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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 children's initiative projects; 2
amending s. 409.147, F.S.; revising legislative 3
findings and intent; revising definitions; revising 4
the objectives for specified working groups within the 5
Florida Children's Initiatives; providing that such 6
initiatives are administratively housed in the 7
Department of Children and Families; exempting such 8
initiatives from control, supervision, or direction by 9
the department or any other state department; 10
requiring such initiatives to be managed by not -for-11
profit corporations; conforming provisions to changes 12
made by the act; providing an effective date. 13
14
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Flo rida: 15
16
Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1), subsection 17
(2), paragraphs (c) and (d) of subsection (3), subsection (4), 18
paragraphs (a) and (c) of subsection (5), paragraphs (a), (b), 19
(c), (d), (f), and (g) of subsection (6), and subsections (7) 20
through (14) of section 409.147, Florida Statutes, are amended 21
to read: 22
409.147 Florida Children's Initiatives. — 23
(1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT. — 24
(a) The Legislature finds that: 25
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1. There are neighborhoods in this the state where the 26
infrastructure and opportunities that middle -class communities 27
take for granted are nonexistent or so marginal that they are 28
ineffective. 29
2. In many instances, children living in these 30
neighborhoods are not read to by an adult on a regular basis and 31
attend a prekindergarten education program at a much lower rate 32
than children in other communities. These children experience 33
below-average performance on standardized tests and graduate 34
from high school in fewer numbers. Most of these children are 35
eligible for the free o r reduced-price school lunch program. 36
3. Children in these neighborhoods often suffer from high 37
rates of asthma, a higher risk of lead poisoning, and inadequate 38
health care, and they are routinely exposed to violence and 39
crime. 40
4. In spite of these obs tacles, these neighborhoods are 41
many times home to strong individuals and institutions that are 42
committed to making a difference in the lives of children and 43
their families. 44
(2) POLICY AND PURPOSE. —It is the policy of this state to 45
provide the necessary means to assist local communities, the 46
children and families who live in those communities, and the 47
private sector in creating a sound educational, social, and 48
economic environment. To achieve this objective, the state 49
intends to provide investments suffic ient to encourage community 50
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partners to commit financial and other resources to severely 51
disadvantaged areas. The purpose of this section is to establish 52
a process that clearly identifies the severely disadvantaged 53
areas and provides guidance for developin g a new social service 54
paradigm that systematically coordinates programs that address 55
the critical needs of children and their families and for 56
directing efforts to rebuild the basic infrastructure of the 57
community. The Legislature, therefore, declares the creation of 58
Florida Children's Initiatives, through the collaborative 59
efforts of government and the private sector, to be a public 60
purpose. 61
(3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 62
(c) "Planning team" means a Florida Children's Initiative 63
planning team established under this section. 64
(d) "Resident" means a person who lives in or operates a 65
small community-based business or organization within the 66
boundaries of a Florida the Children's Initiative. 67
(4) FLORIDA CHILDREN'S INITIATIVE NOMINATING PROCESS. —A 68
county or municipality, or a county and one or more 69
municipalities together, may apply to the Ounce to designate an 70
area as a Florida Children's Initiative after the governing 71
body: 72
(a) Adopts a resolution tha t: 73
1. Finds that an area exists in such county or 74
municipality, or in the county and one or more municipalities, 75
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that chronically exhibits extreme and unacceptable levels of 76
poverty, unemployment, physical deterioration, as well as 77
limited access to qual ity educational, health care, and social 78
services. 79
2. Determines that the rehabilitation, conservation, or 80
redevelopment, or a combination thereof, of the area is 81
necessary for in the interest of improving the health, wellness, 82
education, living conditio ns, and livelihoods of the children 83
and families who live in the county or municipality. 84
3. Determines that the revitalization of the area can 85
occur only if this the state and the private sector invest 86
resources to improve infrastructure and the provisio n of 87
services. 88
(b) Establishes a children's initiative planning team as 89
provided in subsection (5). 90
(c) Develops and adopts a strategic community plan as 91
provided in subsection (6). 92
(d) Identifies or creates a not-for-profit corporation not 93
for profit as provided in subsection (7). 94
(5) FLORIDA CHILDREN'S INITIATIVE PLANNING TEAM. — 95
(a) After the governing body adopts the resolution 96
described in subsection (4), the county or municipality shall 97
establish a Florida Children's Initiative planning team. 98
(c) The planning team shall: 99
1. Develop a planning process that sets the direction for, 100
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builds a commitment to, and develops the capacity to realize the 101
Florida Children's Initiative concept. 102
2. Develop a vision of what the Florida Children's 103
Initiative will look like when the challenges, problems, and 104
opportunities in the Florida Children's Initiative are 105
successfully addressed. 106
3. Identify important opportunities, strengths, 107
challenges, and problems in the Florida Children's Initiative. 108
4. Develop a strategic community plan consisting of goals, 109
objectives, tasks, the designation of responsible parties, the 110
identification of resources needed, timelines for implementation 111
of the plan, and procedures for monitoring outcomes. 112
(6) FLORIDA CHILDREN'S INITIATIVE STRATEGIC COMMUNITY 113
PLAN.—After the governing body adopts the resolution described 114
in subsection (4), the working groups shall develop objectives 115
and identify strategies for each focus area. The objectives, 116
specified by focus area, for a worki ng group may include, but 117
not be limited to: 118
(a) Early development and care of children. 119
1. Providing resources to enable every child to be 120
adequately nurtured during the first 3 years of life. 121
2. Ensuring that all schools are ready for children and 122
all children are ready for school by the time they reach 123
kindergarten. 124
3. Facilitating enrollment in half -day or full-day 125
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prekindergarten for all 3 -year-old and 4-year-old children. 126
4. Strengthening parent and guardian relationships with 127
care providers. 128
5. Providing support and education for families and child 129
care providers. 130
(b) Education of children and youth. 131
1. Increasing the level and degree of knowledge and 132
accountability of persons who are responsible for the 133
development and well -being of all children in each Florida the 134
Children's Initiative. 135
2. Transforming Changing the structure and function of 136
schools to increase the quality and amount of time spent on 137
instruction and increase programmatic options and offerings. 138
3. Creating a safe an d respectful environment for student 139
learning. 140
4. Identifying and supporting points of alignment between 141
a Florida the Children's Initiative community plan and the 142
school district's strategic plan. 143
(c) Health and wellness. 144
1. Facilitating enrollment of all eligible children in the 145
Florida Kidcare program and providing full access to high -146
quality drug and alcohol treatment services. 147
2. Eliminating health disparities between racial and 148
cultural groups, including improving outcomes and increasing 149
interventions. 150
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3. Providing fresh, good quality, affordable, and 151
nutritious food within a Florida the Children's Initiative. 152
4. Providing all children in a Florida the Children's 153
Initiative with access to safe structured and unstructured 154
recreation. 155
(d) Youth support. 156
1. Increasing the high school graduation , postsecondary 157
enrollment, and postsecondary completion rates among 158
neighborhood youth rate. 159
2. Increasing leadership development and employment 160
opportunities for neighborhood youth. 161
(f) Adult education, training, and jobs. 162
1. Creating job opportunities for adults that lead to 163
career development. 164
2. Establishing a career and technical school, or a 165
satellite of such a school within a Florida in the Children's 166
Initiative, which includes a one-stop career center. 167
(g) Community safety. 168
1. Providing a safe environment for all children at home, 169
in school, and in the community. 170
2. Eliminating the economic, political, and social forces 171
that lead to a lack of safety within the family, the community, 172
schools, and institutional structures. 173
3. Assessing policies and practices, including sentencing, 174
incarceration, detention, and data reporting, in order to reduce 175
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youth incarceration, violence, crime, and recidivism. 176
(7) FLORIDA CHILDREN'S INITIATIVES INITIATIVE 177
CORPORATION.— 178
(a) The Florida Children's Initiatives as specified in 179
subsections (9)-(13) are administratively housed within the 180
department. However, these initiatives are not subject to 181
control, supervision, or direction by the dep artment or any 182
other department of this state. 183
(b)(a) After the governing body adopts the resolution 184
described in subsection (4), establishes a the planning team as 185
provided in subsection (5), and develops and adopts a the 186
strategic community plan as pro vided in subsection (6), the 187
county or municipality shall either identify an existing, 188
qualified not-for-profit corporation or create a not-for-profit 189
corporation not for profit which shall be registered, 190
incorporated, organized, and operated in compliance with chapter 191
617. The purpose of the not-for-profit corporation is to 192
facilitate fundraising, to secure broad community ownership of 193
the children's initiative, and, if the area selected by the 194
governing body is designated as a Florida Children's Initiativ e, 195
to: 196
1. Begin to transfer responsibility for planning from the 197
planning team to the corporation. 198
2. Begin the implementation and governance of the 199
strategic children's initiative community plan. 200
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3. Update the strategic community plan every 5 years to 201
reflect, at a minimum, the current status of the area served by 202
the Florida Children's Initiative; the goals, objectives, and 203
strategies for each focus area; and the tasks required to 204
implement the strategies for the upcoming year. 205
(c)(b) The Ounce must provide technical assistance to the 206
corporation to facilitate the achievement of the plans created 207
under subsection (6). 208
(8) REQUIREMENTS FOR RECEIVING STATE FUNDING. —Unless 209
otherwise specified in the general appropriations act: 210
(a) State funding fo r Florida Children's Initiatives must 211
be awarded through a performance -based contract that links 212
payments to the achievement of outcomes directly related to the 213
goals, objectives, strategies, and tasks outlined in the 214
strategic community plan. 215
(b) This act is intended to support the development of a 216
network of Florida Children's Initiatives focus areas in 217
disadvantaged neighborhoods throughout this state. To that end, 218
counties that do not currently have a Florida Children's 219
Initiative and are trying to es tablish an initiative have 220
priority for designation by the Ounce funding available under 221
this subsection. 222
(9) CREATION OF MIAMI CHILDREN'S INITIATIVE, INC. — 223
(a) There is created within the Liberty City neighborhood 224
in Miami-Dade County a 10-year project called the Miami 225
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Children's Initiative that shall be managed by an entity 226
organized as a not-for-profit corporation not for profit which 227
shall be registered, incorporated, organized, and operated in 228
compliance with chapter 617 and this section. An entity may not 229
be incorporated until the governing body has adopted the 230
resolution described in subsection (4), has established the 231
planning team as provided in subsection (5), and has developed 232
and adopted the strategic community plan as provided in 233
subsection (6). The corporation shall be known as the Miami 234
Children's Initiative, Inc., and shall be administratively 235
housed within the Department of Children and Families. However, 236
Miami Children's Initiative, Inc., is not subject to control, 237
supervision, or direct ion by the Department of Children and 238
Families in any manner. The Legislature determines, however, 239
that Public policy dictates that the Miami Children's Initiative 240
operates corporation operate in the most open and accessible 241
manner consistent with its publ ic purpose. Therefore, the 242
Legislature specifically declares that the Miami Children's 243
Initiative corporation is subject to chapter 119, relating to 244
public records, chapter 286, relating to public meetings and 245
records, and chapter 287, relating to the procurement of 246
commodities or contractual services. 247
(b) This initiative is designed to encompass an area that 248
is large enough to include all of the necessary components of 249
community life, including, but not limited to, schools, places 250
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of worship, recreationa l facilities, commercial areas, and 251
common space, yet small enough to allow programs and services to 252
reach every willing member of the neighborhood. 253
(10) CREATION OF THE NEW TOWN SUCCESS ZONE. — 254
(a) There is created within the City of Jacksonville 255
Council District 9 in Duval County a 10-year project called the 256
New Town Success Zone that shall be managed by an entity 257
organized as a not-for-profit corporation not for profit that is 258
registered, incorporated, organized, and operated in compliance 259
with chapter 617 and this section. The New Town Success Zone is 260
not subject to control, supervision, or direction by any 261
department of the state in any manner. The Legislature 262
determines, however, that Public policy dictates that the New 263
Town Success Zone operates corporation operate in the most open 264
and accessible manner consistent with its public purpose. 265
Therefore, the Legislature declares that the New Town Success 266
Zone corporation is subject to chapter 119 , relating to public 267
records, chapter 286, relating to public meetings and records, 268
and chapter 287, relating to the procurement of commodities or 269
contractual services. 270
(b) This initiative is designed to encompass an area that 271
is large enough to include all of the necessary components of 272
community life, including, but not limited to, schools, places 273
of worship, recreational facilities, commercial areas, and 274
common space, yet small enough to allow programs and services to 275
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reach every member of the neighbor hood who is willing to 276
participate in the project. 277
(11) CREATION OF THE ORLANDO PARRAMORE KIDZ ZONES ZONE.— 278
(a) There is created within the City of Orlando in Orange 279
County a 10-year project called the Orlando Kidz Zones managed 280
by an entity organized as a not-for-profit corporation not for 281
profit that is registered, incorporated, organized, and operated 282
in compliance with chapter 617 and this section. The Parramore 283
Kidz Zone program is not subject to the control, supervi sion, or 284
direction of any department of the state. The Legislature 285
determines, however, that Public policy dictates that the 286
Orlando Kidz Zones operates corporation operate in the most open 287
and accessible manner consistent with its public purpose. 288
Therefore, the Legislature specifically declares that the 289
Orlando Kidz Zones corporation is subject to chapter 119, 290
relating to public records, chapter 286, relating to public 291
meetings and records, and chapter 287, relating to the 292
procurement of commodities or con tractual services. 293
(b) This initiative is designed to encompass the Orlando 294
neighborhoods of Parramore, Mercy Drive, and Englewood. All 295
three of these neighborhoods are an area that is large enough to 296
include all of the necessary components of community life, 297
including, but not limited to, schools, places of worship, 298
recreational facilities, commercial areas, and common space, yet 299
small enough to allow programs and services to reach every 300
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member of the neighborhoods neighborhood who is willing to 301
participate in the project. 302
(12) CREATION OF THE TAMPA SULPHUR SPRINGS NEIGHBORHOOD OF 303
PROMISE (SSNOP) SUCCESS ZONE.— 304
(a) There is created within the City of Tampa in 305
Hillsborough County a 10-year project called the Tampa Sulphur 306
Springs Neighborhood of Promis e (SSNOP) that shall be managed by 307
an entity organized as a not-for-profit corporation not for 308
profit that is registered, incorporated, organized, and operated 309
in compliance with chapter 617 and this section. The Tampa SSNOP 310
Success Zone is not subject to control, supervision, or 311
direction by any department of the state in any manner. The 312
Legislature determines, however, that Public policy dictates 313
that the Tampa SSNOP operates corporation operate in the most 314
open and accessible manner consistent with its p ublic purpose. 315
Therefore, the Legislature declares that the Tampa SSNOP 316
corporation is subject to chapter 119, relating to public 317
records, chapter 286, relating to public meetings and records, 318
and chapter 287, relating to the procurement of commodities or 319
contractual services. 320
(b) This initiative is designed to encompass an area that 321
is large enough to include all of the necessary components of 322
community life, including, but not limited to, schools, places 323
of worship, recreational facilities, commercial areas, and 324
common space, yet small enough to allow programs and services to 325
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reach every member of the neighborhood who is willing to 326
participate in the project. 327
(13) CREATION OF THE OVERTOWN CHILDREN AND YOUTH 328
COALITION.— 329
(a) There is created within the City of Miami in Miami -330
Dade County a 10-year project called the Overtown Children and 331
Youth Coalition that shall be managed by an entity organized as 332
a not-for-profit corporation not for profit that is registered, 333
incorporated, organized, and operated in compliance with chapter 334
617 and this section. The Overtown Children and Youth Coalition 335
is not subject to control, supervision, or direction by any 336
department of the state in any manner. The Legislature 337
determines, however, t hat Public policy dictates that the 338
Overtown Children and Youth Coalition operates corporation 339
operate in the most open and accessible manner consistent with 340
its public purpose. Therefore, the Legislature declares that the 341
Overtown Children and Youth Coali tion corporation is subject to 342
chapter 119, relating to public records, chapter 286, relating 343
to public meetings and records, and chapter 287, relating to the 344
procurement of commodities or contractual services. 345
(b) This initiative is designed to encompas s an area that 346
is large enough to include all of the necessary components of 347
community life, including, but not limited to, schools, places 348
of worship, recreational facilities, commercial areas, and 349
common space, yet small enough to allow programs and serv ices to 350
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reach every member of the neighborhood who is willing to 351
participate in the project. 352
(14) IMPLEMENTATION. — 353
(a) The Miami Children's Initiative, Inc., the New Town 354
Success Zone, the Orlando Parramore Kidz Zones Zone, the Tampa 355
SSNOP Success Zone, and the Overtown Children and Youth 356
Coalition have been designated as Florida Children's Initiatives 357
consistent with the legislative intent and purpose of s. 16, 358
chapter 2009-43, Laws of Florida, and as such shall each assist 359
the disadvantaged areas of this the state in creating a 360
community-based service network and programming that develops, 361
coordinates, and provides quality education, accessible health 362
care, youth development programs, opportunities for employment, 363
and safe and affordable housing for ch ildren and families living 364
within their boundaries. 365
(b) In order To implement this section for the Florida 366
Children's Initiatives listed in this section Miami Children's 367
Initiative, Inc., the department of Children and Families shall 368
contract with a not-for-profit corporation, to work in 369
collaboration with the governing body to adopt the resolution 370
described in subsection (4), to establish the planning team as 371
provided in subsection (5), and to develop and adopt the 372
strategic community plan as provided in subsection (6). The not -373
for-profit corporation is also responsible for the development 374
of a strategic business plan and for the evaluation, fiscal 375
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management, and oversight of the Florida Children's Initiatives 376
Miami Children's Initiative, Inc . 377
Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 378