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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
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to background screenings; amending s. 2
435.02, F.S.; providing definitions; amending s. 3
435.04, F.S.; removing obsolete language; amending s. 4
435.12, F.S.; authorizing criminal history results to 5
be provided to and shared between certain par ties; 6
providing that existing retention provisions apply to 7
persons included in the Care Provider Background 8
Screening Clearinghouse; removing obsolete language; 9
requiring certain entities to register with and use 10
the clearinghouse; requiring affiliation s tatus to be 11
reported; requiring certain employees submit to 12
rescreening on a specified schedule; amending s. 13
943.0438, F.S.; revising the circumstances in which a 14
referee must be screened; requiring certain athletic 15
coaches to receive level 2 background sc reenings; 16
requiring specified entities to participate in a 17
certain criminal history system; amending s. 943.05, 18
F.S.; revising duties of the Criminal Justice 19
Information Program; requiring the Criminal Justice 20
Information Program to develop a certain metho d for 21
identifying individuals; amending s. 943.0542, F.S.; 22
requiring specified entities initiate criminal history 23
checks through the department or clearinghouse; 24
providing a start date for checks through the 25
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clearinghouse; authorizing the Agency for Health Care 26
Administration to change the start date; requiring the 27
Department of Law Enforcement to audit certain 28
entities; requiring certain fingerprints be entered 29
into the clearinghouse; requiring certain entities and 30
the clearinghouse comply with a specified laws; 31
authorizing the clearinghouse to take certain actions; 32
amending ss. 943.0585 and 943.059, F.S.; prohibiting 33
certain persons from denying criminal history records 34
that have been expunged or sealed; amending s. 35
1002.421, F.S.; revising background scre ening 36
requirements for certain private schools; amending s. 37
1012.315, F.S.; revising screening requirements for 38
specified individuals; providing applicability; 39
amending s. 1012.32, F.S.; revising the procedure for 40
background screenings; deleting the right to appeal 41
certain terminations; revising provisions specifying 42
financial responsibility and reimbursement for 43
background screenings; amending s. 1012.465, F.S.; 44
conforming provisions to changes made by the act; 45
amending s. 1012.467, F.S.; repealing certain 46
reciprocity provisions on a specified date; amending 47
s. 1012.56, F.S.; prohibiting certain persons from 48
having specified responsibilities before the results 49
of a background screening are available; requiring 50
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certain provisions of the act be implemented by a 51
certain date; providing an exception; providing 52
effective dates. 53
54
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 55
56
Section 1. Subsections (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), and (6) of 57
section 435.02, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsectio ns 58
(2), (3), (4), (5), (7), and (8), respectively, present 59
subsection (5) is amended, and new subsections (1) and (6) are 60
added to that section, to read: 61
435.02 Definitions. —For the purposes of this chapter, the 62
term: 63
(1) "Affiliation" means employment by or serving as a 64
volunteer or contractor with a qualified entity in a position 65
for which screening is not required by law but which is allowed 66
under the National Child Protection Act. 67
(6) "Qualified entity" has the same meaning as provided in 68
s. 943.0542(1)(b). 69
(7)(5) "Specified agency" means the Department of Health, 70
the Department of Children and Families, the Division of 71
Vocational Rehabilitation within the Department of Education, 72
the Agency for Health Care Administration, the Department of 73
Elderly Affairs, the Department of Juvenile Justice, the Agency 74
for Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Education, each 75
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district unit under s. 1001.30, special district units under s. 76
1011.24, the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind under s. 77
1002.36, the Florida Virtual School under s. 1002.37, virtual 78
instruction programs under s. 1002.45, charter schools under s. 79
1002.33, hope operators under s. 1002.333, private schools 80
participating in an educational scholarship program under s. 81
1002.421, early learning coalitions under s. 1002.83, 82
alternative schools under s. 1008.341, regional workforce boards 83
providing services as defined in s. 445.002(3), and local 84
licensing agencies approved pursuant to s. 402.307, when these 85
agencies are conducting state a nd national criminal history 86
background screening on persons who work with children or 87
persons who are elderly or disabled. 88
Section 2. Paragraph (e) of paragraph (1) of section 89
435.04, Florida Statutes, is redesignated as paragraph (d), and 90
paragraphs (b) and (d) of that subsection are amended, to read: 91
435.04 Level 2 screening standards. — 92
(1) 93
(b) Fingerprints submitted pursuant to this section on or 94
after July 1, 2012, must be submitted electronically to the 95
Department of Law Enforcement. 96
(d) An agency may require by rule that fingerprints 97
submitted pursuant to this section must be submitted 98
electronically to the Department of Law Enforcement on a date 99
earlier than July 1, 2012. 100
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Section 3. Section 435.12, Florida Statutes, is amended to 101
read: 102
435.12 Care Provider Background Screening Clearinghouse. — 103
(1) The Agency for Health Care Administration in 104
consultation with the Department of Law Enforcement shall create 105
a secure web-based system, which shall be known as the "Care 106
Provider Background Screening Clearinghouse" or 107
"clearinghouse.," and which shall be implemented to the full 108
extent practicable no later than September 30, 2013, subject to 109
the specified agencies being funded and equipped to participate 110
in such program. The clearinghouse shall allow the results of 111
criminal history checks provided to the specified agencies and, 112
beginning January 1, 2024, qualified entities participating in 113
the clearinghouse, for screening of persons qualified as care 114
providers under s. 943.0542 to be shared among the specified 115
agencies and such qualified entities when a person has applied 116
to volunteer, be employed, be licensed, or enter into a contract 117
that requires, or has an affiliation that allows for, a state 118
and national fingerprint -based criminal history check. The 119
Agency for Health Care Administration and the Department of Law 120
Enforcement may adopt rules to create forms or implement 121
procedures needed to carry out this section. 122
(2)(a) To ensure that the information in the clearinghouse 123
is current, the fingerprints of a person an employee required to 124
be screened by a specified agency and included in the 125
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clearinghouse must be: 126
1. Retained by the Department of Law Enforcement pursuant 127
to s. 943.05(2)(g) and (h) and (3), and the Department of Law 128
Enforcement must report the results of searching those 129
fingerprints against state incoming arrest fingerprint 130
submissions to the Agency for Health Care Administration for 131
inclusion in the clearinghouse. 132
2. Retained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the 133
national retained print arrest notification program as soon as 134
the Department of Law Enforcement begins participation in such 135
program. Arrest prints will be searched against retained prints 136
at the Federal Bureau of Investigation and notification of 137
arrests will be forwarded to the Florida Department of Law 138
Enforcement and reported to the Agency for Health Care 139
Administration for inclusion in the clearinghouse. 140
3. Resubmitted for a Federal Bureau of Investigation 141
national criminal history check ever y 5 years until such time as 142
the fingerprints are retained by the Federal Bureau of 143
Investigation. 144
4. Subject to retention on a 5 -year renewal basis with 145
fees collected at the time of initial submission or resubmission 146
of fingerprints. 147
5. Submitted with a photograph of the person taken at the 148
time the fingerprints are submitted. 149
(b) Until such time as the fingerprints are enrolled in 150
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the national retained print arrest notification program at the 151
Federal Bureau of Investigation, an employee with a brea k in 152
service of more than 90 days from a position that requires 153
screening by a specified agency must submit to a national 154
screening if the person returns to a position that requires 155
screening by a specified agency . 156
(c) An employer of persons subject to s creening or a 157
qualified entity participating in the clearinghouse by a 158
specified agency must register with the clearinghouse and 159
maintain the employment or affiliation status of all persons 160
included employees within the clearinghouse. Initial employment 161
or affiliation status and any changes in status must be reported 162
within 10 business days. 163
(d) An employer or a qualified entity participating in the 164
clearinghouse must register with and initiate all criminal 165
history checks through the clearinghouse before referring an 166
employee or potential employee or a person with a current or 167
potential affiliation with a qualified entity participating in 168
the clearinghouse for electronic fingerprint submission to the 169
Department of Law Enforcement. The registration must inc lude the 170
employee's full first name, middle initial, and last name; 171
social security number; date of birth; mailing address; sex; and 172
race. Individuals, persons, applicants, and controlling 173
interests that cannot legally obtain a social security number 174
must provide an individual taxpayer identification number. 175
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(3)(a) Employees of each district unit under s. 1001.30, 176
special district units under s. 1011.24, the Florida School for 177
the Deaf and the Blind under s. 1002.36, the Florida Virtual 178
School under s. 1002.37, virtual instruction programs under s. 179
1002.45, charter schools under s. 1002.33, hope operators under 180
s. 1002.333, private schools participating in an educational 181
scholarship program under s. 1002.421, early learning coalitions 182
under 1002.83, and al ternative schools under s. 1008.341 must be 183
rescreened in compliance with the following schedule: 184
1. Employees for whom the last screening was conducted on 185
or before June 30, 2019, must be rescreened by June 30, 2024. 186
2. Employees for whom the last scr eening conducted was 187
between July 1, 2019, and June 30, 2021, must be rescreened by 188
June 30, 2025. 189
3. Employees for whom the last screening conducted was 190
between July 1, 2021, and December 31, 2022, must be rescreened 191
by June 30, 2026. 192
(b) A person is not required to be rescreened before 193
January 1, 2023, solely for the purpose of retention under s. 194
435.12 if the person was screened before participation by the 195
specified agencies named in paragraph (3)(a) in the 196
clearinghouse. 197
(3) An employee who has un dergone a fingerprint -based 198
criminal history check by a specified agency before the 199
clearinghouse is operational is not required to be checked again 200
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solely for the purpose of entry in the clearinghouse. Every 201
employee who is or will become subject to finge rprint-based 202
criminal history checks to be eligible to be licensed, have 203
their license renewed, or meet screening or rescreening 204
requirements by a specified agency once the specified agency 205
participates in the clearinghouse shall be subject to the 206
requirements of this section with respect to entry of records in 207
the clearinghouse and retention of fingerprints for reporting 208
the results of searching against state incoming arrest 209
fingerprint submissions. 210
Section 4. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1), paragraph s (a) 211
and (b) of subsection (2), and subsection (4) of section 212
943.0438, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 213
943.0438 Athletic coaches for independent sanctioning 214
authorities.— 215
(1) As used in this section, the term: 216
(a) "Athletic coach" means a pe rson who: 217
1. Is authorized by an independent sanctioning authority 218
to work as a coach, assistant coach, or referee for 20 or more 219
hours within a calendar year , whether for compensation or as a 220
volunteer, for a youth athletic team based in this state; and 221
2. Has direct contact with one or more minors on the youth 222
athletic team. 223
(2) An independent sanctioning authority shall: 224
(a)1. Conduct a level 2 1 background screening pursuant to 225
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s. 435.04 s. 435.03 of each current and prospective athletic 226
coach. The authority may not delegate this responsibility to an 227
individual team and may not authorize any person to act as an 228
athletic coach unless a level 2 1 background screening has been 229
is conducted and has does not resulted result in 230
disqualification under paragraph (b). Level 1 background 231
screenings shall be conducted annually for each athletic coach. 232
For purposes of this section, a background screening shall 233
include a search of the athletic coach's name or ot her 234
identifying information against state and federal registries of 235
sexual predators and sexual offenders, which are available to 236
the public on Internet sites provided by: 237
a. The Department of Law Enforcement under s. 943.043; and 238
b. The Attorney Gener al of the United States under 42 239
U.S.C. s. 16920. 240
2. For purposes of this section, a background screening 241
conducted by a commercial consumer reporting agency in 242
compliance with the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act using the 243
identifying information refer enced in subparagraph 1. that 244
includes a level 1 background screening and a search of that 245
information against the sexual predator and sexual offender 246
Internet sites listed in sub -subparagraphs 1.a. and b. shall be 247
deemed to satisfy the requirements of thi s paragraph. 248
(b) Disqualify any person from acting as an athletic coach 249
as provided in s. 435.04 s. 435.03 or if he or she is identified 250
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on a registry described in paragraph (a) . The authority may 251
allow a person disqualified under this paragraph to act a s an 252
athletic coach if it determines that the person meets the 253
requirements for an exemption from disqualification under s. 254
435.07. 255
(4) The Legislature encourages Independent sanctioning 256
authorities for youth athletic teams shall to participate in the 257
Volunteer and Employee Criminal History System, as authorized by 258
the National Child Protection Act of 1993 and s. 943.0542. 259
Section 5. Paragraph (h) of subsection (2) of section 260
943.05, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (i) is added 261
to that subsection, to read: 262
943.05 Criminal Justice Information Program; duties; crime 263
reports.— 264
(2) The program shall: 265
(h) For each specified agency under s. 435.02, each 266
qualified entity under s. 943.0542 participating in the Care 267
Provider Background Scre ening Clearinghouse under s. 435.12, or 268
any other agency or qualified entity that officially requests 269
retention of fingerprints or for which retention is otherwise 270
required by law, search all arrest fingerprint submissions 271
received under s. 943.051 against the fingerprints retained in 272
the statewide automated biometric identification system under 273
paragraph (g). 274
1. Any arrest record that is identified with the retained 275
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fingerprints of a person subject to background screening as 276
provided in paragraph (g) sha ll be reported to the appropriate 277
agency or qualified entity. 278
2. To participate in this search process, agencies or 279
qualified entities must notify each person fingerprinted that 280
his or her fingerprints will be retained, pay an annual fee to 281
the department unless otherwise provided by law, and inform the 282
department of any change in the affiliation, employment, or 283
contractual status of each person whose fingerprints are 284
retained under paragraph (g) if such change removes or 285
eliminates the agency or qualifie d entity's basis or need for 286
receiving reports of any arrest of that person, so that the 287
agency or qualified entity is not obligated to pay the upcoming 288
annual fee for the retention and searching of that person's 289
fingerprints to the department. The departm ent shall adopt a 290
rule setting the amount of the annual fee to be imposed upon 291
each participating agency or qualified entity for performing 292
these searches and establishing the procedures for the retention 293
of fingerprints and the dissemination of search res ults. The fee 294
may be borne by the agency, qualified entity, or person subject 295
to fingerprint retention or as otherwise provided by law. 296
Consistent with the recognition of criminal justice agencies 297
expressed in s. 943.053(3), these services shall be provide d to 298
criminal justice agencies for criminal justice purposes free of 299
charge. Qualified entities that elect to participate in the 300
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fingerprint retention and search process are required to timely 301
remit the fee to the department by a payment mechanism approved 302
by the department. If requested by the qualified entity, and 303
with the approval of the department, such fees may be timely 304
remitted to the department by a qualified entity upon receipt of 305
an invoice for such fees from the department. Failure of a 306
qualified entity to pay the amount due on a timely basis or as 307
invoiced by the department may result in the refusal by the 308
department to permit the qualified entity to continue to 309
participate in the fingerprint retention and search process 310
until all fees due and ow ing are paid. 311
3. Agencies that participate in the fingerprint retention 312
and search process may adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) 313
and 120.54 to require employers to keep the agency informed of 314
any change in the affiliation, employment, or contractual status 315
of each person whose fingerprints are retained under paragraph 316
(g) if such change removes or eliminates the agency's basis or 317
need for receiving reports of any arrest of that person, so that 318
the agency is not obligated to pay the upcoming annual fe e for 319
the retention and searching of that person's fingerprints to the 320
department. 321
(i) Develop, for federal approval, a method for 322
identifying or verifying an individual through automated 323
biometrics. 324
Section 6. Subsections (2), (3), and (4) of sectio n 325
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943.0542, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 326
943.0542 Access to criminal history information provided 327
by the department to qualified entities. — 328
(2)(a) A qualified entity shall initiate all background 329
criminal history checks through the department beginning January 330
1, 2024, or a later date determined by the Agency for Health 331
Care Administration, through the Care Provider Background 332
Screening Clearinghouse under s. 435.12. 333
(a) If a qualified entity initiates a background criminal 334
history check through the department, the qualified entity must : 335
1. Register with the department before submitting a 336
request for screening under this section. Each such request must 337
be voluntary and conform to the requirements established in the 338
National Child Protectio n Act of 1993, as amended. As a part of 339
the registration, the qualified entity must agree to comply with 340
state and federal law and must so indicate by signing an 341
agreement approved by the department. The department shall may 342
periodically audit qualified en tities to ensure compliance with 343
federal law and this section. 344
2.(b) A qualified entity shall Submit to the department a 345
request for screening an employee or volunteer or person 346
applying to be an employee or volunteer by submitting 347
fingerprints, or the r equest may be submitted electronically. 348
The qualified entity must maintain a signed waiver allowing the 349
release of the state and national criminal history record 350
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information to the qualified entity. 351
3.(c) Each such request must be accompanied by payment of 352
a fee for a statewide criminal history check by the department 353
established by s. 943.053, plus the amount currently prescribed 354
by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the national criminal 355
history check in compliance with the National Child Protectio n 356
Act of 1993, as amended. Payments must be made in the manner 357
prescribed by the department by rule. 358
4.(d) Any current or prospective employee or volunteer who 359
is subject to a request for screening must indicate to the 360
qualified entity submitting the req uest the name and address of 361
each qualified entity that has submitted a previous request for 362
screening regarding that employee or volunteer. 363
(b) If a qualified entity initiates a background criminal 364
history check through the clearinghouse, the qualified entity 365
must comply with s. 435.12. All fingerprints received under this 366
section must be entered into the clearinghouse as provided in s. 367
435.12. 368
(3) The clearinghouse or the department shall provide 369
directly to the qualified entity the state criminal his tory 370
records that are not exempt from disclosure under chapter 119 or 371
otherwise confidential under law. A person who is the subject of 372
a state criminal history record may challenge the record only as 373
provided in s. 943.056. 374
(4) The national criminal hist ory data is available to 375
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qualified entities to use only for the purpose of screening 376
employees and volunteers or persons applying to be an employee 377
or volunteer with a qualified entity. The clearinghouse or the 378
department shall provide this national crimin al history record 379
information directly to the qualified entity as authorized by 380
the written waiver required for submission of a request to the 381
department. 382
Section 7. Paragraph (b) of subsection (6) of section 383
943.0585, Florida Statutes, is amended to r ead: 384
943.0585 Court-ordered expunction of criminal history 385
records.— 386
(6) EFFECT OF EXPUNCTION ORDER. — 387
(b) The person who is the subject of a criminal history 388
record that is expunged under this section or under other 389
provisions of law, including forme r ss. 893.14, 901.33, and 390
943.058, may lawfully deny or fail to acknowledge the arrests 391
covered by the expunged record, except when the subject of the 392
record: 393
1. Is a candidate for employment with a criminal justice 394
agency; 395
2. Is a defendant in a crimi nal prosecution; 396
3. Concurrently or subsequently petitions for relief under 397
this section, s. 943.0583, or s. 943.059; 398
4. Is a candidate for admission to The Florida Bar; 399
5. Is seeking to be employed or licensed by or to contract 400
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with the Department o f Children and Families, the Division of 401
Vocational Rehabilitation within the Department of Education, 402
the Agency for Health Care Administration, the Agency for 403
Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Health, the 404
Department of Elderly Affairs, or the Department of Juvenile 405
Justice or to be employed or used by such contractor or licensee 406
in a sensitive position having direct contact with children, the 407
disabled, or the elderly; 408
6.a. Is seeking to be employed or licensed by , or contract 409
with, the Department of Education, any district school board, 410
any university laboratory school, any charter school, a school 411
of hope, any private or parochial school, or any local 412
governmental entity that licenses child care facilities ; 413
b. Is seeking or to be employed or used by a contractor or 414
licensee under sub-subparagraph a.; or 415
c. Is a person screened under s. 1012.467 ; 416
7. Is seeking to be licensed by the Division of Insurance 417
Agent and Agency Services within the Department of Financial 418
Services; or 419
8. Is seeking to be appointed as a guardian pursuant to s. 420
744.3125. 421
Section 8. Paragraph (b) of subsection (6) of section 422
943.059, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 423
943.059 Court-ordered sealing of criminal history 424
records.— 425
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(6) EFFECT OF ORDER. — 426
(b) The subject of the criminal history record sealed 427
under this section or under other provisions of law, including 428
former ss. 893.14, 901.33, and 943.058, may lawfully deny or 429
fail to acknowledge the arrests covered by the sealed record, 430
except when the subject of the record: 431
1. Is a candidate for employment with a criminal justice 432
agency; 433
2. Is a defendant in a criminal prosecution; 434
3. Concurrently or subsequently petitions for relief under 435
this section, s. 943.0583, or s. 943.0585; 436
4. Is a candidate for admission to The Florida Bar; 437
5. Is seeking to be employed or licensed by or to contract 438
with the Department of Children and Families, the Division of 439
Vocational Rehabilitation within the Department of Education, 440
the Agency for Health Care Admin istration, the Agency for 441
Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Health, the 442
Department of Elderly Affairs, or the Department of Juvenile 443
Justice or to be employed or used by such contractor or licensee 444
in a sensitive position having direct contact w ith children, the 445
disabled, or the elderly; 446
6.a. Is seeking to be employed or licensed by , or contract 447
with, the Department of Education, a district school board, a 448
university laboratory school, a charter school, a school of 449
hope, a private or parochial school, or a local governmental 450
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entity that licenses child care facilities; 451
b Is seeking or to be employed or used by a contractor or 452
licensee under subparagraph a.; or 453
c. Is a person screened under s. 1012.467; 454
7. Is attempting to purchase a firearm from a licensed 455
importer, licensed manufacturer, or licensed dealer and is 456
subject to a criminal history check under state or federal law; 457
8. Is seeking to be licensed by the Division of Insurance 458
Agent and Agency Services within the Department of Finan cial 459
Services; 460
9. Is seeking to be appointed as a guardian pursuant to s. 461
744.3125; or 462
10. Is seeking to be licensed by the Bureau of License 463
Issuance of the Division of Licensing within the Department of 464
Agriculture and Consumer Services to carry a co ncealed weapon or 465
concealed firearm. This subparagraph applies only in the 466
determination of an applicant's eligibility under s. 790.06. 467
Section 9. Effective January 1, 2023, paragraph (e) of 468
subsection (1) of section 1002.421, Florida Statutes, is amen ded 469
to read: 470
1002.421 State school choice scholarship program 471
accountability and oversight. — 472
(1) PRIVATE SCHOOL ELIGIBILITY AND OBLIGATIONS. —A private 473
school participating in an educational scholarship program 474
established pursuant to this chapter must be a private school as 475
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defined in s. 1002.01(2) in this state, be registered, and be in 476
compliance with all requirements of this section in addition to 477
private school requirements outlined in s. 1002.42, specific 478
requirements identified within respective s cholarship program 479
laws, and other provisions of Florida law that apply to private 480
schools, and must: 481
(e) Annually complete and submit to the department a 482
notarized scholarship compliance statement certifying that all 483
school employees and contracted pers onnel with direct student 484
contact have undergone background screening pursuant to s. 485
435.12 s. 943.0542 and have met the screening standards as 486
provided in s. 435.04. 487
488
The department shall suspend the payment of funds to a private 489
school that knowingly fai ls to comply with this subsection, and 490
shall prohibit the school from enrolling new scholarship 491
students, for 1 fiscal year and until the school complies. If a 492
private school fails to meet the requirements of this subsection 493
or has consecutive years of mat erial exceptions listed in the 494
report required under paragraph (q), the commissioner may 495
determine that the private school is ineligible to participate 496
in a scholarship program. 497
Section 10. Effective January 1, 2023, section 1012.315, 498
Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 499
1012.315 Screening standards. —A person is ineligible for 500
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educator certification or employment in any position that 501
requires direct contact with students in a district school 502
system, a charter school, or a private school that particip ates 503
in a state scholarship program under chapter 1002 if the person 504
is on the disqualification list maintained by the department 505
pursuant to s. 1001.10(4)(b), is registered as a sex offender as 506
described in 42 U.S.C. s. 9858f(c)(1)(C), would be ineligible 507
for an exemption under s. 435.07(4)(c), or has been convicted or 508
found guilty of, has had adjudication withheld for, or has pled 509
guilty or nolo contendere to: 510
(1) Any felony offense prohibited under any of the 511
following statutes: 512
(a) Section 393.135, relating to sexual misconduct with 513
certain developmentally disabled clients and reporting of such 514
sexual misconduct. 515
(b) Section 394.4593, relating to sexual misconduct with 516
certain mental health patients and reporting of such sexual 517
misconduct. 518
(c) Section 415.111, relating to adult abuse, neglect, or 519
exploitation of aged persons or disabled adults. 520
(d) Section 782.04, relating to murder. 521
(e) Section 782.07, relating to manslaughter, aggravated 522
manslaughter of an elderly person or disabled adult, a ggravated 523
manslaughter of a child, or aggravated manslaughter of an 524
officer, a firefighter, an emergency medical technician, or a 525
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paramedic. 526
(f) Section 784.021, relating to aggravated assault. 527
(g) Section 784.045, relating to aggravated battery. 528
(h) Section 784.075, relating to battery on a detention or 529
commitment facility staff member or a juvenile probation 530
officer. 531
(i) Section 787.01, relating to kidnapping. 532
(j) Section 787.02, relating to false imprisonment. 533
(k) Section 787.025, relating to luring or enticing a 534
child. 535
(l) Section 787.04(2), relating to leading, taking, 536
enticing, or removing a minor beyond the state limits, or 537
concealing the location of a minor, with criminal intent pending 538
custody proceedings. 539
(m) Section 787.04(3), rela ting to leading, taking, 540
enticing, or removing a minor beyond the state limits, or 541
concealing the location of a minor, with criminal intent pending 542
dependency proceedings or proceedings concerning alleged abuse 543
or neglect of a minor. 544
(n) Section 790.115( 1), relating to exhibiting firearms or 545
weapons at a school-sponsored event, on school property, or 546
within 1,000 feet of a school. 547
(o) Section 790.115(2)(b), relating to possessing an 548
electric weapon or device, destructive device, or other weapon 549
at a school-sponsored event or on school property. 550
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(p) Section 794.011, relating to sexual battery. 551
(q) Former s. 794.041, relating to sexual activity with or 552
solicitation of a child by a person in familial or custodial 553
authority. 554
(r) Section 794.05, relatin g to unlawful sexual activity 555
with certain minors. 556
(s) Section 794.08, relating to female genital mutilation. 557
(t) Chapter 796, relating to prostitution. 558
(u) Chapter 800, relating to lewdness and indecent 559
exposure. 560
(v) Section 800.101, relating to o ffenses against students 561
by authority figures. 562
(w) Section 806.01, relating to arson. 563
(x) Section 810.14, relating to voyeurism. 564
(y) Section 810.145, relating to video voyeurism. 565
(z) Section 812.014(6), relating to coordinating the 566
commission of theft in excess of $3,000. 567
(aa) Section 812.0145, relating to theft from persons 65 568
years of age or older. 569
(bb) Section 812.019, relating to dealing in stolen 570
property. 571
(cc) Section 812.13, relating to robbery. 572
(dd) Section 812.131, relating to robbery by sudden 573
snatching. 574
(ee) Section 812.133, relating to carjacking. 575
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(ff) Section 812.135, relating to home -invasion robbery. 576
(gg) Section 817.563, relating to fraudulent sale of 577
controlled substances. 578
(hh) Section 825.102, relating to abuse, aggravated abuse, 579
or neglect of an elderly person or disabled adult. 580
(ii) Section 825.103, relating to exploitation of an 581
elderly person or disabled adult. 582
(jj) Section 825.1025, relating to lewd or lascivious 583
offenses committed upon or in the presenc e of an elderly person 584
or disabled person. 585
(kk) Section 826.04, relating to incest. 586
(ll) Section 827.03, relating to child abuse, aggravated 587
child abuse, or neglect of a child. 588
(mm) Section 827.04, relating to contributing to the 589
delinquency or depen dency of a child. 590
(nn) Section 827.071, relating to sexual performance by a 591
child. 592
(oo) Section 843.01, relating to resisting arrest with 593
violence. 594
(pp) Chapter 847, relating to obscenity. 595
(qq) Section 874.05, relating to causing, encouraging, 596
soliciting, or recruiting another to join a criminal street 597
gang. 598
(rr) Chapter 893, relating to drug abuse prevention and 599
control, if the offense was a felony of the second degree or 600
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greater severity. 601
(ss) Section 916.1075, relating to sexual misconduct wi th 602
certain forensic clients and reporting of such sexual 603
misconduct. 604
(tt) Section 944.47, relating to introduction, removal, or 605
possession of contraband at a correctional facility. 606
(uu) Section 985.701, relating to sexual misconduct in 607
juvenile justice programs. 608
(vv) Section 985.711, relating to introduction, removal, 609
or possession of contraband at a juvenile detention facility or 610
commitment program. 611
(2) Any misdemeanor offense prohibited under any of the 612
following statutes: 613
(a) Section 784.03, re lating to battery, if the victim of 614
the offense was a minor. 615
(b) Section 787.025, relating to luring or enticing a 616
child. 617
(3) Any criminal act committed in another state or under 618
federal law which, if committed in this state, constitutes an 619
offense prohibited under any statute listed in subsection (1) or 620
subsection (2). 621
(4) Any delinquent act committed in this state or any 622
delinquent or criminal act committed in another state or under 623
federal law which, if committed in this state, qualifies an 624
individual for inclusion on the Registered Juvenile Sex Offender 625
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List under s. 943.0435(1)(h)1.d. 626
Section 11. The changes made to s. 1012.315, Florida 627
Statutes, by this act apply to individuals who are screened 628
after January 1, 2024. 629
Section 12. Effective January 1, 2023, subsections (2) and 630
(3) of section 1012.32, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 631
1012.32 Qualifications of personnel. — 632
(2)(a) Instructional and noninstructional personnel who 633
are hired or contracted to fill positions that require di rect 634
contact with students in any district school system or 635
university lab school must, upon employment or engagement to 636
provide services, undergo background screening as required under 637
s. 1012.465 or s. 1012.56, whichever is applicable. 638
(b)1. Instructional and noninstructional personnel who are 639
hired or contracted to fill positions in a charter school other 640
than a school of hope as defined in s. 1002.333, and members of 641
the governing board of such charter school, in compliance with 642
s. 1002.33(12)(g), upo n employment, engagement of services, or 643
appointment, shall undergo background screening as required 644
under s. 1012.465 or s. 1012.56, whichever is applicable , by 645
filing with the district school board for the school district in 646
which the charter school is l ocated a complete set of 647
fingerprints taken by an authorized law enforcement agency or an 648
employee of the school or school district who is trained to take 649
fingerprints. 650
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2. Instructional and noninstructional personnel who are 651
hired or contracted to fill positions in a school of hope as 652
defined in s. 1002.333, and members of the governing board of 653
such school of hope, upon employment, engagement of services, or 654
appointment, shall undergo background screening as required 655
under s. 1012.465 or s. 1012.56, whichever is applicable file 656
with the school of hope a complete set of fingerprints taken by 657
an authorized law enforcement agency, by an employee of the 658
school of hope or sch ool district who is trained to take 659
fingerprints, or by any other entity recognized by the 660
Department of Law Enforcement to take fingerprints . 661
(c) Instructional and noninstructional personnel who are 662
hired or contracted to fill positions that require dir ect 663
contact with students in an alternative school that operates 664
under contract with a district school system must, upon 665
employment or engagement to provide services, undergo background 666
screening as required under s. 1012.465 or s. 1012.56, whichever 667
is applicable, by filing with the district school board for the 668
school district to which the alternative school is under 669
contract a complete set of fingerprints taken by an authorized 670
law enforcement agency or an employee of the school or school 671
district who is trained to take fingerprints . 672
(d) Student teachers and persons participating in a field 673
experience pursuant to s. 1004.04(5) or s. 1004.85 in any 674
district school system, lab school, or charter school must, upon 675
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engagement to provide services, undergo ba ckground screening as 676
required under s. 1012.56. 677
678
Required fingerprints must be submitted to the Department of Law 679
Enforcement for statewide criminal and juvenile records checks 680
and to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for federal criminal 681
records checks. A person subject to this subsection who is found 682
ineligible for employment under s. 1012.315, or otherwise found 683
through background screening to have been convicted of any crime 684
involving moral turpitude as defined by rule of the State Board 685
of Education, may shall not be employed, engaged to provide 686
services, or serve in any position that requires direct contact 687
with students. Probationary persons subject to this subsection 688
terminated because of their criminal record have the right to 689
appeal such decisions. The cost of the background screening may 690
be borne by the employer district school board, the charter 691
school, the employee, the contractor, or a person subject to 692
this subsection. A district school board shall reimburse a 693
charter school the cost of back ground screening if it does not 694
notify the charter school of the eligibility of a governing 695
board member or instructional or noninstructional personnel 696
within the earlier of 14 days after receipt of the background 697
screening results from the Florida Departm ent of Law Enforcement 698
or 30 days of submission of fingerprints by the governing board 699
member or instructional or noninstructional personnel. 700
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(3) A background screening required under this section 701
shall be conducted in accordance with s. 435.12. 702
(3)(a) All fingerprints submitted to the Department of Law 703
Enforcement as required by subsection (2) shall be retained by 704
the Department of Law Enforcement in a manner provided by rule 705
and entered in the statewide automated biometric identification 706
system authorized by s. 943.05(2)(b). Such fingerprints shall 707
thereafter be available for all purposes and uses authorized for 708
arrest fingerprints entered in the statewide automated biometric 709
identification system pursuant to s. 943.051. 710
(b) The Department of Law Enf orcement shall search all 711
arrest fingerprints received under s. 943.051 against the 712
fingerprints retained in the statewide automated biometric 713
identification system under paragraph (a). Any arrest record 714
that is identified with the retained fingerprints of a person 715
subject to the background screening under this section shall be 716
reported to the employing or contracting school district or the 717
school district with which the person is affiliated. Each school 718
district is required to participate in this search pr ocess by 719
payment of an annual fee to the Department of Law Enforcement 720
and by informing the Department of Law Enforcement of any change 721
in the affiliation, employment, or contractual status or place 722
of affiliation, employment, or contracting of its instruc tional 723
and noninstructional personnel whose fingerprints are retained 724
under paragraph (a). The Department of Law Enforcement shall 725
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adopt a rule setting the amount of the annual fee to be imposed 726
upon each school district for performing these searches and 727
establishing the procedures for the retention of instructional 728
and noninstructional personnel fingerprints and the 729
dissemination of search results. The fee may be borne by the 730
district school board, the contractor, or the person 731
fingerprinted. 732
(c) Personnel whose fingerprints are not retained by the 733
Department of Law Enforcement under paragraphs (a) and (b) must 734
be refingerprinted and rescreened in accordance with subsection 735
(2) upon reemployment or reengagement to provide services in 736
order to comply with the requirements of this subsection. 737
Section 13. Effective January 1, 2023, section 1012.465, 738
Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 739
1012.465 Background screening requirements for certain 740
noninstructional school district employees and contractors. — 741
(1) Except as provided in s. 1012.467 or s. 1012.468, 742
noninstructional school district employees or contractual 743
personnel who are permitted access on school grounds when 744
students are present, who have direct contact with students or 745
who have access to or c ontrol of school funds must meet the 746
level 2 screening requirements of as described in s. 1012.32. 747
Contractual personnel shall include any vendor, individual, or 748
entity under contract with a school or the school board. 749
(2) Every 5 years following employ ment or entry into a 750
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contract in a capacity described in subsection (1), each person 751
who is so employed or under contract with the school district 752
must meet level 2 screening requirements as described in s. 753
1012.32, at which time the school district shall request the 754
Department of Law Enforcement to forward the fingerprints to the 755
Federal Bureau of Investigation for the level 2 screening. If, 756
for any reason following employment or entry into a contract in 757
a capacity described in subsection (1), the fingerpr ints of a 758
person who is so employed or under contract with the school 759
district are not retained by the Department of Law Enforcement 760
under s. 1012.32(3)(a) and (b), the person must file a complete 761
set of fingerprints with the district school superintendent of 762
the employing or contracting school district. Upon submission of 763
fingerprints for this purpose, the school district shall request 764
the Department of Law Enforcement to forward the fingerprints to 765
the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the level 2 scree ning, 766
and the fingerprints shall be retained by the Department of Law 767
Enforcement under s. 1012.32(3)(a) and (b). The cost of the 768
state and federal criminal history check required by level 2 769
screening may be borne by the district school board, the 770
contractor, or the person fingerprinted. Under penalty of 771
perjury, each person who is employed or under contract in a 772
capacity described in subsection (1) must agree to inform his or 773
her employer or the party with whom he or she is under contract 774
within 48 hours if convicted of any disqualifying offense while 775
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he or she is employed or under contract in that capacity. 776
(3) If it is found that a person who is employed or under 777
contract in a capacity described in subsection (1) does not meet 778
the screening level 2 requirements, the person shall be 779
immediately suspended from working in that capacity and shall 780
remain suspended until final resolution of any appeals. 781
Section 14. Subsections (2) through (7) of section 782
1012.467, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 783
1012.467 Noninstructional contractors who are permitted 784
access to school grounds when students are present; background 785
screening requirements. — 786
(2)(a) A fingerprint -based criminal history check shall be 787
performed on each noninstructional contractor who is permitted 788
access to school grounds when students are present, whose 789
performance of the contract with the school or school board is 790
not anticipated to result in direct contact with students, and 791
for whom any unanticipated contact would be infrequent and 792
incidental using the process described in s. 1012.32(3) . 793
Criminal history checks shall be performed at least once every 5 794
years. For the initial criminal history check, each 795
noninstructional contractor who is subject to the criminal 796
history check shall file w ith the Department of Law Enforcement 797
a complete set of fingerprints taken by an authorized law 798
enforcement agency or an employee of a school district, a public 799
school, or a private company who is trained to take 800
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fingerprints. The fingerprints shall be ele ctronically submitted 801
for state processing to the Department of Law Enforcement, which 802
shall in turn submit the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of 803
Investigation for national processing. The results of each 804
criminal history check shall be reported to the school district 805
in which the individual is seeking access and entered into the 806
shared system described in subsection (7). The school district 807
shall screen the results using the disqualifying offenses in 808
paragraph (b)(g). The cost of the criminal history c heck may be 809
borne by the district school board, the school, or the 810
contractor. A fee that is charged by a district school board for 811
such checks may not exceed 30 percent of the total amount 812
charged by the Department of Law Enforcement and the Federal 813
Bureau of Investigation. 814
(b) As authorized by law, the Department of Law 815
Enforcement shall retain the fingerprints submitted by the 816
school districts pursuant to this subsection to the Department 817
of Law Enforcement for a criminal history background screening 818
in a manner provided by rule and enter the fingerprints in the 819
statewide automated biometric identification system authorized 820
by s. 943.05(2)(b). The fingerprints shall thereafter be 821
available for all purposes and uses authorized for arrest 822
fingerprints entered into the statewide automated biometric 823
identification system under s. 943.051. 824
(c) As authorized by law, the Department of Law 825
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Enforcement shall search all arrest fingerprints received under 826
s. 943.051 against the fingerprints retained in the statewide 827
automated biometric identification system under paragraph (b). 828
(d) School districts may participate in the search process 829
described in this subsection by paying an annual fee to the 830
Department of Law Enforcement. 831
(e) A fingerprint retained pu rsuant to this subsection 832
shall be purged from the automated biometric identification 833
system 5 years following the date the fingerprint was initially 834
submitted. The Department of Law Enforcement shall set the 835
amount of the annual fee to be imposed upon eac h participating 836
agency for performing these searches and establishing the 837
procedures for retaining fingerprints and disseminating search 838
results. The fee may be borne as provided by law. Fees may be 839
waived or reduced by the executive director of the Depart ment of 840
Law Enforcement for good cause shown. 841
(f) A noninstructional contractor who is subject to a 842
criminal history check under this section shall inform a school 843
district that he or she has completed a criminal history check 844
in another school district within the last 5 years. The school 845
district shall verify the results of the contractor's criminal 846
history check using the shared system described in subsection 847
(7). The school district may not charge the contractor a fee for 848
verifying the results of his o r her criminal history check . 849
(b)(g) A noninstructional contractor for whom a criminal 850
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history check is required under this section may not have been 851
convicted of any of the following offenses designated in the 852
Florida Statutes, any similar offense in an other jurisdiction, 853
or any similar offense committed in this state which has been 854
redesignated from a former provision of the Florida Statutes to 855
one of the following offenses: 856
1. Any offense listed in s. 943.0435(1)(h)1., relating to 857
the registration of an individual as a sexual offender. 858
2. Section 393.135, relating to sexual misconduct with 859
certain developmentally disabled clients and the reporting of 860
such sexual misconduct. 861
3. Section 394.4593, relating to sexual misconduct with 862
certain mental health patients and the reporting of such sexual 863
misconduct. 864
4. Section 775.30, relating to terrorism. 865
5. Section 782.04, relating to murder. 866
6. Section 787.01, relating to kidnapping. 867
7. Any offense under chapter 800, relating to lewdness and 868
indecent exposure. 869
8. Section 826.04, relating to incest. 870
9. Section 827.03, relating to child abuse, aggravated 871
child abuse, or neglect of a child. 872
(3) If it is found that a noninstructional contractor has 873
been convicted of any of the offenses liste d in paragraph (2)(b) 874
(2)(g), the individual shall be immediately suspended from 875
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having access to school grounds and shall remain suspended 876
unless and until the conviction is set aside in any 877
postconviction proceeding. 878
(4) A noninstructional contractor w ho has been convicted 879
of any of the offenses listed in paragraph (2)(b) (2)(g) may not 880
be permitted on school grounds when students are present unless 881
the contractor has received a full pardon or has had his or her 882
civil rights restored. A noninstructional contractor who is 883
present on school grounds in violation of this subsection 884
commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in 885
s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 886
(5) If a school district has reasonable cause to believe 887
that grounds exist for the den ial of a contractor's access to 888
school grounds when students are present, it shall notify the 889
contractor in writing, stating the specific record that 890
indicates noncompliance with the standards set forth in this 891
section. It is the responsibility of the affe cted contractor to 892
contest his or her denial. The only basis for contesting the 893
denial is proof of mistaken identity or that an offense from 894
another jurisdiction is not disqualifying under paragraph (2)(b) 895
(2)(g). 896
(6) Each contractor who is subject to th e requirements of 897
this section shall agree to inform his or her employer or the 898
party to whom he or she is under contract and the school 899
district within 48 hours if he or she is arrested for any of the 900
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disqualifying offenses in paragraph (2)(b) (2)(g). A contractor 901
who willfully fails to comply with this subsection commits a 902
felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 903
or s. 775.083. If the employer of a contractor or the party to 904
whom the contractor is under contract knows the contracto r has 905
been arrested for any of the disqualifying offenses in paragraph 906
(2)(b) (2)(g) and authorizes the contractor to be present on 907
school grounds when students are present, such employer or such 908
party commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as 909
provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 910
(7)(a) The Department of Law Enforcement shall implement a 911
system that allows for the results of a criminal history check 912
provided to a school district to be shared with other school 913
districts through a secure Internet website or other secure 914
electronic means. School districts must accept reciprocity of 915
level 2 screenings for Florida High School Athletic Association 916
officials. 917
(b) An employee of a school district, a charter school, a 918
lab school, a charter lab school, or the Florida School for the 919
Deaf and the Blind who requests or shares criminal history 920
information under this section is immune from civil or criminal 921
liability for any good faith conduct that occurs during the 922
performance of and within the scope of resp onsibilities related 923
to the record check. 924
(c) This subsection is repealed July 31, 2026. 925
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Section 15. Effective January 1, 2023, paragraph (b) of 926
subsection (10) of section 1012.56, Florida Statutes, is 927
amended, and paragraph (c) is added to that subs ection, to read: 928
1012.56 Educator certification requirements. — 929
(10) BACKGROUND SCREENING REQUIRED, INITIALLY AND 930
PERIODICALLY.— 931
(b) To maintain the safety and well -being of children and 932
the integrity of the system of public education, a person may 933
not be certified receive a certificate under this chapter to 934
have the responsibility for the safety and well -being of 935
children until the person's screening under s. 1012.32 is 936
completed and the results have been submitted to the Department 937
of Education or to the person's employer district school 938
superintendent of the school district that employs the person . 939
Every 5 years after obtaining initial certification, each person 940
who is required to be certified under this chapter must be 941
rescreened in accordance with s. 1012.32, at which time the 942
employer school district shall request the Department of Law 943
Enforcement to forward the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of 944
Investigation for federal criminal records checks pursuant to s. 945
435.12. 946
(c) If, for any reason af ter obtaining initial 947
certification, the fingerprints of a person who is required to 948
be certified under this chapter are not retained by the 949
Department of Law Enforcement under s. 1012.32(3) s. 950
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1012.32(3)(a) and (b) , the person must file a complete set of 951
fingerprints with the employer district school superintendent of 952
the employing school district . Upon submission of fingerprints 953
for this purpose, the employer school district shall request the 954
Department of Law Enforcement to forward the fingerprints to th e 955
Federal Bureau of Investigation for federal criminal records 956
checks, and the fingerprints shall be retained by the Department 957
of Law Enforcement under s. 1012.32(3) s. 1012.32(3)(a) and (b) . 958
The cost of the state and federal criminal history checks 959
required by paragraph (a) and this paragraph may be borne by the 960
employer district school board or the employee. Under penalty of 961
perjury, each person who is certified under this chapter must 962
agree to inform his or her employer within 48 hours if convicted 963
of any disqualifying offense while he or she is employed in a 964
position for which such certification is required. 965
Section 16. The changes made to ss. 1012.32 and 1012.56, 966
Florida Statutes, by this act must be implemented by January 1, 967
2024, or a later date determined by the Agency for Health Care 968
Administration. 969
Section 17. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this 970
act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 971