Bill > H1127

Introduced Session

An act relating to child welfare; amending s. 39.524, F.S.; requiring the Department of Children and Families to provide to the Legislature specified assessment data as part of a certain annual report relating to the commercial sexual exploitation of children; requiring the department to maintain copies of certain assessments or tools used to assess a child for a certain placement; requiring such copies be provided to the Legislature upon request; amending s. 39.905, F.S.; authorizing the department to waive a specified requirement if there is an emergency need for a new domestic violence center; authorizing the department to issue a provisional certificate under certain circumstances; authorizing the department to adopt rules; amending ss. 402.305 and 409.175, F.S.; removing authority for the department to grant exemptions from working with children or the developmentally disabled; authorizing the department to grant limited exemptions to certain minimum standards and requirements, respectively; amending s. 402.402, F.S.; requiring the department to develop a child protective investigator and case manager recruitment program for a specified purpose; specifying requirements for the program; specifying duties of the department under the program, to be completed in collaboration with community-based care lead agencies; authorizing the department to adopt rules to implement the program; amending s. 409.987, F.S.; removing the requirement that an entity post a specified fidelity bond in order to serve as a lead agency; amending s. 409.993, F.S.; providing immunity from liability for subcontractors of lead agencies for certain acts or omissions; providing applicability; amending s. 409.996, F.S.; subject to an appropriation and beginning on a specified date, requiring the department to develop a 4-year pilot program for treatment foster care; requiring the department to implement the pilot program by a specified date; limiting participation in the pilot program to children meeting specified criteria; requiring the department to identify two judicial circuits determined to have the greatest need for implementation of such pilot program; requiring the department to arrange for an independent evaluation of the pilot program to make specified determinations; requiring the department to establish certain minimum standards for the pilot program; requiring the department, by a specified date, to submit a final report to the Governor and the Legislature which includes specified evaluations, findings, and recommendations; amending s. 1004.615, F.S.; specifying that incentives provided to state employees for participating in research or evaluation with the Florida Institute for Child Welfare do not violate certain laws or require certain reporting; amending ss. 402.30501, 1002.57, and 1002.59, F.S.; conforming cross-references; requiring the department to convene a case management workforce workgroup by a specified date; providing for membership of the work group; specifying duties of the workgroup, to be completed in collaboration with the Florida Institute for Child Welfare; providing for meetings of the workgroup; providing for the operation of the workgroup until a specified date; requiring the workgroup to draft and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature by a specified date; providing requirements for the report; requiring the department to contract for a detailed study of bed capacity for residential treatment services for child victims of commercial sexual exploitation; requiring that the study be completed by a specified date; providing requirements for the study; providing effective dates.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Bill Partington (R)*,  Meg Weinberger (R)*,  Daryl Campbell (D),  Johanna López (D), 

Other Sponsors (1)

Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/SB 7012 (Ch. 2025-186) (on 04/30/2025)

Official Document