Florida Senate - 2019                                    SB 1492
       
       
        
       By Senator Book
       
       
       
       
       
       32-00788A-19                                          20191492__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to government-sponsored recreation
    3         programs; amending s. 402.302, F.S.; revising the
    4         definition of the term “child care facility” to
    5         exclude government-sponsored recreation programs;
    6         defining the term “government-sponsored recreation
    7         program”; amending ss. 39.201, 402.305, and 1002.82,
    8         F.S.; conforming cross-references; providing an
    9         effective date.
   10          
   11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   12  
   13         Section 1. Present subsections (9) through (18) of section
   14  402.302, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (10)
   15  through (19), respectively, a new subsection (9) is added to
   16  that section, and paragraph (f) is added to subsection (2) of
   17  that section, to read:
   18         402.302 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term:
   19         (2) “Child care facility” includes any child care center or
   20  child care arrangement which provides child care for more than
   21  five children unrelated to the operator and which receives a
   22  payment, fee, or grant for any of the children receiving care,
   23  wherever operated, and whether or not operated for profit. The
   24  following are not included:
   25         (a) Public schools and nonpublic schools and their integral
   26  programs, except as provided in s. 402.3025;
   27         (b) Summer camps having children in full-time residence;
   28         (c) Summer day camps;
   29         (d) Bible schools normally conducted during vacation
   30  periods; and
   31         (e) Operators of transient establishments, as defined in
   32  chapter 509, which provide child care services solely for the
   33  guests of their establishment or resort, provided that all child
   34  care personnel of the establishment are screened according to
   35  the level 2 screening requirements of chapter 435; and
   36         (f) Government-sponsored recreation programs.
   37         (9) “Government-sponsored recreation program” means a
   38  recreation program for school-age children which meets all of
   39  the following requirements:
   40         (a) Offers no more than 4 hours of programming per day.
   41         (b) Is operated by a county or municipality that has
   42  adopted standards of care by ordinance for the program, which
   43  include, but are not limited to, staffing ratios, minimum staff
   44  qualifications, level 2 background screening for all staff and
   45  volunteers, and minimum facility, health, and safety standards.
   46         (c) Has been certified by the county or municipality for
   47  compliance with such standards of care.
   48         (d) Provides notice to the parents of each child
   49  participating in the program that the program is not state
   50  licensed or advertised as a child care facility and provides
   51  them with the county’s or municipality’s standards of care.
   52         Section 2. Subsection (6) of section 39.201, Florida
   53  Statutes, is amended to read:
   54         39.201 Mandatory reports of child abuse, abandonment, or
   55  neglect; mandatory reports of death; central abuse hotline.—
   56         (6) Information in the central abuse hotline may not be
   57  used for employment screening, except as provided in s.
   58  39.202(2)(a) and (h) or s. 402.302(16) s. 402.302(15).
   59  Information in the central abuse hotline and the department’s
   60  automated abuse information system may be used by the
   61  department, its authorized agents or contract providers, the
   62  Department of Health, or county agencies as part of the
   63  licensure or registration process pursuant to ss. 402.301
   64  402.319 and ss. 409.175-409.176. Pursuant to s. 39.202(2)(q),
   65  the information in the central abuse hotline may also be used by
   66  the Department of Education for purposes of educator
   67  certification discipline and review.
   68         Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section
   69  402.305, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   70         402.305 Licensing standards; child care facilities.—
   71         (2) PERSONNEL.—Minimum standards for child care personnel
   72  shall include minimum requirements as to:
   73         (a) Good moral character based upon screening as defined in
   74  s. 402.302(16) s. 402.302(15). This screening shall be conducted
   75  as provided in chapter 435, using the level 2 standards for
   76  screening set forth in that chapter, and include employment
   77  history checks, a search of criminal history records, sexual
   78  predator and sexual offender registries, and child abuse and
   79  neglect registry of any state in which the current or
   80  prospective child care personnel resided during the preceding 5
   81  years.
   82         Section 4. Paragraph (y) of subsection (2) of section
   83  1002.82, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   84         1002.82 Office of Early Learning; powers and duties.—
   85         (2) The office shall:
   86         (y) Establish staff-to-children ratios that do not exceed
   87  the requirements of s. 402.302(8) or (12) s. 402.302(8) or (11)
   88  or s. 402.305(4), as applicable, for school readiness program
   89  providers.
   90         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.