Bill Text: FL S1492 | 2019 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Government-sponsored Recreation Programs
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Failed) 2019-05-03 - Died in Governmental Oversight and Accountability [S1492 Detail]
Download: Florida-2019-S1492-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2019 CS for SB 1492 By the Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs; and Senator Book 586-04037-19 20191492c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to government-sponsored recreation 3 programs; amending s. 402.302, F.S.; revising the 4 definition of the term “child care facility” to 5 exclude government-sponsored recreation programs; 6 defining the term “government-sponsored recreation 7 program”; amending s. 402.316, F.S.; providing an 8 exemption for government-sponsored recreation programs 9 from specified child care facility requirements; 10 providing that an otherwise exempt government 11 sponsored recreation program may waive the exemption 12 by notifying the department; providing that such a 13 program may not withdraw its waiver of the exemption 14 and continue to operate; amending ss. 39.201, 402.305, 15 and 1002.82, F.S.; conforming cross-references; 16 providing an effective date. 17 18 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 19 20 Section 1. Present subsections (9) through (18) of section 21 402.302, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (10) 22 through (19), respectively, a new subsection (9) is added to 23 that section, and paragraph (f) is added to subsection (2) of 24 that section, to read: 25 402.302 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term: 26 (2) “Child care facility” includes any child care center or 27 child care arrangement which provides child care for more than 28 five children unrelated to the operator and which receives a 29 payment, fee, or grant for any of the children receiving care, 30 wherever operated, and whether or not operated for profit. The 31 following are not included: 32 (a) Public schools and nonpublic schools and their integral 33 programs, except as provided in s. 402.3025; 34 (b) Summer camps having children in full-time residence; 35 (c) Summer day camps; 36 (d) Bible schools normally conducted during vacation 37 periods;and38 (e) Operators of transient establishments, as defined in 39 chapter 509, which provide child care services solely for the 40 guests of their establishment or resort, provided that all child 41 care personnel of the establishment are screened according to 42 the level 2 screening requirements of chapter 435; and 43 (f) Government-sponsored recreation programs. 44 (9) “Government-sponsored recreation program” means an 45 afterschool recreation program for school-age children which has 46 organized, regularly scheduled activities, including educational 47 or enrichment activities, and which meets all of the following 48 requirements: 49 (a) Offers not more than 4 hours of programming per day. 50 However, the program may extend its hours in order to provide 51 services before school and on teacher planning days, holidays, 52 and intercessions that occur during the school district’s 53 official calendar year. 54 (b) Is operated by a county or a municipality that has 55 adopted for the program by ordinance standards of care, which 56 include, but are not limited to, meeting minimum staff-to 57 children ratios in accordance with s. 402.305(4) and rules 58 adopted by the department thereunder; ensuring that all 59 personnel meet the requirements of ss. 402.302, 402.305, and 60 402.3055; meeting minimum facility, health, and safety 61 standards, including annual fire inspections conducted by the 62 city or county Fire Marshal; ensuring annual health inspections 63 are conducted by the Department of Health; conducting regular 64 inspection, cleaning, repair, and maintenance of buildings, 65 grounds, and equipment; ensuring at least one staff person 66 trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation is present at all times 67 when children are present; setting standards related to the 68 provision of food; training program employees regarding working 69 with school-age children; engaging in activities designed to 70 address the ages, interests, and abilities of participants; 71 carrying out annual inspections of vehicles transporting 72 children; enforcing regulations related to the number of 73 children in vehicles in accordance with vehicle capacity and 74 searching vehicles after use to ensure no children are left in 75 the vehicle; ensuring custodial parents or guardians have 76 reasonable access to children while the children are in care; 77 developing age-appropriate policies relating to child discipline 78 practices and making such policies available to parents or 79 guardians at the time of registration. 80 (c) Has been certified by the county or municipality as 81 compliant with such standards of care and provides annual 82 attestation to the department of compliance with such standards 83 of care. 84 (d) Provides notice to the parent or guardian of each child 85 participating in the program that the program is not state 86 licensed or advertised as a child care facility and provides 87 them with the county’s or municipality’s standards of care. 88 (e) Does not receive funding through the Child Care 89 Development Block Grant of 2014, does not contract to provide a 90 school readiness program pursuant to s. 1002.88, and does not 91 have a Gold Seal Quality Care designation pursuant to s. 92 402.281. 93 Section 2. Subsections (1) and (3) of section 402.316, 94 Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 95 402.316 Exemptions.— 96 (1) The provisions of ss. 402.301-402.319, except for the 97 requirements regarding screening of child care personnel, do 98shallnot apply to a government-sponsored recreation program or 99 to a child care facility thatwhichis an integral part of 100 church or parochial schools conducting regularly scheduled 101 classes, courses of study, or educational programs accredited 102 by, or by a member of, an organization thatwhichpublishes and 103 requires compliance with its standards for health, safety, and 104 sanitation. However, such facilities shall meet minimum 105 requirements of the applicable local governing body as to 106 health, sanitation, and safety and shall meet the screening 107 requirements pursuant to ss. 402.305 and 402.3055. Failure by a 108 facility to comply with such screening requirements shall result 109 in the loss of the facility’s exemption from licensure. 110 (3) Any government-sponsored recreation program or child 111 care facility covered by the exemption provisions of subsection 112 (1) may waive the exemption, but desiring to be included in this113act, is authorized to do soby submitting notification to the 114 department. Once licensed, such a program or facility may not 115cannotwithdraw from its waiver of the exemption, and except for 116 the requirements regarding screening of child care personnel, 117 must continue to comply with ss. 402.301-402.319, in order to 118 continue in operationthe act and continue to operate. 119 Section 3. Subsection (6) of section 39.201, Florida 120 Statutes, is amended to read: 121 39.201 Mandatory reports of child abuse, abandonment, or 122 neglect; mandatory reports of death; central abuse hotline.— 123 (6) Information in the central abuse hotline may not be 124 used for employment screening, except as provided in s. 125 39.202(2)(a) and (h) or s. 402.302(16)s. 402.302(15). 126 Information in the central abuse hotline and the department’s 127 automated abuse information system may be used by the 128 department, its authorized agents or contract providers, the 129 Department of Health, or county agencies as part of the 130 licensure or registration process pursuant to ss. 402.301 131 402.319 and ss. 409.175-409.176. Pursuant to s. 39.202(2)(q), 132 the information in the central abuse hotline may also be used by 133 the Department of Education for purposes of educator 134 certification discipline and review. 135 Section 4. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 136 402.305, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 137 402.305 Licensing standards; child care facilities.— 138 (2) PERSONNEL.—Minimum standards for child care personnel 139 shall include minimum requirements as to: 140 (a) Good moral character based upon screening as defined in 141 s. 402.302(16)s. 402.302(15). This screening shall be conducted 142 as provided in chapter 435, using the level 2 standards for 143 screening set forth in that chapter, and include employment 144 history checks, a search of criminal history records, sexual 145 predator and sexual offender registries, and child abuse and 146 neglect registry of any state in which the current or 147 prospective child care personnel resided during the preceding 5 148 years. 149 Section 5. Paragraph (y) of subsection (2) of section 150 1002.82, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 151 1002.82 Office of Early Learning; powers and duties.— 152 (2) The office shall: 153 (y) Establish staff-to-children ratios that do not exceed 154 the requirements of s. 402.302(8) or (12)s. 402.302(8) or (11)155 or s. 402.305(4), as applicable, for school readiness program 156 providers. 157 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.