Florida Senate - 2010                                    SB 2654
       
       
       
       By Senator Crist
       
       
       
       
       12-01719A-10                                          20102654__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to homelessness; amending ss. 320.02,
    3         322.08, and 322.18, F.S.; requiring the motor vehicle
    4         registration form and registration renewal form, the
    5         driver license application form, and the driver
    6         license application form for renewal issuance or
    7         renewal extension to include an option to make a
    8         voluntary contribution to aid the homeless; providing
    9         for such contributions to be deposited into the Grants
   10         and Donations Trust Fund of the Department of Children
   11         and Family Services and used by the State Office on
   12         Homelessness for certain purposes; providing that
   13         voluntary contributions for the homeless are not
   14         income of a revenue nature for the purpose of applying
   15         certain service charges; creating s. 414.161, F.S.;
   16         establishing a homelessness prevention grant program;
   17         requiring grant applicants to be ranked competitively;
   18         providing preference for certain grant applicants;
   19         providing eligibility requirements; providing grant
   20         limitations and restrictions; requiring lead agencies
   21         for local homeless assistance continuums of care to
   22         track, monitor, and report on assisted families for a
   23         specified period of time; amending s. 420.622, F.S.;
   24         limiting the percentage of funding that lead agencies
   25         may spend on administrative costs; providing that
   26         funding shall be appropriated as a fixed capital
   27         outlay item; amending s. 420.625, F.S.; deleting a
   28         cross-reference to conform; repealing s. 414.16, F.S.,
   29         relating to the emergency assistance program for
   30         families with children that have lost shelter or face
   31         loss of shelter due to an emergency; providing an
   32         effective date.
   33  
   34  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   35  
   36         Section 1. Paragraph (i) is added to subsection (15) of
   37  section 320.02, Florida Statutes, to read:
   38         320.02 Registration required; application for registration;
   39  forms.—
   40         (15)
   41         (i) Notwithstanding s. 320.023, the application form for
   42  motor vehicle registration and renewal of registration must
   43  include language permitting a voluntary contribution of $1 per
   44  applicant to aid the homeless. Contributions made pursuant to
   45  this paragraph shall be deposited into the Grants and Donations
   46  Trust Fund of the Department of Children and Family Services and
   47  used by the State Office on Homelessness to supplement grants
   48  made under s. 420.622(4) and (5), provide information to the
   49  public about homelessness in the state, and provide literature
   50  for homeless persons seeking assistance.
   51  
   52  For the purpose of applying the service charge provided in s.
   53  215.20, contributions received under this subsection are not
   54  income of a revenue nature.
   55         Section 2. Subsection (7) of section 322.08, Florida
   56  Statutes, is amended to read:
   57         322.08 Application for license.—
   58         (7) The application form for a driver’s license or
   59  duplicate thereof shall include language permitting the
   60  following:
   61         (a) A voluntary contribution of $1 per applicant, which
   62  contribution shall be deposited into the Health Care Trust Fund
   63  for organ and tissue donor education and for maintaining the
   64  organ and tissue donor registry.
   65         (b) A voluntary contribution of $1 per applicant, which
   66  contribution shall be distributed to the Florida Council of the
   67  Blind.
   68         (c) A voluntary contribution of $2 per applicant, which
   69  shall be distributed to the Hearing Research Institute,
   70  Incorporated.
   71         (d) A voluntary contribution of $1 per applicant, which
   72  shall be distributed to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation
   73  International.
   74         (e) A voluntary contribution of $1 per applicant, which
   75  shall be distributed to the Children’s Hearing Help Fund.
   76         (f) A voluntary contribution of $1 per applicant, which
   77  shall be distributed to Family First, a nonprofit organization.
   78         (g) A voluntary contribution of $1 per applicant, to Stop
   79  Heart Disease, which shall be distributed to the Florida Heart
   80  Research Institute, a nonprofit organization.
   81         (h) Notwithstanding s. 322.081, a voluntary contribution of
   82  $1 per applicant to aid the homeless. Contributions made
   83  pursuant to this paragraph shall be deposited into the Grants
   84  and Donations Trust Fund of the Department of Children and
   85  Family Services and used by the State Office on Homelessness to
   86  supplement grants made under s. 420.622(4) and (5), provide
   87  information to the public about homelessness in the state, and
   88  provide literature for homeless persons seeking assistance.
   89  
   90  A statement providing an explanation of the purpose of the trust
   91  funds shall also be included. For the purpose of applying the
   92  service charge provided in s. 215.20, contributions received
   93  under paragraphs (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g), and (h) and
   94  under s. 322.18(9) are not income of a revenue nature.
   95         Section 3. Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (9) of
   96  section 322.18, Florida Statutes, to read:
   97         322.18 Original applications, licenses, and renewals;
   98  expiration of licenses; delinquent licenses.—
   99         (9)
  100         (c) The application form for a renewal issuance or renewal
  101  extension shall include language permitting a voluntary
  102  contribution of $1 per applicant to aid the homeless.
  103  Contributions made pursuant to this paragraph shall be deposited
  104  into the Grants and Donations Trust Fund of the Department of
  105  Children and Family Services and used by the State Office on
  106  Homelessness to supplement grants made under s. 420.622(4) and
  107  (5), provide information to the public about homelessness in the
  108  state, and provide literature for homeless persons seeking
  109  assistance. For the purpose of applying the service charge
  110  provided in s. 215.20, contributions received under this
  111  paragraph are not income of a revenue nature.
  112         Section 4. Section 414.161, Florida Statutes, is created to
  113  read:
  114         414.161 Homelessness prevention grants.—
  115         (1) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—There is created a grant
  116  program to provide emergency financial assistance to families
  117  facing the loss of their current home due to a financial or
  118  other crisis. The State Office on Homelessness, with the
  119  concurrence of the Council on Homelessness, may accept and
  120  administer moneys appropriated to it to provide homelessness
  121  prevention grants annually to lead agencies for local homeless
  122  assistance continuums of care, as recognized by the State Office
  123  on Homelessness. These moneys shall consist of any sums that the
  124  state may appropriate, as well as money received from donations,
  125  gifts, bequests, or otherwise from any public or private source
  126  that is intended to assist families to prevent them from
  127  becoming homeless.
  128         (2) GRANT APPLICATIONS.—Grant applicants shall be ranked
  129  competitively. Preference shall be given to applicants who
  130  leverage additional private funds and public funds, who
  131  demonstrate the effectiveness of their homelessness prevention
  132  programs in keeping families housed, and who demonstrate the
  133  commitment of other assistance and services to address family
  134  health, employment, and education needs.
  135         (3) ELIGIBILITY.—In order to qualify for a grant, a lead
  136  agency must develop and implement a local homeless assistance
  137  continuum of care plan for its designated catchment area. The
  138  homelessness prevention program must be included in the
  139  continuum of care plan.
  140         (4) GRANT LIMITS.—The maximum grant amount per lead agency
  141  may not exceed $300,000. The grant assistance may be used to pay
  142  past due rent or mortgage payments, past due utility costs,
  143  other past due bills creating a family’s financial crisis,
  144  provision of case management services, and program
  145  administration costs not to exceed 3 percent of the grant award.
  146  The homelessness prevention program must develop a case plan for
  147  each family to be assisted setting forth what costs will be
  148  covered and the maximum level of assistance to be offered.
  149         (5) PERFORMANCE.—The lead agency shall be required to
  150  track, monitor, and report on each family assisted for at least
  151  12 months after the last assistance provided to the family. The
  152  goal for the homelessness prevention program shall be to enable
  153  at least 85 percent of the families assisted to remain in their
  154  homes and avoid becoming homeless during the ensuing year.
  155         Section 5. Paragraph (d) is added to subsection (4) of
  156  section 420.622, Florida Statutes, and paragraph (g) is added to
  157  subsection (5) of that section, to read:
  158         420.622 State Office on Homelessness; Council on
  159  Homelessness.—
  160         (4) Not less than 120 days after the effective date of this
  161  act, the State Office on Homelessness, with the concurrence of
  162  the Council on Homelessness, may accept and administer moneys
  163  appropriated to it to provide “Challenge Grants” annually to
  164  lead agencies for homeless assistance continuums of care
  165  designated by the State Office on Homelessness. A lead agency
  166  may be a local homeless coalition, municipal or county
  167  government, or other public agency or private, not-for-profit
  168  corporation. Such grants may be up to $500,000 per lead agency.
  169         (d) A lead agency may spend a maximum of 8 percent of its
  170  funding on administrative costs.
  171         (5) The State Office on Homelessness, with the concurrence
  172  of the Council on Homelessness, may administer moneys
  173  appropriated to it to provide homeless housing assistance grants
  174  annually to lead agencies for local homeless assistance
  175  continuum of care, as recognized by the State Office on
  176  Homelessness, to acquire, construct, or rehabilitate
  177  transitional or permanent housing units for homeless persons.
  178  These moneys shall consist of any sums that the state may
  179  appropriate, as well as money received from donations, gifts,
  180  bequests, or otherwise from any public or private source, which
  181  are intended to acquire, construct, or rehabilitate transitional
  182  or permanent housing units for homeless persons.
  183         (g) Funding shall be appropriated as a fixed capital outlay
  184  item.
  185         Section 6. Paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section
  186  420.625, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  187         420.625 Grant-in-aid program.—
  188         (3) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established a grant-in
  189  aid program to help local communities in serving the needs of
  190  the homeless through a variety of supportive services, which may
  191  include, but are not limited to:
  192         (d) Emergency financial assistance for persons who are
  193  totally without shelter or facing loss of shelter, but who are
  194  not eligible for such assistance under s. 414.16.
  195         Section 7. Section 414.16, Florida Statutes, is repealed.
  196         Section 8. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.