Bill Amendment: FL S0306 | 2024 | Regular Session
NOTE: For additional amemendments please see the Bill Drafting List
Bill Title: Placement of Surrendered Newborn Infants
Status: 2024-03-08 - Died in Fiscal Policy [S0306 Detail]
Download: Florida-2024-S0306-Senate_Committee_Amendment_160226.html
Bill Title: Placement of Surrendered Newborn Infants
Status: 2024-03-08 - Died in Fiscal Policy [S0306 Detail]
Download: Florida-2024-S0306-Senate_Committee_Amendment_160226.html
Florida Senate - 2024 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 306 Ì160226ÃÎ160226 LEGISLATIVE ACTION Senate . House . . . . . ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— The Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs (Harrell) recommended the following: 1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 2 3 Delete everything after the enacting clause 4 and insert: 5 Section 1. Present subsections (8) through (19) of section 6 63.032, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (9) 7 through (20), respectively, and a new subsection (8) is added to 8 that section, to read: 9 63.032 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term: 10 (8) “Community-based care lead agency” or “lead agency” has 11 the same meaning as in s. 409.986(3). 12 Section 2. Present subsections (1) through (10) of section 13 63.0432, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (2) 14 through (11), respectively, and a new subsection (1) is added to 15 that section, and redesignated subsection (3) is amended to 16 read: 17 63.0423 Procedures with respect to surrendered newborn 18 infants; prospective adoptive parents of surrendered newborn 19 infant registry.— 20 (1)(a) Each community-based care lead agency shall 21 establish and maintain a registry of prospective adoptive 22 parents of surrendered newborn infants with the name, address, 23 telephone number, and e-mail address of the prospective adoptive 24 parent who has received a favorable preliminary home study under 25 s. 63.092 and has indicated the desire to be a prospective 26 adoptive parent of a surrendered newborn infant under s. 383.50. 27 The registry must also maintain any known licensed child-placing 28 agency representing the prospective adoptive parent. The 29 community-based care lead agency must remove the information of 30 a prospective adoptive parent from the registry when the 31 favorable preliminary home study for such prospective adoptive 32 parent is no longer valid as provided in s. 63.092(3) or the 33 prospective adoptive parent asks to be removed from the 34 registry. 35 (b) If requested, the community-based care lead agency must 36 provide the following to interested prospective adoptive parents 37 of surrendered newborn infants: 38 1. Information and education on the private adoption 39 process; and 40 2. Referrals to local licensed child-placing agencies that 41 perform surrendered newborn infant adoptions. 42 (c) The community-based care lead agency may not transfer 43 the cost of establishing and maintaining the registry created 44 pursuant to this subsection to a prospective adoptive parent. 45 (d) The community-based care lead agency registry must 46 maintain a rotating list of licensed child-placing agencies that 47 are willing to take physical custody of surrendered newborn 48 infants and perform all duties required under this section. 49 (e) Licensed child-placing agencies that are named by the 50 community-based care lead agency and take custody of surrendered 51 newborn infants under this section must report the following to 52 the community-based care lead agency within 30 days of the final 53 adoption order: 54 1. The length of time between taking physical custody of 55 the surrendered newborn infant and the issuance of a final 56 adoption order. 57 2. Whether the named prospective adoptive parent from the 58 registry adopted the surrendered newborn infant. 59 3. The affidavit of and order approving expenses and 60 receipts under s. 63.132. 61 (3)(2)Upon taking physical custody of a newborn infant 62 surrendered pursuant to s. 383.50, the licensed child-placing 63 agency named by the community-based care lead agency shall 64 immediately seek an order from the circuit court for emergency 65 custody of the surrendered infant. The emergency custody order 66 remainsshall remainin effect until the court orders 67 preliminary approval of placement of the surrendered infant in a 68theprospective home, at which time the prospective adoptive 69 parent becomes the guardian of the surrendered infantparents70become guardianspending termination of parental rights and 71 finalization of adoption or until the court orders otherwise. 72 The guardianship of the prospective adoptive parent isparents73shall remainsubject to the right of the licensed child-placing 74 agency to remove the surrendered infant from the placement 75 during the pendency of the proceedings if such removal is deemed 76 by the licensed child-placing agency to be in the best interests 77 of the child. The licensed child-placing agency shallmay78 immediately seek to place the surrendered infant in a 79 prospective adoptive home with the next prospective adoptive 80 parent from the surrendered newborn infant registry maintained 81 by the community-based care lead agency under this section. If 82 the registry does not contain the name of an appropriate 83 prospective adoptive parent, the community-based care lead 84 agency must contact another community-based care lead agency and 85 attempt to place the surrendered infant with a prospective 86 adoptive parent from that lead agency’s registry. 87 (5)(4)The parent who surrenders the infant in accordance 88 with s. 383.50 is presumed to have consented to termination of 89 parental rights, and express consent is not required. Except 90 when there is actual or suspected child abuse or neglect, the 91 community-based care lead agency or licensed child-placing 92 agency mayshallnot attempt to pursue, search for, or notify 93 that parent as provided in s. 63.088 and chapter 49. For 94 purposes of s. 383.50 and this section, an infant who tests 95 positive for illegal drugs, narcotic prescription drugs, 96 alcohol, or other substances, but shows no other signs of child 97 abuse or neglect, mustshallbe placed in the custody of a 98 licensed child-placing agency named by the community-based care 99 lead agency. Such a placement does not eliminate the reporting 100 requirement under s. 383.50(7). When the department is contacted 101 regarding an infant properly surrendered under this section and 102 s. 383.50, the department shall provide instruction to contact a 103 community-based care leadlicensed child-placingagency and may 104 not take custody of the infant unless reasonable efforts to 105 contact a licensed child-placing agency named by the community 106 based care lead agency to accept the infant have not been 107 successful. 108 Section 3. Subsections (1) and (7) of section 383.50, 109 Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 110 383.50 Treatment of surrendered newborn infant.— 111 (1) As used in this section, the term: 112 (a) “Community-based care lead agency” has the same meaning 113 as in s. 409.986(3). 114 (b) “Newborn infant” means a child who a licensed physician 115 reasonably believes is approximately 7 days old or younger at 116 the time the child is left at a hospital, emergency medical 117 services station, or fire station. 118 (7) Upon admitting a newborn infant under this section, the 119 hospital shall immediately contact thealocal community-based 120 care leadlicensed child-placingagency or alternatively contact 121 the statewide central abuse hotline for the community-based care 122 lead agency contact information.name of a licensed child123placing agencyFor purposes of transferring physical custody of 124 the newborn infant,.the hospital shall notify the community 125 based care leadlicensed child-placingagency that a newborn 126 infant has been left with the hospital and approximately when 127 the licensed child-placing agency named by the community-based 128 care lead agency from the registry can take physical custody of 129 the child. In cases where there is actual or suspected child 130 abuse or neglect, the hospital or any of its licensed health 131 care professionals shall report the actual or suspected child 132 abuse or neglect in accordance with ss. 39.201 and 395.1023 in 133 lieu of contacting the local community-based care leada134licensed child-placingagency. 135 Section 4. Paragraph (e) of subsection (3) of section 136 39.201, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 137 39.201 Required reports of child abuse, abandonment, or 138 neglect, sexual abuse of a child, and juvenile sexual abuse; 139 required reports of death; reports involving a child who has 140 exhibited inappropriate sexual behavior.— 141 (3) ADDITIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES RELATED TO REPORTS.— 142 (e) Surrendered newborn infants.— 143 1. The central abuse hotline must receive reports involving 144 surrendered newborn infants as described in s. 383.50. 145 2.a. A report may not be considered a report of child 146 abuse, abandonment, or neglect solely because the infant has 147 been left at a hospital, emergency medical services station, or 148 fire station under s. 383.50. 149 b. If the report involving a surrendered newborn infant 150 does not include indications of child abuse, abandonment, or 151 neglect other than that necessarily entailed in the infant 152 having been left at a hospital, emergency medical services 153 station, or fire station, the central abuse hotline must provide 154 to the person making the report the name of a local community 155 based care leadan eligible licensed child-placingagency that 156 is required to choose a licensed child-placing agency from the 157 registry to accept physical custody of and to place surrendered 158 newborn infants.The department shall provide names of eligible159licensed child-placing agencies on a rotating basis.160 3. If the report includes indications of child abuse, 161 abandonment, or neglect beyond that necessarily entailed in the 162 infant having been left at a hospital, emergency medical 163 services station, or fire station, the report must be considered 164 as a report of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect and, 165 notwithstanding chapter 383, is subject to s. 39.395 and all 166 other relevant provisions of this chapter. 167 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024. 168 169 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================ 170 And the title is amended as follows: 171 Delete everything before the enacting clause 172 and insert: 173 A bill to be entitled 174 An act relating to placement of surrendered newborn 175 infants; amending s. 63.032, F.S.; defining the term 176 “community-based care lead agency”; amending s. 177 63.0423, F.S.; requiring community-based care lead 178 agencies to establish and maintain a specified 179 registry; requiring that certain information be 180 removed from the registry under certain circumstances; 181 requiring certain information be provided to 182 interested prospective adoptive parents; prohibiting 183 the community-based care lead agency from transferring 184 certain costs to prospective adoptive parents; 185 requiring the specified registry to maintain a list of 186 licensed child-placing agencies; requiring licensed 187 child-placing agencies that take custody of 188 surrendered newborn infants to report certain 189 information; requiring licensed child-placing agencies 190 to place a surrendered infant with certain prospective 191 adoptive parents; providing requirements that apply if 192 an appropriate prospective adoptive parent is not 193 found in the registry; conforming provisions to 194 changes made by the act; amending s. 383.50, F.S.; 195 defining the term “community-based care lead agency”; 196 providing requirements for the hospital once they take 197 physical custody of a surrendered newborn infant; 198 conforming provisions to changes made by the act; 199 amending s. 39.201, F.S.; conforming provisions to 200 changes made by the act; providing an effective date.