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| 3 | 3 | | HB 559 2024 |
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| 9 | 9 | | Page 1 of 9 |
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| 10 | 10 | | 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 |
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| 14 | 14 | | A bill to be entitled 1 |
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| 15 | 15 | | An act relating to adoptions; amending s. 63.039, 2 |
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| 16 | 16 | | F.S.; requiring adoption entities to submit an annual 3 |
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| 17 | 17 | | report with certain information to the Department of 4 |
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| 18 | 18 | | Children and Families; amending s. 63.097, F.S.; 5 |
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| 19 | 19 | | requiring the department to retain an electronic c opy 6 |
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| 20 | 20 | | of certain documentation for a certain time period; 7 |
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| 21 | 21 | | revising the amount of fees, costs, and expenses 8 |
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| 22 | 22 | | authorized to be assessed or paid by an adoption 9 |
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| 23 | 23 | | entity; prohibiting fees that are not adoption entity 10 |
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| 24 | 24 | | fees or supported by a receipt; amending s. 63.1 32, 11 |
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| 25 | 25 | | F.S.; requiring a court to include a written 12 |
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| 26 | 26 | | determination of reasonableness if the court approves 13 |
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| 27 | 27 | | fees, costs, and expenses in excess of certain limits; 14 |
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| 28 | 28 | | authorizing a court to reject fees, costs, and 15 |
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| 29 | 29 | | expenditures that are not supported by a receipt; 16 |
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| 30 | 30 | | amending s. 409.1662, F.S.; requiring certain 17 |
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| 31 | 31 | | information to be included in the annual report the 18 |
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| 32 | 32 | | department submits to the Governor and Legislature; 19 |
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| 33 | 33 | | amending s. 409.167, F.S.; providing a purpose for a 20 |
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| 34 | 34 | | statewide adoption exchange; requiring the photo 21 |
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| 35 | 35 | | listing component of the exchange to be accessible 22 |
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| 36 | 36 | | only to certain persons; requiring consent from 23 |
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| 37 | 37 | | certain children before their photo is listed; 24 |
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| 38 | 38 | | requiring the department or a community -based care 25 |
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| 40 | 40 | | HB 559 2024 |
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| 46 | 46 | | Page 2 of 9 |
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| 47 | 47 | | 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 |
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| 49 | 49 | | |
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| 50 | 50 | | |
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| 51 | 51 | | lead agency, instead of the districts of the 26 |
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| 52 | 52 | | department, to refer certain children to the adoption 27 |
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| 53 | 53 | | exchange; removing provisions requiring a child to be 28 |
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| 54 | 54 | | placed on the exchange after a certain time period; 29 |
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| 55 | 55 | | providing an effective date. 30 |
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| 56 | 56 | | 31 |
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| 57 | 57 | | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 32 |
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| 58 | 58 | | 33 |
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| 59 | 59 | | Section 1. Paragraph (k) is added to subsection (1) of 34 |
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| 60 | 60 | | section 63.039, Florida Statutes, to read: 35 |
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| 61 | 61 | | 63.039 Duties Duty of an adoption entity to prospective 36 |
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| 62 | 62 | | adoptive parents; sanctions.— 37 |
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| 63 | 63 | | (1) An adoption entity placing a minor for adoption has an 38 |
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| 64 | 64 | | affirmative duty to follow the requirements of this chapter and 39 |
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| 65 | 65 | | specifically the following provisions, which protect and promote 40 |
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| 66 | 66 | | the well-being of persons being adopted and their parents and 41 |
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| 67 | 67 | | prospective adoptive parents by promoting certainty, finality, 42 |
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| 68 | 68 | | and permanency for such perso ns. The adoption entity must: 43 |
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| 69 | 69 | | (k) Annually report to the department the number of 44 |
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| 70 | 70 | | adoptions that did not involve an adoption by a relative or 45 |
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| 71 | 71 | | stepparent or an adoption of a child from the child welfare 46 |
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| 72 | 72 | | system. 47 |
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| 73 | 73 | | Section 2. Subsection (1), paragraph (f) of subsection 48 |
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| 74 | 74 | | (2), subsection (3), and paragraph (c) of subsection (5) of 49 |
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| 75 | 75 | | section 63.097, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 50 |
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| 77 | 77 | | HB 559 2024 |
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| 83 | 83 | | Page 3 of 9 |
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| 84 | 84 | | 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 |
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| 87 | 87 | | |
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| 88 | 88 | | 63.097 Fees.— 51 |
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| 89 | 89 | | (1)(a) When the adoption entity is an agency, fees may be 52 |
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| 90 | 90 | | assessed if such fees they are approved by the dep artment within 53 |
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| 91 | 91 | | the process of licensing the agency and if the fees they are 54 |
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| 92 | 92 | | for: 55 |
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| 93 | 93 | | 1.(a) Foster care expenses; 56 |
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| 94 | 94 | | 2.(b) Preplacement and postplacement social services; or 57 |
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| 95 | 95 | | and 58 |
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| 96 | 96 | | 3.(c) Agency facility and administrative costs. 59 |
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| 97 | 97 | | (b) The department must retain an electronic copy of the 60 |
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| 98 | 98 | | documentation submitted by the agency for the approval of such 61 |
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| 99 | 99 | | fees. Such documentation must be retained by the department 62 |
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| 100 | 100 | | until the child is 18 years of age. 63 |
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| 101 | 101 | | (2) The following fees, costs, and expenses may be 64 |
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| 102 | 102 | | assessed by the adoption entity or paid by the adoption entity 65 |
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| 103 | 103 | | on behalf of the prospective adoptive parents: 66 |
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| 104 | 104 | | (f) The following professional fees: 67 |
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| 105 | 105 | | 1. A reasonable hourly fee , not to exceed $100 per hour 68 |
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| 106 | 106 | | without prior court approval, or flat fee, not to exceed $5,000 69 |
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| 107 | 107 | | without prior court approval, necessary to provide legal 70 |
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| 108 | 108 | | representation to the adoptive parents or adoption entity in a 71 |
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| 109 | 109 | | proceeding filed under this chapter. 72 |
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| 110 | 110 | | 2. A reasonable hourly fee or flat fee , not to exceed 73 |
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| 111 | 111 | | $1,500 without prior court approval, for contact with the parent 74 |
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| 112 | 112 | | related to the adoption. In determining a reasonable hourly fee 75 |
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| 120 | 120 | | Page 4 of 9 |
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| 121 | 121 | | 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 |
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| 124 | 124 | | |
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| 125 | 125 | | under this subparagraph, the court must consider if the tasks 76 |
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| 126 | 126 | | done were clerical or of such a nature that the matter could 77 |
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| 127 | 127 | | have been handled by support staff at a lesser rate than the 78 |
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| 128 | 128 | | rate for legal representation charged under subparagraph 1. Such 79 |
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| 129 | 129 | | tasks include, but need not be limited to, transportation, 80 |
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| 130 | 130 | | transmitting funds, arranging appointments, and securing 81 |
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| 131 | 131 | | accommodations. 82 |
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| 132 | 132 | | 3. A reasonable hourly fee for counseling s ervices 83 |
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| 133 | 133 | | provided to a parent or a prospective adoptive parent by a 84 |
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| 134 | 134 | | psychologist licensed under chapter 490 or a clinical social 85 |
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| 135 | 135 | | worker, marriage and family therapist, or mental health 86 |
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| 136 | 136 | | counselor licensed under chapter 491, or a counselor who is 87 |
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| 137 | 137 | | employed by an adoption entity accredited by the Council on 88 |
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| 138 | 138 | | Accreditation of Services for Children and Families to provide 89 |
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| 139 | 139 | | pregnancy counseling and supportive services. 90 |
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| 140 | 140 | | (3) Approval of the court is not required until the total 91 |
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| 141 | 141 | | of the amounts permitted under subsecti on (2) exceeds: 92 |
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| 142 | 142 | | (a) $7,500 $5,000 in professional legal or other fees; 93 |
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| 143 | 143 | | (b) $1,000 $800 in court costs; or 94 |
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| 144 | 144 | | (c) $5,000 in reasonable and necessary living and medical 95 |
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| 145 | 145 | | expenses; or 96 |
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| 146 | 146 | | (d) $1,500 in other fees necessary to comply with the 97 |
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| 147 | 147 | | requirements of this chapter. 98 |
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| 148 | 148 | | (5) The following fees, costs, and expenses are 99 |
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| 149 | 149 | | prohibited: 100 |
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| 158 | 158 | | 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 |
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| 161 | 161 | | |
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| 162 | 162 | | (c) Any fee on the affidavit which is not a fee of the 101 |
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| 163 | 163 | | adoption entity, is not supported by a receipt, and does not 102 |
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| 164 | 164 | | specify the service that was provided and for which the fee is 103 |
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| 165 | 165 | | being charged, such as a fee for facilitation, acquisition, or 104 |
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| 166 | 166 | | other similar service, or which does not identify the date the 105 |
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| 167 | 167 | | service was provided, the time required to provide the service, 106 |
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| 168 | 168 | | the person or entity providing the service, and the hourly fee 107 |
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| 169 | 169 | | charged. 108 |
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| 170 | 170 | | Section 3. Subsection (3) of section 63.132, Florida 109 |
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| 171 | 171 | | Statutes, is amended to read: 110 |
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| 172 | 172 | | 63.132 Affidavit of expenses and receipts. — 111 |
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| 173 | 173 | | (3) The court must issue a separate order approving or 112 |
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| 174 | 174 | | disapproving the fees, costs, and expenses itemized in the 113 |
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| 175 | 175 | | affidavit. The court may approve only fees, costs, and 114 |
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| 176 | 176 | | expenditures allowed under s. 63.097. An order approving fees, 115 |
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| 177 | 177 | | costs, and expenses that exceed the limits set in s. 63.097 must 116 |
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| 178 | 178 | | include a written determination of reasonableness. The court may 117 |
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| 179 | 179 | | reject in whole or in part any fee, cost, or expenditure listed 118 |
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| 180 | 180 | | if the court finds that the expense is any of the following: 119 |
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| 181 | 181 | | (a) Contrary to this chapter. 120 |
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| 182 | 182 | | (b) Not supported by a receipt , if requested, if the 121 |
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| 183 | 183 | | expense is not a fee of the adoption entity. 122 |
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| 184 | 184 | | (c) Not a reasonable fee or expense, considering the 123 |
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| 185 | 185 | | requirements of this chapter and the totality of the 124 |
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| 186 | 186 | | circumstances. 125 |
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| 194 | 194 | | Page 6 of 9 |
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| 195 | 195 | | 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 |
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| 196 | 196 | | |
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| 197 | 197 | | |
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| 198 | 198 | | |
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| 199 | 199 | | Section 4. Subsection (4) of section 409.1662, Florida 126 |
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| 200 | 200 | | Statutes, is amended to read: 127 |
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| 201 | 201 | | 409.1662 Children within the child welfare system; 128 |
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| 202 | 202 | | adoption incentive program. — 129 |
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| 203 | 203 | | (4) REPORT.—The department shall report annually by 130 |
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| 204 | 204 | | November 15 to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and 131 |
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| 205 | 205 | | the Speaker of the House of Representatives on all of the 132 |
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| 206 | 206 | | following: 133 |
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| 207 | 207 | | (a) The negotiated targets set for, out comes achieved by, 134 |
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| 208 | 208 | | and incentive payments made to each lead agency during the 135 |
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| 209 | 209 | | previous fiscal year. 136 |
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| 210 | 210 | | (b) The report shall also discuss the program enhancements 137 |
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| 211 | 211 | | made by each lead agency and its subcontracted providers to 138 |
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| 212 | 212 | | achieve negotiated outcomes under this section. 139 |
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| 213 | 213 | | (c) The number of adoptions that did not involve an 140 |
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| 214 | 214 | | adoption by a relative or stepparent or an adoption of a child 141 |
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| 215 | 215 | | from the child welfare system. 142 |
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| 216 | 216 | | (d) The number of children who entered the child welfare 143 |
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| 217 | 217 | | system because of an adoption dissolution after their adoptions, 144 |
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| 218 | 218 | | which did not involve relatives or stepparents and the children 145 |
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| 219 | 219 | | were not otherwise in the child welfare system , from an adoption 146 |
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| 220 | 220 | | entity were finalized. 147 |
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| 221 | 221 | | (e) The reasons why an adoption dissolution occurred for 148 |
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| 222 | 222 | | each child under paragraph (d), if known. 149 |
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| 223 | 223 | | (f) The average cost of fees assessed by an adoption 150 |
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| 232 | 232 | | 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 |
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| 236 | 236 | | entity which require department approval under s. 63.097. Such 151 |
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| 237 | 237 | | information must be segmented by region and comparable to a 152 |
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| 238 | 238 | | statewide average cost. 153 |
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| 239 | 239 | | Section 5. Subsections (5) and (6) of section 409.167, 154 |
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| 240 | 240 | | Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsection (4) and (5), 155 |
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| 241 | 241 | | respectively, and subsections (1), (2), and (4), and present 156 |
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| 242 | 242 | | subsection (5) are amended, to read: 157 |
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| 243 | 243 | | 409.167 Statewide adoption exchange; establishment; 158 |
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| 244 | 244 | | responsibilities; registration requirements; rules. — 159 |
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| 245 | 245 | | (1) The Department of Children and Families shall 160 |
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| 246 | 246 | | establish, either directly or through purchase, a statewide 161 |
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| 247 | 247 | | adoption exchange, with a photo listing component, which shall 162 |
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| 248 | 248 | | serve all authorized licensed child -placing agencies in the 163 |
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| 249 | 249 | | state for the purpose of facilitating family -matching between 164 |
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| 250 | 250 | | prospective adoptive parents and children as a means of 165 |
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| 251 | 251 | | recruiting adoptive families for children who have been legally 166 |
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| 252 | 252 | | freed for adoption and who have been permanently placed with the 167 |
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| 253 | 253 | | department or a licensed child -placing agency. The exchange 168 |
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| 254 | 254 | | shall provide, in accordance with rules established by the 169 |
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| 255 | 255 | | department descriptions and photographs of such children , as 170 |
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| 256 | 256 | | well as any other information deemed useful to licensed child-171 |
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| 257 | 257 | | placing agencies in facilitating family -matching between 172 |
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| 258 | 258 | | prospective adoptive parents and children in the recruitment of 173 |
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| 259 | 259 | | adoptive families for each child. The photo listing component of 174 |
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| 260 | 260 | | the adoption exchange must be in a format that is accessible 175 |
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| 266 | 266 | | CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. |
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| 268 | 268 | | Page 8 of 9 |
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| 269 | 269 | | 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 |
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| 270 | 270 | | |
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| 271 | 271 | | |
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| 272 | 272 | | |
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| 273 | 273 | | only to persons who have completed or are in the process of 176 |
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| 274 | 274 | | completing an adoption home study. A child who is 12 years of 177 |
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| 275 | 275 | | age or older must be consulted before his or her photo is listed 178 |
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| 276 | 276 | | updated monthly. 179 |
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| 277 | 277 | | (2)(a) Each district of The department or a community-180 |
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| 278 | 278 | | based care lead agency shall refer each child in its care who 181 |
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| 279 | 279 | | has been legally freed for adoption to the adoption exchange no 182 |
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| 280 | 280 | | later than 30 days after the date of acceptance by the 183 |
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| 281 | 281 | | department for permanent placement. The referral must be 184 |
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| 282 | 282 | | accompanied by a photograph and descript ion of the child. 185 |
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| 283 | 283 | | (b) The department shall establish criteria by which the 186 |
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| 284 | 284 | | department or the community -based care lead agency a district 187 |
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| 285 | 285 | | may determine that a child need not be registered with the 188 |
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| 286 | 286 | | adoption exchange. Within 30 days after the date of accept ance 189 |
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| 287 | 287 | | by the department for permanent placement, the name of the child 190 |
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| 288 | 288 | | accepted for permanent placement must be forwarded to the 191 |
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| 289 | 289 | | statewide adoption exchange by the department or the community -192 |
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| 290 | 290 | | based care lead agency district together with reference to the 193 |
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| 291 | 291 | | specific reason why the child should not be placed on the 194 |
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| 292 | 292 | | adoption exchange. If the child has not been placed for adoption 195 |
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| 293 | 293 | | within 3 months after the date of acceptance by the department 196 |
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| 294 | 294 | | for permanent placement, the district shall provide the adoption 197 |
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| 295 | 295 | | exchange with the necessary photograph and information for 198 |
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| 296 | 296 | | registration of the child with the adoption exchange and the 199 |
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| 297 | 297 | | child shall be placed on the exchange. The department shall 200 |
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| 306 | 306 | | 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 |
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| 307 | 307 | | |
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| 308 | 308 | | |
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| 309 | 309 | | |
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| 310 | 310 | | establish procedures for monitoring the status of children who 201 |
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| 311 | 311 | | are not placed on th e adoption exchange within 30 days after the 202 |
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| 312 | 312 | | date of acceptance by the department for permanent placement. 203 |
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| 313 | 313 | | (4) The adoption exchange shall provide the photo listing 204 |
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| 314 | 314 | | service to all licensed child -placing agencies and, in 205 |
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| 315 | 315 | | accordance with rules established by the department, to all 206 |
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| 316 | 316 | | appropriate citizen groups and other organizations and 207 |
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| 317 | 317 | | associations interested in children's services. 208 |
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| 318 | 318 | | (4)(5) Children who are registered with the statewide 209 |
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| 319 | 319 | | adoption exchange and for whom there is no available family 210 |
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| 320 | 320 | | resource must shall be registered with existing regional and 211 |
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| 321 | 321 | | national adoption exchanges , consistent with the restrictions in 212 |
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| 322 | 322 | | this section. 213 |
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| 323 | 323 | | Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024. 214 |
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