SB 2518                                          First Engrossed
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       20242518e1
       
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to health and human services; amending
    3         ss. 381.4019 and 381.402, F.S.; providing for the
    4         deposit and use of funds from the Dental Student Loan
    5         Repayment Program and the Florida Reimbursement
    6         Assistance for Medical Education Program,
    7         respectively, which are returned by a financial
    8         institution to the Department of Health; authorizing
    9         the department to submit budget amendments for a
   10         specified purpose; amending s. 420.622, F.S.; revising
   11         the cap on the grant award levels for continuum of
   12         care lead agencies designated by the State Office on
   13         Homelessness; amending s. 430.204, F.S.; authorizing
   14         area agencies on aging to carry forward a specified
   15         percentage of documented unexpended state funds,
   16         subject to certain conditions; providing that
   17         implementation of specified provisions of law
   18         regarding Florida Kidcare program eligibility are
   19         contingent upon certain federal approval; providing
   20         effective dates.
   21          
   22  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   23  
   24         Section 1. Present subsection (9) of section 381.4019,
   25  Florida Statutes, as amended by SB 7016, 2024 Regular Session,
   26  is redesignated as subsection (10), and a new subsection (9) is
   27  added to that section, to read:
   28         381.4019 Dental Student Loan Repayment Program.—The Dental
   29  Student Loan Repayment Program is established to support the
   30  state Medicaid program and promote access to dental care by
   31  supporting qualified dentists and dental hygienists who treat
   32  medically underserved populations in dental health professional
   33  shortage areas or medically underserved areas.
   34         (9) Any payments made under this section and subsequently
   35  returned by a financial institution to the department may be
   36  deposited into the Grants and Donations Trust Fund to be used
   37  for the same purpose. Notwithstanding ss. 216.181 and 216.292,
   38  the department may submit budget amendments, subject to the
   39  notice, review, and objection procedures of s. 216.177, to
   40  increase budget authority to make payments under this section.
   41         Section 2. Present subsection (8) of section 1009.65,
   42  Florida Statutes, as transferred, renumbered as section 381.402,
   43  Florida Statutes, and amended by SB 7016, 2024 Regular Session,
   44  is redesignated as subsection (9), and a new subsection (8) is
   45  added to that section, to read:
   46         381.402 Florida Reimbursement Assistance for Medical
   47  Education Program.—
   48         (8) Any payments made under this section and subsequently
   49  returned by a financial institution to the Department of Health
   50  may be deposited into the Grants and Donations Trust Fund to be
   51  used for the same purpose. Notwithstanding ss. 216.181 and
   52  216.292, the department may submit budget amendments, subject to
   53  the notice, review, and objection procedures of s. 216.177, to
   54  increase budget authority to make payments under this section.
   55         Section 3. Subsection (4) and paragraph (b) of subsection
   56  (5) of section 420.622, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   57         420.622 State Office on Homelessness; Council on
   58  Homelessness.—
   59         (4) The State Office on Homelessness shall accept and
   60  administer moneys appropriated to it to provide annual challenge
   61  grants to lead agencies of continuums of care designated by the
   62  State Office on Homelessness under s. 420.6225. The department
   63  shall establish varying levels of grant awards up to $1.2
   64  million $750,000 per continuum of care lead agency. The
   65  department, in consultation with the Council on Homelessness,
   66  shall specify a grant award level in the notice of the
   67  solicitation of grant applications.
   68         (a) To qualify for the grant, a continuum of care lead
   69  agency must develop and implement a local continuum of care plan
   70  for its designated catchment area. The services and housing
   71  funded through the grant must be implemented through the
   72  continuum of care’s coordinated entry system as provided in s.
   73  420.6225(5)(b) and must be designed to assess and refer persons
   74  seeking assistance to the appropriate housing intervention and
   75  service provider. The continuum of care lead agency shall also
   76  document the commitment of local government or private
   77  organizations to provide matching funds or in-kind support in an
   78  amount equal to 25 percent of the grant requested. Expenditures
   79  of leveraged funds or resources, including third-party cash or
   80  in-kind contributions, are authorized only for eligible
   81  activities carried out in connection with a project in which
   82  such funds or resources have not been used as leverage or match
   83  for any other project or program. The expenditures must be
   84  certified through a written commitment.
   85         (b) Preference must be given to those continuum of care
   86  lead agencies that have demonstrated the ability of their
   87  continuum of care to help households move out of homelessness.
   88         (c) The grant may be used to fund any of the housing,
   89  program, or service needs included in the local continuum of
   90  care plan. The continuum of care lead agency may allocate the
   91  grant to programs, services, or housing providers that implement
   92  the local continuum of care plan. The continuum of care lead
   93  agency may provide subgrants to a local agency to implement
   94  programs or services or provide housing identified for funding
   95  in the continuum of care lead agency’s application to the
   96  department. A continuum of care lead agency may spend a maximum
   97  of 10 percent of its funding on administrative costs.
   98         (d) The continuum of care lead agency shall submit a final
   99  report to the department documenting the outcomes achieved by
  100  the grant-funded programs in enabling persons who are homeless
  101  to return to permanent housing, thereby ending such person’s
  102  episode of homelessness.
  103         (5) The State Office on Homelessness may administer moneys
  104  given to it to provide homeless housing assistance grants
  105  annually to continuum of care lead agencies recognized by the
  106  State Office on Homelessness to acquire, construct, or
  107  rehabilitate permanent housing units for homeless persons. These
  108  moneys shall consist of any sums that the state may appropriate,
  109  as well as money received from donations, gifts, bequests, or
  110  any other public or private source, which are intended to
  111  acquire, construct, or rehabilitate permanent housing units for
  112  homeless persons.
  113         (b) Funding for any particular project may not exceed $1.2
  114  million $750,000.
  115         Section 4. Subsection (10) is added to section 430.204,
  116  Florida Statutes, to read:
  117         430.204 Community-care-for-the-elderly core services;
  118  departmental powers and duties.—
  119         (10) An area agency on aging may carry forward documented
  120  unexpended state funds from one fiscal year to the next. The
  121  cumulative amount carried forward may not exceed 10 percent of
  122  the area agency’s planning and service area allocation for the
  123  community-care-for-the-elderly program. Funds that are carried
  124  forward from one fiscal year to the next are subject to all of
  125  the following conditions:
  126         (a)The funds may not be used in any manner that would
  127  create increased recurring future obligations, and such funds
  128  may not be used for any type of program or service that is not
  129  currently authorized by existing contracts.
  130         (b) Expenditures of the funds must be separately reported
  131  to the department.
  132         (c)Any unexpended funds that remain at the end of the
  133  contract period must be returned to the department.
  134         (d)The funds may be retained through any contract renewals
  135  or any new procurements as long as the same area agency on aging
  136  is retained by the department.
  137         Section 5. Implementation of chapter 2023-277, Laws of
  138  Florida, by the Agency for Health Care Administration and the
  139  Florida Healthy Kids Corporation is contingent upon federal
  140  approval through a Medicaid waiver or a state plan amendment.
  141  This section shall take effect upon this act becoming a law.
  142         Section 6. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
  143  act and except for this section, which shall take effect upon
  144  this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect July 1,
  145  2024.