| 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 ES |
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| 11 | 11 | | |
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| 12 | 12 | | |
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| 13 | 13 | | |
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| 14 | 14 | | A bill to be entitled 1 |
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| 15 | 15 | | An act relating to young adults who are homeless or 2 |
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| 16 | 16 | | were in the child welfare system; amending s. 3 |
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| 17 | 17 | | 409.1452, F.S.; requiring each Florida College System 4 |
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| 18 | 18 | | institution and state university, in consultation with 5 |
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| 19 | 19 | | the State Office on Homelessness, to develop a pl an to 6 |
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| 20 | 20 | | prioritize the placement of certain students in 7 |
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| 21 | 21 | | residence halls or dormitory residences; providing 8 |
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| 22 | 22 | | responsibilities for the Office of Continuing Care, 9 |
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| 23 | 23 | | Florida College System institutions, and state 10 |
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| 24 | 24 | | universities; requiring that certain institutions an d 11 |
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| 25 | 25 | | universities give priority to certain students for 12 |
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| 26 | | - | housing and work-study opportunities; prohibiting 13 |
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| 27 | | - | institutions and universities from requiring a 14 |
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| 28 | | - | cosigner or guarantor to obtain housing for certain 15 |
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| 29 | | - | students; creating s. 409.14525, F.S.; requiring 16 |
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| 30 | | - | certain entities to administer certain federal 17 |
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| 31 | | - | programs and vouchers; providing requirements for 18 |
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| 32 | | - | administering such programs and vouchers; requiring 19 |
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| 33 | | - | specified entities to document certain actions and 20 |
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| 34 | | - | provide certain assurances to landlords; providing 21 |
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| 35 | | - | applicability; providing an effective date. 22 |
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| 36 | | - | 23 |
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| 37 | | - | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 24 |
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| 38 | | - | 25 |
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| 26 | + | housing and work-study programs; creating s. 13 |
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| 27 | + | 409.14521, F.S.; defining the term "young adult"; 14 |
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| 28 | + | requiring certain entities to develop programs and 15 |
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| 29 | + | supports to help young adults access certain federal 16 |
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| 30 | + | programs and vouchers; providing requirements for such 17 |
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| 31 | + | programs and supports; requiring specified entities to 18 |
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| 32 | + | maintain certain records and provide certain 19 |
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| 33 | + | assurances to landlords; providing applicability; 20 |
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| 34 | + | requiring the Office of Program Policy Analysis and 21 |
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| 35 | + | Government Accountability, in consultation with other 22 |
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| 36 | + | entities, to conduct a specified study and report its 23 |
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| 37 | + | findings to the Governor and Legislature by a date 24 |
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| 38 | + | certain; providing requirements for such study; 25 |
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| 51 | | - | Section 1. Subsections (4), (5), and (6) are added to 26 |
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| 52 | | - | section 409.1452, Florida Statutes, to read: 27 |
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| 53 | | - | 409.1452 Collaboration with State University System, 28 |
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| 54 | | - | Florida College System, and Department of Education to assist 29 |
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| 55 | | - | children and young adults who have been or are in foster care or 30 |
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| 56 | | - | are experiencing homelessness; documentation regarding 31 |
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| 57 | | - | eligibility for tuition and fee exemptions ; housing assistance .—32 |
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| 58 | | - | The department shall collaborate with the State University 33 |
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| 59 | | - | System, the Florida College System, and the Department of 34 |
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| 60 | | - | Education to address the need for a comprehensive support 35 |
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| 61 | | - | structure in the academic arena to assist children and young 36 |
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| 62 | | - | adults who have been or remain in the foster care system in 37 |
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| 63 | | - | making the transition from a structured care system into an 38 |
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| 64 | | - | independent living setting. 39 |
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| 65 | | - | (4) Each Florida College System institution and state 40 |
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| 66 | | - | university shall, in consultation with the State Office on 41 |
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| 67 | | - | Homelessness within the Department of Children and Families, 42 |
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| 68 | | - | develop a plan to prioritize the placement of students who are 43 |
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| 69 | | - | currently or were formerly in foster care or who are 44 |
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| 70 | | - | experiencing homelessness or are at risk of experiencing 45 |
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| 71 | | - | homelessness, including, but not limited to, students eligible 46 |
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| 72 | | - | for the tuition and fee exemption under s. 1009.25(1)(c)1. -4. or 47 |
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| 73 | | - | (1)(e), in residence halls or dormitory residences owned by the 48 |
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| 74 | | - | institution or university. The Office of Continuing Care 49 |
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| 75 | | - | established under s. 414.56 is responsible for deter mining if a 50 |
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| 51 | + | effective date. 26 |
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| 52 | + | 27 |
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| 53 | + | Be It Enacted by the Legislatur e of the State of Florida: 28 |
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| 54 | + | 29 |
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| 55 | + | Section 1. Subsection (3) of section 409.1452, Florida 30 |
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| 56 | + | Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (5), and a new subsection 31 |
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| 57 | + | (3) and subsection (4) are added to that section, to read: 32 |
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| 58 | + | 409.1452 Collaboration with State University System, 33 |
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| 59 | + | Florida College System, and Department of Education to assist 34 |
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| 60 | + | children and young adults who have been or are in foster care or 35 |
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| 61 | + | are experiencing homelessness; documentation regarding 36 |
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| 62 | + | eligibility for tuition and fee exemptions ; housing assistance .—37 |
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| 63 | + | The department shall collaborate with the State University 38 |
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| 64 | + | System, the Florida College System, and the Department of 39 |
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| 65 | + | Education to address the need for a comprehensive support 40 |
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| 66 | + | structure in the academic arena to assist children and young 41 |
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| 67 | + | adults who have been or remain in the foster care system in 42 |
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| 68 | + | making the transition from a structured care system into an 43 |
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| 69 | + | independent living setting. 44 |
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| 70 | + | (3) Each Florida College System institution and state 45 |
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| 71 | + | university shall, in consultation with the State Office on 46 |
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| 72 | + | Homelessness, develop a plan to prioritize the placement of 47 |
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| 73 | + | students who are 28 years of age or younger and who: 48 |
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| 74 | + | (a) Are or were formerly in foster care in the United 49 |
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| 75 | + | States; 50 |
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| 88 | | - | student is or was formerly in foster care. Each Florida College 51 |
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| 89 | | - | System institution and state university is responsible for 52 |
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| 90 | | - | determining whether a student is eligible for a tuition or fee 53 |
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| 91 | | - | exemption under s. 1009.25(1)(e). 54 |
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| 92 | | - | (5) If a Florida Colle ge System institution or state 55 |
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| 93 | | - | university implements a priority system for the assignment of 56 |
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| 94 | | - | students to or the award of any of the following, the 57 |
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| 95 | | - | institution or university must give first priority to students 58 |
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| 96 | | - | who are eligible for the tuition and fee exemp tion under s. 59 |
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| 97 | | - | 1009.25(1)(c)1.-4. or (1)(e): 60 |
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| 98 | | - | (a) Institution-operated or university -operated housing. 61 |
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| 99 | | - | (b) Year-round housing. 62 |
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| 100 | | - | (c) Work-study opportunities. 63 |
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| 101 | | - | (6) Florida College System institutions and state 64 |
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| 102 | | - | universities may not require a student to h ave a cosigner or 65 |
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| 103 | | - | guarantor to obtain housing if the student receives housing 66 |
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| 104 | | - | support under s. 409.1451(2) or (3) or is receiving continuing 67 |
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| 105 | | - | care under s. 39.6251. 68 |
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| 106 | | - | Section 2. Section 409.14525, Florida Statutes, is created 69 |
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| 107 | | - | to read: 70 |
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| 108 | | - | 409.14525 Housing support for young adults; federal 71 |
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| 109 | | - | housing vouchers.— 72 |
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| 110 | | - | (1) The department, community -based care lead agencies, 73 |
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| 111 | | - | and housing authorities created under s. 421.04 shall administer 74 |
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| 112 | | - | the federal Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) initiative and 75 |
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| 88 | + | (b) Are experiencing homelessness or are at risk of 51 |
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| 89 | + | experiencing homelessness; or 52 |
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| 90 | + | (c) Are eligible for the tuition and fee exemption under 53 |
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| 91 | + | s. 1009.25(1)(c)1.-4. or (1)(e), 54 |
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| 92 | + | 55 |
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| 93 | + | in residence halls or dormitory residences owned or operated by 56 |
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| 94 | + | the institution or university at which the student attends. The 57 |
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| 95 | + | Office of Continuing Care established under s. 414.56 is 58 |
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| 96 | + | responsible for determining if a student is or was formerly in 59 |
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| 97 | + | foster care in the United States. Each Florida College System 60 |
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| 98 | + | institution and state university is responsible for determining 61 |
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| 99 | + | whether a student meets the definition of a homeless child or 62 |
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| 100 | + | youth by using the process for determining whether a student is 63 |
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| 101 | + | eligible for a tuition or fee exemption under s. 64 |
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| 102 | + | 1009.25(1)(c)1.-4. or (1)(e). 65 |
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| 103 | + | (4) If a Florida College System institution or state 66 |
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| 104 | + | university implements a priority system for the a ssignment of 67 |
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| 105 | + | students to any of the following, the institution or university 68 |
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| 106 | + | must give first priority to students who are eligible for the 69 |
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| 107 | + | tuition and fee exemption under s. 1009.25(1)(c)1. -4. or (1)(e): 70 |
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| 108 | + | (a) Housing owned or operated by the institution o r 71 |
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| 109 | + | university. 72 |
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| 110 | + | (b) Year-round housing. 73 |
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| 111 | + | (c) Work-study programs. 74 |
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| 112 | + | Section 2. Section 409.14521, Florida Statutes, is created 75 |
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| 125 | | - | other federal programs and vouchers offered by the United States 76 |
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| 126 | | - | Department of Housing and Urban Development, which may require 77 |
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| 127 | | - | the department, a community -based care lead agency, and 78 |
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| 128 | | - | subcontracted service providers thereof to do any of the 79 |
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| 129 | | - | following: 80 |
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| 130 | | - | (a) Enter into a mem orandum of understanding or letter of 81 |
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| 131 | | - | intent with each housing authority located within the service 82 |
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| 132 | | - | area of the department or community -based care lead agency. 83 |
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| 133 | | - | (b) Provide or secure supportive services for 84 |
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| 134 | | - | participating young adults for the duration of the FYI 85 |
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| 135 | | - | initiative voucher. 86 |
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| 136 | | - | (c) Provide a written certification to the housing 87 |
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| 137 | | - | authority verifying the young adult's child welfare history. 88 |
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| 138 | | - | (d) Identify each young adult eligible for an FYI 89 |
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| 139 | | - | initiative voucher within each community -based care lead 90 |
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| 140 | | - | agency's caseload and communicate such eligibility to each young 91 |
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| 141 | | - | adult. 92 |
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| 142 | | - | (2) The department, community -based care lead agencies, 93 |
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| 143 | | - | and subcontracted service providers thereof that administer 94 |
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| 144 | | - | housing funds for young adults in the child welfare system must 95 |
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| 145 | | - | document actions taken to facilitate a young adult's acquisition 96 |
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| 146 | | - | of a residential lease, including, but not limited to, providing 97 |
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| 147 | | - | assurances to a landlord that funding will be provided on a 98 |
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| 148 | | - | monthly basis through a housing voucher. This subsection applies 99 |
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| 149 | | - | to entities that serve young adults receiving postsecondary 100 |
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| 125 | + | to read: 76 |
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| 126 | + | 409.14521 Housing assistance for young adults. — 77 |
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| 127 | + | (1) As used in this section, the term "young adult" means 78 |
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| 128 | + | a person who is 28 years of age or younger who was in the child 79 |
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| 129 | + | welfare system in the United States after he or she attained the 80 |
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| 130 | + | age of 14. 81 |
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| 131 | + | (2) The department, community -based care lead agencies, 82 |
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| 132 | + | their subcontracted providers, and housing authorities creat ed 83 |
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| 133 | + | under s. 421.04 shall develop programs and supports to help 84 |
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| 134 | + | young adults access all available federal programs and vouchers 85 |
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| 135 | + | offered by the United States Department of Housing and Urban 86 |
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| 136 | + | Development relating to housing and housing stability. At a 87 |
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| 137 | + | minimum, the programs and supports must include all of the 88 |
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| 138 | + | following: 89 |
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| 139 | + | (a) The creation of a list identifying each young adult 90 |
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| 140 | + | eligible for federal housing programs and vouchers within each 91 |
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| 141 | + | community-based care lead agency's geographic service area. 92 |
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| 142 | + | (b) A recruitment and communication plan to help 93 |
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| 143 | + | community-based care lead agencies contact and engage with such 94 |
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| 144 | + | young adults. 95 |
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| 145 | + | (c) A memorandum of understanding or letter of intent 96 |
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| 146 | + | between each community -based care lead agency and each housing 97 |
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| 147 | + | authority located wit hin the geographic service area of the 98 |
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| 148 | + | community-based care lead agency. 99 |
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| 149 | + | (d) Written certification from each community -based care 100 |
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| 162 | | - | educational services and support or aftercare services under s. 101 |
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| 163 | | - | 409.1451 or young adults receiving continuing care under 102 |
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| 164 | | - | 39.6251. 103 |
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| 165 | | - | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 104 |
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| 162 | + | lead agency to each housing authority located within the lead 101 |
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| 163 | + | agency's geographic service area which verifies that the young 102 |
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| 164 | + | adult was involved in the child welfare system after turning 14 103 |
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| 165 | + | years of age. 104 |
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| 166 | + | (e) A detailed list of processes and support services that 105 |
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| 167 | + | are available to a young adult who is participating in a federal 106 |
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| 168 | + | program or voucher. 107 |
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| 169 | + | (3) The department, community -based care lead agencies, 108 |
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| 170 | + | and their subcontracted service providers that administer 109 |
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| 171 | + | housing funds for young adults in the child welfare system must 110 |
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| 172 | + | maintain detailed records of all reasonable actions taken to 111 |
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| 173 | + | facilitate a young adult's acquisition of a re sidential lease. 112 |
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| 174 | + | Reasonable actions include providing assurances to a landlord 113 |
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| 175 | + | that funding will be provided on a monthly basis in order for 114 |
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| 176 | + | the young adult to execute a contract for the lease of 115 |
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| 177 | + | residential property. Such assurances may include cosigning the 116 |
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| 178 | + | contract to lease the residential property, providing a 117 |
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| 179 | + | guarantee, or any other form of assurance acceptable to the 118 |
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| 180 | + | landlord. This subsection applies to entities that serve young 119 |
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| 181 | + | adults receiving postsecondary educational services and support 120 |
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| 182 | + | or aftercare services under s. 409.1451 or young adults 121 |
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| 183 | + | receiving continuing care under 39.6251. 122 |
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| 184 | + | Section 3. (1) The Office of Program Policy Analysis and 123 |
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| 185 | + | Government Accountability (OPPAGA) shall conduct a study 124 |
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| 186 | + | relating to the barriers that young adults who ar e or were in 125 |
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| 187 | + | |
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| 188 | + | CS/HB 879 2025 |
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| 189 | + | |
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| 190 | + | |
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| 191 | + | |
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| 192 | + | CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. |
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| 193 | + | hb879-01-c1 |
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| 194 | + | Page 6 of 6 |
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| 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 ES |
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| 196 | + | |
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| 197 | + | |
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| 198 | + | |
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| 199 | + | the child welfare system or who are or are at risk of 126 |
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| 200 | + | experiencing homelessness, and who are not enrolled in a Florida 127 |
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| 201 | + | College System institution or state university, face when trying 128 |
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| 202 | + | to obtain housing. The study must include recommendations f or 129 |
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| 203 | + | overcoming such barriers. 130 |
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| 204 | + | (2) OPPAGA shall conduct such study in consultation with 131 |
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| 205 | + | the Department of Children and Families, the Department of 132 |
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| 206 | + | Commerce, public housing authorities, young adults affected by 133 |
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| 207 | + | this act, and other stakeholders as appropriat e. 134 |
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| 208 | + | (3) OPPAGA shall report its findings and recommendations 135 |
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| 209 | + | to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of 136 |
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| 210 | + | the House of Representatives by December 1, 2026. 137 |
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| 211 | + | Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 138 |
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