CS/HB 371

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to community residential homes; amending
3	s. 419.001, F.S.; revising and providing definitions;
4	exempting certain community residential homes in planned
5	residential communities from the requirement to obtain
6	local government approval; providing an effective date.
7
8	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
9
10	Section 1.  Subsections (1) and (2) of section 419.001,
11	Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
12	419.001  Site selection of community residential homes.--
13	(1)  For the purposes of this section, the following
14	definitions shall apply:
15	(a)  "Community residential home" means a dwelling unit
16	licensed to serve residents, as defined in paragraph (d), who
17	are clients of the Department of Elderly Affairs, the Agency for
18	Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Juvenile Justice,
19	or the Department of Children and Family Services or a dwelling
20	unit licensed by the Agency for Health Care Administration which
21	provides a living environment for 7 to 14 unrelated residents
22	who operate as the functional equivalent of a family, including
23	such supervision and care by supportive staff as may be
24	necessary to meet the physical, emotional, and social needs of
25	the residents.
26	(b)  "Licensing entity" or "licensing entities" means the
27	Department of Elderly Affairs, the Agency for Persons with
28	Disabilities, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Department
29	of Children and Family Services, or the Agency for Health Care
30	Administration, all of which are authorized to license a
31	community residential home to serve residents, as defined in
32	paragraph (d).
33	(c)  "Local government" means a county as set forth in
34	chapter 7 or a municipality incorporated under the provisions of
35	chapter 165.
36	(d)  "Planned residential community" means a planned unit
37	development having amenities that are designed to serve
38	residents who have developmental disabilities and may consist of
39	two or more community residential homes that are contiguous to
40	one another.
41	(e)(d)  "Resident" means any of the following: a frail
42	elder as defined in s. 429.65; a person who has a handicap
43	physically disabled or handicapped person as defined in s.
44	760.22(7)(a); a developmentally disabled person who has a
45	developmental disability as defined in s. 393.063; a
46	nondangerous mentally ill person who has a mental illness as
47	defined in s. 394.455(18); or a child who is found to be
48	dependent as defined in s. 39.01 or s. 984.03, or a child in
49	need of services as defined in s. 984.03 or s. 985.03.
50	(f)(e)  "Sponsoring agency" means an agency or unit of
51	government, a profit or nonprofit agency, or any other person or
52	organization which intends to establish or operate a community
53	residential home.
54	(2)  Homes of six or fewer residents which otherwise meet
55	the definition of a community residential home shall be deemed a
56	single-family unit and a noncommercial, residential use for the
57	purpose of local laws and ordinances. Such homes of six or fewer
58	residents which otherwise meet the definition of a community
59	residential home:
60	(a)  Shall be allowed in single-family or multifamily
61	zoning without approval by the local government approval if they
62	are, provided that such homes shall not be located within a
63	radius of 1,000 feet of another existing such home that has with
64	six or fewer residents. Such homes are with six or fewer
65	residents shall not be required to comply with the notification
66	provisions of this section if; provided that, prior to
67	licensure, the sponsoring agency provides the local government
68	with the most recently published data compiled from the
69	licensing entities that identifies all community residential
70	homes within the jurisdictional limits of the local government
71	in which the proposed site is to be located in order to show
72	that no other community residential home is within a radius of
73	1,000 feet of the proposed home with six or fewer residents. At
74	the time of home occupancy, the sponsoring agency must notify
75	the local government that the home is licensed by the licensing
76	entity.
77	(b)  That are located within a planned residential
78	community do not require local government approval regardless of
79	their proximity to each other.
80	Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.

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