HB 777 2023
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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 regional counsel representation for 2
child welfare matters; amending s. 27.511, F.S.; 3
providing circumstances under which the regional 4
counsel may represent indigent parents; amending s. 5
39.301, F.S.; requiring the child protective 6
investigator to provide specified information relating 7
to the rights of a parent or legal custodian; 8
providing an effective date. 9
10
Be It Enacted by the Leg islature of the State of Florida: 11
12
Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subsection (6) of section 13
27.511, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (e) is added 14
to that subsection, to read: 15
27.511 Offices of criminal conflict and civil regional 16
counsel; legislative intent; qualifications; appointment; 17
duties.— 18
(6) 19
(d) Except as provided in paragraph (e), the regional 20
counsel may not represent any plaintiff in a civil action 21
brought under the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, the Federal 22
Rules of Civil Procedure, or federal statutes, and may not 23
represent a petitioner in a rule challenge under chapter 120, 24
unless specifically authorized by law. 25
HB 777 2023
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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
(e) In child welfare matters, the regional counsel may 26
provide preventative, prepetition legal representation to 27
indigent parents who are the subject of child protective 28
investigations conducted pursuant to s. 39.301. If such matters 29
are related to the circumstances of the investigation and to the 30
efforts by the parents to safely maintain the care and custody 31
of their children, the regional counsel may appear in or 32
initiate civil actions for such injunctions for protection 33
against domestic violence, residential tenancies and housing, 34
and determination of parentage. In prepetition matters, the 35
regional counsel will de termine, within 5 days of initial 36
contact by a parent subject to investigation, whether the parent 37
is indigent using the best available evidence. In determining 38
indigency, the regional counsel will use the application form 39
and indigency criteria used by th e clerk of court pursuant to s. 40
27.52 and the regional counsel will maintain documentation of 41
the indigency determination in its files. If at any time after 42
an initial determination of indigency is made, the regional 43
counsel later determines that a person is not indigent, the 44
regional counsel will cease to provide representation to the 45
nonindigent person and will withdraw from any legal action in 46
which the regional counsel has appeared. 47
Section 2. Paragraph (a) of subsection (5) and paragraph 48
(a) of subsection (10) of section 39.301, Florida Statutes, are 49
amended to read: 50
HB 777 2023
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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
39.301 Initiation of protective investigations. — 51
(5)(a) Upon commencing an investigation under this part, 52
the child protective investigator shall inform any subject of 53
the investigation of the following: 54
1. The names of the investigators and identifying 55
credentials from the department. 56
2. The purpose of the investigation and how the 57
information provided by the subject may be used . 58
3. The right of the parent or legal custodian to obtain 59
his or her own attorney and if he or she cannot afford an 60
attorney, the investigator shall inform the parent or legal 61
custodian that he or she may choose to be represented by the 62
Office of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel during 63
the investigation and the investigator shall provide the contact 64
information for the local regional counsel office which offers 65
representation before a petition is filed , if locally available 66
and ways that the information provided by the subject may be 67
used. 68
4. The possible outcomes and services of the department's 69
response. 70
5. The right of the parent or legal custodian to be 71
engaged to the fullest extent possible in determining the nature 72
of the allegation and the nature of any identified problem and 73
the remedy. 74
6. The duty of the parent or legal custodian to report any 75
HB 777 2023
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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
change in the residence or location of the child to the 76
investigator and that the duty to report continues until the 77
investigation is closed. 78
(10)(a) The department's training program f or staff 79
responsible for responding to reports accepted by the central 80
abuse hotline must also ensure that child protective responders: 81
1. Know how to fully inform parents or legal custodians of 82
their rights and options, including their right to legal co unsel 83
and the availability to indigent parents or legal custodians the 84
opportunity to be represented by the Office of Criminal Conflict 85
and Civil Regional Counsel, if locally available, and the 86
opportunities for audio or video recording of child protective 87
responder interviews with parents or legal custodians or 88
children. 89
2. Know how and when to use the injunction process under 90
s. 39.504 or s. 741.30 to remove a perpetrator of domestic 91
violence from the home as an intervention to protect the child. 92
3. Know how to explain to the parent, legal custodian, or 93
person who is alleged to have caused the abuse, neglect, or 94
abandonment the results of the investigation and to provide 95
information about his or her right to access confidential 96
reports in accordance wi th s. 39.202, prior to closing the case. 97
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 98