Florida Senate - 2022 CS for SB 1436 By the Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs; and Senator Garcia 586-02600-22 20221436c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to human trafficking; amending s. 3 16.617, F.S.; providing the Statewide Council on Human 4 Trafficking with an additional duty; amending s. 5 16.618, F.S.; deleting an obsolete provision; 6 requiring the direct support organization of the 7 Statewide Council on Human Trafficking to develop 8 certain training for firesafety inspectors; providing 9 that such training is eligible for continuing 10 education credits; amending s. 409.175, F.S.; 11 requiring foster parents and agency staff to complete 12 preservice and inservice training related to human 13 trafficking; reenacting s. 63.092(3)(e), F.S., 14 relating to reports to the court of intended placement 15 by an adoption entity, to incorporate the amendment 16 made to s. 409.175, F.S., in a reference thereto; 17 providing an effective date. 18 19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 20 21 Section 1.Present paragraphs (b) through (e) of subsection 22 (4) of section 16.617, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as 23 paragraphs (c) through (f), respectively, and a new paragraph 24 (b) is added to that subsection, to read: 25 16.617Statewide Council on Human Trafficking; creation; 26 membership; duties. 27 (4)DUTIES.The council shall: 28 (b)Assess the frequency and extent to which social media 29 platforms are used to assist, facilitate, or support human 30 trafficking within this state, establish a process to detect 31 such use on a consistent basis, and make recommendations on how 32 to stop, reduce, or prevent social media platforms from being 33 used for such purposes. To the extent that these objectives can 34 be achieved under existing laws, the council must implement a 35 system to do so without undue delay. 36 Section 2.Paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section 37 16.618, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (f) is added 38 to that subsection, to read: 39 16.618Direct-support organization. 40 (4) 41 (b)Recognizing that this state hosts large-scale events, 42 including sporting events, concerts, and cultural events, which 43 generate significant tourism to this state, produce significant 44 economic revenue, and often are conduits for human trafficking, 45 the institute must develop training that is available ready for 46 statewide dissemination by not later than October 1, 2019. 47 1.Training must focus on detecting human trafficking, best 48 practices for reporting human trafficking, and the interventions 49 and treatment for survivors of human trafficking. 50 2.In developing the training, the institute shall consult 51 with law enforcement agencies, survivors of human trafficking, 52 industry representatives, tourism representatives, and other 53 interested parties. The institute also must conduct research to 54 determine the reduction in recidivism attributable to the 55 education of the harms of human trafficking for first-time 56 offenders. 57 (f)The direct-support organization shall develop training 58 for firesafety inspectors in the recognition and reporting of 59 human trafficking. Such training is eligible for continuing 60 education credit under s. 633.216(4). 61 Section 3.Paragraph (e) is added to subsection (14) of 62 section 409.175, Florida Statutes, to read: 63 409.175Licensure of family foster homes, residential 64 child-caring agencies, and child-placing agencies; public 65 records exemption. 66 (14) 67 (e)1.In addition to any other preservice training required 68 by law, foster parents, as a condition of licensure, and agency 69 staff must successfully complete preservice training related to 70 human trafficking which must be uniform statewide and must 71 include, but need not be limited to: 72 a.Basic information on human trafficking, such as an 73 understanding of relevant terminology, and the differences 74 between sex trafficking and labor trafficking; 75 b.Factors and knowledge on identifying children at risk of 76 human trafficking; and 77 c.Steps that should be taken to prevent at-risk youths 78 from becoming victims of human trafficking. 79 2.Foster parents, before licensure renewal, and agency 80 staff, during each full year of employment, must complete 81 inservice training related to human trafficking to satisfy the 82 training requirement under subparagraph (5)(b)7. 83 Section 4.For the purpose of incorporating the amendment 84 made by this act to section 409.175, Florida Statutes, in a 85 reference thereto, paragraph (e) of subsection (3) of section 86 63.092, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 87 63.092Report to the court of intended placement by an 88 adoption entity; at-risk placement; preliminary study. 89 (3)PRELIMINARY HOME STUDY.Before placing the minor in the 90 intended adoptive home, a preliminary home study must be 91 performed by a licensed child-placing agency, a child-caring 92 agency registered under s. 409.176, a licensed professional, or 93 an agency described in s. 61.20(2), unless the adoptee is an 94 adult or the petitioner is a stepparent or a relative. If the 95 adoptee is an adult or the petitioner is a stepparent or a 96 relative, a preliminary home study may be required by the court 97 for good cause shown. The department is required to perform the 98 preliminary home study only if there is no licensed child 99 placing agency, child-caring agency registered under s. 409.176, 100 licensed professional, or agency described in s. 61.20(2), in 101 the county where the prospective adoptive parents reside. The 102 preliminary home study must be made to determine the suitability 103 of the intended adoptive parents and may be completed before 104 identification of a prospective adoptive minor. If the 105 identified prospective adoptive minor is in the custody of the 106 department, a preliminary home study must be completed within 30 107 days after it is initiated. A favorable preliminary home study 108 is valid for 1 year after the date of its completion. Upon its 109 completion, a signed copy of the home study must be provided to 110 the intended adoptive parents who were the subject of the home 111 study. A minor may not be placed in an intended adoptive home 112 before a favorable preliminary home study is completed unless 113 the adoptive home is also a licensed foster home under s. 114 409.175. The preliminary home study must include, at a minimum: 115 (e)Documentation of counseling and education of the 116 intended adoptive parents on adoptive parenting, as determined 117 by the entity conducting the preliminary home study. The 118 training specified in s. 409.175(14) shall only be required for 119 persons who adopt children from the department. 120 121 If the preliminary home study is favorable, a minor may be 122 placed in the home pending entry of the judgment of adoption. A 123 minor may not be placed in the home if the preliminary home 124 study is unfavorable. If the preliminary home study is 125 unfavorable, the adoption entity may, within 20 days after 126 receipt of a copy of the written recommendation, petition the 127 court to determine the suitability of the intended adoptive 128 home. A determination as to suitability under this subsection 129 does not act as a presumption of suitability at the final 130 hearing. In determining the suitability of the intended adoptive 131 home, the court must consider the totality of the circumstances 132 in the home. A minor may not be placed in a home in which there 133 resides any person determined by the court to be a sexual 134 predator as defined in s. 775.21 or to have been convicted of an 135 offense listed in s. 63.089(4)(b)2. 136 Section 5.This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.