Florida Senate - 2018                                    SB 1232
       
       
        
       By Senator Baxley
       
       
       
       
       
       12-00966B-18                                          20181232__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to public assistance fraud; amending
    3         s. 414.39, F.S.; revising the maximum reward paid to
    4         persons providing certain information leading to the
    5         recovery of certain fraudulent public assistance
    6         payments; revising the funding source for such
    7         rewards; amending s. 414.41, F.S.; directing state
    8         retained shares of recovered public assistance
    9         overpayments to be held in the Federal Grants Trust
   10         Fund; requiring such funds to be reallocated to the
   11         Department of Children and Families; specifying how
   12         such funds may be used by the department; requiring
   13         the department to submit an annual report and to
   14         propose certain projects for legislative
   15         authorization; amending s. 943.045, F.S.; revising the
   16         definition of the term “criminal justice agency” to
   17         include the fraud investigations component of the
   18         department; providing an effective date.
   19          
   20  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   21  
   22         Section 1. Paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (11) of
   23  section 414.39, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   24         414.39 Fraud.—
   25         (11)
   26         (b) The reward may not exceed 10 percent of the amount
   27  recovered in full by the department or $500,000, whichever is
   28  less, in a single case.
   29         (c) The reward shall be paid from the state-retained state
   30  share of the recovered overpayments held recovery in the Federal
   31  Grants Trust Fund from moneys collected pursuant to s. 414.41.
   32         Section 2. Subsection (4) is added to section 414.41,
   33  Florida Statutes, to read:
   34         414.41 Recovery of payments made due to mistake or fraud.—
   35         (4) All collected state-retained shares of recovered
   36  overpayments during each fiscal year shall be held in the
   37  Federal Grants Trust Fund to be reallocated to the department
   38  the following fiscal year for use as specified in this
   39  subsection.
   40         (a) Funds held in the Federal Grants Trust Fund pursuant to
   41  this subsection may be used by the department to:
   42         1. Pay public assistance fraud rewards as provided in s.
   43  414.39(11) and to fund public assistance fraud detection; and
   44         2. Fund prevention initiatives that enable the department
   45  to respond to and investigate emergent public assistance fraud
   46  schemes and threats pursuant to authorization under paragraph
   47  (c).
   48         (b) By October 1 of each year, the department shall submit
   49  a report to the Legislature which includes the following:
   50         1. The actual outcomes and returns on investment associated
   51  with projects approved pursuant to paragraph (c) during the
   52  previous fiscal year.
   53         2. The amount of funds in the Federal Grants Trust Fund
   54  available for expenditure pursuant to this subsection.
   55         3. The number and amount of public assistance fraud rewards
   56  paid during the previous fiscal year and anticipated to be paid
   57  during the next fiscal year.
   58         4. Descriptions of specific proposed projects to be
   59  supported by the expenditure of funds held according to this
   60  subsection, including expected outcomes of the proposed
   61  projects, and the estimated return on investment for the
   62  following fiscal year.
   63         (c) Contingent upon specific authorization in the General
   64  Appropriations Act or similar legislation, and notwithstanding
   65  chapter 216, the department may use funds, pursuant to this
   66  subsection, to pay public assistance fraud rewards and to fund
   67  one or more of the specific projects proposed in the annual
   68  report required under paragraph (b).
   69         Section 3. Paragraph (d) of subsection (11) of section
   70  943.045, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   71         943.045 Definitions; ss. 943.045-943.08.—The following
   72  words and phrases as used in ss. 943.045-943.08 shall have the
   73  following meanings:
   74         (11) “Criminal justice agency” means:
   75         (d) The protective and fraud investigations components
   76  component of the Department of Children and Families, which
   77  investigate investigates the crimes of abuse and neglect and
   78  public assistance fraud.
   79         Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.