Bill Text: FL S0122 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Child Welfare
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-03-05 - Laid on Table, refer to CS/HB 43 [S0122 Detail]
Download: Florida-2020-S0122-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Child Welfare
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-03-05 - Laid on Table, refer to CS/HB 43 [S0122 Detail]
Download: Florida-2020-S0122-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2020 SB 122 By Senator Rouson 19-00200-20 2020122__ 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; deleting the definition 7 of the term “family or household member”; creating s. 8 39.0142, F.S.; requiring the Department of Law 9 Enforcement to provide to law enforcement officers 10 certain information relating to specified individuals; 11 providing how such information shall be provided to 12 law enforcement officers; requiring law enforcement 13 officers and the central abuse hotline to follow 14 certain procedures relating to specified interactions 15 with certain persons and how to relay details of such 16 interactions; amending s. 39.8296, F.S.; requiring 17 that the guardian ad litem training program include 18 training on the recognition of and responses to head 19 trauma and brain injury in specified children; 20 amending s. 402.402, F.S.; requiring certain entities 21 to provide training to certain parties on the 22 recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain 23 injury in specified children; amending s. 409.988, 24 F.S.; requiring lead agencies to provide certain 25 individuals with training on the recognition of and 26 responses to head trauma and brain injury in specified 27 children; authorizing lead agencies to provide 28 intensive family reunification services that combine 29 child welfare and mental health services to certain 30 families; amending s. 409.996, F.S.; authorizing the 31 department and certain lead agencies to create and 32 implement a program to more effectively provide case 33 management services for specified children; providing 34 criteria for selecting judicial circuits for 35 implementation of the program; specifying requirements 36 of the program; requiring a report to the Legislature 37 and Governor under specified conditions; creating s. 38 943.17298, F.S.; requiring the Criminal Justice 39 Standards and Training Commission to incorporate 40 training for specified purposes; requiring law 41 enforcement officers to complete such training as part 42 of either basic recruit training or continuing 43 training or education by a specified date; providing 44 an effective date. 45 46 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 47 48 Section 1. This act may be cited as “Jordan’s Law.” 49 Section 2. Section 25.385, Florida Statutes, is amended to 50 read: 51 25.385 Standards for instruction of circuit and county 52 court judgesin handling domestic violence cases.— 53 (1) The Florida Court Educational Council shall establish 54 standards for instruction of circuit and county court judges who 55 have responsibility for domestic violence cases, and the council 56 shall provide such instruction on a periodic and timely basis. 57(2)As used in this subsection,section:58(a)the term “domestic violence” has the meaning set forth 59 in s. 741.28. 60(b)“Family or household member” has the meaning set forth61in s. 741.28.62 (2) The Florida Court Educational Council shall establish 63 standards for instruction of circuit and county court judges who 64 have responsibility for dependency cases regarding the 65 recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain injury in 66 a child under 6 years of age. The council shall provide such 67 instruction on a periodic and timely basis. 68 Section 3. Section 39.0142, Florida Statutes, is created to 69 read: 70 39.0142 Notifying law enforcement officers of parent or 71 caregiver names.—The Department of Law Enforcement shall provide 72 to a law enforcement officer information stating whether a 73 person is a parent or caregiver who is currently the subject of 74 a child protective investigation for alleged child abuse, 75 abandonment, or neglect or is a parent or caregiver of a child 76 who has been allowed to return to or remain in the home under 77 judicial supervision after an adjudication of dependency. This 78 information shall be provided via a Florida Crime Information 79 Center query into the department’s child protection database. 80 (1) If a law enforcement officer has an interaction with a 81 parent or caregiver as described in this section and the 82 interaction results in the officer having concern about a 83 child’s health, safety, or well-being, the officer shall report 84 relevant details of the interaction to the central abuse hotline 85 immediately after the interaction even if the requirements of s. 86 39.201, relating to a person having actual knowledge or 87 suspicion of abuse, abandonment, or neglect, are not met. 88 (2) The central abuse hotline shall provide any relevant 89 information to: 90 (a) The child protective investigator, if the parent or 91 caregiver is the subject of a child protective investigation; or 92 (b) The child’s case manager and the attorney representing 93 the department, if the parent or caregiver has a child under 94 judicial supervision after an adjudication of dependency. 95 Section 4. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section 96 39.8296, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 97 39.8296 Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office; legislative 98 findings and intent; creation; appointment of executive 99 director; duties of office.— 100 (2) STATEWIDE GUARDIAN AD LITEM OFFICE.—There is created a 101 Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office within the Justice 102 Administrative Commission. The Justice Administrative Commission 103 shall provide administrative support and service to the office 104 to the extent requested by the executive director within the 105 available resources of the commission. The Statewide Guardian Ad 106 Litem Office shall not be subject to control, supervision, or 107 direction by the Justice Administrative Commission in the 108 performance of its duties, but the employees of the office shall 109 be governed by the classification plan and salary and benefits 110 plan approved by the Justice Administrative Commission. 111 (b) The Statewide Guardian Ad Litem Office shall, within 112 available resources, have oversight responsibilities for and 113 provide technical assistance to all guardian ad litem and 114 attorney ad litem programs located within the judicial circuits. 115 1. The office shall identify the resources required to 116 implement methods of collecting, reporting, and tracking 117 reliable and consistent case data. 118 2. The office shall review the current guardian ad litem 119 programs in Florida and other states. 120 3. The office, in consultation with local guardian ad litem 121 offices, shall develop statewide performance measures and 122 standards. 123 4. The office shall develop a guardian ad litem training 124 program, which shall include, but not be limited to, training on 125 the recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain injury 126 in a child under 6 years of age. The office shall establish a 127 curriculum committee to develop the training program specified 128 in this subparagraph. The curriculum committee shall include, 129 but not be limited to, dependency judges, directors of circuit 130 guardian ad litem programs, active certified guardians ad litem, 131 a mental health professional who specializes in the treatment of 132 children, a member of a child advocacy group, a representative 133 of the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and a social 134 worker experienced in working with victims and perpetrators of 135 child abuse. 136 5. The office shall review the various methods of funding 137 guardian ad litem programs, shall maximize the use of those 138 funding sources to the extent possible, and shall review the 139 kinds of services being provided by circuit guardian ad litem 140 programs. 141 6. The office shall determine the feasibility or 142 desirability of new concepts of organization, administration, 143 financing, or service delivery designed to preserve the civil 144 and constitutional rights and fulfill other needs of dependent 145 children. 146 7. In an effort to promote normalcy and establish trust 147 between a court-appointed volunteer guardian ad litem and a 148 child alleged to be abused, abandoned, or neglected under this 149 chapter, a guardian ad litem may transport a child. However, a 150 guardian ad litem volunteer may not be required or directed by 151 the program or a court to transport a child. 152 8. The office shall submit to the Governor, the President 153 of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and 154 the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court an interim report 155 describing the progress of the office in meeting the goals as 156 described in this section. The office shall submit to the 157 Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House 158 of Representatives, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court a 159 proposed plan including alternatives for meeting the state’s 160 guardian ad litem and attorney ad litem needs. This plan may 161 include recommendations for less than the entire state, may 162 include a phase-in system, and shall include estimates of the 163 cost of each of the alternatives. Each year the office shall 164 provide a status report and provide further recommendations to 165 address the need for guardian ad litem services and related 166 issues. 167 Section 5. Subsections (2) and (4) of section 402.402, 168 Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 169 402.402 Child protection and child welfare personnel; 170 attorneys employed by the department.— 171 (2) SPECIALIZED TRAINING.—All child protective 172 investigators and child protective investigation supervisors 173 employed by the department or a sheriff’s office must complete 174 the following specialized training: 175 (a) Training on the recognition of and responses to head 176 trauma and brain injury in a child under 6 years of age. 177 (b) Training that is either focused on serving a specific 178 population, including, but not limited to, medically fragile 179 children, sexually exploited children, children under 3 years of 180 age, or families with a history of domestic violence, mental 181 illness, or substance abuse, or focused on performing certain 182 aspects of child protection practice, including, but not limited 183 to, investigation techniques and analysis of family dynamics. 184 The specialized training may be used to fulfill continuing 185 education requirements under s. 402.40(3)(e). Individuals hired 186 before July 1, 2014, shall complete the specialized training by 187 June 30, 2016, and individuals hired on or after July 1, 2014, 188 shall complete the specialized training within 2 years after 189 hire. An individual may receive specialized training in multiple 190 areas. 191 (4) ATTORNEYS EMPLOYED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO HANDLE CHILD 192 WELFARE CASES.—Attorneys hired on or after July 1, 2014, whose 193 primary responsibility is representing the department in child 194 welfare cases shall, within the first 6 months of employment, 195 receive training in all of the following: 196 (a) The dependency court process, including the attorney’s 197 role in preparing and reviewing documents prepared for 198 dependency court for accuracy and completeness.;199 (b) Preparing and presenting child welfare cases, including 200 at least 1 week shadowing an experienced children’s legal 201 services attorney preparing and presenting cases.;202 (c) Safety assessment, safety decisionmaking tools, and 203 safety plans.;204 (d) Developing information presented by investigators and 205 case managers to support decisionmaking in the best interest of 206 children.; and207 (e) The experiences and techniques of case managers and 208 investigators, including shadowing an experienced child 209 protective investigator and an experienced case manager for at 210 least 8 hours. 211 (f) The recognition of and responses to head trauma and 212 brain injury in a child under 6 years of age. 213 Section 6. Paragraph (f) of subsection (1) and subsection 214 (3) of section 409.988, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 215 409.988 Lead agency duties; general provisions.— 216 (1) DUTIES.—A lead agency: 217 (f) Shall ensure that all individuals providing care for 218 dependent children receive appropriate training and meet the 219 minimum employment standards established by the department. 220 Appropriate training shall include, but is not limited to, 221 training on the recognition of and responses to head trauma and 222 brain injury in a child under 6 years of age. 223 (3) SERVICES.—A lead agency must provide dependent children 224 with services that are supported by research or that are 225 recognized as best practices in the child welfare field. The 226 agency shall give priority to the use of services that are 227 evidence-based and trauma-informed and may also provide other 228 innovative services, including, but not limited to, family 229 centered and cognitive-behavioral interventions designed to 230 mitigate out-of-home placements and intensive family 231 reunification services that combine child welfare and mental 232 health services for families with dependent children under 6 233 years of age. 234 Section 7. Subsection (24) is added to section 409.996, 235 Florida Statutes, to read: 236 409.996 Duties of the Department of Children and Families. 237 The department shall contract for the delivery, administration, 238 or management of care for children in the child protection and 239 child welfare system. In doing so, the department retains 240 responsibility for the quality of contracted services and 241 programs and shall ensure that services are delivered in 242 accordance with applicable federal and state statutes and 243 regulations. 244 (24) The department, in collaboration with the lead 245 agencies serving the judicial circuits selected in paragraph 246 (a), may create and implement a program to more effectively 247 provide case management services for dependent children under 6 248 years of age. 249 (a) If the program is created, the department shall select 250 up to three judicial circuits in which to develop and implement 251 a program under this subsection, with priority given to a 252 circuit that has a high removal rate, significant case 253 management turnover rate, and the highest numbers of children in 254 out-of-home care or a significant increase in the number of 255 children in out-of-home care over the last 3 fiscal years. 256 (b) If the program is created, it shall: 257 1. Include caseloads for dependency case managers comprised 258 solely of children who are under 6 years of age, except as 259 provided in paragraph (c). The maximum caseload for a case 260 manager shall be no more than 15 children if possible. 261 2. Include case managers who are trained specifically in: 262 a. Critical child development for children under 6 years of 263 age. 264 b. Specific practices of child care for children under 6 265 years of age. 266 c. The scope of community resources available to children 267 under 6 years of age. 268 d. Working with a parent or caregiver and assisting him or 269 her in developing the skills necessary to care for the health, 270 safety, and well-being of a child under 6 years of age. 271 (c) If a child being served through the program has a 272 dependent sibling, the sibling may be assigned to the same case 273 manager as the child being served through the program; however, 274 each sibling counts toward the case manager’s maximum caseload 275 as provided under paragraph (b). 276 (d) If the program is created, the department shall 277 evaluate the permanency, safety, and well-being of children 278 being served through the program and submit a report to the 279 Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the 280 House of Representatives by October 1, 2025, detailing its 281 findings. 282 Section 8. Section 943.17298, Florida Statutes, is created 283 to read: 284 943.17298 Training in the recognition of and responses to 285 head trauma and brain injury.—The commission shall establish 286 standards for the instruction of law enforcement officers in the 287 subject of recognition of and responses to head trauma and brain 288 injury in a child under 6 years of age to aid an officer in the 289 detection of head trauma and brain injury due to child abuse. 290 Each law enforcement officer must successfully complete the 291 training as part of the basic recruit training for a law 292 enforcement officer, as required under s. 943.13(9), or as a 293 part of continuing training or education required under s. 294 943.135(1) before July 1, 2022. 295 Section 9. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.