| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to cooperation between schools and |
| 3 | juvenile authorities; amending s. 985.04, F.S.; requiring |
| 4 | that specified school personnel be notified when a child |
| 5 | of any age is formally charged by a state attorney with a |
| 6 | felony or a delinquent act that would be a felony if |
| 7 | committed by an adult and be notified of the disposition |
| 8 | of the charges; amending s. 1002.221, F.S.; providing for |
| 9 | release of a student's education records to parties to an |
| 10 | interagency agreement for specified purposes without |
| 11 | consent of the student or parent; providing that such |
| 12 | information is inadmissible in court proceedings before a |
| 13 | dispositional hearing without consent; providing an |
| 14 | effective date. |
| 15 |
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| 16 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 17 |
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| 18 | Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section |
| 19 | 985.04, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 20 | 985.04 Oaths; records; confidential information.- |
| 21 | (4) |
| 22 | (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) or any other provision |
| 23 | of this section, when a child of any age is formally charged by |
| 24 | a state attorney with a felony or a delinquent act that would be |
| 25 | a felony if committed by an adult, the state attorney shall |
| 26 | notify the superintendent of the child's school that the child |
| 27 | has been charged with such felony or delinquent act. The |
| 28 | information obtained by the superintendent of schools under this |
| 29 | section must be released within 48 hours after receipt to |
| 30 | appropriate school personnel, including the principal of the |
| 31 | school of the child and the director of transportation. The |
| 32 | principal must immediately notify the child's immediate |
| 33 | classroom teachers, the child's assigned bus driver, and any |
| 34 | other school personnel whose duties include direct supervision |
| 35 | of the child. Upon notification, the principal is authorized to |
| 36 | begin disciplinary actions under s. 1006.09(1)-(4). The |
| 37 | principal must also be notified and must notify the other school |
| 38 | personnel whose duties include direct supervision of the child |
| 39 | of the disposition of the charges against the child. |
| 40 | Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 1002.221, Florida |
| 41 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 42 | 1002.221 K-12 education records.- |
| 43 | (2)(a) An agency, as defined in s. 1002.22(1)(a), or a |
| 44 | public school, center, institution, or other entity that is part |
| 45 | of Florida's education system under s. 1000.04(1), (3), or (4), |
| 46 | may not release a student's education records without the |
| 47 | written consent of the student or parent to any individual, |
| 48 | agency, or organization, except in accordance with and as |
| 49 | permitted by the FERPA. Education records released by an agency, |
| 50 | as defined in s. 1002.22(1)(a), or by a public school, center, |
| 51 | institution, or other entity that is part of Florida's education |
| 52 | system under s. 1000.04(1), (3), or (4), to the Auditor General |
| 53 | or the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government |
| 54 | Accountability, which are necessary for such agencies to perform |
| 55 | their official duties and responsibilities, shall be used and |
| 56 | maintained by the Auditor General and the Office of Program |
| 57 | Policy Analysis and Government Accountability in accordance with |
| 58 | the FERPA. |
| 59 | (b) In accordance with FERPA, and the federal regulations |
| 60 | issued pursuant to FERPA, an agency, as defined in s. 1002.22, |
| 61 | or a public school, center, institution, or other entity that is |
| 62 | part of Florida's education system under s. 1000.04(1), (3), or |
| 63 | (4) may release a student's education records without written |
| 64 | consent of the student or parent to parties to an interagency |
| 65 | agreement among the Department of Juvenile Justice, the school, |
| 66 | law enforcement authorities, and other signatory agencies. The |
| 67 | purpose of such an agreement and information sharing is to |
| 68 | reduce juvenile crime, especially motor vehicle theft, by |
| 69 | promoting cooperation and collaboration and the sharing of |
| 70 | appropriate information in a joint effort to improve school |
| 71 | safety, to reduce truancy and in-school and out-of-school |
| 72 | suspensions, and to support alternatives to in-school and out- |
| 73 | of-school suspensions and expulsions that provide structured and |
| 74 | well-supervised educational programs supplemented by a |
| 75 | coordinated overlay of other appropriate services designed to |
| 76 | correct behaviors that lead to truancy, suspensions, and |
| 77 | expulsions and that support students in successfully completing |
| 78 | their education. Information provided in furtherance of the |
| 79 | interagency agreements is intended solely for use in determining |
| 80 | the appropriate programs and services for each juvenile or the |
| 81 | juvenile's family, or for coordinating the delivery of the |
| 82 | programs and services, and as such is inadmissible in any court |
| 83 | proceeding before a dispositional hearing unless written consent |
| 84 | is provided by a parent or other responsible adult on behalf of |
| 85 | the juvenile. |
| 86 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010. |