Bill Text: FL S0634 | 2019 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Child Welfare
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Failed) 2019-05-03 - Died in Appropriations [S0634 Detail]
Download: Florida-2019-S0634-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2019 CS for SB 634 By the Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs; and Senators Rouson, Berman, and Perry 586-03713-19 2019634c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to child welfare; providing a short 3 title; amending s. 25.385, F.S.; requiring the Florida 4 Court Educational Council to establish certain 5 standards for instruction of circuit and county court 6 judges for dependency cases; creating s. 39.0142, 7 F.S.; requiring the Department of Law Enforcement to 8 provide certain information to law enforcement 9 officers relating to specified individuals; providing 10 how such information shall be provided to law 11 enforcement officers; providing requirements for law 12 enforcement officers and the central abuse hotline 13 relating to specified interactions with certain 14 persons and how to relay details of such interactions; 15 amending s. 39.8296, F.S.; requiring that the guardian 16 ad litem training program include training on the 17 recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain 18 injury in children younger than a specified age; 19 amending s. 402.402, F.S.; requiring certain 20 investigators, supervisors, and attorneys to complete 21 training on the recognition of and responses to head 22 trauma and brain injury in specified children; 23 amending s. 409.988, F.S.; requiring lead agencies to 24 provide certain individuals with training on the 25 recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain 26 injury in specified children; authorizing lead 27 agencies to provide intensive family reunification 28 services that combine child welfare and mental health 29 services to certain families; amending s. 409.996, 30 F.S.; requiring the department and certain lead 31 agencies to create and implement a program to more 32 effectively provide case management services to 33 specified children; providing criteria for selecting 34 judicial circuits for participation the program; 35 specifying requirements of the program; requiring the 36 Department of Children and families to evaluate the 37 effectiveness of the program and submit a report to 38 the Legislature and Governor by a specified date; 39 creating s. 943.17297, F.S.; requiring the Criminal 40 Justice Standards and Training Commission to 41 incorporate specified training for law enforcement 42 officers; requiring law enforcement officers, as of a 43 specified date, to successfully complete such training 44 as part of basic recruit training or continuing 45 training or education; providing an effective date. 46 47 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 48 49 Section 1. This act may be cited as “Jordan’s Law.” 50 Section 2. Section 25.385, Florida Statutes, is amended to 51 read: 52 25.385 Standards for instruction of circuit and county 53 court judgesin handling domestic violence cases.— 54 (1) The Florida Court Educational Council shall establish 55 standards for instruction of circuit and county court judges who 56 have responsibility for domestic violence cases, and the council 57 shall provide such instruction on a periodic and timely basis. 58(2)As used in this subsection,section:59(a)the term “domestic violence” has the meaning set forth 60 in s. 741.28. 61(b)“Family or household member” has the meaning set forth62in s. 741.28.63 (2) The Florida Court Educational Council shall establish 64 standards for instruction of circuit and county court judges who 65 have responsibility for dependency cases regarding the 66 recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain injury in 67 a child under 6 years of age. The council shall provide such 68 instruction on a periodic and timely basis. 69 Section 3. Section 39.0142, Florida Statutes, is created to 70 read: 71 39.0142 Notifying law enforcement officers of parent or 72 caregiver names.—The Department of Law Enforcement shall provide 73 information to a law enforcement officer stating whether a 74 person is a parent or caregiver who is currently the subject of 75 a child protective investigation for alleged child abuse, 76 abandonment, or neglect or is a parent or caregiver of a child 77 who has been allowed to return to or remain in the home under 78 judicial supervision after an adjudication of dependency. This 79 information shall be provided via a Florida Crime Information 80 Center query into the department’s child protection database. 81 (1) If a law enforcement officer has an interaction with a 82 parent or caregiver as described in this section and the 83 interaction results in the officer having a concern about a 84 child’s health, safety, or well-being, the law enforcement 85 officer shall report the relevant details of the interaction to 86 the central abuse hotline immediately after the interaction even 87 if the requirements of s. 39.201, relating to reporting of 88 knowledge or suspicion of abuse, abandonment, or neglect, are 89 not met. 90 (2) The central abuse hotline shall provide any relevant 91 information to: 92 (a) The child protective investigator, if the parent or 93 caregiver is the subject of a child protective investigation; or 94 (b) The child’s case manager and the attorney representing 95 the department, if the parent or caregiver has a child under 96 judicial supervision after an adjudication of dependency. 97 Section 4. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section 98 39.8296, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 99 39.8296 Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office; legislative 100 findings and intent; creation; appointment of executive 101 director; duties of office.— 102 (2) STATEWIDE GUARDIAN AD LITEM OFFICE.—There is created a 103 Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office within the Justice 104 Administrative Commission. The Justice Administrative Commission 105 shall provide administrative support and service to the office 106 to the extent requested by the executive director within the 107 available resources of the commission. The Statewide Guardian Ad 108 Litem Office shall not be subject to control, supervision, or 109 direction by the Justice Administrative Commission in the 110 performance of its duties, but the employees of the office shall 111 be governed by the classification plan and salary and benefits 112 plan approved by the Justice Administrative Commission. 113 (b) The Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office shall, within 114 available resources, have oversight responsibilities for and 115 provide technical assistance to all guardian ad litem and 116 attorney ad litem programs located within the judicial circuits. 117 1. The office shall identify the resources required to 118 implement methods of collecting, reporting, and tracking 119 reliable and consistent case data. 120 2. The office shall review the current guardian ad litem 121 programs in Florida and other states. 122 3. The office, in consultation with local guardian ad litem 123 offices, shall develop statewide performance measures and 124 standards. 125 4. The office shall develop a guardian ad litem training 126 program, which shall include, but not be limited to, training on 127 the recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain injury 128 in a child under 6 years of age. The office shall establish a 129 curriculum committee to develop the training program specified 130 in this subparagraph. The curriculum committee shall include, 131 but not be limited to, dependency judges, directors of circuit 132 guardian ad litem programs, active certified guardians ad litem, 133 a mental health professional who specializes in the treatment of 134 children, a member of a child advocacy group, a representative 135 of the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and a social 136 worker experienced in working with victims and perpetrators of 137 child abuse. 138 5. The office shall review the various methods of funding 139 guardian ad litem programs, shall maximize the use of those 140 funding sources to the extent possible, and shall review the 141 kinds of services being provided by circuit guardian ad litem 142 programs. 143 6. The office shall determine the feasibility or 144 desirability of new concepts of organization, administration, 145 financing, or service delivery designed to preserve the civil 146 and constitutional rights and fulfill other needs of dependent 147 children. 148 7. In an effort to promote normalcy and establish trust 149 between a court-appointed volunteer guardian ad litem and a 150 child alleged to be abused, abandoned, or neglected under this 151 chapter, a guardian ad litem may transport a child. However, a 152 guardian ad litem volunteer may not be required or directed by 153 the program or a court to transport a child. 154 8. The office shall submit to the Governor, the President 155 of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and 156 the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court an interim report 157 describing the progress of the office in meeting the goals as 158 described in this section. The office shall submit to the 159 Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House 160 of Representatives, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court a 161 proposed plan including alternatives for meeting the state’s 162 guardian ad litem and attorney ad litem needs. This plan may 163 include recommendations for less than the entire state, may 164 include a phase-in system, and shall include estimates of the 165 cost of each of the alternatives. Each year the office shall 166 provide a status report and provide further recommendations to 167 address the need for guardian ad litem services and related 168 issues. 169 Section 5. Subsections (2) and (4) of section 402.402, 170 Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 171 402.402 Child protection and child welfare personnel; 172 attorneys employed by the department.— 173 (2) SPECIALIZED TRAINING.—All child protective 174 investigators and child protective investigation supervisors 175 employed by the department or a sheriff’s office must complete 176 the following specialized training: 177 (a) Training on the recognition of and responses to head 178 trauma and brain injury in a child under 6 years of age. 179 (b) Training that is either focused on serving a specific 180 population, including, but not limited to, medically fragile 181 children, sexually exploited children, children under 3 years of 182 age, or families with a history of domestic violence, mental 183 illness, or substance abuse, or focused on performing certain 184 aspects of child protection practice, including, but not limited 185 to, investigation techniques and analysis of family dynamics. 186 The specialized training may be used to fulfill continuing 187 education requirements under s. 402.40(3)(e). Individuals hired 188 before July 1, 2014, shall complete the specialized training by 189 June 30, 2016, and individuals hired on or after July 1, 2014, 190 shall complete the specialized training within 2 years after 191 hire. An individual may receive specialized training in multiple 192 areas. 193 (4) ATTORNEYS EMPLOYED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO HANDLE CHILD 194 WELFARE CASES.—Attorneys hired on or after July 1, 2014, whose 195 primary responsibility is representing the department in child 196 welfare cases shall, within the first 6 months of employment, 197 receive training in all of the following: 198 (a) The dependency court process, including the attorney’s 199 role in preparing and reviewing documents prepared for 200 dependency court for accuracy and completeness.;201 (b) Preparing and presenting child welfare cases, including 202 at least 1 week shadowing an experienced children’s legal 203 services attorney preparing and presenting cases.;204 (c) Safety assessment, safety decisionmaking tools, and 205 safety plans.;206 (d) Developing information presented by investigators and 207 case managers to support decisionmaking in the best interest of 208 children.; and209 (e) The experiences and techniques of case managers and 210 investigators, including shadowing an experienced child 211 protective investigator and an experienced case manager for at 212 least 8 hours. 213 (f) The recognition of and responses to head trauma and 214 brain injury in a child under 6 years of age. 215 Section 6. Paragraph (f) of subsection (1) and subsection 216 (3) of section 409.988, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 217 409.988 Lead agency duties; general provisions.— 218 (1) DUTIES.—A lead agency: 219 (f) Shall ensure that all individuals providing care for 220 dependent children receive appropriate training and meet the 221 minimum employment standards established by the department. 222 Appropriate training shall include, but is not limited to, 223 training on the recognition of and responses to head trauma and 224 brain injury in a child under 6 years of age. 225 (3) SERVICES.—A lead agency must provide dependent children 226 with services that are supported by research or that are 227 recognized as best practices in the child welfare field. The 228 agency shall give priority to the use of services that are 229 evidence-based and trauma-informed and may also provide other 230 innovative services, including, but not limited to, family 231 centered and cognitive-behavioral interventions designed to 232 mitigate out-of-home placements and intensive family 233 reunification services that combine child welfare and mental 234 health services for families with dependent children under 6 235 years of age. 236 Section 7. Subsection (24) is added to section 409.996, 237 Florida Statutes, to read: 238 409.996 Duties of the Department of Children and Families. 239 The department shall contract for the delivery, administration, 240 or management of care for children in the child protection and 241 child welfare system. In doing so, the department retains 242 responsibility for the quality of contracted services and 243 programs and shall ensure that services are delivered in 244 accordance with applicable federal and state statutes and 245 regulations. 246 (24) The department, in collaboration with the lead 247 agencies serving the judicial circuits selected in paragraph 248 (a), may create and implement a program to more effectively 249 provide case management services for dependent children under 6 250 years of age. 251 (a) The department may select up to three judicial circuits 252 in which to develop and implement a program under this 253 subsection. Priority shall be given to a circuit that has a high 254 removal rate, significant budget deficit, significant case 255 management turnover rate, and the highest numbers of children in 256 out-of-home care or a significant increase in the number of 257 children in out-of-home care over the last 3 fiscal years. 258 (b) The program shall: 259 1. Include caseloads for dependency case managers comprised 260 solely of children who are under 6 years of age, except as 261 provided in paragraph (c). The maximum caseload for a case 262 manager shall be no more than 15 children if possible. 263 2. Include case managers who are trained specifically in: 264 a. Critical child development for children under 6 years of 265 age. 266 b. Specific practices of child care for children under 6 267 years of age. 268 c. The scope of community resources available to children 269 under 6 years of age. 270 d. Working with a parent or caregiver and assisting him or 271 her in developing the skills necessary to care for the health, 272 safety, and well-being of a child under 6 years of age. 273 (c) If a child being served through the program has a 274 dependent sibling, the sibling may be assigned to the same case 275 manager as the child being served through the program; however, 276 each sibling counts toward the case manager’s maximum caseload 277 as provided under paragraph (b). 278 (d) The department shall evaluate the permanency, safety, 279 and well-being of children being served through the program and 280 submit a report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, 281 and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by October 1, 282 2024, detailing its findings. 283 Section 8. Section 943.17297, Florida Statutes, is created 284 to read: 285 943.17297 Training in the recognition of and responses to 286 head trauma and brain injury.—The commission shall establish 287 standards for the instruction of law enforcement officers in the 288 subject of recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain 289 injury in a child from under 6 years of age to aid an officer in 290 the detection of head trauma and brain injury due to child 291 abuse. By July 1, 2021, each law enforcement officer must 292 successfully complete the training as part of the basic recruit 293 training for a law enforcement officer, as required under s. 294 943.13(9), or as a part of continuing training or education 295 required under s. 943.135(1). 296 Section 9. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.