Florida Senate - 2024 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1442
Ì104564,Î104564
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
02/13/2024 .
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The Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services
(Grall) recommended the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete everything after the enacting clause
4 and insert:
5 Section 1. Section 414.1611, Florida Statutes, is created
6 to read:
7 414.1611 Florida State Maternity Housing Grant Program.—
8 (1) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—There is created the Florida
9 State Maternity Housing Grant Program within the department to
10 provide housing resources and approved living arrangements for
11 resident women and families of this state experiencing
12 homelessness during pregnancy, regardless of age or marital
13 status, whose financial resources have been determined
14 inadequate to meet residential costs. The State Office on
15 Homelessness, with the concurrence of the Council on
16 Homelessness, may accept and administer funds appropriated to
17 the department to provide maternity housing grants annually to
18 lead agencies for local homeless assistance continuums of care,
19 as recognized by the State Office on Homelessness. These funds
20 shall consist of any sums that the state may appropriate, as
21 well as those received from donations, gifts, bequests, or
22 otherwise from any public or private source which are intended
23 to assist women and families experiencing homelessness during
24 pregnancy. The total amount of grants awarded may not exceed the
25 funding appropriated or received for the grant program under
26 this section.
27 (2) GRANT APPLICATIONS.—The State Office on Homelessness
28 shall rank lead agency grant applicants competitively and give
29 preference to applicants that leverage additional private and
30 public funds, demonstrate the effectiveness of their maternity
31 housing programs in housing homeless women and families
32 experiencing pregnancy, and demonstrate the commitment of the
33 lead agency to offer other assistance and services to address
34 family health, employment, and education needs to prevent future
35 homelessness.
36 (3) ELIGIBILITY.—In order to qualify for a grant, a lead
37 agency must develop and implement a local homeless assistance
38 continuum of care plan for its designated catchment area, to
39 include a maternity housing program.
40 (4) GRANT LIMITS.—The maternity housing program funded by
41 the grant must require a case plan for each woman or family to
42 be assisted, setting forth which costs will be covered and the
43 maximum level of assistance to be offered. The grant assistance
44 may be used to pay for expenses related to any of the following:
45 (a) Housing in an authorized living arrangement. Housing
46 assistance may be provided for a maximum of 8 months, of which 8
47 weeks may be postpartum.
48 (b) Services recommended by the lead agency for women and
49 families approved for the grant program to encourage economic
50 independence and positive health outcomes for participants.
51 (c) Staffing and reimbursements for providers of authorized
52 living arrangements.
53 (d) All other related costs for the administration of the
54 program, not to exceed 5 percent of the total grant funds
55 awarded to the lead agency.
56 (5) PERFORMANCE.—The lead agency shall track, monitor, and
57 report on each woman or family assisted for at least 12 months
58 after the last assistance provided. The lead agency’s maternity
59 housing program shall seek to enable at least 85 percent of the
60 women and families assisted to avoid becoming homeless during
61 this time period.
62 (6) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.—The department may adopt rules
63 necessary to administer the program. The rules may include, but
64 need not be limited to, eligibility criteria for homeless
65 mothers and families experiencing pregnancy who are seeking
66 maternity housing services.
67 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.
68
69 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
70 And the title is amended as follows:
71 Delete everything before the enacting clause
72 and insert:
73 A bill to be entitled
74 An act relating to pregnancy support services;
75 creating s. 414.1611, F.S.; establishing the Florida
76 State Maternity Housing Grant Program within the
77 Department of Children and Families for a specified
78 purpose; providing specifications for sources of, and
79 limitations on, funding for the program; requiring the
80 State Office of Homelessness administering the grant
81 funds to rank grant applicants competitively and give
82 preference to certain grant applicants; specifying
83 eligibility criteria for lead agencies applying for
84 grants under the program; specifying requirements for
85 lead agencies that receive grants under the program;
86 specifying expenses for which grant funds may be used;
87 requiring lead agencies to track, monitor, and report
88 on each woman or family assisted with the grant funds
89 for a specified timeframe; specifying performance
90 goals for lead agencies administering grant funds;
91 authorizing the department to adopt rules necessary to
92 administer the program; providing an effective date.