Florida Senate - 2022                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 7034
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì549386UÎ549386                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  02/02/2022           .                                
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       Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services
       (Garcia) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment 
    2  
    3         Delete lines 46 - 178
    4  and insert:
    5         (d)1.Relatives or nonrelatives who have a child placed
    6  with them in out-of-home care and who have obtained licensure as
    7  a child-specific level I foster placement, regardless of whether
    8  a court has found the child to be dependent, shall receive a
    9  monthly payment in accordance with s. 409.145(3) from the date
   10  the child is placed in out-of-home care with his or her
   11  relatives or with nonrelatives until the child achieves
   12  permanency as determined by the court pursuant to s. 39.621.
   13         2.Relatives or nonrelatives who have a child who has been
   14  found to be dependent placed with them in out-of-home care shall
   15  receive a monthly payment at a rate equal to the rate
   16  established in s. 409.145(3) for licensed foster parents,
   17  regardless of whether the relatives or nonrelatives have
   18  obtained a child-specific level I foster license, from the date
   19  the child is found to be dependent or from the date the child is
   20  placed with them in out-of-home care, whichever is later, for a
   21  period of no more than 6 months or until the child achieves
   22  permanency as determined by the court pursuant to s. 39.621,
   23  whichever occurs first.
   24         3.Relatives or nonrelatives who have a child who has been
   25  found to be dependent placed with them in out-of-home care and
   26  who have not obtained a child-specific level I foster license
   27  within 6 months from the date of such placement shall receive a
   28  monthly payment in an amount determined by department rule from
   29  6 months after the date the child is found to be dependent or
   30  from 6 months after the child is placed with them in out-of-home
   31  care, whichever is later, until the relatives or nonrelatives
   32  obtain a child-specific level I foster license or until the
   33  child achieves permanency as determined by the court pursuant to
   34  s. 39.621, whichever occurs first. The monthly payment amount
   35  paid to relatives or nonrelatives pursuant to this subparagraph
   36  must be less than the monthly payment amount provided to a
   37  participant enrolled in the Guardianship Assistance Program
   38  pursuant to s. 39.6225.
   39         4. Relatives or nonrelatives who have a child placed in
   40  their care by permanent guardianship pursuant to s. 39.6221, in
   41  a permanent placement with a fit and willing relative pursuant
   42  to s. 39.6231, or under former s. 39.622 if the placement was
   43  made before July 1, 2006, and who are not enrolled in the
   44  Guardianship Assistance Program pursuant to s. 39.6225 shall
   45  receive a monthly payment in an amount determined by department
   46  rule which must be less than the monthly payment amount provided
   47  to a participant enrolled in the Guardianship Assistance Program
   48  under s. 39.6225 Relatives or nonrelatives who are caring for
   49  children placed with them by the court pursuant to this chapter
   50  shall receive a special monthly caregiver benefit established by
   51  rule of the department.
   52         (e)Relatives or nonrelatives obtaining monthly payments
   53  under this section may also obtain a special benefit payment.
   54  The amount of the special benefit payment shall be based on the
   55  child’s age within a payment schedule established by rule of the
   56  department and subject to availability of funding. The statewide
   57  average monthly rate for children judicially placed with
   58  relatives or nonrelatives who are not licensed as foster homes
   59  may not exceed 82 percent of the statewide average foster care
   60  rate, and the cost of providing the assistance described in this
   61  section to any caregiver may not exceed the cost of providing
   62  out-of-home care in emergency shelter or foster care.
   63         Section 2. Present subsection (4) of section 409.145,
   64  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (5), a new
   65  subsection (4) is added to that section, and subsection (3) of
   66  that section is amended, to read:
   67         409.145 Care of children; “reasonable and prudent parent”
   68  standard.—The child welfare system of the department shall
   69  operate as a coordinated community-based system of care which
   70  empowers all caregivers for children in foster care to provide
   71  quality parenting, including approving or disapproving a child’s
   72  participation in activities based on the caregiver’s assessment
   73  using the “reasonable and prudent parent” standard.
   74         (3) FOSTER CARE ROOM AND BOARD RATES.—
   75         (a) Effective July 1, 2022 2018, room and board rates shall
   76  be paid to foster parents, including relative and nonrelative
   77  caregivers who are licensed as a level I child-specific foster
   78  placement, and to relative and nonrelative caregivers who are
   79  participating in the Relative Caregiver Program and receiving
   80  payments pursuant to s. 39.5085(2)(d)1. or 2., as follows:
   81  
   82                Monthly Room and Board Foster Care Rate              
   83       0-5 YearsAge         6-12 YearsAge         13-21 YearsAge    
   84     $517.94 $457.95       $531.21 $469.68       $621.77 $549.74    
   85  
   86         (b) Each January, foster parents, including relative and
   87  nonrelative caregivers who are licensed as a level I child
   88  specific foster placement and relative and nonrelative
   89  caregivers who are participating in the Relative Caregiver
   90  Program and receiving payments pursuant to s. 39.5085(2)(d)1. or
   91  2., shall receive an annual cost of living increase. The
   92  department shall calculate the new room and board rate increase
   93  equal to the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for
   94  All Urban Consumers, U.S. City Average, All Items, not
   95  seasonally adjusted, or successor reports, for the preceding
   96  December compared to the prior December as initially reported by
   97  the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
   98  Statistics. The department shall make available the adjusted
   99  room and board rates annually.
  100         (c) Effective July 1, 2019, foster parents of level I
  101  family foster homes as defined in s. 409.175(5)(a) shall receive
  102  a room and board rate of $333.
  103         (d) Effective July 1, 2019, the foster care room and board
  104  rate for level II family foster homes as defined in s.
  105  409.175(5)(a) shall be the same as the new rate established for
  106  family foster homes as of January 1, 2019.
  107         (e) Effective January 1, 2020, paragraph (b) shall only
  108  apply to level II through level V family foster homes, as
  109  defined in s. 409.175(5)(a).
  110         (f) The amount of the monthly foster care room and board
  111  rate may be increased upon agreement among the department, the
  112  community-based care lead agency, and the foster parent.
  113         (d)(g)Effective July 1, 2022 From July 1, 2018, through
  114  June 30, 2019, community-based care lead agencies providing care
  115  under contract with the department shall pay a supplemental room
  116  and board payment to foster care parents, including relative and
  117  nonrelative caregivers who are licensed as a level I child
  118  specific foster placement and relative and nonrelative
  119  caregivers who are participating in the Relative Caregiver
  120  Program and receiving payments pursuant to s. 39.5085(2)(d)1. or
  121  2. of all family foster homes, on a per-child basis, for
  122  providing independent life skills and normalcy supports to
  123  children who are 13 through 17 years of age placed in their
  124  care. The supplemental payment must shall be paid monthly to the
  125  foster care parents in addition to the current monthly room and
  126  board rate payment. The supplemental monthly payment shall be
  127  based on 10 percent of the monthly room and board rate for
  128  children 13 through 21 years of age as provided under this
  129  section and adjusted annually. Effective July 1, 2019, such
  130  supplemental payments shall only be paid to foster parents of
  131  level II through level V family foster homes.
  132         (4) CHILD CARE SUBSIDY.—Any foster parents and relative or
  133  nonrelative caregivers, regardless of whether the relative or
  134  nonrelative caregivers are licensed as a level I child-specific
  135  foster placement or participate in the Relative Caregiver
  136  Program, who have a child placed in out-of-home care in the home
  137  between the age of birth to school entry shall receive a payment
  138  of $200 per month per child to pay toward the cost of an early