Florida Senate - 2025 CS for CS for SB 116 By the Committee on Rules; the Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services; and Senators Burgess, Collins, Avila, and Davis 595-02328-25 2025116c2 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to veterans; amending s. 265.003, 3 F.S.; revising the maximum number of nominees for the 4 Florida Veterans Hall of Fame submitted by the 5 Florida Veterans Hall of Fame Council to the 6 Department of Veterans Affairs for submission to the 7 Governor and the Cabinet; amending s. 292.05, F.S.; 8 requiring the Department of Veterans Affairs to 9 conduct a study that includes a survey evaluating the 10 extent to which specified persons are aware of certain 11 existing programs or services; requiring that such 12 survey also include specified recommendations; 13 requiring that a certain report include additional 14 actions taken by the Department of Veterans Affairs 15 and other information and recommendations as the 16 department determines are necessary; requiring that a 17 specified report include an evaluation of the health 18 literacy of veterans in this state and recommendations 19 on how to increase knowledge of programs and services 20 available to such veterans; requiring the department 21 to ensure coordination to the greatest extent possible 22 with the United States Department of Defense for a 23 specified purpose; authorizing the Department of 24 Veterans Affairs to engage county and city veteran 25 service officers for assistance; amending s. 292.115, 26 F.S.; revising the purpose of the Veteran Suicide 27 Prevention Training Pilot Program to include 28 specialized mental health training; requiring 29 individuals electing to participate in the pilot 30 program to be trained to identify indicators of mental 31 health conditions; requiring the department to 32 contract with an organization developing and 33 implementing veteran-relevant and evidence-based 34 mental health assistance training; amending s. 35 295.124, F.S.; revising a reference to the United 36 States Code; amending s. 295.21, F.S.; requiring 37 Florida Is For Veterans, Inc., to advise the 38 Department of Veterans Affairs on specified problems 39 or needs of certain military personnel and their 40 spouses; amending s. 295.22, F.S.; revising the 41 collaborators of the Veterans Employment and Training 42 Services Program to include a specified direct-support 43 organization; amending s. 296.43, F.S.; requiring the 44 Department of Veterans Affairs to develop a plan to 45 establish adult day health care facilities across this 46 state to serve veterans and their families; requiring 47 that such plans include specified information; 48 requiring the department to provide a specified report 49 to the Legislature by a specified date; amending s. 50 320.08058, F.S.; authorizing the use of a specified 51 percentage of proceeds from the sale of a specified 52 specialty license plate for the promotion and 53 administrative costs of the plate; providing 54 appropriations; providing an effective date. 55 56 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 57 58 Section 1.Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section 59 265.003, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 60 265.003Florida Veterans Hall of Fame. 61 (4)(a)The Florida Veterans Hall of Fame Council shall 62 annually accept nominations of persons to be considered for 63 induction into the Florida Veterans Hall of Fame and shall 64 transmit a list of up to 5 20 nominees to the Department of 65 Veterans Affairs for submission to the Governor and the 66 Cabinet, who will select the nominees to be inducted. 67 Section 2.Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) and subsection 68 (6) of section 292.05, Florida Statutes, are amended, and 69 subsection (8) is added to that section, to read: 70 292.05Duties of Department of Veterans Affairs. 71 (5)The department shall conduct an ongoing study on the 72 problems and needs of those residents of this state who are 73 veterans of the Armed Forces of the United States and the 74 problems and needs of their spouses and dependents. The study 75 shall include, but not be limited to: 76 (b)A survey of the needs of such persons in the areas of 77 social services, health care, education, and employment, and any 78 other areas of determined need, with recommendations regarding 79 federal, state, and community services that would meet those 80 needs. The survey must also evaluate the extent to which such 81 persons are aware of existing federal, state, or community 82 programs or services that meet their areas of need, with 83 recommendations regarding increasing public awareness using 84 administrative or legislative options. 85 (6)The department shall, by December 31 of each year, 86 submit an annual written report to the Governor, the Cabinet, 87 and the Legislature which describes: 88 (a)The expenses incurred in veteran service work in the 89 state; the number, nature, and kind of cases handled by the 90 department and by county and city veteran service officers of 91 the state; the amounts of benefits obtained for veterans; the 92 names and addresses of all certified veteran service officers, 93 including county and city veteran service officers. 94 (b)The report must also describe The actions taken by the 95 department in implementing subsections (4), (5), and (7), and 96 (8) and includes include other information and recommendations 97 as the department determines are necessary to provide 98 information on its annual activities requires. 99 (c)(b)The current status of the departments domiciliary 100 and nursing homes established pursuant to chapter 296, including 101 all receipts and expenditures, the condition of the homes, the 102 number of residents received and discharged during the preceding 103 year, occupancy rates, staffing, and any other information 104 necessary to provide an understanding of the management, 105 conduct, and operation of the homes. 106 (d)For the report due on December 31, 2025, an evaluation 107 by the department among veterans in this state on the level of 108 health literacy and any recommendations to increase veteran 109 knowledge of available programs and services and maximize their 110 use of such resources. 111 (8)The department shall ensure coordination to the 112 greatest extent possible with the United States Department of 113 Defense to directly engage all servicemembers returning home to, 114 or electing to remain in or move to, this state following their 115 service and during reentry into civilian life, including 116 connecting them with Florida Is For Veterans, Inc., and other 117 relevant resources. The department may engage county and city 118 veteran service officers for assistance with fulfilling this 119 duty. 120 Section 3.Subsections (1) and (2) of section 292.115, 121 Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 122 292.115Veteran Suicide Prevention Training Pilot Program. 123 (1)The Department of Veterans Affairs shall establish the 124 Veteran Suicide Prevention Training Pilot Program. The purpose 125 of the pilot program is to offer to each Department of Veterans 126 Affairs claims examiner and each county and city veteran service 127 officer, as described in s. 292.11, specialized mental health 128 training and certification in the prevention of veteran suicide. 129 (2)Individuals electing to participate in the pilot 130 program must be trained to identify indicators of mental health 131 conditions and elevated suicide risk and provide emergency 132 crisis referrals for veterans expressing or exhibiting symptoms 133 of emotional or psychological distress. The Department of 134 Veterans Affairs shall contract with an organization having 135 proven experience developing and implementing veteran-relevant 136 and evidence-based mental health assistance and suicide 137 prevention training to develop the curriculum for such training. 138 The department shall establish and oversee the process for 139 certifying program participants who successfully complete such 140 training. 141 Section 4.Section 295.124, Florida Statutes, is amended to 142 read: 143 295.124State approving agency for veterans education and 144 training.The Department of Veterans Affairs shall act as the 145 state approving agency for purposes of veterans education and 146 training, in accordance with 38 U.S.C. s. 3671 38 U.S.C. s. 1771 147 and the applicable annual contract between the state and the 148 Federal Government. 149 Section 5.Paragraph (h) is added to subsection (3) of 150 section 295.21, Florida Statutes, to read: 151 295.21Florida Is For Veterans, Inc. 152 (3)DUTIES.The corporation shall: 153 (h)Advise the Department of Veterans Affairs on any 154 problems or needs of retired and recently separated military 155 personnel of this state and any problems or needs of their 156 spouses which the corporation has knowledge of and which may be 157 within the purview of the department in fulfilling its duties. 158 Section 6.Paragraph (c) of subsection (5) of section 159 295.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 160 295.22Veterans Employment and Training Services Program. 161 (5)COLLABORATION. 162 (c)The corporation may collaborate with other state 163 agencies and entities for outreach, information exchange, 164 marketing, and referrals regarding programs and initiatives that 165 include, but are not limited to, the program created by this 166 section and those within any of the following: 167 1.The Department of Veterans Affairs: 168 a.Access to benefits and assistance programs. 169 b.Hope Navigators Program. 170 2.The Department of Commerce: 171 a.The Disabled Veteran Outreach Program and local veteran 172 employment representatives. 173 b.CareerSource Florida, Inc., and local workforce boards 174 employment and recruitment services. 175 c.The Quick-Response Training Program. 176 d.Efforts of the direct-support organization Florida 177 Defense Support Task Force created under s. 288.987, the Florida 178 Small Business Development Center Network, and the direct 179 support organization established in s. 288.012(6). 180 3.The Department of Business and Professional Regulation, 181 reciprocity and the availability of certain license and fee 182 waivers. 183 4.The Department of Education: 184 a.CAPE industry certifications under s. 1008.44. 185 b.Information related to earning postsecondary credit at 186 public postsecondary educational institutions for college-level 187 training and education acquired in the military under s. 188 1004.096. 189 5.The Department of Health: 190 a.The Office of Veteran Licensure Services. 191 b.The Florida Veterans Application for Licensure Online 192 Response expedited licensing. 193 6.The Office of Reimagining Education and Career Help. 194 Section 7.Section 296.43, Florida Statutes, is amended to 195 read: 196 296.43Purpose and statewide plan. 197 (1)PURPOSE.The purpose of this part is to provide for the 198 establishment of basic standards for the operation of veterans 199 adult day health care programs for eligible veterans in need of 200 such services. 201 (2)STATEWIDE PLAN.The department shall develop a plan to 202 establish adult day health care facilities across this state to 203 serve veterans and their families. 204 (a)The plan must include: 205 1.Recommendations for locations that will have the most 206 impact on the veteran population. In making such 207 recommendations, the department shall: 208 a.Provide an evaluation of data, including, but not 209 limited to, veteran population and veteran population 210 demographics. 211 b.Provide an assessment of anticipated veteran needs. 212 2.Potential state and federal participation. 213 3.Estimates for the daily cost of running the facilities. 214 4.Estimates for the daily cost of maintenance and general 215 upkeep of the facilities. 216 5.Locations of existing potential infrastructure. 217 6.Potential construction costs. 218 (b)The department shall provide a report detailing the 219 plan required by this subsection to the President of the Senate 220 and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by November 1, 221 2025. 222 Section 8.Subsection (92) of section 320.08058, Florida 223 Statutes, is amended to read: 224 320.08058Specialty license plates. 225 (92)GADSDEN FLAG LICENSE PLATES. 226 (a)The department shall develop a Gadsden Flag license 227 plate as provided in this section and s. 320.08053. The design 228 of the license plate must replicate the color, layout, and 229 design of the Gadsden Flag. The word Florida must appear at 230 the top of the plate, and the words Dont Tread on Me must 231 appear at the bottom of the plate. 232 (b)The annual use fees shall be distributed to the Florida 233 Veterans Foundation, a direct-support organization of the 234 Department of Veterans Affairs, and must be used to benefit 235 veterans. Up to 10 percent of the proceeds may be used for 236 continuing promotion and marketing of the license plate and for 237 administrative costs. 238 Section 9.For the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the sum of 239 $50,000 in nonrecurring funds from the General Revenue Fund is 240 appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs to conduct a 241 survey evaluating the extent to which resident veterans and 242 their spouses and dependents are aware of existing federal, 243 state, and local programs and services that meet their areas of 244 need and for the department to develop a plan to establish adult 245 day health care facilities across this state to serve veterans 246 and their families. 247 Section 10.For the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the sum of 248 $300,000 in nonrecurring funds from the General Revenue Fund is 249 appropriated to the contracted services category to the 250 Department of Veterans Affairs to implement the Veteran Suicide 251 Prevention Training Pilot Program, as amended by this act. 252 Section 11.This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.