Florida Senate - 2023 SB 824 By Senator Collins 14-01079-23 2023824__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to veterans services and recognition; 3 amending s. 20.37, F.S.; creating the Division of 4 Long-term Care within the Department of Veterans 5 Affairs; amending s. 292.11, F.S.; revising 6 qualifications for employment of county and city 7 veteran service officers; creating part III of ch. 8 296, F.S.; creating the Veterans Adult Day Health 9 Care of Florida Act; providing a purpose and 10 definitions; providing for the appointment of an 11 operator; specifying the qualifications, duties, and 12 responsibilities of the operator; establishing a 13 nondiscrimination policy for the program; providing 14 for eligibility and priority of admittance; providing 15 for participants contribution to support; providing 16 for program audits, inspections, and operational 17 standards; creating s. 683.1475, F.S.; designating the 18 week of November 11 of each year as Veterans Week in 19 Florida; authorizing the Governor to issue an annual 20 proclamation; providing an effective date. 21 22 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 23 24 Section 1.Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (2) of 25 section 20.37, Florida Statutes, to read: 26 20.37Department of Veterans Affairs.There is created a 27 Department of Veterans Affairs. 28 (2)The following divisions, and bureaus within these 29 divisions, of the Department of Veterans Affairs are 30 established: 31 (c)Division of Long-term Care. 32 Section 2.Subsection (1) of section 292.11, Florida 33 Statutes, is amended to read: 34 292.11County and city veteran service officer. 35 (1)Each board of county commissioners and the governing 36 body of any city may employ a county veteran service officer; 37 provide office space, clerical assistance, and the necessary 38 supplies incidental to providing and maintaining a county 39 service office; and pay related said expenses and salaries from 40 the moneys hereinafter provided for. The governing body of any 41 city may employ a city veteran service officer; provide such 42 office space, clerical assistance, and supplies; and pay 43 expenses and salaries. A county or city veteran service officer 44 must be a veteran as defined in s. 1.01(14) who served as a 45 member of the Armed Forces of the United States during a period 46 of war, as defined in Title 38, U.S.C.; who served at least 18 47 months active duty in the Armed Forces; and who was separated 48 from such service under honorable conditions, or the surviving 49 spouse of any such a veteran and must. Any honorably discharged 50 wartime veteran who was so discharged for service-connected or 51 aggravated medical reasons before serving 18 months of active 52 duty; who completed a tour of duty other than active duty for 53 training, regardless of the length of the tour; or who satisfied 54 his or her military obligation in a manner other than active 55 duty for training or reserve duty shall be eligible for 56 employment as a county or city veteran service officer. Every 57 county or city veteran service officer, in order to be eligible 58 for employment as a county or city veteran service officer, 59 shall have a 2-year degree from an accredited university, 60 college, or community college or a high school degree or 61 equivalency diploma and 4 years of administrative experience. 62 Section 3.Part III of chapter 296, Florida Statutes, 63 consisting of sections 296.42 through 296.49, is created to 64 read: 65 PART III 66 VETERANS ADULT DAY HEALTH CARE OF FLORIDA ACT 67 296.42Short title.This part may be cited as the 68 Veterans Adult Day Health Care of Florida Act. 69 296.43Purpose.The purpose of this part is to provide for 70 the establishment of basic standards for the operation of 71 veterans adult day health care programs for eligible veterans 72 in need of such services. 73 296.44Definitions.As used in this part, the term: 74 (1)Contractor means an entity responsible for the day 75 to-day operations of an adult day health care facility or adult 76 day care center as prescribed by 38 C.F.R. s. 59.160 or part III 77 of chapter 429, respectively. The contractor may be a for-profit 78 or nonprofit entity that operates the adult day health care 79 facility or adult day care center under the direction of the 80 executive director of the department. 81 (2)Department means the Department of Veterans Affairs. 82 (3)Director means the executive director of the 83 department. 84 (4)Operator means the person designated to have and who 85 has the general administrative charge of an adult day health 86 care facility or adult day care center. The administrator of a 87 veterans nursing home under s. 296.34 or the administrator of 88 the Veterans Domiciliary Home of Florida under s. 296.04 may 89 serve as the operator if the adult day health care facility or 90 adult day care center is collocated at an existing veterans 91 nursing home or the Veterans Domiciliary Home of Florida or is 92 a freestanding facility. 93 (5)Participant means an eligible veteran recipient of 94 basic services or of supportive and optional services provided 95 by an adult day health care facility or adult day care center. 96 (6)Program means a licensed facility operated by the 97 department under part III of chapter 429. 98 (7)Veteran has the same meaning as in s. 1.01(14). 99 296.45Operator; qualifications, duties, and 100 responsibilities. 101 (1)The director shall appoint an operator who is 102 responsible for the overall operation of the program and for the 103 care of the participant or shall designate a contractor to 104 perform the same duties. 105 (2)The operator shall determine the eligibility of 106 applicants for admission to the program in accordance with 107 provisions of this part and, together with the director, shall 108 adopt rules necessary for the proper administration of the 109 program, including rules for the preservation of order and 110 enforcement of discipline in the program. Rules governing the 111 program must conform as nearly as possible to the rules and 112 regulations for comparable facilities of the United States 113 Department of Veterans Affairs. 114 (3)The operator position is assigned to the Selected 115 Exempt Service under part V of chapter 110 unless the operation 116 of the program is assigned to a contractor. The director shall 117 give veterans preference in selecting an operator as provided in 118 ss. 295.07 and 295.085 if the operation of the program is not 119 assigned to a contractor. 120 (4)Employees who fill authorized and established positions 121 appropriated for the program must be state employees unless the 122 operation of the program is assigned to a contractor. The 123 department shall classify such employees in the manner 124 prescribed in chapter 110. 125 (5)The operator shall administer and enforce all rules of 126 the program, including rules of discipline, and may dismiss a 127 participant in the program for an infraction of the rules, 128 subject to the approval of the director. 129 296.46Nondiscrimination policy of the program.It is the 130 policy of the state to admit residents into the program without 131 regard to race, age, sex, creed, religion, national origin, or 132 any other reason that would thereby create a practice of 133 discrimination. However, consideration of an applicants veteran 134 status does not constitute discrimination. 135 296.47Eligibility and priority of admittance. 136 (1)To be eligible for admittance to the program, the 137 person must be a veteran or have eligible peacetime service as 138 defined in s. 296.02 and must: 139 (a)Be in need of adult day health care; 140 (b)Be a resident of this state at the time of application 141 for admission to the program; 142 (c)Not owe money to the department for services rendered 143 during any previous stay at a department facility; 144 (d)Have applied for all financial assistance reasonably 145 available through governmental sources; and 146 (e)Have been approved as eligible for care and treatment 147 by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. 148 (2)The operator may waive the residency requirement for a 149 veteran who is otherwise eligible under Florida law for 150 admittance to a program. The waiver must be limited to a veteran 151 who is a disaster evacuee of a state that is under a declared 152 state of emergency. 153 (3)Admittance priority must be given to eligible veterans 154 in the following order of priority: 155 (a)An eligible veteran who is a resident of this state. 156 (b)An eligible veteran who has a service-connected 157 disability as determined by the United States Department of 158 Veterans Affairs, or was discharged or released from military 159 service for a disability incurred or aggravated in the line of 160 duty, and the disability is the condition for which adult day 161 health care is needed. 162 (c)An eligible veteran who has a non-service-connected 163 disability and is unable to defray the expense of adult day 164 health care and so states under oath before a notary public or 165 other officer authorized to administer an oath. 166 296.48Participants; contribution to support.The operator 167 may, if there is room, admit to participation in the program a 168 veteran who has sufficient means for his or her own support but 169 is otherwise eligible to become a participant in the program, 170 upon payment of the full cost of his or her support, which cost 171 and method of collection must be fixed from time to time by the 172 operator. 173 296.49Audit; inspection; standards for the program.The 174 program must be open at any time to audit and inspection by the 175 Auditor General and the Office of Program Policy Analysis and 176 Government Accountability, as provided by law, the department, 177 and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, and to any 178 other audits or inspections as required by law to maintain 179 appropriate standards in the program. The standards that the 180 department must use to regulate the operation of the program are 181 those prescribed by the United States Department of Veterans 182 Affairs, provided that when the states standards are more 183 restrictive, the standards of the state must apply. 184 Section 4.Section 683.1475, Florida Statutes, is created 185 to read: 186 683.1475Veterans Week. 187 (1)The week of November 11 of each year is designated as 188 Veterans Week. 189 (2)The Governor may annually issue a proclamation 190 designating the week of November 11 as Veterans Week. Public 191 officials, schools, private organizations, and all residents of 192 this state are encouraged to commemorate Veterans Week and honor 193 the men and women who answered the call during times of war and 194 peace to protect and preserve the treasured freedom of all 195 citizens of the United States. 196 Section 5.This act shall take effect July 1, 2023.