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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 level 2 background screenings; 2
amending s. 435.02, F.S.; providing definitions; 3
amending s. 435.04, F.S.; expanding authorized records 4
that may be checked during a level 2 background 5
screening; adding additional disqualifying offenses to 6
level 2 background screening requirements; removing 7
obsolete language; amending s. 435.12, F.S.; 8
authorizing certain qualified entities to participate 9
in the Care Provider Background Screening 10
Clearinghouse beginning on a specified date; requiring 11
the Agency for Health Care Administration to perform 12
certain actions beginning on a specified date; 13
requiring the clearinghouse to share eligibility 14
determinations with certain entities; revising the 15
timeframe for certain reporting requirements; revising 16
deadlines for rescreening certain employees; removing 17
obsolete language; conforming provisions to changes 18
made by the act; amending s. 943.0438, F.S.; revising 19
the definition of the term "athletic coach"; requiring 20
level 2, instead of level 1, background screening s for 21
current and prospective athletic coaches; providing 22
timeframes for independent sanctioning authorities to 23
disqualify certain persons from acting as an athletic 24
coach for certain reasons; requiring independent 25
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sanctioning authorities to participate in a specified 26
system; conforming provisions to changes made by the 27
act; amending s. 943.05, F.S.; expanding the agencies 28
and entities which may utilize the Criminal Justice 29
Information Program; requiring the program to develop, 30
for federal approval, a speci fied method for 31
identifying or verifying an individual; amending s. 32
943.0542, F.S.; requiring qualified entities to 33
initiate background criminal history checks through 34
the Department of Law Enforcement or the clearinghouse 35
beginning on a specified date; pr oviding requirements 36
for qualified entities initiating criminal history 37
checks through the clearinghouse; providing 38
requirements for the clearinghouse; revising standards 39
for determinations of whether a criminal history 40
record shows certain information; re quiring the agency 41
to make certain determinations regarding the 42
eligibility of certain employees or volunteers 43
beginning on a specified date; amending s. 1012.315, 44
F.S.; revising screening requirements for specified 45
individuals; requiring the agency to mak e certain 46
determinations regarding the eligibility of certain 47
employees beginning on a specified date; conforming 48
provisions to changes made by the act; amending s. 49
1012.467, F.S.; requiring the agency to make certain 50
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determinations regarding the eligibili ty of certain 51
noninstructional contractors beginning on a specified 52
date; amending s. 1012.56, F.S.; requiring the records 53
of a person applying for educator certification to be 54
referred to the agency beginning on a specified date; 55
requiring background scre ening results to be submitted 56
to the clearinghouse by a specified date; providing 57
appropriations and authorizing positions; providing 58
effective dates. 59
60
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 61
62
Section 1. Subsections (1) through (4 ) and subsections (5) 63
and (6) of section 435.02, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as 64
subsections (2) through (5) and subsections (7) and (8), 65
respectively, and new subsections (1) and (6) are added to that 66
section, to read: 67
435.02 Definitions. —For the purposes of this chapter, the 68
term: 69
(1) "Affiliation" means the status of a person employed or 70
serving as a volunteer or contractor with a qualified entity in 71
a position for which screening is not required by law but is 72
authorized under the National Child Protection Act. 73
(6) "Qualified entity" has the same meaning as in s. 74
943.0542(1). 75
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Section 2. Paragraphs (a), (b), and (d) of subsection (1) 76
and subsection (2) of section 435.04, Florida Statutes, are 77
amended to read: 78
435.04 Level 2 screening standa rds.— 79
(1)(a) All employees required by law to be screened under 80
pursuant to this section must undergo security background 81
investigations as a condition of employment and continued 82
employment which includes, but is not need not be limited to, 83
fingerprinting for statewide criminal history records checks 84
through the Department of Law Enforcement, and national criminal 85
history records checks through the Federal Bureau of 86
Investigation, and may include local criminal records checks 87
through local law enforcemen t agencies. A security background 88
investigation under this section also includes a search of the 89
sexual predator and sexual offender registries of any state in 90
which the current or prospective employee resided during the 91
immediate preceding 5 years. 92
(b) Fingerprints submitted pursuant to this section on or 93
after July 1, 2012, must be submitted electronically to the 94
Department of Law Enforcement. 95
(d) An agency may require by rule that fingerprints 96
submitted pursuant to this section must be submitted 97
electronically to the Department of Law Enforcement on a date 98
earlier than July 1, 2012. 99
(2) The security background investigations under this 100
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section must ensure that no persons subject to the provisions of 101
this section have not been arrested for and are aw aiting final 102
disposition of, have not been found guilty of, regardless of 103
adjudication, or entered a plea of nolo contendere or guilty to, 104
or have not been adjudicated delinquent and the record has not 105
been sealed or expunged for, any offense prohibited un der any of 106
the following provisions of state law or similar law of another 107
jurisdiction: 108
(a) Section 393.135, relating to sexual misconduct with 109
certain developmentally disabled clients and reporting of such 110
sexual misconduct. 111
(b) Section 394.4593, rel ating to sexual misconduct with 112
certain mental health patients and reporting of such sexual 113
misconduct. 114
(c) Section 415.111, relating to adult abuse, neglect, or 115
exploitation of aged persons or disabled adults. 116
(d) Section 777.04, relating to attempts, solicitation, 117
and conspiracy to commit an offense listed in this subsection. 118
(e) Section 782.04, relating to murder. 119
(f) Section 782.07, relating to manslaughter, aggravated 120
manslaughter of an elderly person or disabled adult, or 121
aggravated manslaught er of a child. 122
(g) Section 782.071, relating to vehicular homicide. 123
(h) Section 782.09, relating to killing of an unborn child 124
by injury to the mother. 125
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(i) Chapter 784, relating to assault, battery, and 126
culpable negligence, if the offense was a felon y. 127
(j) Section 784.011, relating to assault, if the victim of 128
the offense was a minor. 129
(k) Section 784.021, relating to aggravated assault. 130
(l)(k) Section 784.03, relating to battery, if the victim 131
of the offense was a minor. 132
(m) Section 784.045, r elating to aggravated battery. 133
(n) Section 784.075, relating to battery on staff of a 134
detention or commitment facility or on a juvenile probation 135
officer. 136
(o)(l) Section 787.01, relating to kidnapping. 137
(p)(m) Section 787.02, relating to false impriso nment. 138
(q)(n) Section 787.025, relating to luring or enticing a 139
child. 140
(r)(o) Section 787.04(2), relating to taking, enticing, or 141
removing a child beyond the state limits with criminal intent 142
pending custody proceedings. 143
(s)(p) Section 787.04(3), rel ating to carrying a child 144
beyond the state lines with criminal intent to avoid producing a 145
child at a custody hearing or delivering the child to the 146
designated person. 147
(t)(q) Section 790.115(1), relating to exhibiting firearms 148
or weapons within 1,000 fee t of a school. 149
(u)(r) Section 790.115(2)(b), relating to possessing an 150
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electric weapon or device, destructive device, or other weapon 151
on school property. 152
(v)(s) Section 794.011, relating to sexual battery. 153
(w)(t) Former s. 794.041, relating to prohib ited acts of 154
persons in familial or custodial authority. 155
(x)(u) Section 794.05, relating to unlawful sexual 156
activity with certain minors. 157
(y) Section 794.08, relating to female genital mutilation. 158
(z)(v) Chapter 796, relating to prostitution. 159
(aa)(w) Section 798.02, relating to lewd and lascivious 160
behavior. 161
(bb)(x) Chapter 800, relating to lewdness and indecent 162
exposure and offenses against students by authority figures . 163
(cc)(y) Section 806.01, relating to arson. 164
(dd)(z) Section 810.02, relating to burglary. 165
(ee)(aa) Section 810.14, relating to voyeurism, if the 166
offense is a felony. 167
(ff)(bb) Section 810.145, relating to video voyeurism, if 168
the offense is a felony. 169
(gg)(cc) Chapter 812, relating to theft, robbery, and 170
related crimes, if the offense is a felony. 171
(hh)(dd) Section 817.563, relating to fraudulent sale of 172
controlled substances, only if the offense was a felony. 173
(ii)(ee) Section 825.102, relating to abuse, ag gravated 174
abuse, or neglect of an elderly person or disabled adult. 175
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(jj)(ff) Section 825.1025, relating to lewd or lascivious 176
offenses committed upon or in the presence of an elderly person 177
or disabled adult. 178
(kk)(gg) Section 825.103, relating to exploi tation of an 179
elderly person or disabled adult, if the offense was a felony. 180
(ll)(hh) Section 826.04, relating to incest. 181
(mm)(ii) Section 827.03, relating to child abuse, 182
aggravated child abuse, or neglect of a child. 183
(nn)(jj) Section 827.04, relatin g to contributing to the 184
delinquency or dependency of a child. 185
(oo)(kk) Former s. 827.05, relating to negligent treatment 186
of children. 187
(pp)(ll) Section 827.071, relating to sexual performance 188
by a child. 189
(qq)(mm) Section 843.01, relating to resisting arrest with 190
violence. 191
(rr)(nn) Section 843.025, relating to depriving a law 192
enforcement, correctional, or correctional probation officer 193
means of protection or communication. 194
(ss)(oo) Section 843.12, relating to aiding in an escape. 195
(tt)(pp) Section 843.13, relating to aiding in the escape 196
of juvenile inmates in correctional institutions. 197
(uu)(qq) Chapter 847, relating to obscene literature. 198
(vv)(rr) Section 874.05, relating to encouraging or 199
recruiting another to join a criminal gang. 200
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(ww)(ss) Chapter 893, relating to drug abuse prevention 201
and control, only if the offense was a felony or if any other 202
person involved in the offense was a minor. 203
(xx)(tt) Section 916.1075, relating to sexual misconduct 204
with certain forensic clients and reporting of such sexual 205
misconduct. 206
(yy)(uu) Section 944.35(3), relating to inflicting cruel 207
or inhuman treatment on an inmate resulting in great bodily 208
harm. 209
(zz)(vv) Section 944.40, relating to escape. 210
(aaa)(ww) Section 944.46, relating to harboring, 211
concealing, or aiding an escaped prisoner. 212
(bbb)(xx) Section 944.47, relating to introduction of 213
contraband into a correctional facility. 214
(ccc)(yy) Section 985.701, relating to sexual misconduct 215
in juvenile justice programs. 216
(ddd)(zz) Section 985.711, rel ating to contraband 217
introduced into detention facilities. 218
Section 3. Effective upon this act becoming a law, 219
subsections (1) and (2) and paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of 220
section 435.12, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 221
435.12 Care Provider Background Screening Clearinghouse. — 222
(1) The Agency for Health Care Administration in 223
consultation with the Department of Law Enforcement shall create 224
a secure web-based system, which shall be known as the "Care 225
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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
Provider Background Screening Clearinghous e" or 226
"clearinghouse.," and which shall be implemented to the full 227
extent practicable no later than September 30, 2013, subject to 228
the specified agencies being funded and equipped to participate 229
in such program. The clearinghouse must shall allow the results 230
of criminal history checks provided to the specified agencies 231
and, beginning January 1, 2026, or a later date as determined by 232
the Agency for Health Care Administration, to qualified entities 233
participating in the clearinghouse for screening of persons 234
qualified as care providers under s. 943.0542 to be shared among 235
the specified agencies and qualified entities when a person has 236
applied to volunteer, be employed, be licensed, or enter into a 237
contract, or has an affiliation that allows or that requires a 238
state and national fingerprint -based criminal history check. 239
Beginning January 1, 2025, or a later date as determined by the 240
Agency for Health Care Administration, the Agency for Health 241
Care Administration shall review and determine eligibility for 242
all criminal history checks submitted to the clearinghouse for 243
the Department of Education. The clearinghouse shall share 244
eligibility determinations with the Department of Education and 245
the qualified entities. The Agency for Health Care 246
Administration and the Depa rtment of Law Enforcement may adopt 247
rules to create forms or implement procedures needed to carry 248
out this section. 249
(2)(a) To ensure that the information in the clearinghouse 250
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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
is current, the fingerprints of a person an employee required to 251
be screened by a specified agency and included in the 252
clearinghouse must be: 253
1. Retained by the Department of Law Enforcement pursuant 254
to s. 943.05(2)(g) and (h) and (3), and the Department of Law 255
Enforcement must report the results of searching those 256
fingerprints against state incoming arrest fingerprint 257
submissions to the Agency for Health Care Administration for 258
inclusion in the clearinghouse. 259
2. Retained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the 260
national retained print arrest notification program as soon as 261
the Department of Law Enforcement begins participation in such 262
program. Arrest prints will be searched against retained prints 263
at the Federal Bureau of Investigation and notification of 264
arrests will be forwarded to the Florida Department of Law 265
Enforcement and reported to the Agency for Health Care 266
Administration for inclusion in the clearinghouse. 267
3. Resubmitted for a Federal Bureau of Investigation 268
national criminal history check every 5 years until such time as 269
the fingerprints are retained by the Fede ral Bureau of 270
Investigation. 271
4. Subject to retention on a 5 -year renewal basis with 272
fees collected at the time of initial submission or resubmission 273
of fingerprints. 274
5. Submitted with a photograph of the person taken at the 275
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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
time the fingerprints are su bmitted. 276
(b) Until such time as the fingerprints are enrolled in 277
the national retained print arrest notification program at the 278
Federal Bureau of Investigation, a person an employee with a 279
break in service of more than 90 days from a position that 280
requires screening by a specified agency or qualified entity 281
must submit to a national screening if the person returns to a 282
position that requires screening by a specified agency or 283
qualified entity. 284
(c) An employer of persons subject to screening or a 285
qualified entity participating in the clearinghouse by a 286
specified agency must register with the clearinghouse and 287
maintain the employment or affiliation status of all persons 288
included in employees within the clearinghouse. Initial 289
employment or affiliation status and any changes in status must 290
be reported within 5 10 business days after a person receives 291
his or her initial status or after a change in his or her status 292
has been made. 293
(d) An employer or a qualified entity participating in the 294
clearinghouse must register with and initiate all criminal 295
history checks through the clearinghouse before referring an 296
employee or potential employee or a person with a current or 297
potential affiliation with a qualified entity for electronic 298
fingerprint submission to the Depa rtment of Law Enforcement. The 299
registration must include the person's employee's full first 300
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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
name, middle initial, and last name; social security number; 301
date of birth; mailing address; sex; and race. Individuals, 302
persons, applicants, and controlling intere sts that cannot 303
legally obtain a social security number must provide an 304
individual taxpayer identification number. 305
(3)(a) Employees of each district unit under s. 1001.30, 306
special district units under s. 1011.24, the Florida School for 307
the Deaf and the Blind under s. 1002.36, the Florida Virtual 308
School under s. 1002.37, virtual instruction programs under s. 309
1002.45, charter schools under s. 1002.33, hope operators under 310
s. 1002.333, private schools participating in an educational 311
scholarship program estab lished pursuant to chapter 1002, and 312
alternative schools under s. 1008.341 must be rescreened in 313
compliance with the following schedule: 314
1. Employees for whom the last screening was conducted on 315
or before June 30, 2021 2019, must be rescreened by June 30 , 316
2025 2024. 317
2. Employees for whom the last screening was conducted 318
between July 1, 2021 2019, and June 30, 2022 2021, must be 319
rescreened by June 30, 2026 2025. 320
3. Employees for whom the last screening was conducted 321
between July 1, 2022 2021, and December 31, 2023 322
2022, must be rescreened by June 30, 2027 2026. 323
Section 4. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1), paragraphs (a) 324
and (b) of subsection (2), and subsection (4) of section 325
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943.0438, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 326
943.0438 Athletic coaches for independent sanctioning 327
authorities.— 328
(1) As used in this section, the term: 329
(a) "Athletic coach" means a person who: 330
1. Is authorized by an independent sanctioning authority 331
to work as a coach, assistant coach, manager, or referee for 20 332
or more hours within a calendar year , whether for compensation 333
or as a volunteer, for a youth athletic team based in this 334
state; and 335
2. Has direct contact with one or more minors on the youth 336
athletic team. 337
(2) An independent sanctioning authority sha ll: 338
(a)1. Conduct a level 2 1 background screening under s. 339
435.04 pursuant to s. 435.03 of each current and prospective 340
athletic coach. The authority may not delegate this 341
responsibility to an individual team and may not authorize any 342
person to act as an athletic coach unless a level 2 1 background 343
screening is conducted and does not result in disqualification 344
under paragraph (b). Level 1 background screenings shall be 345
conducted annually for each athletic coach. For purposes of this 346
section, a background screening shall include a search of the 347
athletic coach's name or other identifying information against 348
state and federal registries of sexual predators and sexual 349
offenders, which are available to the public on Internet sites 350
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provided by: 351
a. The Department of Law Enforcement under s. 943.043; and 352
b. The Attorney General of the United States under 42 353
U.S.C. s. 16920. 354
2. For purposes of this section, a background screening 355
conducted by a commercial consumer reporting agency in 356
compliance with the feder al Fair Credit Reporting Act using the 357
identifying information referenced in subparagraph 1. that 358
includes a level 1 background screening and a search of that 359
information against the sexual predator and sexual offender 360
Internet sites listed in sub -subparagraphs 1.a. and b. shall be 361
deemed to satisfy the requirements of this paragraph. 362
(b)1. Before January 1, 2026, or a later date as 363
determined by the Agency for Health Care Administration for the 364
participation of qualified entities in the Care Provider 365
Background Screening Clearinghouse under s. 435.12, disqualify 366
any person from acting as an athletic coach as provided in s. 367
435.04 s. 435.03 or if he or she is identified on a registry 368
described in paragraph (a) . The authority may allow a person 369
disqualified under this subparagraph paragraph to act as an 370
athletic coach if it determines that the person meets the 371
requirements for an exemption from disqualification under s. 372
435.07. 373
2. On or after January 1, 2026, or a later date as 374
determined by the Agency for Health Care Administration, not 375
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allow any person to act as an athletic coach if he or she does 376
not pass the background screening qualifications in s. 435.04. 377
The authority may allow a person disqualified under this 378
subparagraph to act as an athletic coach if the person has 379
successfully completed the exemption from the disqualification 380
process under s. 435.07. 381
(4) The Legislature encourages Independent sanctioning 382
authorities for youth athletic teams must to participate in the 383
Volunteer and Employee Crimi nal History System, as authorized by 384
the National Child Protection Act of 1993 and s. 943.0542. 385
Section 5. Paragraph (h) of subsection (2) of section 386
943.05, Florida Statutes, is amended and paragraph (i) is added 387
to that subsection to read: 388
943.05 Criminal Justice Information Program; duties; crime 389
reports.— 390
(2) The program shall: 391
(h) For each specified agency, as defined in s. 435.02, 392
each qualified entity participating in the Care Provider 393
Background Screening Clearinghouse under s. 435.12, or any other 394
agency or qualified entity that officially requests retention of 395
fingerprints or for which retention is otherwise required by 396
law, search all arrest fingerprint submissions received under s. 397
943.051 against the fingerprints retained in the statew ide 398
automated biometric identification system under paragraph (g). 399
1. Any arrest record that is identified with the retained 400
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fingerprints of a person subject to background screening as 401
provided in paragraph (g) must shall be reported to the 402
appropriate agency or qualified entity. 403
2. To participate in this search process, agencies or 404
qualified entities must notify each person fingerprinted that 405
his or her fingerprints will be retained, pay an annual fee to 406
the department unless otherwise provided by law, and inform the 407
department of any change in the affiliation, employment, or 408
contractual status of each person whose fingerprints are 409
retained under paragraph (g) if such change removes or 410
eliminates the agency or qualified entity's basis or need for 411
receiving reports of any arrest of that person, so that the 412
agency or qualified entity is not obligated to pay the upcoming 413
annual fee for the retention and searching of that person's 414
fingerprints to the department. The department shall adopt a 415
rule setting the amount of the annual fee to be imposed upon 416
each participating agency or qualified entity for performing 417
these searches and establishing the procedures for the retention 418
of fingerprints and the dissemination of search results. The fee 419
may be borne by the a gency, qualified entity, or person subject 420
to fingerprint retention or as otherwise provided by law. 421
Consistent with the recognition of criminal justice agencies 422
expressed in s. 943.053(3), these services must shall be 423
provided to criminal justice agencies for criminal justice 424
purposes free of charge. Qualified entities that elect to 425
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participate in the fingerprint retention and search process are 426
required to timely remit the fee to the department by a payment 427
mechanism approved by the department. If request ed by the 428
qualified entity, and with the approval of the department, such 429
fees may be timely remitted to the department by a qualified 430
entity upon receipt of an invoice for such fees from the 431
department. Failure of a qualified entity to pay the amount due 432
on a timely basis or as invoiced by the department may result in 433
the refusal by the department to permit the qualified entity to 434
continue to participate in the fingerprint retention and search 435
process until all fees due and owing are paid. 436
3. Agencies that participate in the fingerprint retention 437
and search process may adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) 438
and 120.54 to require employers to keep the agency informed of 439
any change in the affiliation, employment, or contractual status 440
of each person whose f ingerprints are retained under paragraph 441
(g) if such change removes or eliminates the agency's basis or 442
need for receiving reports of any arrest of that person, so that 443
the agency is not obligated to pay the upcoming annual fee for 444
the retention and search ing of that person's fingerprints to the 445
department. 446
(i) Develop, for federal approval, a method for 447
identifying or verifying a person through automated biometrics. 448
Section 6. Subsections (2) through (6) of section 449
943.0542, Florida Statutes, are ame nded to read: 450
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943.0542 Access to criminal history information provided 451
by the department to qualified entities. — 452
(2)(a) Beginning January 1, 2026, or a later date as 453
determined by the Agency for Health Care Administration, a 454
qualified entity must initiate all background criminal history 455
checks through the department or through the Care Provider 456
Background Screening Clearinghouse under s. 435.12. 457
(a)1. If a qualified entity initiates a background 458
criminal history check through the department, the quali fied 459
entity must: 460
a. Register with the department before submitting a 461
request for screening under this section. Each such request must 462
be voluntary and conform to the requirements established in the 463
National Child Protection Act of 1993, as amended. As a part of 464
the registration, the qualified entity must agree to comply with 465
state and federal law and must so indicate by signing an 466
agreement approved by the department. The department shall may 467
periodically audit qualified entities to ensure compliance wit h 468
federal law and this section. 469
b.(b) A qualified entity shall Submit to the department a 470
request for screening an employee or volunteer or person 471
applying to be an employee or volunteer by submitting 472
fingerprints, or the request may be submitted electro nically. 473
The qualified entity must maintain a signed waiver allowing the 474
release of the state and national criminal history record 475
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information to the qualified entity. 476
2.(c) Each such request for screening must be accompanied 477
by payment of a fee for a statewide criminal history check by 478
the department established by s. 943.053, plus the amount 479
currently prescribed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 480
the national criminal history check in compliance w ith the 481
National Child Protection Act of 1993, as amended. Payments must 482
be made in the manner prescribed by the department by rule. 483
3.(d) Any current or prospective employee or volunteer who 484
is subject to a request for screening must indicate to the 485
qualified entity submitting the request the name and address of 486
each qualified entity that has submitted a previous request for 487
screening regarding that employee or volunteer. 488
(b) Once a qualified entity initiates a background 489
criminal history check through the Care Provider Background 490
Screening Clearinghouse, the qualified entity must comply with 491
s. 435.12. All fingerprints received pursuant to this section 492
must be entered into the clearinghouse as provided in s. 435.12. 493
(3) The department or the Care Provider Background 494
Screening Clearinghouse shall provide directly to the qualified 495
entity the state criminal history records that are not exempt 496
from disclosure under chapter 119 or otherwise confidential 497
under law. A person who is the subject of a state cri minal 498
history record may challenge the record only as provided in s. 499
943.056. 500
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(4) The national criminal history data is available to 501
qualified entities to use only for the purpose of screening 502
employees and volunteers or persons applying to be an employe e 503
or volunteer with a qualified entity. The department or Care 504
Provider Background Screening Clearinghouse shall provide this 505
national criminal history record information directly to the 506
qualified entity as authorized by the written waiver required 507
for submission of a request to the department. 508
(5) The determination whether the criminal history record 509
shows that the employee or volunteer has not been arrested for 510
and is awaiting final disposition of, regardless of 511
adjudication, or entered a plea of nolo c ontendere or guilty to, 512
or has been adjudicated delinquent and the record has not been 513
sealed or expunged for, any offense listed under s. 435.02(2) 514
convicted of or is under pending indictment for any crime that 515
bears upon the fitness of the employee or vo lunteer to have 516
responsibility for the safety and well -being of children, the 517
elderly, or disabled persons shall solely be made by the 518
qualified entity. Beginning January 1, 2026, or a later date as 519
determined by the Agency for Health Care Administration, the 520
Agency for Health Care Administration shall determine the 521
eligibility of the employee or volunteer of a qualified entity. 522
This section does not require the department to make such a 523
determination on behalf of any qualified entity. 524
(6) The qualified e ntity must notify in writing the person 525
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of his or her right to obtain a copy of any background screening 526
report, including the criminal history records, if any, 527
contained in the report, and of the person's right to challenge 528
the accuracy and completeness o f any information contained in 529
any such report and to obtain a determination as to the validity 530
of such challenge before a final determination regarding the 531
person is made by the qualified entity reviewing the criminal 532
history information. A qualified enti ty that is required by law 533
to apply screening criteria, including any right to contest or 534
request an exemption from disqualification, shall apply such 535
screening criteria to the state and national criminal history 536
record information received from the depart ment or Care Provider 537
Background Screening Clearinghouse for those persons subject to 538
the required screening. 539
Section 7. Section 1012.315, Florida Statutes, is amended 540
to read: 541
1012.315 Screening standards. —A person is ineligible for 542
educator certification or employment in any position that 543
requires direct contact with students in a district school 544
system, a charter school, or a private school that participates 545
in a state scholarship program under chapter 1002 if the person : 546
(1) Is on the disqualifi cation list maintained by the 547
department under pursuant to s. 1001.10(4)(b);, 548
(2) Is registered as a sex offender as described in 42 549
U.S.C. s. 9858f(c)(1)(C) ;, 550
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(3) Is ineligible based on a security background 551
investigation under s. 435.04(2). Beginning January 1, 2025, or 552
a later date as determined by the Agency for Health Care 553
Administration, the Agency for Health Care Administration shall 554
determine the eligibility of employees in any position that 555
requires direct contact with students in a district sc hool 556
system, a charter school, or a private school that participates 557
in a state scholarship program under chapter 1002; 558
(4) Would be ineligible for an exemption under s. 559
435.07(4)(c); or, or has been convicted or found guilty of, has 560
had adjudication wit hheld for, or has pled guilty or nolo 561
contendere to: 562
(1) Any felony offense prohibited under any of the 563
following statutes: 564
(a) Section 393.135, relating to sexual misconduct with 565
certain developmentally disabled clients and reporting of such 566
sexual misconduct. 567
(b) Section 394.4593, relating to sexual misconduct with 568
certain mental health patients and reporting of such sexual 569
misconduct. 570
(c) Section 415.111, relating to adult abuse, neglect, or 571
exploitation of aged persons or disabled adults. 572
(d) Section 782.04, relating to murder. 573
(e) Section 782.07, relating to manslaughter; aggravated 574
manslaughter of an elderly person or disabled adult; aggravated 575
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manslaughter of a child; or aggravated manslaughter of an 576
officer, a firefighter, an emergency medical technician, or a 577
paramedic. 578
(f) Section 784.021, relating to aggravated assault. 579
(g) Section 784.045, relating to aggravated battery. 580
(h) Section 784.075, relating to battery on a detention or 581
commitment facility staff member or a juvenile pr obation 582
officer. 583
(i) Section 787.01, relating to kidnapping. 584
(j) Section 787.02, relating to false imprisonment. 585
(k) Section 787.025, relating to luring or enticing a 586
child. 587
(l) Section 787.04(2), relating to leading, taking, 588
enticing, or removing a minor beyond the state limits, or 589
concealing the location of a minor, with criminal intent pending 590
custody proceedings. 591
(m) Section 787.04(3), relating to leading, taking, 592
enticing, or removing a minor beyond the state limits, or 593
concealing the locatio n of a minor, with criminal intent pending 594
dependency proceedings or proceedings concerning alleged abuse 595
or neglect of a minor. 596
(n) Section 790.115(1), relating to exhibiting firearms or 597
weapons at a school-sponsored event, on school property, or 598
within 1,000 feet of a school. 599
(o) Section 790.115(2)(b), relating to possessing an 600
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electric weapon or device, destructive device, or other weapon 601
at a school-sponsored event or on school property. 602
(p) Section 794.011, relating to sexual battery. 603
(q) Former s. 794.041, relating to sexual activity with or 604
solicitation of a child by a person in familial or custodial 605
authority. 606
(r) Section 794.05, relating to unlawful sexual activity 607
with certain minors. 608
(s) Section 794.08, relating to female genital mutil ation. 609
(t) Chapter 796, relating to prostitution. 610
(u) Chapter 800, relating to lewdness and indecent 611
exposure. 612
(v) Section 800.101, relating to offenses against students 613
by authority figures. 614
(w) Section 806.01, relating to arson. 615
(x) Section 810.14, relating to voyeurism. 616
(y) Section 810.145, relating to video voyeurism. 617
(z) Section 812.014(6), relating to coordinating the 618
commission of theft in excess of $3,000. 619
(aa) Section 812.0145, relating to theft from persons 65 620
years of age or older. 621
(bb) Section 812.019, relating to dealing in stolen 622
property. 623
(cc) Section 812.13, relating to robbery. 624
(dd) Section 812.131, relating to robbery by sudden 625
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snatching. 626
(ee) Section 812.133, relating to carjacking. 627
(ff) Section 812.135, relati ng to home-invasion robbery. 628
(gg) Section 817.563, relating to fraudulent sale of 629
controlled substances. 630
(hh) Section 825.102, relating to abuse, aggravated abuse, 631
or neglect of an elderly person or disabled adult. 632
(ii) Section 825.103, relating to exploitation of an 633
elderly person or disabled adult. 634
(jj) Section 825.1025, relating to lewd or lascivious 635
offenses committed upon or in the presence of an elderly person 636
or disabled person. 637
(kk) Section 826.04, relating to incest. 638
(ll) Section 827.03, relating to child abuse, aggravated 639
child abuse, or neglect of a child. 640
(mm) Section 827.04, relating to contributing to the 641
delinquency or dependency of a child. 642
(nn) Section 827.071, relating to sexual performance by a 643
child. 644
(oo) Section 843.01 , relating to resisting arrest with 645
violence. 646
(pp) Chapter 847, relating to obscenity. 647
(qq) Section 874.05, relating to causing, encouraging, 648
soliciting, or recruiting another to join a criminal street 649
gang. 650
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(rr) Chapter 893, relating to drug abuse p revention and 651
control, if the offense was a felony of the second degree or 652
greater severity. 653
(ss) Section 916.1075, relating to sexual misconduct with 654
certain forensic clients and reporting of such sexual 655
misconduct. 656
(tt) Section 944.47, relating to in troduction, removal, or 657
possession of contraband at a correctional facility. 658
(uu) Section 985.701, relating to sexual misconduct in 659
juvenile justice programs. 660
(vv) Section 985.711, relating to introduction, removal, 661
or possession of contraband at a juv enile detention facility or 662
commitment program. 663
(2) Any misdemeanor offense prohibited under any of the 664
following statutes: 665
(a) Section 784.03, relating to battery, if the victim of 666
the offense was a minor. 667
(b) Section 787.025, relating to luring or enticing a 668
child. 669
(5)(3) Has been convicted or found guilty of, has had 670
adjudication withheld for, or has pled guilty or nolo contendere 671
to: 672
(a) Any criminal act committed in another state or under 673
federal law which, if committed in this state, constit utes a 674
disqualifying an offense prohibited under any statute listed in 675
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s. 435.04(2) subsection (1) or subsection (2) . 676
(b)(4) Any delinquent act committed in this state or any 677
delinquent or criminal act committed in another state or under 678
federal law which, if committed in this state, qualifies an 679
individual for inclusion on the Registered Juvenile Sex Offender 680
List under s. 943.0435(1)(h)1.d. 681
Section 8. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 682
1012.467, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 683
1012.467 Noninstructional contractors who are permitted 684
access to school grounds when students are present; background 685
screening requirements. — 686
(2)(a) A fingerprint -based criminal history check must 687
shall be performed on each noninstructional contractor who is 688
permitted access to school grounds when students are present, 689
whose performance of the contract with the school or school 690
board is not anticipated to result in direct contact with 691
students, and for whom any unanticipated contact would be 692
infrequent and incidental using the process described in s. 693
1012.32(3). The results of each criminal history check must 694
shall be reported to the school district in which the individual 695
is seeking access and entered in to the shared system described 696
in subsection (7). The school district shall screen the results 697
using the disqualifying offenses in paragraph (b). Beginning 698
January 1, 2025, or a later date as determined by the Agency for 699
Health Care Administration, the Age ncy for Health Care 700
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Administration shall determine the eligibility of a 701
noninstructional contractor. The cost of the criminal history 702
check may be borne by the district school board, the school, or 703
the contractor. 704
Section 9. Paragraph (d) of subsection (2) and paragraph 705
(a) of subsection (10) of section 1012.56, Florida Statutes, are 706
amended to read: 707
1012.56 Educator certification requirements. — 708
(2) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA. —To be eligible to seek 709
certification, a person must: 710
(d) Submit to background screening in accordance with 711
subsection (10). If the background screening indicates a 712
criminal history or if the applicant acknowledges a criminal 713
history, the applicant's records shall be referred to the 714
investigative section in the Department of Educati on for review 715
and determination of eligibility for certification. Beginning 716
January 1, 2025, or a later date as determined by the Agency for 717
Health Care Administration, the applicant's records must be 718
referred to the Agency for Health Care Administration. If the 719
applicant fails to provide the necessary documentation requested 720
by the department within 90 days after the date of the receipt 721
of the certified mail request, the statement of eligibility and 722
pending application shall become invalid. 723
(10) BACKGROUND SCREENING REQUIRED, INITIALLY AND 724
PERIODICALLY.— 725
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(a) Each person who seeks certification under this chapter 726
must be fingerprinted and screened in accordance with s. 1012.32 727
and must not be ineligible for such certification under s. 728
1012.315. A person who has been screened in accordance with s. 729
1012.32 by a district school board or the Department of 730
Education within 12 months before the date the person initially 731
obtains certification under this chapter, the results of which 732
are submitted to the district school board or to the Department 733
of Education, is not required to repeat the screening under this 734
paragraph. Beginning January 1, 2025, or a later date as 735
determined by the Agency for Health Care Administration, the 736
background screening results must be submitted to the Care 737
Provider Background Screening Cl earinghouse. 738
Section 10. For the 2023-2024 fiscal year, the sums of 739
$400,000 in recurring funds from the Health Care Trust Fund and 740
$4 million in nonrecurring funds from the Health Care Trust Fund 741
are appropriated to the Agency for Health Care Administ ration. 742
For the 2024-2025 fiscal year, the sum of $4 million in 743
nonrecurring funds from the Health Care Trust Fund is 744
appropriated to the Agency for Health Care Administration and 20 745
full-time equivalent positions with associated salary rate of 746
1,238,764 are authorized for the purpose of implementing this 747
act. For the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the sum of $4 million in 748
nonrecurring funds from the Health Care Trust Fund is 749
appropriated to the Agency for Health Care Administration. 750
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Section 11. The changes made to s. 435.12, Florida 751
Statutes, by this act must be implemented by January 1, 2025, or 752
a later date as determined by the Agency for Health Care 753
Administration. 754
Section 12. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this 755
act and except for this section , which shall take effect upon 756
this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect July 1, 757
2024. 758