FL
Florida House Bill H0757

Florida 2022 Regular Session

Florida House Bill H0757 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
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1010 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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1414 A bill to be entitled 1
1515 An act relating to foster youth internship program; 2
1616 creating s. 409.1455, F.S.; providing a short title; 3
1717 establishing the Step Into Success internship program 4
1818 within the Department of Children and Families for 5
1919 eligible foster youth; requiring the program t o 6
2020 include qualified designated personnel who are 7
2121 responsible for specified services; requiring that 8
2222 eligible foster youth receive priority consideration 9
2323 for certain internship positions; defining terms; 10
2424 requiring the department to establish an internship 11
2525 program by a specified date; requiring the department 12
2626 to designate and ensure sufficient qualified staff to 13
2727 implement and maintain the program; requiring the 14
2828 department to prepare written educational and training 15
2929 materials by a specified date and update the materials 16
3030 at least annually; requiring the department to provide 17
3131 training and written materials to designated 18
3232 personnel; requiring the department to provide certain 19
3333 written materials to foster youth; requiring lead 20
3434 agencies to ensure such materials are pr ovided to 21
3535 subcontracted providers; requiring the department to 22
3636 advertise and promote the program; requiring the 23
3737 department to provide specified training to foster 24
3838 youth; requiring such training to be provided in 25
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4747 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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5151 addition to other specified training; author izing the 26
5252 development of such training by or in collaboration 27
5353 with specified entities; providing construction; 28
5454 requiring the department to develop and provide 29
5555 trauma-informed training to mentors; requiring the 30
5656 department to provide assistance with the prog ram's 31
5757 administrative and procedural requirements to 32
5858 interested foster youth; requiring the department to 33
5959 publicize internship opportunities and inform foster 34
6060 youth of where to locate the information; requiring 35
6161 the department to assess the career interests of 36
6262 foster youth; requiring the department to ensure 37
6363 internships comply with the Fair Labor Standards Act; 38
6464 requiring the department to collaborate with specified 39
6565 entities to establish a system by a specified date for 40
6666 secondary institutions to award college credits; 41
6767 requiring the department to conduct follow -up 42
6868 interviews with participating foster youth within a 43
6969 specified timeframe and for a specified purpose; 44
7070 requiring the department to submit data from such 45
7171 interviews by a specified date annually for inclus ion 46
7272 in a specified report; requiring the department to 47
7373 gather and compile feedback from mentors assigned to 48
7474 participating foster youth or personnel from 49
7575 participating agencies for a specified purpose; 50
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8484 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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8888 requiring the department to submit compiled mentor 51
8989 feedback by a specified date annually for inclusion in 52
9090 a specified report; requiring the department to 53
9191 collaborate with the Florida Institute for Child 54
9292 Welfare in preparation of an annual report; requiring 55
9393 approved agencies to provide and monthly update a list 56
9494 of open employment opportunities for which eligible 57
9595 foster youth may apply; requiring approved agencies to 58
9696 offer foster youth priority consideration under 59
9797 certain circumstances; requiring approved agencies to 60
9898 recruit mentors to work with participating fos ter 61
9999 youth employed through the program; providing 62
100100 requirements for such mentors; specifying payment 63
101101 procedures and requirements for mentors; requiring 64
102102 approved agencies to implement certain procedures 65
103103 before discharging foster youth; requiring approved 66
104104 agencies to provide feedback and collaborate in 67
105105 preparation of a specified report; limiting the 68
106106 timeframe for foster youth participation in the 69
107107 internship program; authorizing the continued 70
108108 employment of foster youth under certain conditions; 71
109109 specifying conditions of employment for foster youth 72
110110 as interns; requiring a foster youth to meet 73
111111 eligibility requirements at the time of applying for 74
112112 an internship position; requiring foster youth to 75
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121121 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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125125 complete specified training within certain timeframes; 76
126126 authorizing the department or designated lead agencies 77
127127 or subcontracted providers to determine if an 78
128128 interested foster youth needs to complete training 79
129129 before applying; requiring that foster youth be 80
130130 classified as other-personal-services employees; 81
131131 specifying prerequisite conditions for discharging a 82
132132 foster youth intern; limiting the number of hours per 83
133133 week a foster youth may work; requiring foster youth 84
134134 to spend certain stipend funds for specific purposes 85
135135 and comply with certain dress code requirements; 86
136136 applying employment protections to foster youth 87
137137 employed through the internship program; excluding 88
138138 compensation earned under the internship program from 89
139139 the definition of earned income for calculating 90
140140 economic self-sufficiency benefits; specifying 91
141141 requirements and conditio ns for foster youth to earn 92
142142 college credit for work performed in the internship 93
143143 program; granting postsecondary educational 94
144144 institutions with discretion to determine 95
145145 administrative compliance requirements; requiring 96
146146 approved agencies to cooperate with post secondary 97
147147 educational institutions to provide specified 98
148148 information; requiring the Florida Institute for Child 99
149149 Welfare to submit an annual report to the Governor and 100
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158158 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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162162 the Legislature within a certain timeframe; providing 101
163163 requirements for the report; requiri ng the department 102
164164 and approved agencies to adopt rules; amending s. 103
165165 414.56, F.S.; revising the duties of the Office of 104
166166 Continuing Care within the department to include 105
167167 establishing and operating an internship program; 106
168168 providing appropriations; providing an effective date. 107
169169 108
170170 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 109
171171 110
172172 Section 1. Section 409.1455, Florida Statutes, is created 111
173173 to read: 112
174174 409.1455 Internship program for foster youth. — 113
175175 (1) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the "St ep 114
176176 Into Success Act." 115
177177 (2) CREATION.—There is established the Step Into Success 116
178178 internship program to be administered by the department for 117
179179 eligible foster youth to develop essential workforce and 118
180180 professional skills in furtherance of their careers, to 119
181181 transition from the custody of the department to independent 120
182182 living, and to become best prepared for an independent and 121
183183 successful future. The establishment of this program must 122
184184 include qualified designated personnel whose responsibilities 123
185185 are to provide the required services to approved agency liaison 124
186186 personnel and eligible foster youth in accordance with this 125
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195195 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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199199 section. An eligible foster youth must receive priority 126
200200 consideration for any internship positions as provided under 127
201201 this section. 128
202202 (3) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the term: 129
203203 (a) "Approved agency" means one of the following agencies 130
204204 that may participate in the internship program by employing 131
205205 eligible foster youth: 132
206206 1. The Department of Children and Families; 133
207207 2. The Department of Heal th; 134
208208 3. The Agency for Health Care Administration; 135
209209 4. The Department of Education; 136
210210 5. The Department of Environmental Protection; 137
211211 6. The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; and 138
212212 7. The Division of the State Fire Marshal within the 139
213213 Department of Financial Services. 140
214214 (b) "Community-based care lead agency" has the same 141
215215 meaning as in s. 409.986(3)(d). 142
216216 (c) "Florida Institute for Child Welfare" means the 143
217217 institute established within the Florida State University 144
218218 College of Social Work under s. 10 04.615. 145
219219 (d) "Foster youth" means an individual older than 16 years 146
220220 of age but younger than 26 years of age who is currently or was 147
221221 previously placed in foster care within this state. 148
222222 (e) "Priority consideration" means the approved agency 149
223223 must invite a foster youth who is eligible to participate in the 150
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232232 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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236236 internship program to be interviewed for any position for which 151
237237 he or she meets the minimum qualifications. 152
238238 (4) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS OF THE DEPARTMENT. —The department 153
239239 shall establish an internship progra m for foster youth which 154
240240 begins operations on or before January 1, 2023, and complies 155
241241 with all of the following requirements: 156
242242 (a) Designate and ensure that there is sufficient 157
243243 qualified staff to implement and maintain operation of the 158
244244 internship program. 159
245245 (b) By November 1, 2022, prepare written educational and 160
246246 training materials for foster youth, including a toolkit to 161
247247 explain the internship program process, resources to assist in 162
248248 participating in the internship and entering the professional 163
249249 workforce, and guidance on securing an internship position and 164
250250 update the material thereafter at least once annually. Resources 165
251251 may include, but are not limited to, workshops and materials to 166
252252 assist with preparing resumes and staff assistance with securing 167
253253 internship positions. 168
254254 (c) Provide all relevant training and written materials on 169
255255 the internship program to designated personnel within the 170
256256 approved agencies and any other relevant tools to such agencies 171
257257 to ensure successful participation in the program. 172
258258 (d) Provide written materials to foster youth to ensure 173
259259 that all such youth are informed of the requirements for 174
260260 participating in the program and the contact information for the 175
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269269 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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273273 program office. All community -based care lead agencies shall 176
274274 ensure that any subcontra cted providers that directly serve 177
275275 youth are also provided with the training and written materials. 178
276276 (e) Advertise and promote the availability of the 179
277277 internship program to engage as many eligible foster youths as 180
278278 possible. 181
279279 (f) Provide to eligible foste r youth a minimum of 2 hours 182
280280 of training relating to interview skills and a minimum of 4 183
281281 hours of training relating to professional and leadership 184
282282 development skills that are relevant to performing the functions 185
283283 required of the positions offered by partici pating approved 186
284284 agencies. The training required in this paragraph must be 187
285285 provided in addition to any other life skills or employment 188
286286 training required by law and may be developed or administered by 189
287287 the department, community -based care lead agencies, or th e lead 190
288288 agencies' subcontracted providers or through collaboration with 191
289289 the approved agencies, colleges or universities, or non -profit 192
290290 organizations in the community that have workforce training 193
291291 resources. This paragraph may not be construed to limit the 194
292292 number of hours of training offered in which a foster youth may 195
293293 participate. 196
294294 (g) Develop and provide a minimum of 1 hour of trauma -197
295295 informed training to mentors who serve under this section to 198
296296 ensure that they have the skills necessary to engage with 199
297297 participating foster youth. 200
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306306 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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310310 (h) Provide assistance with the program's administrative 201
311311 and procedural requirements to foster youth interested in 202
312312 participating in the internship program, including, but not 203
313313 limited to, identifying and monitoring internship opportunities 204
314314 offered by approved agencies, being knowledgeable of the 205
315315 training and skills needed to match eligible foster youth to 206
316316 appropriate roles offered by approved agencies, and assisting 207
317317 eligible foster youth with applying for employment positions i n 208
318318 which they meet the minimum required qualifications. 209
319319 (i) Publicize specific opportunities for internship 210
320320 positions offered by approved agencies in an easily accessible 211
321321 manner and inform foster youth who may be eligible for the 212
322322 program of where to locat e such information. 213
323323 (j) Assess each foster youth's career interests and 214
324324 determine the most appropriate internship opportunities based on 215
325325 his or her expressed interests. 216
326326 (k) Ensure that internships under this section comply with 217
327327 the Fair Labor Standards Act. 218
328328 (l) By November 1, 2022, facilitate and work with the 219
329329 Department of Education, the Board of Governors of the State 220
330330 University System, the Independent Colleges and Universities of 221
331331 Florida, the Commission for Independent Education, and approved 222
332332 agencies to establish a system for secondary institutions to 223
333333 award college credit toward a degree for internship positions 224
334334 held by foster youth through the internship program. 225
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343343 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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347347 (m) Conduct follow-up interviews with participating foster 226
348348 youth within 3 months af ter their employment start date to 227
349349 ensure participants transition successfully into the work 228
350350 environment and to gather feedback on how to improve the 229
351351 experience for future participants. Such data must be submitted 230
352352 to the Florida Institute for Child Welfare by August 1, 2023, 231
353353 and by August 1 annually thereafter for inclusion in the report 232
354354 required under subsection (8). 233
355355 (n) Gather and compile feedback from mentors assigned to 234
356356 participating foster youth or from other personnel who are 235
357357 employed by participati ng agencies on how to improve the 236
358358 experience for both foster youth participants and the approved 237
359359 agencies that participate in the program. Such data must be 238
360360 submitted to the Florida Institute for Child Welfare by August 239
361361 1, 2023, and by August 1 annually th ereafter for inclusion in 240
362362 the report required under subsection (8). 241
363363 (o) Collaborate with the Florida Institute for Child 242
364364 Welfare to provide any requested information necessary to 243
365365 prepare each annual report required under subsection (8). 244
366366 (5) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS OF APPROVED AGENCIES. —Each 245
367367 approved agency shall: 246
368368 (a) Provide the department, or the community -based care 247
369369 lead agencies or the lead agencies' subcontracted providers, 248
370370 with a list, updated at least monthly, of open employment 249
371371 opportunities for which an eligible foster youth may apply to 250
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380380 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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384384 seek employment through the internship program. 251
385385 (b) Offer priority consideration, including an interview, 252
386386 to any eligible foster youth who applies for an open other -253
387387 personal-services position pursuant to this se ction, provided he 254
388388 or she meets all the minimum qualifications for employment in 255
389389 such position. 256
390390 (c) Recruit employees within approved agencies to serve as 257
391391 mentors for foster youth employed with such agencies through the 258
392392 internship program. 259
393393 1. To serve as a mentor, employees must: 260
394394 a. Have worked for the approved agency for a minimum of 1 261
395395 year; 262
396396 b. Have experience relevant to the employment 263
397397 responsibilities of the intern; 264
398398 c. Complete a minimum of 1 hour of trauma -informed 265
399399 training to gain skills critical for successfully engaging youth 266
400400 who have been involved in the foster care system; and 267
401401 d. Pass a level 2 background screening as provided in s. 268
402402 435.04 if the employee will be assigned to a foster youth who is 269
403403 younger than 18 years old and if the employee has not passed 270
404404 such a screening within the previous 3 years or is not exempt 271
405405 from such requirement pursuant to s. 435.07. An employee 272
406406 required to pass a level 2 background screening pursuant to this 273
407407 sub-subparagraph must submit a full set of his o r her 274
408408 fingerprints to his or her employing approved agency. The 275
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417417 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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421421 approved agency shall forward the fingerprints to the Department 276
422422 of Law Enforcement for state processing, and the Department of 277
423423 Law Enforcement shall forward the fingerprints to the Federal 278
424424 Bureau of Investigation for national processing. The department 279
425425 shall pay the fees for state and federal fingerprint processing. 280
426426 The fee per each name submitted for processing shall be set at 281
427427 the same amount as prescribed in s. 943.053(3)(e); however, if 282
428428 any exceptions in that paragraph for a reduced fee are 283
429429 applicable, the department may pay the reduced fee under such 284
430430 circumstances. 285
431431 2. Employees who serve as mentors for a minimum of 6 286
432432 consecutive months are eligible for a maximum payment of $1,000 287
433433 per intern per fiscal year, to be issued as follows: 288
434434 a. At the conclusion of the first 6 consecutive months of 289
435435 service, $500. 290
436436 b. At the conclusion of an additional 6 consecutive months 291
437437 of service, $500. 292
438438 3. An employee may serve as a mentor for a maximum of 293
439439 three interns at one time, but may not receive more than $3,000 294
440440 in compensation per fiscal year for serving as a mentor. Any 295
441441 time spent serving as a mentor to an intern under this section 296
442442 counts toward the required minimum service to be eligible for 297
443443 payments pursuant to subparagraph 2. 298
444444 (d) Engage an intern's assigned mentor and the approved 299
445445 agency's internship program liaison and, if applicable, document 300
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454454 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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458458 the intern's failure to comply with a corrective action plan 301
459459 after being given a reasonable opportunity to do so before 302
460460 discharging a foster youth employed pursuant to this section. 303
461461 (e) Provide relevant feedback to the department at least 304
462462 annually for the department to comply with paragraphs (4)(m) and 305
463463 (n). 306
464464 (f) Collaborate with the Florida Institute for Child 307
465465 Welfare to provide any requested information necessary to 308
466466 prepare each annual report required under subsection (8). 309
467467 (6) TIME LIMITATIONS FOR PARTICIPATION. —A foster youth who 310
468468 obtains employment with an approved agency may participate in 311
469469 the internship program for no more than 1 year from his or her 312
470470 start date of employment as an other -personal-services employee 313
471471 with an approved agency pursuant to this section. A foster youth 314
472472 may be employed as an intern under the internship program by 315
473473 more than one approved agency, but may not be employed by more 316
474474 than one approved agency at the same time. However, an approved 317
475475 agency may extend the employment of a foster youth beyond the 1 -318
476476 year internship program in his or her capacity as an other -319
477477 personal-services employee or may hire the foster youth as a 320
478478 full-time employee, but the extension of employment or hiring of 321
479479 a foster youth may not be as an intern pursuant to this section. 322
480480 (7) CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT. —As conditions of employment 323
481481 as an intern under the i nternship program, a foster youth shall 324
482482 be subject to all of the following: 325
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491491 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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495495 (a) A participant must meet the definition of foster youth 326
496496 as defined in paragraph (3)(c) at the time such youth applies 327
497497 for an internship position with an approved agency. 328
498498 (b) A foster youth must complete the minimum training 329
499499 requirements provided in paragraph (4)(f) related to 330
500500 interviewing before an interview with an approved agency and 331
501501 must complete all other training before commencement of work 332
502502 within the approved agency. Th e department, or, if designated, 333
503503 the community-based care lead agencies or the lead agencies' 334
504504 subcontracted providers, may determine on a case -by-case basis 335
505505 if an eligible foster youth needs to complete training before he 336
506506 or she applies for an internship p osition. 337
507507 (c) If offered employment as an intern, a foster youth 338
508508 must be classified as an other -personal-services employee. 339
509509 Foster youth who have accepted employment with an approved 340
510510 agency pursuant to this section may be discharged after the 341
511511 approved agency has engaged the intern's assigned mentor and the 342
512512 approved agency's internship program staff to assist the intern 343
513513 and has documented the intern's failure to comply with a 344
514514 corrective action plan after being given a reasonable 345
515515 opportunity to do so. 346
516516 (d) A foster youth may work a maximum of 20 hours per 347
517517 week. 348
518518 (e) A foster youth shall spend all stipend funds received 349
519519 for the specific purpose of purchasing business attire or 350
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528528 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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532532 clothing that is in compliance with the dress code requirements 351
533533 of the approved agency with which the foster youth is employed. 352
534534 Notwithstanding any limitation on funds provided to purchase 353
535535 clothing, foster youth shall comply with any dress code 354
536536 requirements of the approved agency with which he or she is 355
537537 employed. 356
538538 (f) A foster youth shall be afforded the employee 357
539539 protections of all relevant and applicable federal and state 358
540540 laws, including compensation at minimum wage for any work 359
541541 performed. Compensation earned pursuant to employment gained 360
542542 through the internship program may not be con sidered earned 361
543543 income for purposes of computing eligibility for federal or 362
544544 state benefits, including, but not limited to, the Supplemental 363
545545 Nutrition Assistance Program, a housing choice assistance 364
546546 voucher program, the Temporary Cash Assistance Program, the 365
547547 Medicaid program, or the school readiness program. 366
548548 (g) A foster youth may, at the discretion of a 367
549549 postsecondary institution within this state in which such youth 368
550550 is enrolled, earn college credits toward a degree for work 369
551551 performed as an intern under the internship program. College 370
552552 credits earned for work performed under the internship program 371
553553 may be in addition to any compensation earned for the same work 372
554554 performed under the internship program and may be awarded for 373
555555 completion of the whole or any part of the internship program. 374
556556 An institution has the discretion to determine whether the 375
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565565 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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569569 foster youth must comply with administrative requirements to be 376
570570 eligible for college credit, but must treat such positions the 377
571571 same as if a student obtained employment thro ugh a means other 378
572572 than the internship program. Approved agencies shall cooperate 379
573573 with postsecondary educational institutions to provide any 380
574574 information about internship positions which is necessary to 381
575575 enable the institutions to determine whether to grant t he 382
576576 participating foster youth credit toward his or her degree. 383
577577 (8) REPORTS.—By October 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, 384
578578 the Florida Institute for Child Welfare shall submit a report to 385
579579 the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of 386
580580 the House of Representatives which evaluates the internship 387
581581 program, including, but not limited to, whether the program is 388
582582 in compliance with this section; the outcomes of foster youth 389
583583 who obtain employment through the internship program; a summary 390
584584 of the feedback received pursuant to paragraphs (4)(m) and (n) 391
585585 from participating foster youth and mentors from approved 392
586586 agencies who have participated in the program; and 393
587587 recommendations, if any, for actions necessary to improve the 394
588588 effectiveness and outcomes of the p rogram. 395
589589 (9) RULEMAKING.—The department and approved agencies shall 396
590590 adopt rules to implement this section. 397
591591 Section 2. Subsection (5) is added to section 414.56, 398
592592 Florida Statutes, to read: 399
593593 414.56 Office of Continuing Care. —The department shall 400
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602602 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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606606 establish an Office of Continuing Care to ensure young adults 401
607607 who age out of the foster care system between 18 and 21 years of 402
608608 age, or 22 years of age with a documented disability, have a 403
609609 point of contact until the young adult reaches the age of 26 in 404
610610 order to receive ongoing support and care coordination needed to 405
611611 achieve self-sufficiency. Duties of the office include, but are 406
612612 not limited to: 407
613613 (5) Establishing and operating an internship program for 408
614614 foster youth and complying with the requirements of s. 409
615615 409.1455(4). 410
616616 Section 3. For the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the sums of 411
617617 $1,292,378 in recurring funds and $350,376 in nonrecurring funds 412
618618 are appropriated from the General Revenue Fund to the Department 413
619619 of Children and Families to implement this act. 414
620620 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2022. 415