Florida Senate - 2024 CS for SB 1380
By the Committee on Transportation; and Senator Hutson
596-02951-24 20241380c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to transportation services for persons
3 with disabilities and the transportation
4 disadvantaged; reordering and amending s. 427.011,
5 F.S.; defining terms; amending s. 427.012, F.S.;
6 revising membership of the Commission for the
7 Transportation Disadvantaged and qualifications
8 therefor; providing for staggered terms; requiring
9 each member to be a resident of this state; deleting
10 provisions relating to background screening
11 requirements; amending s. 427.013, F.S.; revising the
12 duties of the commission; amending s. 427.0159, F.S.;
13 conforming a cross-reference; creating s. 427.02,
14 F.S.; providing responsibilities of a transportation
15 service provider with respect to driver training,
16 installation of video camera monitoring systems, and
17 technology-based services; requiring a transportation
18 service provider and the local government with which
19 the provider contracts to establish standards relating
20 to reasonable time periods between a request for
21 service and the arrival of the provider, limitation of
22 the duration of travel times, transparency regarding
23 the quality of service provided, and a system for the
24 reporting of adverse incidents; requiring that reports
25 of adverse incidents be submitted to the Agency for
26 Persons with Disabilities and the Department of
27 Transportation; requiring the agency and the
28 department to establish requirements for the
29 investigation of adverse incidents; requiring such an
30 investigation to commence within a certain timeframe;
31 providing nonapplicability of provisions exempting the
32 purchase of contractual services from competitive
33 bidding requirements; providing an effective date.
34
35 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
36
37 Section 1. Section 427.011, Florida Statutes, is reordered
38 and amended to read:
39 427.011 Definitions.—For the purposes of ss. 427.011
40 427.017:
41 (11)(1) “Transportation disadvantaged” means those persons
42 who because of physical or mental disability, income status, or
43 age are unable to transport themselves or to purchase
44 transportation and are, therefore, dependent upon others to
45 obtain access to health care, employment, education, shopping,
46 social activities, or other life-sustaining activities, or
47 children who are handicapped or high-risk or at-risk as defined
48 in s. 411.202.
49 (6)(2) “Metropolitan planning organization” means the
50 organization responsible for carrying out transportation
51 planning and programming in accordance with the provisions of 23
52 U.S.C. s. 134, as provided in 23 U.S.C. s. 104(f)(3).
53 (1)(3) “Agency” means an official, officer, commission,
54 authority, council, committee, department, division, bureau,
55 board, section, or any other unit or entity of the state or of a
56 city, town, municipality, county, or other local governing body
57 or a private nonprofit transportation service-providing agency.
58 (13)(4) “Transportation improvement program” means a staged
59 multiyear program of transportation improvements, including an
60 annual element, which is developed by a metropolitan planning
61 organization or designated official planning agency.
62 (2)(5) “Community transportation coordinator” means a
63 transportation entity recommended by a metropolitan planning
64 organization, or by the appropriate designated official planning
65 agency as provided for in ss. 427.011-427.017 in an area outside
66 the purview of a metropolitan planning organization, to ensure
67 that coordinated transportation services are provided to the
68 transportation disadvantaged population in a designated service
69 area.
70 (14)(6) “Transportation operator” means one or more public,
71 private for-profit, or private nonprofit entities engaged by the
72 community transportation coordinator to provide service to
73 transportation disadvantaged persons pursuant to a coordinated
74 system service plan.
75 (3)(7) “Coordinating board” means an advisory entity in
76 each designated service area composed of representatives
77 appointed by the metropolitan planning organization or
78 designated official planning agency, to provide assistance to
79 the community transportation coordinator relative to the
80 coordination of transportation services.
81 (9)(8) “Purchasing agency” means a department or agency
82 whose head is an ex officio, nonvoting adviser to the
83 commission, or an agency that purchases transportation services
84 for the transportation disadvantaged.
85 (8)(9) “Paratransit” means those elements of public transit
86 which provide service between specific origins and destinations
87 selected by the individual user with such service being provided
88 at a time that is agreed upon by the user and provider of the
89 service. Paratransit service is provided by taxis, limousines,
90 “dial-a-ride,” buses, and other demand-responsive operations
91 that are characterized by their nonscheduled, nonfixed route
92 nature.
93 (12)(10) “Transportation disadvantaged funds” means any
94 local government, state, or available federal funds that are for
95 the transportation of the transportation disadvantaged. Such
96 funds may include, but are not limited to, funds for planning,
97 Medicaid transportation, administration, operation, procurement,
98 and maintenance of vehicles or equipment and capital
99 investments. Transportation disadvantaged funds do not include
100 funds for the transportation of children to public schools.
101 (4)(11) “Coordination” means the arrangement for the
102 provision of transportation services to the transportation
103 disadvantaged in a manner that is cost-effective, efficient, and
104 reduces fragmentation and duplication of services.
105 (7)(12) “Nonsponsored transportation disadvantaged
106 services” means transportation disadvantaged services that are
107 not sponsored or subsidized by any funding source other than the
108 Transportation Disadvantaged Trust Fund.
109 (5) “Immediate family member” means a spouse, child,
110 parent, sibling, grandparent, aunt, uncle, or first cousin of a
111 person or the person’s spouse or a person who resides in the
112 primary residence of the person.
113 (10) “Request for service” means a request made to a
114 transportation service provider by a person with a disability,
115 or by such person’s immediate family member, for paratransit
116 service.
117 (15) “Transportation service provider” means an
118 organization or entity that contracts with a local government to
119 provide paratransit service for persons with disabilities.
120 Section 2. Section 427.012, Florida Statutes, is amended to
121 read:
122 427.012 The Commission for the Transportation
123 Disadvantaged.—There is created the Commission for the
124 Transportation Disadvantaged in the Department of
125 Transportation.
126 (1) The commission shall consist of 14 seven members, all
127 of whom shall be appointed by the Governor, in accordance with
128 the requirements of s. 20.052.
129 (2) The commission shall be composed of the following
130 members:
131 (a) The director of the Agency for Persons with
132 Disabilities.
133 (b) The Secretary of Transportation or his or her designee
134 from within the Department of Transportation.
135 (c) The Secretary of Children and Families or his or her
136 designee from within the Department of Children and Families.
137 (d) The Secretary of Elderly Affairs.
138 (e) The State Surgeon General or his or her designee from
139 within the Department of Health.
140 (f) Two county managers or administrators, one from a rural
141 county and one from a county with a population of more than
142 150,000 according to the last state census.
143 (g) The chief executive officer or president of a hospital
144 in this state.
145 (h) The director of the Division of Blind Services.
146 (i) Five members who have experience in transit,
147 transportation services, innovative technology, government
148 procurement, mobility, or service of persons with disabilities
149 or who have disabilities and use transportation for the
150 transportation disadvantaged.
151 (3) Appointed members shall serve 4-year terms, except that
152 initially, to provide for staggered terms, the Governor shall
153 appoint three members to serve 2-year terms and two members to
154 serve 3-year terms. All subsequent appointments shall be for 4
155 year terms. A member may be reappointed for one additional 4
156 year term.
157 (4) Each member must be a resident of this state.
158 (a) Five of the members must have significant experience in
159 the operation of a business, and it is the intent of the
160 Legislature that, when making an appointment, the Governor
161 select persons who reflect the broad diversity of the business
162 community in this state, as well as the racial, ethnic,
163 geographical, and gender diversity of the population of this
164 state.
165 (b) Two of the members must have a disability and use the
166 transportation disadvantaged system.
167 (c) Each member shall represent the needs of the
168 transportation disadvantaged throughout the state. A member may
169 not subordinate the needs of the transportation disadvantaged in
170 general in order to favor the needs of others residing in a
171 specific location in the state.
172 (d) Each member shall be appointed to a term of 4 years. A
173 member may be reappointed for one additional 4-year term.
174 (e) Each member must be a resident of the state and a
175 registered voter.
176 (f) At any given time, at least one member must be at least
177 65 years of age.
178 (g) The Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of
179 Children and Families, the Secretary of Economic Opportunity,
180 the executive director of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs,
181 the Secretary of Elderly Affairs, the Secretary of Health Care
182 Administration, the director of the Agency for Persons with
183 Disabilities, and a county manager or administrator who is
184 appointed by the Governor, or a senior management level
185 representative of each, shall serve as ex officio, nonvoting
186 advisors to the commission.
187 (h) A member may not, within the 5 years immediately before
188 his or her appointment, or during his or her term on the
189 commission, have or have had a financial relationship with, or
190 represent or have represented as a lobbyist as defined in s.
191 11.045, the following:
192 1. A transportation operator;
193 2. A community transportation coordinator;
194 3. A metropolitan planning organization;
195 4. A designated official planning agency;
196 5. A purchaser agency;
197 6. A local coordinating board;
198 7. A broker of transportation; or
199 8. A provider of transportation services.
200 (5)(2) The chair of the commission chairperson shall be
201 appointed by the Governor, and the vice chair chairperson of the
202 commission shall be elected annually from the membership of the
203 commission.
204 (6)(3) Members of the commission shall serve without
205 compensation but shall be allowed per diem and travel expenses,
206 as provided in s. 112.061.
207 (7)(4) The commission shall meet at least quarterly, or
208 more frequently at the call of the chair chairperson. Eight Four
209 members of the commission constitute a quorum, and a majority
210 vote of the members present is necessary for any action taken by
211 the commission.
212 (8)(5) The Governor may remove any member of the commission
213 for cause.
214 (6) Each candidate for appointment to the commission must,
215 before accepting the appointment, undergo background screening
216 under s. 435.04 by filing with the Department of Transportation
217 a complete set of fingerprints taken by an authorized law
218 enforcement agency. The fingerprints must be submitted to the
219 Department of Law Enforcement for state processing, and that
220 department shall submit the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau
221 of Investigation for federal processing. The Department of
222 Transportation shall screen the background results and inform
223 the commission of any candidate who does not meet level 2
224 screening standards. A candidate who has not met level 2
225 screening standards may not be appointed to the commission. The
226 cost of the background screening may be borne by the Department
227 of Transportation or the candidate.
228 (9)(7) The commission shall appoint an executive director
229 who shall serve under the direction, supervision, and control of
230 the commission. The executive director, with the consent of the
231 commission, shall employ such personnel as may be necessary to
232 perform adequately the functions of the commission within
233 budgetary limitations. Employees of the commission are exempt
234 from the Career Service System.
235 (10)(8) The commission shall appoint a technical working
236 group that includes representatives of private paratransit
237 providers. The technical working group shall advise the
238 commission on issues of importance to the state, including
239 information, advice, and direction regarding the coordination of
240 services for the transportation disadvantaged. The commission
241 may appoint other technical working groups whose members may
242 include representatives of community transportation
243 coordinators; metropolitan planning organizations; regional
244 planning councils; experts in insurance, marketing, economic
245 development, or financial planning; and persons who use
246 transportation for the transportation disadvantaged, or their
247 relatives, parents, guardians, or service professionals who tend
248 to their needs.
249 (11)(9) The commission is assigned to the office of the
250 secretary of the Department of Transportation for administrative
251 and fiscal accountability purposes, but it shall otherwise
252 function independently of the control, supervision, and
253 direction of the department.
254 (12)(10) The commission shall develop a budget pursuant to
255 chapter 216. The budget is not subject to change by the
256 department staff after it has been approved by the commission,
257 but it shall be transmitted to the Governor, as head of the
258 department, along with the budget of the department.
259 Section 3. Present subsections (8) through (29) of section
260 427.013, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (10)
261 through (31), respectively, new subsections (8) and (9) are
262 added to that section, and subsection (5) and present
263 subsections (13), (20), and (28) of that section are amended, to
264 read:
265 427.013 The Commission for the Transportation
266 Disadvantaged; purpose and responsibilities.—The purpose of the
267 commission is to accomplish the coordination of transportation
268 services provided to the transportation disadvantaged. The goal
269 of this coordination is to assure the cost-effective provision
270 of transportation by qualified community transportation
271 coordinators or transportation operators for the transportation
272 disadvantaged without any bias or presumption in favor of
273 multioperator systems or not-for-profit transportation operators
274 over single operator systems or for-profit transportation
275 operators. In carrying out this purpose, the commission shall:
276 (5) Serve as a clearinghouse for information about
277 transportation disadvantaged services, training, funding
278 sources, innovations, and coordination efforts and provide best
279 practices, latest technology innovations, and preferential
280 vendors lists to county transportation disadvantaged program
281 managers.
282 (8) Annually review and conduct a performance audit of each
283 coordinator contract and transportation operator contract in
284 each county.
285 (9) Establish a system for the filing, receipt, and
286 resolution of complaints regarding the transportation
287 disadvantaged system.
288 (15)(13) Make an annual report to the Governor, the
289 President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of
290 Representatives by January 1 of each year. The report shall
291 summarize for each county the number of complaints filed
292 regarding the transportation disadvantaged system, contract
293 satisfaction, a breakdown of the total cost of services, the
294 amount of funds provided by the commission, and the results of
295 annual performance audits.
296 (22)(20) Ensure that drivers of motor vehicles used to
297 provide paratransit service attend Design and develop
298 transportation disadvantaged training programs delivered by the
299 Agency for Persons with Disabilities.
300 (30)(28) In consultation with the Agency for Health Care
301 Administration and the Department of Transportation, develop an
302 allocation methodology that equitably distributes all
303 transportation funds under the control of the commission to
304 compensate counties, community transportation coordinators, and
305 other entities providing transportation disadvantaged services.
306 The methodology shall separately account for Medicaid
307 beneficiaries. The methodology shall consider such factors as
308 the actual costs of each transportation disadvantaged trip based
309 on prior-year information, efficiencies that a provider might
310 adopt to reduce costs, results of the rate and cost comparisons
311 conducted under subsections (26) (24) and (27) (25), as well as
312 cost efficiencies of trips when compared to the local cost of
313 transporting the general public. This subsection does not
314 supersede the authority of the Agency for Health Care
315 Administration to distribute Medicaid funds.
316 Section 4. Subsection (4) of section 427.0159, Florida
317 Statutes, is amended to read:
318 427.0159 Transportation Disadvantaged Trust Fund.—
319 (4) A purchasing agency may deposit funds into the
320 Transportation Disadvantaged Trust Fund for the commission to
321 implement, manage, and administer the purchasing agency’s
322 transportation disadvantaged funds, as defined in s. 427.011 s.
323 427.011(10).
324 Section 5. Section 427.02, Florida Statutes, is created to
325 read:
326 427.02 Transportation services for persons with
327 disabilities.—
328 (1) A transportation service provider must:
329 (a) Provide training to each driver of a motor vehicle used
330 to provide paratransit service to persons with disabilities
331 which, at a minimum, meets requirements established by the
332 Agency for Persons with Disabilities for training and
333 professional development of staff providing direct services to
334 clients of the agency.
335 (b)1. Install an interior video camera monitoring system in
336 each motor vehicle used to provide paratransit service to
337 persons with disabilities. Each component of the interior video
338 camera monitoring system must be mounted securely inside the
339 motor vehicle, must be located outside the head protection zone
340 as described in 49 C.F.R. s. 571.222, must be located in an area
341 in which the component is not likely to cause injury, and must
342 have no sharp edges or projections.
343 2. Upon request, provide access to footage captured by an
344 interior video camera monitoring system to the local government,
345 the Department of Transportation, the Agency for Persons with
346 Disabilities, or a parent, legal guardian, caretaker, or
347 immediate family member of a person who receives paratransit
348 service from the transportation service provider.
349 (c) Offer Internet-based, application-based, and
350 smartphone-based ride booking and vehicle tracking services.
351 Each of these services must be provided in accessible formats.
352 (d) Regularly maintain and upgrade all technology-based
353 services.
354 (e) Offer both pre-booking and on-demand service to
355 paratransit service users.
356 (2) A transportation service provider, in collaboration
357 with the local government with which the provider contracts,
358 shall establish:
359 (a) Reasonable time periods between a request for service
360 and the arrival of the transportation service provider at the
361 location specified in the request, taking into account the
362 number of persons requesting paratransit service on the same
363 date, the distance between locations, usual or expected traffic
364 conditions during the provision of paratransit service, and any
365 other factor deemed necessary by the provider or the local
366 government. If a transportation service provider exhibits a
367 pattern of late arrivals based on such established reasonable
368 time periods, the local government may authorize another
369 provider to provide such paratransit service, including the
370 acceptance of any prepaid vouchers for future paratransit
371 service, notwithstanding the terms of the contract with the
372 original provider.
373 (b) Best practices for limiting the duration of travel
374 times for persons receiving paratransit service. To avoid
375 unreasonably long travel times, the provider and the local
376 government shall consider the level of service offered to
377 persons without disabilities by a public entity operating a
378 fixed route as compared to the level of paratransit service
379 offered by the transportation service provider in accordance
380 with 49 C.F.R. s. 37.121.
381 (c) Transparency regarding the quality of paratransit
382 service provided by the transportation service provider,
383 including, but not limited to, data relating to the timeliness
384 of paratransit service provided and the handling of complaints.
385 (d) An efficient system for the reporting of adverse
386 incidents occurring during the provision of paratransit service
387 to persons with disabilities. Such system may include the
388 assignment of a quick-response code to each motor vehicle used
389 to provide such service for the purpose of reporting adverse
390 incidents with a smartphone or other mobile device. Reports of
391 adverse incidents received by the local government or the
392 transportation service provider shall be submitted to the Agency
393 for Persons with Disabilities and the Department of
394 Transportation.
395 (3) The Agency for Persons with Disabilities, in
396 collaboration with the Department of Transportation, shall
397 establish requirements for the investigation of adverse
398 incidents reported pursuant to paragraph (2)(d), including
399 periodic review of ongoing investigations and documentation of
400 final outcomes thereof. The investigation of a reported adverse
401 incident must commence within 48 hours after receipt of the
402 report by the agency and the department.
403 (4) The provisions of s. 287.057 which exempt the purchase
404 of contractual services from competitive bidding requirements do
405 not apply to contracts entered into by local governments and
406 transportation service providers for the provision of
407 paratransit service to persons with disabilities under this
408 section.
409 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.