Florida Senate - 2025 CS for SB 584 By the Committee on Education Postsecondary; and Senator Garcia 589-03091-25 2025584c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to young adult housing support; 3 amending s. 409.1452, F.S.; requiring each Florida 4 College System institution and state university to 5 develop plans for prioritizing the placement of 6 certain students; requiring a Florida College System 7 institution or state university to provide certain 8 students with first priority for housing and work 9 study opportunities in certain circumstances; 10 prohibiting Florida College System institutions and 11 state universities from requiring that certain 12 students have a cosigner or guarantor; creating s. 13 409.14525, F.S.; requiring the Department of Children 14 and Families, community-based care lead agencies, and 15 housing authorities to take any action required by the 16 United States Department of Housing and Urban 17 Development to administer the federal Foster Youth to 18 Independence initiative; requiring the Office of 19 Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability 20 (OPPAGA) to conduct a study of the barriers to housing 21 faced by young adults who are homeless or were 22 formerly in foster care; requiring OPPAGA to consult 23 with certain entities in conducting the study; 24 requiring OPPAGA to provide a report to the Governor 25 and the Legislature by a certain date; providing an 26 effective date. 27 28 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 29 30 Section 1. Subsections (4), (5), and (6) are added to 31 section 409.1452, Florida Statutes, to read: 32 409.1452 Collaboration with State University System, 33 Florida College System, and Department of Education to assist 34 children and young adults who have been or are in foster care or 35 are experiencing homelessness; documentation regarding 36 eligibility for tuition and fee exemptions; housing assistance. 37 The department shall collaborate with the State University 38 System, the Florida College System, and the Department of 39 Education to address the need for a comprehensive support 40 structure in the academic arena to assist children and young 41 adults who have been or remain in the foster care system in 42 making the transition from a structured care system into an 43 independent living setting. 44 (4) Each Florida College System institution and state 45 university shall, in consultation with the State Office on 46 Homelessness within the Department of Children and Families, 47 develop plans for prioritizing the placement of students who are 48 or were formerly in foster care and those experiencing 49 homelessness or at risk of experiencing homelessness, including, 50 but not limited to, students eligible for the tuition and fee 51 exemption under s. 1009.25(1)(e), in residence halls and 52 dormitory residences owned by the institution or university. 53 (5) If a Florida College System institution or state 54 university implements a priority system for the assignment of 55 students to or the award of any of the following, the 56 institution or university must provide students eligible for the 57 tuition and fee exemption under s. 1009.25(1)(e) with first 58 priority: 59 (a) Institution-operated or university-operated housing. 60 (b) Year-round housing. 61 (c) Work study opportunities. 62 (6) Florida College System institutions and state 63 universities may not require students to have a cosigner or 64 guarantor to obtain housing if the student receives housing 65 support under s. 409.1451(2) or (3) or is in care under s. 66 39.6251. 67 Section 2. Section 409.14525, Florida Statutes, is created 68 to read: 69 409.14525 Housing support for young adults; federal housing 70 vouchers.—The department, community-based care lead agencies, 71 and housing authorities created under s. 421.04 shall take any 72 action required by the United States Department of Housing and 73 Urban Development to administer the federal Foster Youth to 74 Independence (FYI) initiative, which may include the department, 75 the community-based care lead agencies, and their subcontractors 76 doing any of the following: 77 (1) Entering into a memorandum of understanding or a letter 78 of intent with all of the housing authorities within their 79 service areas. 80 (2) Providing or securing supportive services for 81 participating youth for the duration of the FYI initiative 82 voucher. 83 (3) Providing a written certification to the housing 84 authority verifying the youth’s child welfare history. 85 (4) Identifying youth eligible for an FYI initiative 86 voucher within the community-based care lead agency’s caseload 87 and communicating their eligibility to the youth. 88 Section 3. (1) The Office of Program Policy Analysis and 89 Government Accountability (OPPAGA) shall conduct a study of the 90 barriers that young adults who are homeless or were formerly in 91 foster care face when trying to obtain housing. The study must 92 include recommendations for overcoming those barriers. 93 (2) In conducting the study, OPPAGA shall consult with the 94 Department of Children and Families, the Board of Governors of 95 the State University System, the Florida College System, the 96 Department of Commerce, public housing authorities, affected 97 young adults, and other stakeholders. 98 (3) OPPAGA must issue its findings by December 1, 2026, in 99 a report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the 100 Speaker of the House of Representatives. 101 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.