,
145	child care facilities, facilities licensed under chapter 393, or
146	family day care homes or informal child care providers who
147	receive subsidized child care funding, or other homes used to
148	provide for the care and welfare of children; or
149	6.  Services for victims of domestic violence when provided
150	by certified domestic violence centers working at the
151	department's request as case consultants or with shared clients.
152
153	Also, employees or agents of the Department of Juvenile Justice
154	responsible for the provision of services to children, pursuant
155	to chapters 984 and 985.
156	(b)  Criminal justice agencies of appropriate jurisdiction.
157	(c)  The state attorney of the judicial circuit in which
158	the child resides or in which the alleged abuse or neglect
159	occurred.
160	(b)(d)  The parent or legal custodian of any child who is
161	alleged to have been abused, abandoned, or neglected, and the
162	child, and their attorneys, including any attorney representing
163	a child in civil or criminal proceedings. This access must shall
164	be made available within no later than 30 days after the
165	department receives the initial report of abuse, neglect, or
166	abandonment. However, any information otherwise made
167	confidential or exempt by law may shall not be released pursuant
168	to this paragraph.
169	(c)(e)  Any person alleged in the report as having caused
170	the abuse, abandonment, or neglect of a child. This access must
171	shall be made available within no later than 30 days after the
172	department receives the initial report of abuse, abandonment, or
173	neglect and, if when the alleged perpetrator is not a parent, is
174	shall be limited to information involving the protective
175	investigation only and may shall not include any information
176	relating to subsequent dependency proceedings. However, any
177	information otherwise made confidential or exempt by law may
178	shall not be released pursuant to this paragraph.
179	(d)(f)  A court upon its finding that access to such
180	information records may be necessary for determining the
181	determination of an issue before the court.; However, such
182	access is shall be limited to inspection in camera, unless the
183	court determines that public disclosure of the information
184	contained therein is necessary for the resolution of an issue
185	then pending before it.
186	(e)(g)  A grand jury, by subpoena, upon determining its
187	determination that access to such information records is
188	necessary in the conduct of its official business.
189	(h)  Any appropriate official of the department or the
190	Agency for Persons with Disabilities who is responsible for:
191	1.  Administration or supervision of the department's
192	program for the prevention, investigation, or treatment of child
193	abuse, abandonment, or neglect, or abuse, neglect, or
194	exploitation of a vulnerable adult, when carrying out his or her
195	official function;
196	2.  Taking appropriate administrative action concerning an
197	employee of the department or the agency who is alleged to have
198	perpetrated child abuse, abandonment, or neglect, or abuse,
199	neglect, or exploitation of a vulnerable adult; or
200	3.  Employing and continuing employment of personnel of the
201	department or the agency.
202	(f)(i)  Any person authorized by the department who is
203	engaged in the use of such records or information for bona fide
204	research, statistical, or audit purposes. Such individual or
205	entity must shall enter into a privacy and security agreement
206	with the department and shall comply with all laws and rules
207	governing the use of such records and information for research
208	and statistical purposes. The identifying information must
209	identifying the subjects of such records or information shall be
210	treated as confidential by the researcher and may shall not be
211	released in any form.
212	(g)(j)  The Division of Administrative Hearings for
213	purposes of any administrative challenge.
214	(h)(k)  Any appropriate official of a Florida advocacy
215	council investigating a report of known or suspected child
216	abuse, abandonment, or neglect.;
217	(i)  The Auditor General or the Office of Program Policy
218	Analysis and Government Accountability for the purpose of
219	conducting audits or examinations pursuant to law.; or
220	(j)  The guardian ad litem for the child.
221	(k)(l)  Employees or agents of an agency of another state
222	that has comparable jurisdiction to the agencies jurisdiction
223	described in paragraph (a).
224	(m)  The Public Employees Relations Commission for the sole
225	purpose of obtaining evidence for appeals filed pursuant to s.
226	447.207. Records may be released only after deletion of all
227	information which specifically identifies persons other than the
228	employee.
229	(n)  Employees or agents of the Department of Revenue
230	responsible for child support enforcement activities.
231	(l)(o)  Any person in the event of the death of a child
232	determined to be a result of abuse, abandonment, or neglect.
233	Information identifying the person reporting abuse, abandonment,
234	or neglect shall not be released. Any information otherwise made
235	confidential or exempt by law may shall not be released pursuant
236	to this paragraph.
237	(m)(p)  The principal of a public school, private school,
238	or charter school where the child is a student. Identifying
239	information contained in the records that which the principal
240	determines are necessary for a school employee to effectively
241	provide a student with educational services may be released to
242	that employee.
243	(n)(q)  Staff of a children's advocacy center that is
244	established and operated under s. 39.3035.
245	(o)  Persons with whom the department is seeking to place
246	the child or placement has been granted, including foster
247	parents for whom an approved home study has been conducted, the
248	designee of a licensed residential group home described in s.
249	39.523, an approved relative or nonrelative with whom a child is
250	placed pursuant to s. 39.521(1)(b)3., preadoptive parents for
251	whom a favorable preliminary adoptive home study has been
252	conducted, adoptive parents, or an adoption entity acting on
253	behalf of preadoptive or adoptive parents.
254	(9)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
255	secretary may release any record reasonably related to a case
256	that is already in the public domain, but must redact the
257	identity of the child unless the child's name is also in the
258	public domain in the context of the case or the child is already
259	reasonably identifiable from information in the public domain.
260	Section 3.  Section 415.107, Florida Statutes, is amended
261	to read:
262	415.107  Confidentiality of reports and records.--
263	(1)  All personal identifying information for the following
264	persons contained in records relating to the abuse, neglect, or
265	exploitation of a vulnerable adult is In order to protect the
266	rights of the individual or other persons responsible for the
267	welfare of a vulnerable adult, all records concerning reports of
268	abuse, neglect, or exploitation of the vulnerable adult,
269	including reports made to the central abuse hotline, and all
270	records generated as a result of such reports shall be
271	confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1): and may not be
272	disclosed except as specifically authorized by ss. 415.101-
273	415.113.
274	(a)  The adult victim.
275	(b)  The adult victim's guardian or legal counsel, unless
276	the guardian or legal counsel is arrested as a result of the
277	report of abuse, neglect, or exploitation or is the subject of
278	an injunction issued by a court.
279	(c)  The reporter of the alleged abuse, neglect, or
280	exploitation.
281	(2)  Upon the request of the committee chairperson, access
282	to all records shall be granted to staff of the legislative
283	committees with jurisdiction over issues and services related to
284	vulnerable adults, or over the department. All confidentiality
285	provisions that apply to the Department of Children and Family
286	Services continue to apply to the records made available to
287	legislative staff under this subsection.
288	(2)(3)  Access to personal identifying information of
289	individuals listed in subsection (1) all records, excluding the
290	name of the reporter which shall be released only as provided in
291	subsection (4) (6), shall be granted only to the following
292	persons, officials, and agencies:
293	(a)  Employees, authorized agents, and providers
294	contracting with the department; any agency that provides
295	services to vulnerable adults; and any federal, state, or local
296	governmental entity that needs the information to carry out its
297	legal responsibility to protect the vulnerable adult from abuse,
298	neglect, or exploitation or agents of the department, the Agency
299	for Persons with Disabilities, the Agency for Health Care
300	Administration, or the Department of Elderly Affairs who are
301	responsible for carrying out protective investigations, ongoing
302	protective services, or licensure or approval of nursing homes,
303	assisted living facilities, adult day care centers, adult
304	family-care homes, home care for the elderly, hospices,
305	residential facilities licensed under chapter 393, or other
306	facilities used for the placement of vulnerable adults.
307	(b)  A criminal justice agency investigating a report of
308	known or suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a
309	vulnerable adult.
310	(c)  The state attorney of the judicial circuit in which
311	the vulnerable adult resides or in which the alleged abuse,
312	neglect, or exploitation occurred.
313	(b)(d)  The Any victim;, the victim's guardian, caregiver,
314	or legal counsel;, and any person who the department has
315	determined might be abusing, neglecting, or exploiting the
316	victim.
317	(c)(e)  A court, by subpoena, upon its finding that access
318	to such information records may be necessary for determining the
319	determination of an issue before the court; however, such access
320	is must be limited to inspection in camera, unless the court
321	determines that public disclosure of the information contained
322	in such records is necessary for the resolution of an issue then
323	pending before it.
324	(d)(f)  A grand jury, by subpoena, upon determining its
325	determination that access to such information records is
326	necessary in the conduct of its official business.
327	(e)(g)  Any appropriate official of the Florida advocacy
328	council or long-term care ombudsman council investigating a
329	report of known or suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation of
330	a vulnerable adult.
331	(h)  Any appropriate official of the department, the Agency
332	for Persons with Disabilities, the Agency for Health Care
333	Administration, or the Department of Elderly Affairs who is
334	responsible for:
335	1.  Administration or supervision of the programs for the
336	prevention, investigation, or treatment of abuse, neglect, or
337	exploitation of vulnerable adults when carrying out an official
338	function; or
339	2.  Taking appropriate administrative action concerning an
340	employee alleged to have perpetrated abuse, neglect, or
341	exploitation of a vulnerable adult in an institution.
342	(i)  Any person engaged in bona fide research or auditing.
343	However, information identifying the subjects of the report must
344	not be made available to the researcher.
345	(f)(j)  Employees or agents of an agency of another state
346	that has jurisdiction comparable to the jurisdiction described
347	in paragraph (a).
348	(k)  The Public Employees Relations Commission for the sole
349	purpose of obtaining evidence for appeals filed pursuant to s.
350	447.207. Records may be released only after deletion of all
351	information that specifically identifies persons other than the
352	employee.
353	(g)(l)  Any person in the event of the death of a
354	vulnerable adult determined to be a result of abuse, neglect, or
355	exploitation. Information identifying the person reporting
356	abuse, neglect, or exploitation shall not be released. Any
357	information otherwise made confidential or exempt by law may
358	shall not be released pursuant to this paragraph.
359	(4)  The Department of Health, the Department of Business
360	and Professional Regulation, and the Agency for Health Care
361	Administration may have access to a report, excluding the name
362	of the reporter, when considering disciplinary action against a
363	licensee or certified nursing assistant pursuant to allegations
364	of abuse, neglect, or exploitation.
365	(3)(5)  The department may release to any professional
366	person such personal identifying information as is necessary for
367	the diagnosis and treatment of, and service delivery to, a
368	vulnerable adult or the person perpetrating the abuse, neglect,
369	or exploitation.
370	(4)(6)  The identity of any person reporting abuse,
371	neglect, or exploitation of a vulnerable adult may not be
372	released, without that person's written consent, to any person
373	other than employees of the department responsible for
374	protective services, the central abuse hotline, or the
375	appropriate state attorney or law enforcement agency. This
376	subsection grants protection only for the person who reported
377	the abuse, neglect, or exploitation and protects only the fact
378	that the person is the reporter. This subsection does not
379	prohibit the subpoena of a person reporting the abuse, neglect,
380	or exploitation if when deemed necessary by the state attorney
381	or the department to protect a vulnerable adult who is the
382	subject of a report, if the fact that the person made the report
383	is not disclosed.
384	(5)(7)  For the purposes of this section, the term "access
385	to personal identifying information" refers to information means
386	a visual inspection or copy of the hard-copy record maintained
387	in the district.
388	(6)(8)  Personal identifying information in the central
389	abuse hotline may not be used for employment screening.
390	(7)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
391	secretary may release any record reasonably related to a case
392	that is already in the public domain, but must redact the
393	identity of the victim unless the victim's name is also in the
394	public domain in the context of the case or is already
395	reasonably identifiable from information in the public domain.
396	Section 4.  Subsection (10) of section 39.01, Florida
397	Statutes, is amended to read:
398	39.01  Definitions.--When used in this chapter, unless the
399	context otherwise requires:
400	(10)  "Caregiver" means the parent, legal custodian,
401	permanent guardian, adult household member, or other person
402	responsible for a child's welfare as defined in subsection (47)
403	(46).
404	Section 5.  Subsection (6) of section 39.201, Florida
405	Statutes, is amended to read:
406	39.201  Mandatory reports of child abuse, abandonment, or
407	neglect; mandatory reports of death; central abuse hotline.--
408	(6)  Information in the central abuse hotline may not be
409	used for employment screening, except as provided in s.
410	39.202(2)(a) and (h). Information in the central abuse hotline
411	and the department's automated abuse information system may be
412	used by the department, its authorized agents or contract
413	providers, the Department of Health, or county agencies as part
414	of the licensure or registration process provided in pursuant to
415	ss. 402.301-402.319 and ss. 409.175-409.176.
416	Section 6.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.

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