Florida Senate - 2019                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 1622
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì714972=Î714972                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  04/01/2019           .                                
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       The Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs
       (Montford) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete everything after the enacting clause
    4  and insert:
    5         Section 1. Subsection (16) of section 409.175, Florida
    6  Statutes, is amended to read:
    7         409.175 Licensure of family foster homes, residential
    8  child-caring agencies, and child-placing agencies; public
    9  records exemption.—
   10         (16)(a)1. The following information held by the Department
   11  of Children and Families regarding a foster parent applicant and
   12  such applicant’s spouse, minor child, and other adult household
   13  member is exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the
   14  State Constitution:
   15         a. Names;
   16         b. The home, business, work, child care, or school
   17  addresses and telephone numbers;
   18         c.b. Birth dates;
   19         d.c. Medical records;
   20         e.d. The floor plan of the home; and
   21         f.e. Photographs of such persons.
   22         2. If a foster parent applicant does not receive a foster
   23  parent license, the information made exempt pursuant to this
   24  paragraph shall become public 5 years after the date of
   25  application, except that medical records shall remain exempt
   26  from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State
   27  Constitution.
   28         3. This exemption applies to information made exempt by
   29  this paragraph before, on, or after the effective date of the
   30  exemption.
   31         (b)1. The following information held by the Department of
   32  Children and Families regarding a licensed foster parent and the
   33  foster parent’s spouse, minor child, and other adult household
   34  member is exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the
   35  State Constitution:
   36         a. Names;
   37         b. The home, business, work, child care, or school
   38  addresses and telephone numbers;
   39         c.b. Birth dates;
   40         d.c. Medical records;
   41         e.d. The floor plan of the home; and
   42         f.e. Photographs of such persons.
   43         2. If a foster parent’s license is no longer active, the
   44  information made exempt pursuant to this paragraph shall become
   45  public 5 years after the expiration date of such foster parent’s
   46  foster care license except that:
   47         a. Medical records shall remain exempt from s. 119.07(1)
   48  and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.
   49         b. Exempt information regarding a licensed foster parent
   50  who has become an adoptive parent and exempt information
   51  regarding such foster parent’s spouse, minor child, or other
   52  adult household member shall remain exempt from s. 119.07(1) and
   53  s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.
   54         3. If a licensed foster parent or the foster parent’s
   55  spouse, minor child, or other adult household member is charged
   56  with committing a crime against a foster child who is in the
   57  care of the licensed foster parent and the Department of
   58  Children and Families suspends or revokes the foster parent’s
   59  license as a result, the information in sub-subparagraph 1.a.
   60  regarding the charged individual is not exempt from s. 119.07(1)
   61  and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution, except as
   62  otherwise expressly made confidential or exempt by law.
   63         4. This exemption applies to information made exempt by
   64  this paragraph before, on, or after the effective date of the
   65  exemption.
   66         (c) The name, address, and telephone number of persons
   67  providing character or neighbor references regarding foster
   68  parent applicants or licensed foster parents held by the
   69  Department of Children and Families are exempt from s. 119.07(1)
   70  and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.
   71         (d)Sub-subparagraphs (a)1.a. and (b)1.a. and subparagraph
   72  (b)3. are subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in
   73  accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2,
   74  2024, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment
   75  by the Legislature.
   76         Section 2. (1)The Legislature finds it is a public
   77  necessity that the following identifying information be exempt
   78  from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a), Article I of
   79  the State Constitution:
   80         (a)The name of a foster parent applicant;
   81         (b)The names of spouses, minor children, and other adult
   82  household members of such foster parent applicant;
   83         (c)The name of a licensed foster parent; and
   84         (d)The names of spouses, minor children, and other adult
   85  household members of such licensed foster parent.
   86         (2)The Legislature is committed to ensuring the safety of
   87  all children. Among the state’s most valued partners are foster
   88  parents who make the choice to bring a child into their home.
   89  There are instances where foster parents, by the nature of the
   90  service they provide, find themselves and their families in
   91  life-threatening situations, as was the case when a foster
   92  mother was harmed by the foster children’s biological parents in
   93  August 2018. Consequently, the Legislature finds that the
   94  release of the names of a foster parent applicant, a foster
   95  parent, their minor children, or adult household members could
   96  lead to unwanted contact and harassment from disgruntled parents
   97  who react inappropriately due to their children being taken from
   98  them and placed in out-of-home care. Additionally, exempting
   99  these names helps to maintain the confidentiality of the foster
  100  children placed in the home. For example, if a foster parent has
  101  an unusual name, any person acquiring a list of the names of the
  102  foster parents and other members of the household could uncover
  103  information about the foster children living in the home.
  104         (3)Foster parents provide a valuable service to the child
  105  welfare system by providing a safe and nurturing environment for
  106  children who have been removed from their homes due to a
  107  parent’s abandonment, abuse, or neglect. Following a public
  108  records request in 2018 for a list of names for all licensed
  109  foster parents and corresponding counties, the Department of
  110  Children and Families received numerous letters from current
  111  foster parents. In these letters, the foster parents expressed
  112  their concerns with having their names released to the public.
  113  Several expressed that if their names be released, they would no
  114  longer wish to serve as foster parents. Therefore, the
  115  Legislature finds that by exempting the names of foster parent
  116  applicants, foster parents, their minor children, or adult
  117  household members, the Department of Children and Families is
  118  assisted in its priority to recruit and retain foster parents.
  119  This in turn helps ensure that there are enough out-of-home
  120  placements for children within the child welfare system.
  121         (4)The Legislature further finds that it is necessary to
  122  maintain government accountability by balancing the public’s
  123  right to know with the Legislature’s interest in protecting and
  124  recruiting foster parents. Therefore, an exception is created
  125  stating that if a licensed foster parent or his or her spouse,
  126  minor child, or adult household member is charged with
  127  committing a crime against a foster child who is in the care of
  128  the licensed foster parent which results in the suspension or
  129  revocation of that foster parent’s license, the name of the
  130  charged individual is not exempt unless it is otherwise
  131  expressly made confidential or exempt by law.
  132         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.
  133  
  134  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  135  And the title is amended as follows:
  136         Delete everything before the enacting clause
  137  and insert:
  138                        A bill to be entitled                      
  139         An act relating to public records; amending s.
  140         409.175, F.S.; providing an exemption from public
  141         records requirements for the names of foster parent
  142         applicants and licensed foster parents, and the names
  143         of the spouses, minor children, and adult household
  144         members of such applicants and foster parents, which
  145         are held by the Department of Children and Families;
  146         providing an exception, under specified circumstances,
  147         for certain individuals charged with certain crimes;
  148         providing for future legislative review and repeal of
  149         the exemption; providing a statement of public
  150         necessity; providing an effective date.