The Florida Senate
BILL ANALYSIS AND FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
(This document is based on the provisions contained in the legislation as of the latest date listed below.)
Prepared By: The Professional Staff of the Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs
BILL: SB 306
INTRODUCER: Senator Harrell
SUBJECT: Placement of Surrendered Newborn Infants
DATE: December 12, 2023
ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR REFERENCE ACTION
1. Rao Tuszynski CF Pre-meeting
2. JU
3. FP
I. Summary:
Florida law allows a parent who is unwilling or unable to care for their newborn infant to safely
relinquish the infant at a specified, safe, location without fear of criminal liability. The “safe
haven law” allows parents to anonymously surrender a newborn infant at a hospital, fire station,
or emergency medical services station and grants the parent immunity from criminal prosecution
unless there is actual or suspected child abuse or neglect.
The Department of Children and Families’ central abuse hotline must receive reports involving
surrendered newborn infants and provide the reporter with the name of a local licensed child-
placing agency for transfer of custody and placement responsibility if the report does not indicate
child abuse, abandonment, or neglect.
SB 306 shifts the responsibility of custody and placement of a surrendered newborn infant from
a child-placing agency to a community-based care lead agency (CBC). The bill requires each
CBC to create and maintain a registry of prospective adoptive parents who have received a
favorable home study and are willing to adopt a surrendered newborn infant. Each CBC is
required to utilize its registry during the placement of a newborn infant and reference other CBC
registries to locate alternative adoptive placements when it is in the best interest of the child.
The bill has no fiscal impact on state government and an indeterminate, but likely, insignificant
fiscal impact on the private sector. See Section V. Fiscal Impact Statement.
The bill takes effect July 1, 2024.
REVISED: BILL: SB 306 Page 2
II. Present Situation:
Safe Haven Laws
Every state legislature has enacted laws to address infant abandonment and endangerment in
response to a reported increase in the abandonment of infants in unsafe locations, such as public
restrooms or trash receptacles. Beginning with Texas in 1999, states have enacted safe haven
laws as an incentive for mothers in crisis to safely relinquish their babies at designated locations
where the babies are protected and provided with care until a permanent home is found.
1
Although policy choices vary among states, safe haven laws generally allow the parent, or an
agent of the parent, to remain anonymous and shielded from criminal liability, unless there is
evidence of abuse or neglect. Most states designate hospitals, emergency medical service
providers, health care facilities, and fire stations as a safe haven.
2
Forty-three states authorize
emergency services personnel to accept an infant or allow relinquishment through the 911
emergency system.
3
Laws in nine states allow a parent to voluntarily deliver the infant to a
newborn safety device that meets certain safety standards.
4
According to the nonprofit organization National Safe Haven Alliance, almost 5,000 safe haven
relinquishments have occurred since 1999.
5
Florida Safe Haven Law
The Legislature enacted Florida’s safe haven law in 2000. The law created s. 383.50, F.S., and
authorized the surrender of a newborn infant at a hospital or fire station. In 2001, the Legislature
amended s. 383.50, F.S., to authorize emergency medical services stations (EMS), in addition to
hospitals and fire stations, to receive surrendered newborn infants.
6
Current law authorizes a parent to surrender a newborn infant up to seven days old at a hospital,
fire station, or emergency medical services station. The law expressly grants a parent
surrendering a newborn infant the right to anonymity and to not be pursued or followed unless a
1
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Families, Children’s Bureau, Child Welfare Information
Gateway, Infant Safe Haven Laws, 2022, available at https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/safehaven.pdf (last viewed
Nov. 21, 2023).
2
Id. See also Guttmacher Institute, Infant Abandonment, available at https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/infant-
abandonment (last visited Dec. 6, 2023).
3
Id. Ten states allow for emergency medical personnel responding to 911 calls to accept an infant (Connecticut, Idaho,
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Wisconsin).
4
Id. Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania. Newborn safety devices
may also be called “baby boxes.” Safe Haven Baby Boxes are also found in Florida, New Mexico, Tennessee, Mississippi,
North Carolina, Iowa, and West Virginia. See Safe Haven Baby Boxes, Locations, available at https://www.shbb.org/location
(last visited Dec. 6, 2023).
5
National Safe Haven Alliance, 2022 Impact Report, available at https://www.nationalsafehavenalliance.org/our-cause (last
visited Nov. 21, 2023).
6
Chapter 2000-188, Laws of Fla..; Chapter 2001-52, Laws of Fla. BILL: SB 306 Page 3
parent seeks to reclaim the newborn infant.
7
The law also grants a surrendering parent immunity
from criminal prosecution unless there is actual or suspected child abuse or neglect.
8
Since 2000, approximately 376 newborns have been surrendered at safe haven locations in
Florida. In that time, 64 infants are known to have been unsafely abandoned.
9
Procedures for Surrendered Newborn Infants
Florida’s safe haven law outlines procedures for what happens after a newborn is surrendered.
The law requires hospitals, fire stations, and emergency medical services stations that are staffed
with full-time firefighters or emergency medical technicians to accept any newborn infant left
with a firefighter or emergency medical technician so that the newborn infant can receive any
necessary immediate medical treatment, including transport to a hospital.
10
Upon admitting a
surrendered newborn infant, the hospital must provide all necessary emergency services and care
for the surrendered newborn infant and immediately contact a local licensed child-placing
agency
11
or the Department of Children and Families’ (DCF) statewide central abuse hotline
(Hotline) for the name of a local licensed child-placing agency and transfer custody of the
surrendered newborn infant to the child-placing agency.
12
A child-placing agency that takes physical custody of a surrendered newborn infant pursuant to
s. 383.50, F.S., must:
Request assistance from law enforcement to investigate whether the infant is a missing child
within 24 hours of taking custody of the infant.
13
Immediately seek an order for emergency custody of the infant.
14
The emergency order stays
in effect until the court approves of a placement in a prospective adoptive home, at which
time the prospective adoptive parent becomes the guardian of the infant pending termination
of parental rights and finalization of adoption.
15
The child-placing agency may remove the
infant from the prospective adoptive if removal is in the child’s best interest.
16
7
Section 383.50(5), F.S.
8
Section 383.50, F.S.
9
A Safe Haven for Newborns, Safe Haven for Newborns, Truly Making a Difference, available at
https://asafehavenfornewborns.com/what-we-do/safe-haven-
statistics/#:~:text=376%20newborns%20not%20abandoned%20in%20Florida%2C%20left%20at,were%20helped%20to%20
successfully%20regain%20their%20parental%20rights (last visited Nov. 21, 2023).
10
Section 383.50, F.S.
11
Section 39.01(42), F.S, defines “licensed child-placing agency” as a person, society, association, or institution licensed by
the DCF to care for, receive, or board children and to place children in a licensed child-caring institution or a foster or
adoptive home.
12
Sections 395.50(4) and 395.50(7), F.S.
13
Section 63.0423(3), F.S.
14
Section 63.0423(2), F.S.
15
Id.
16
Id. BILL: SB 306 Page 4
Florida’s Child Welfare System
The DCF contracts with local non-profit agencies, known as community-based care lead
agencies (CBCs), to provide child welfare services for children in the community. There are 17
CBCs statewide that provide services throughout Florida’s 20 judicial circuits.
17
The CBCs are
responsible for providing adoption services for children in the foster care system by facilitating
services for prospective adoptive families and conducting adoptive home studies.
A child-placing agency is an entity that receives a child and arranges for the child’s placement in
a family foster home, residential child-caring agency, or adoptive home.
18
The DCF Office of
Quality and Innovation (Office) is responsible for licensing child-placing agencies.
19
The Office
annually inspects all licensed child-placing agencies and investigates complaints.
20
III. Effect of Proposed Changes:
Section 1 amends s. 63.032, F.S., to add the definition of “community-based care lead agency”
or “lead agency” to Ch. 63, F.S., to conform with the changes made throughout the bill that shifts
the duties from licensed child-placing agencies to community-based care lead agencies (CBCs).
This change will increase the responsibilities of CBCs related to a surrendered newborn infant
and reduce those responsibilities for licensed child-placing agencies.
Section 2 amends s. 63.069, F.S., to require each CBC to establish and maintain a registry of
prospective adoptive parents that have passed a home study under s. 63.092, F.S., and have
indicated a desire to adopt a surrendered newborn infant. The bill requires the registries to
include the names, addresses, telephone numbers, and email addresses of prospective adoptive
parents and requires the CBCs to keep this contact information until their home study is no
longer valid, or they request removal from the registry.
The bill prohibits a CBC from transferring the cost of establishing and maintaining the registry to
prospective adoptive parents through the cost of the home study or the cost of the adoption.
The bill requires the clerk of court to forward to DCF any order that imposes sanctions related to
the CBCs, rather than child-placing agencies.
Section 3 amends s. 63.0423, F.S., by shifting the entity responsible for surrendered newborn
infants from licensed child-placing agencies to CBCs. The bill requires CBCs, rather than
licensed child-placing agencies, to:
Assume responsibility for the medical and other costs associated with the emergency services
and care of the surrendered newborn infant from the time the CBC takes physical custody of
the surrendered newborn infant.
17
The Department of Children and Families, Lead Agency Information, available
at: https://www.myflfamilies.com/services/child-family/child-and-family-well-being/community-based-care/lead-agency-
information (last visited Nov. 20, 2023).
18
Section 39.01(42), F.S
19
The Department of Children and Families, Child-Placing Agency Licensing, available at:
https://www.myflfamilies.com/services/licensing/child-placing-agency-licensing (last visited Dec. 5, 2023).
20
Rule 65C-15, F.A.C. BILL: SB 306 Page 5
Immediately seek an order from the circuit court for emergency custody of the surrendered
newborn infant.
Request assistance from law enforcement officials to determine if the surrendered newborn
infant is a missing child within 24 hours after taking physical custody of the surrendered
newborn infant.
Conduct the proceedings for the termination of parental rights and subsequent adoption of a
surrendered newborn infant left at a hospital, emergency medical services station, or fire
station.
The bill requires CBCs to utilize the registry of prospective adoptive parents to determine a
placement for a surrendered newborn infant and allows the CBC to move a surrendered newborn
infant to another placement if the removal is deemed to be in the best interest of the child. If a
CBC cannot find a prospective adoptive placement for the surrendered newborn infant on its
registry, the bill requires the CBC to contact another CBC and attempt to place the infant with a
prospective adoptive parent on that CBC’s registry.
The bill prohibits CBCs from attempting to pursue, search for, or notify the parent who
surrenders the newborn infant, unless there is actual or suspected child abuse or neglect.
The bill prohibits the DCF from assuming custody of the surrendered newborn infant without
reasonable efforts to contact a CBC to accept the infant.
Section 4 amends s. 383.50, F.S., to require hospitals to immediately contact the local CBC to
transfer physical custody of a surrendered newborn infant, rather than a licensed child-placing
agency or the Hotline.
Section 5 amends s. 39.201, F.S., to reflect the shift in the entity responsible for a surrendered
newborn infant after the Hotline receives a report of a surrendered newborn infant. If the report
does not indicate child abuse, abandonment, or neglect, the bill requires the Hotline to provide
the person making the report with the name of a local CBC that is required to accept physical
custody of and to place surrendered newborn infants, rather than a licensed child-placing agency.
The bill requires DCF to provide names of eligible CBCs on a rotating basis.
Section 6 provides an effective date of July 1, 2024.
IV. Constitutional Issues:
A. Municipality/County Mandates Restrictions:
None.
B. Public Records/Open Meetings Issues:
None. BILL: SB 306 Page 6
C. Trust Funds Restrictions:
None.
D. State Tax or Fee Increases:
None.
E. Other Constitutional Issues:
None identified.
V. Fiscal Impact Statement:
A. Tax/Fee Issues:
None.
B. Private Sector Impact:
Community-Based Care Lead Agencies
Because the number of potential surrendered newborn infants is unknown, there is an
indeterminate, but likely insignificant, negative fiscal impact on CBCs. The bill requires
a CBC to establish and maintain a registry of prospective adoptive parents and requires
the CBC to perform all duties related to a surrendered newborn infant, to include
placement, care, and adoption. However, numbers of surrendered newborn infants are
extremely low; only 376 in the past 24 years.
21
Child-Placing Agencies
There is also an indeterminate, but likely insignificant, negative fiscal impact on child
placing agencies that currently receive, place, and perform surrendered newborn infant
adoptions. The bill removes all duties related to a surrendered newborn infant from these
private entities. These child-placing agencies will no longer be able to bill for or receive
income from prospective adoptive placements. However, numbers of surrendered
newborn infants are extremely low; only 376 in the past 24 years.
22
C. Government Sector Impact:
None. Surrendered newborn infants are not considered abandoned or dependent children
under Ch. 39, F.S., therefore child welfare specific funding received through contract
with the DCF and federal Title IV-E dollars are not able to be used to implement the
requirements of this bill.
23
21
Supra note 9.
22
Id.
23
The Department of Children and Families, SB 306 Agency Bill Analysis (December 9, 2023), pp. 5-7 (on file with the
Senate Committee on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs). BILL: SB 306 Page 7
VI. Technical Deficiencies:
None.
VII. Related Issues:
None.
VIII. Statutes Affected:
This bill substantially amends ss. 63.032, 63.039, 63.0423, 383.50, and 39.201 of the Florida
Statutes.
IX. Additional Information:
A. Committee Substitute – Statement of Changes:
(Summarizing differences between the Committee Substitute and the prior version of the bill.)
None.
B. Amendments:
None.
This Senate Bill Analysis does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill’s introducer or the Florida Senate.