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CHAPTER 2004-356
House Bill No. 723
An act relating to foster care services; amending s. 20.19, F.S.; prohib­
iting certain members of a community alliance from receiving funds
from the Department of Children and Family Services or a commu-
nity-based lead agency; amending s. 409.1671, F.S.; providing addi­
tional requirements for an eligible lead community-based provider
to compete for a privatization project; requiring contracts with lead
community-based providers to include certain standards; revising
requirements for the department’s quality assurance program for
privatized services; directing the Florida Coalition for Children, Inc.,
to develop a plan for a statewide risk pool for community-based
providers that provide foster care and related services under con­
tract with the department or a lead community-based provider; de­
leting a requirement that the department develop a proposal; speci­
fying the requirements of the plan; extending a submission deadline;
revising the process for plan approval; directing the department to
issue a loan upon approval of the plan; modifying the purposes of the
risk pool; revising the purposes for which funding may be recom­
mended to the Legislature; deleting provisions requiring the cre­
ation of a risk pool within the State Treasury; revising the require­
ments for operating the risk pool; authorizing the risk pool to invest
funds and retain interest; providing for payments upon a determina­
tion of insolvency; prohibiting payment of dividends until repayment
of the loan by the department and until the risk pool is actuarially
sound; deleting a requirement for a performance bond; providing for
the risk pool to be managed by the Florida Coalition for Children,
Inc., or its designated contractor; specifying the manner by which
nonmember entities may be authorized to contract with the depart­
ment; providing an exemption from state travel policies for commu-
nity-based providers and subcontractors; creating s. 39.0016, F.S.,
relating to the education of abused, neglected, and abandoned chil­
dren; creating definitions; providing for interpretation of the act;
requiring an agreement between the Department of Children and
Family Services and the Department of Education; requiring agree­
ments between the Department of Children and Family Services
and district school boards or other local educational entities; specify­
ing provisions of such agreements; requiring access to certain infor­
mation; requiring education training components; amending s.
1002.22, F.S., relating to access to student records; authorizing the
release of records to the Department of Children and Family Ser­
vices or a community-based care lead agency; providing effective
dates.
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
Section 1.
Subsection (6) of section 20.19, Florida Statutes, is amended
to read:
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20.19
Department of Children and Family Services.—There is created a
Department of Children and Family Services.
(6)
COMMUNITY ALLIANCES.—
(a)
The department shall, in consultation with local communities, estab­
lish a community alliance of the stakeholders, community leaders, client
representatives and funders of human services in each county to provide a
focal point for community participation and governance of community-based
services. An alliance may cover more than one county when such arrange­
ment is determined to provide for more effective representation. The com­
munity alliance shall represent the diversity of the community.
(b)
The duties of the community alliance shall include, but not necessar­
ily be limited to:
1.
Joint planning for resource utilization in the community, including
resources appropriated to the department and any funds that local funding
sources choose to provide.
2.
Needs assessment and establishment of community priorities for ser­
vice delivery.
3.
Determining community outcome goals to supplement state-required
outcomes.
4.
Serving as a catalyst for community resource development.
5.
Providing for community education and advocacy on issues related to
delivery of services.
6.
Promoting prevention and early intervention services.
(c)
The department shall ensure, to the greatest extent possible, that the
formation of each community alliance builds on the strengths of the existing
community human services infrastructure.
(d)
The initial membership of the community alliance in a county shall
be composed of the following:
1.
The district administrator.
2.
A representative from county government.
3.
A representative from the school district.
4.
A representative from the county United Way.
5.
A representative from the county sheriff’s office.
6.
A representative from the circuit court corresponding to the county.
7.
A representative from the county children’s board, if one exists.
(e)
At any time after the initial meeting of the community alliance, the
community alliance shall adopt bylaws and may increase the membership
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of the alliance to include the state attorney for the judicial circuit in which
the community alliance is located, or his or her designee, the public defender
for the judicial circuit in which the community alliance is located, or his or
her designee, and other individuals and organizations who represent fund­
ing organizations, are community leaders, have knowledge of community-
based service issues, or otherwise represent perspectives that will enable
them to accomplish the duties listed in paragraph (b), if, in the judgment of
the alliance, such change is necessary to adequately represent the diversity
of the population within the community alliance service districts.
(f)
A member of the community alliance, other than a member specified
in paragraph (d), may not receive payment for contractual services from the
department or a community-based care lead agency.
(g)(f) Members of the community alliances shall serve without compensa­
tion, but are entitled to receive reimbursement for per diem and travel
expenses, as provided in s. 112.061. Payment may also be authorized for
preapproved child care expenses or lost wages for members who are consum­
ers of the department’s services and for preapproved child care expenses for
other members who demonstrate hardship.
(h)(g) Members of a community alliance are subject to the provisions of
part III of chapter 112, the Code of Ethics for Public Officers and Employees.
(i)(h)
Actions taken by a community alliance must be consistent with
department policy and state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.
(j)(i)
Alliance members shall annually submit a disclosure statement of
services interests to the department’s inspector general. Any member who
has an interest in a matter under consideration by the alliance must abstain
from voting on that matter.
(k)(j) All alliance meetings are open to the public pursuant to s. 286.011
and the public records provision of s. 119.07(1).
Section 2. Paragraph (e) of subsection (1) and subsections (4), (7), and (8)
of section 409.1671, Florida Statutes, as amended by section 27 of chapter
2003-399, Laws of Florida, are amended, paragraph (e) is added to subsec­
tion (3) of that section, and subsection (10) is added to that section, to read:
409.1671 Foster care and related services; privatization.—
(1)
(e)
As used in this section, the term “eligible lead community-based pro­
vider” means a single agency with which the department shall contract for
the provision of child protective services in a community that is no smaller
than a county. The secretary of the department may authorize more than
one eligible lead community-based provider within a single county when to
do so will result in more effective delivery of foster care and related services.
To compete for a privatization project, such agency must have:
1.
The ability to coordinate, integrate, and manage all child protective
services in the designated community in cooperation with child protective
investigations.
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2.
The ability to ensure continuity of care from entry to exit for all chil­
dren referred from the protective investigation and court systems.
3.
The ability to provide directly, or contract for through a local network
of providers, all necessary child protective services. Such agencies should
directly provide no more than 35 percent of all child protective services
provided.
4.
The willingness to accept accountability for meeting the outcomes and
performance standards related to child protective services established by
the Legislature and the Federal Government.
5.
The capability and the willingness to serve all children referred to it
from the protective investigation and court systems, regardless of the level
of funding allocated to the community by the state, provided all related
funding is transferred.
6.
The willingness to ensure that each individual who provides child
protective services completes the training required of child protective ser­
vice workers by the Department of Children and Family Services.
7.
The ability to maintain eligibility to receive all federal child welfare
funds, including Title IV-E and IV-A funds, currently being used by the
Department of Children and Family Services.
8.
Written agreements with Healthy Families Florida lead entities in
their community, pursuant to s. 409.153, to promote cooperative planning
for the provision of prevention and intervention services.
9.
A board of directors, of which at least 51 percent of the membership
is comprised of persons residing in this state. Of the state residents, at least
51 percent must also reside within the service area of the lead community-
based provider.
(3)
(e)
Each contract with an eligible lead community-based provider must
include all performance outcome measures established by the Legislature
and that are under the control of the lead agency. The standards must be
adjusted annually by contract amendment to enable the department to meet
the legislatively-established statewide standards.
(4)(a) The department, in consultation with the community-based agen­
cies that are undertaking the privatized projects, shall establish a quality
assurance program for privatized services. The quality assurance program
shall be based on standards established by the Adoption and Safe Families
Act as well as by a national accrediting organization such as the Council on
Accreditation of Services for Families and Children, Inc. (COA) or CARF—
the Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission. The department may develop
a request for proposal for such oversight. This program must be developed
and administered at a statewide level. The Legislature intends that the
department be permitted to have limited flexibility to use funds for improv­
ing quality assurance. To this end, the department may transfer up to 0.125
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percent of the total funds from categories used to pay for these contractually
provided services, but the total amount of such transferred funds may not
exceed $300,000 in any fiscal year. When necessary, the department may
establish, in accordance with s. 216.177, additional positions that will be
exclusively devoted to these functions. Any positions required under this
paragraph may be established, notwithstanding ss. 216.262(1)(a) and
216.351. The department, in consultation with the community-based agen­
cies that are undertaking the privatized projects, shall establish minimum
thresholds for each component of service, consistent with standards estab­
lished by the Legislature and the Federal Government. Each program oper­
ated under contract with a community-based agency must be evaluated
annually by the department. The department shall, to the extent possible,
use independent financial audits provided by the community-based care
agency to eliminate or reduce the ongoing contract and administrative re­
views conducted by the department. The department may suggest additional
items to be included in such independent financial audits to meet the depart-
ment’s needs. Should the department determine that such independent fi­
nancial audits are inadequate, then other audits, as necessary, may be
conducted by the department. Nothing herein shall abrogate the require­
ments of s. 215.97. The department shall submit an annual report regarding
quality performance, outcome measure attainment, and cost efficiency to the
President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
minority leader of each house of the Legislature, and the Governor no later
than January 31 of each year for each project in operation during the preced­
ing fiscal year.
(b)
The department shall use these findings in making recommendations
to the Governor and the Legislature for future program and funding priori­
ties in the child welfare system.
(7)
The Florida Coalition for Children, Inc., in consultation with the
department, shall develop a plan based on an independent actuarial study
regarding the long-term use and structure of a statewide community-based
care risk pool for the protection of eligible lead community-based providers,
their subcontractors, and providers of other social services who contract
directly with the department. The plan must also outline strategies to maxi­
mize federal earnings as they relate to the community-based care risk pool.
At a minimum, the plan must allow for the use of federal earnings received
from child welfare programs to be allocated to the community-based care
risk pool by the department, which earnings are determined by the depart­
ment to be in excess of the amount appropriated in the General Appropria­
tions Act. The plan must specify the necessary steps to ensure the financial
integrity and industry-standard risk management practices of the communi-
ty-based care risk pool and the continued availability of funding from fed­
eral, state, and local sources. The plan must also include recommendations
that permit the program to be available to entities of the department provid­
ing child welfare services until full conversion to community-based care
takes place. The final plan shall be submitted to the department and then
to the Executive Office of the Governor and the Legislative Budget Commis­
sion for formal adoption before January 1, 2005. Upon approval of the plan
by all parties, the department shall issue an interest-free loan that is se­
cured by the cumulative contractual revenue of the community-based care
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risk pool membership, and the amount of the loan shall equal the amount
appropriated by the Legislature for this purpose. The plan shall provide for
a governance structure that assures the department the ability to oversee
the operation of the community-based care risk pool at least until this loan
is repaid in full.
(a)
The purposes for which the community-based care risk pool shall be
used include, but are not limited to:
1.
Significant changes in the number or composition of clients eligible to
receive services.
2.
Significant changes in the services that are eligible for reimburse­
ment.
3.
Scheduled or unanticipated, but necessary, advances to providers or
other cash-flow issues.
4.
Proposals to participate in optional Medicaid services or other federal
grant opportunities.
5.
Appropriate incentive structures.
6.
Continuity of care in the event of failure, discontinuance of service, or
financial misconduct by a lead agency.
7.
Payment for time-limited technical assistance and consultation to lead
agencies in the event of serious performance or management problems.
8.
Payment for meeting all traditional and nontraditional insurance
needs of eligible members.
9.
Significant changes in the mix of available funds.
(b)
After approval of the plan in the 2004-2005 fiscal year and annually
thereafter, the department may also request in its annual legislative budget
request, and the Governor may recommend, that the funding necessary to
carry out paragraph (a) be appropriated to the department. Subsequent
funding of the community-based care risk pool shall be supported by premi­
ums assessed to members of the community-based care risk pool on a recur­
ring basis. The community-based care risk pool may invest and retain inter­
est earned on these funds. In addition, the department may transfer funds
to the community-based care risk pool as available in order to ensure an
adequate funding level if the fund is declared to be insolvent and approval
is granted by the Legislative Budget Commission. Such payments for insol­
vency shall be made only after a determination is made by the department
or its actuary that all participants in the community-based care risk pool are
current in their payments of premiums and that assessments have been
made at an actuarially sound level. Such payments by participants in the
community-based care risk pool may not exceed reasonable industry stand­
ards, as determined by the actuary. Money from this fund may be used to
match available federal dollars. Dividends or other payments, with the ex­
ception of legitimate claims, may not be paid to members of the community-
based care risk pool until the loan issued by the department is repaid in full.
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Dividends or other payments, with the exception of legitimate claims and
other purposes contained in the approved plan, may not be paid to members
of the community-based care risk pool unless, at the time of distribution, the
community-based care risk pool is deemed actuarially sound and solvent.
Solvency shall be determined by an independent actuary contracted by the
department. The plan shall be developed in consultation with the Office of
Insurance Regulation.
1.
Such funds shall constitute partial security for contract performance
by lead agencies and shall be used to offset the need for a performance bond.
Subject to the approval of the plan, the community-based care risk pool shall
be managed by the Florida Coalition for Children, Inc., or the designated
contractors of the Florida Coalition for Children, Inc. Nonmembers of the
community-based care risk pool may continue to contract with the depart­
ment, but must provide a letter of credit equal to one-twelfth of the annual
contract amount in lieu of membership in the community-based care risk
pool.
2.
The department may separately require a bond to mitigate the finan­
cial consequences of potential acts of malfeasance, misfeasance, or criminal
violations by the provider.
(7)
The department, in consultation with existing lead agencies, shall
develop a proposal regarding the long-term use and structure of a statewide
shared earnings program which addresses the financial risk to eligible lead
community-based providers resulting from unanticipated caseload growth
or from significant changes in client mixes or services eligible for federal
reimbursement. The recommendations in the statewide proposal must also
be available to entities of the department until the conversion to community-
based care takes place. At a minimum, the proposal must allow for use of
federal earnings received from child welfare programs, which earnings are
determined by the department to be in excess of the amount appropriated
in the General Appropriations Act, to be used for specific purposes. These
purposes include, but are not limited to:
(a)
Significant changes in the number or composition of clients eligible
to receive services.
(b)
Significant changes in the services that are eligible for reimburse­
ment.
(c)
Significant changes in the availability of federal funds.
(d)
Shortfalls in state funds available for eligible or ineligible services.
(e)
Significant changes in the mix of available funds.
(f)
Scheduled or unanticipated, but necessary, advances to providers or
other cash-flow issues.
(g)
Proposals to participate in optional Medicaid services or other federal
grant opportunities.
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(h)
Appropriate incentive structures.
(i)
Continuity of care in the event of lead agency failure, discontinuance
of service, or financial misconduct.
The department shall further specify the necessary steps to ensure the
financial integrity of these dollars and their continued availability on an
ongoing basis. The final proposal shall be submitted to the Legislative
Budget Commission for formal adoption before December 31, 2002. If the
Legislative Budget Commission refuses to concur with the adoption of the
proposal, the department shall present its proposal in the form of recom­
mended legislation to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Representatives before the commencement of the next legislative
session. For fiscal year 2003-2004 and annually thereafter, the Department
of Children and Family Services may request in its legislative budget re­
quest, and the Governor may recommend, the funding necessary to carry out
paragraph (i) from excess federal earnings. The General Appropriations Act
shall include any funds appropriated for this purpose in a lump sum in the
Administered Funds Program, which funds constitute partial security for
lead agency contract performance. The department shall use this appropria­
tion to offset the need for a performance bond for that year after a compari­
son of risk to the funds available. In no event shall this performance bond
exceed 2.5 percent of the annual contract value. The department may sepa­
rately require a bond to mitigate the financial consequences of potential acts
of malfeasance, misfeasance, or criminal violations by the provider. Prior to
the release of any funds in the lump sum, the department shall submit a
detailed operational plan, which must identify the sources of specific trust
funds to be used. The release of the trust fund shall be subject to the notice
and review provisions of s. 216.177. However, the release shall not require
approval of the Legislative Budget Commission.
(8)
Notwithstanding the provisions of s. 215.425, all documented federal
funds earned for the current fiscal year by the department and community-
based agencies which exceed the amount appropriated by the Legislature
shall be distributed to all entities that contributed to the excess earnings
based on a schedule and methodology developed by the department and
approved by the Executive Office of the Governor. Distribution shall be pro
rata based on total earnings and shall be made only to those entities that
contributed to excess earnings. Excess earnings of community-based agen­
cies shall be used only in the service district in which they were earned.
Additional state funds appropriated by the Legislature for community-based
agencies or made available pursuant to the budgetary amendment process
described in s. 216.177 shall be transferred to the community-based agen­
cies. The department shall amend a community-based agency’s contract to
permit expenditure of the funds. The distribution program applies only to
entities that were under privatization contracts as of July 1, 2002.
(10)
The lead community-based providers and their subcontractors shall
be exempt from state travel policies as set forth in s. 112.061(3)(a) for their
travel expenses incurred in order to comply with the requirements of this
section.
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Section 3. Section 39.0016, Florida Statutes, is created to read:
39.0016 Education of abused, neglected, and abandoned children.—
(1)
As used in this section, the term:
(a)
“Children known to the department” means children who are found
to be dependent or children in shelter care.
(b)
“Department” means the Department of Children and Family Ser­
vices or a community-based care lead agency acting on behalf of the Depart­
ment of Children and Family Services, as appropriate.
(2)
The provisions of this section establish goals and not rights. This
section does not require the delivery of any particular service or level of
service in excess of existing appropriations. A person may not maintain a
cause of action against the state or any of its subdivisions, agencies, contrac­
tors, subcontractors, or agents based upon this section becoming law or
failure by the Legislature to provide adequate funding for the achievement
of these goals. This section does not require the expenditure of funds to meet
the goals established in this section except funds specifically appropriated
for such purpose.
(3)
The department shall enter into an agreement with the Department
of Education regarding the education and related care of children known to
the department. Such agreement shall be designed to provide educational
access to children known to the department for the purpose of facilitating
the delivery of services or programs to children known to the department.
The agreement shall avoid duplication of services or programs and shall
provide for combining resources to maximize the availability or delivery of
services or programs.
(4)
The department shall enter into agreements with district school
boards or other local educational entities regarding education and related
services for children known to the department who are of school age and
children known to the department who are younger than school age but who
would otherwise qualify for services from the district school board. Such
agreements shall include, but are not limited to:
(a)
A requirement that the department shall:
1.
Enroll children known to the department in school. The agreement
shall provide for continuing the enrollment of a child known to the depart­
ment at the same school, if possible, with the goal of avoiding disruption of
education.
2.
Notify the school and school district in which a child known to the
department is enrolled of the name and phone number of the child known
to the department caregiver and caseworker for child safety purposes.
3.
Establish a protocol for the department to share information about a
child known to the department with the school district, consistent with the
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, since the sharing of information
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will assist each agency in obtaining education and related services for the
benefit of the child.
4.
Notify the school district of the department’s case planning for a child
known to the department, both at the time of plan development and plan
review. Within the plan development or review process, the school district
may provide information regarding the child known to the department if the
school district deems it desirable and appropriate.
(b)
A requirement that the district school board shall:
1.
Provide the department with a general listing of the services and
information available from the district school board, including, but not lim­
ited to, the current Sunshine State Standards, the Surrogate Parent Train­
ing Manual, and other resources accessible through the Department of Edu­
cation or local school districts to facilitate educational access for a child
known to the department.
2.
Identify all educational and other services provided by the school and
school district which the school district believes are reasonably necessary to
meet the educational needs of a child known to the department.
3.
Determine whether transportation is available for a child known to the
department when such transportation will avoid a change in school assign­
ment due to a change in residential placement. Recognizing that continued
enrollment in the same school throughout the time the child known to the
department is in out-of-home care is preferable unless enrollment in the
same school would be unsafe or otherwise impractical, the department, the
district school board, and the Department of Education shall assess the
availability of federal, charitable, or grant funding for such transportation.
4.
Provide individualized student intervention or an individual educa­
tional plan when a determination has been made through legally appropri­
ate criteria that intervention services are required. The intervention or
individual educational plan must include strategies to enable the child
known to the department to maximize the attainment of educational goals.
(c)
A requirement that the department and the district school board shall
cooperate in accessing the services and supports needed for a child known
to the department who has or is suspected of having a disability to receive
an appropriate education consistent with the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act and state implementing laws, rules, and assurances. Coordi­
nation of services for a child known to the department who has or is sus­
pected of having a disability may include:
1.
Referral for screening.
2.
Sharing of evaluations between the school district and the department
where appropriate.
3.
Provision of education and related services appropriate for the needs
and abilities of the child known to the department.
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4.
Coordination of services and plans between the school and the residen­
tial setting to avoid duplication or conflicting service plans.
5.
Appointment of a surrogate parent, consistent with the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act, for educational purposes for a child known
to the department who qualifies as soon as the child is determined to be
dependent and without a parent to act for the child. The surrogate parent
shall be appointed by the school district without regard to where the child
known to the department is placed so that one surrogate parent can follow
the education of the child known to the department during his or her entire
time in state custody.
6.
For each child known to the department 14 years of age and older,
transition planning by the department and all providers, including the de-
partment’s independent living program staff, to meet the requirements of
the local school district for educational purposes.
(5)
The department shall incorporate an education component into all
training programs of the department regarding children known to the de­
partment. Such training shall be coordinated with the Department of Edu­
cation and the local school districts. The department shall offer opportuni­
ties for education personnel to participate in such training. Such coordina­
tion shall include, but not be limited to, notice of training sessions, opportu­
nities to purchase training materials, proposals to avoid duplication of ser­
vices by offering joint training, and incorporation of materials available from
the Department of Education and local school districts into the department
training when appropriate. The department training components shall in­
clude:
(a)
Training for surrogate parents to include how an ability to learn of
a child known to the department is affected by abuse, abandonment, neglect,
and removal from the home.
(b)
Training for parents in cases in which reunification is the goal, or for
preadoptive parents when adoption is the goal, so that such parents learn
how to access the services the child known to the department needs and the
importance of their involvement in the education of the child known to the
department.
(c)
Training for caseworkers and foster parents to include information on
the right of the child known to the department to an education, the role of
an education in the development and adjustment of a child known to the
department, the proper ways to access education and related services for the
child known to the department, and the importance and strategies for paren­
tal involvement in education for the success of the child known to the depart­
ment.
(d)
Training of caseworkers regarding the services and information avail­
able through the Department of Education and local school districts, includ­
ing, but not limited to, the current Sunshine State Standards, the Surrogate
Parent Training Manual, and other resources accessible through the De­
partment of Education or local school districts to facilitate educational ac­
cess for a child known to the department.
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Section 4. Paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section 1002.22, Florida
Statutes, is amended to read:
1002.22 Student records and reports; rights of parents and students;
notification; penalty.—
(3)
RIGHTS OF PARENT OR STUDENT.—The parent of any student
who attends or has attended any public school, area technical center, or
public postsecondary educational institution shall have the following rights
with respect to any records or reports created, maintained, and used by any
public educational institution in the state. However, whenever a student has
attained 18 years of age, or is attending a postsecondary educational institu­
tion, the permission or consent required of, and the rights accorded to, the
parents of the student shall thereafter be required of and accorded to the
student only, unless the student is a dependent student of such parents as
defined in 26 U.S.C. s. 152 (s. 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954). The
State Board of Education shall adopt rules whereby parents or students may
exercise these rights:
(d)
Right of privacy.—Every student shall have a right of privacy with
respect to the educational records kept on him or her. Personally identifiable
records or reports of a student, and any personal information contained
therein, are confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1). A
No state or local educational agency, board, public school, technical center,
or public postsecondary educational institution may not shall permit the
release of such records, reports, or information without the written consent
of the student’s parent, or of the student himself or herself if he or she is
qualified as provided in this subsection, to any individual, agency, or organi­
zation. However, personally identifiable records or reports of a student may
be released to the following persons or organizations without the consent of
the student or the student’s parent:
1.
Officials of schools, school systems, technical centers, or public post­
secondary educational institutions in which the student seeks or intends to
enroll; and a copy of such records or reports shall be furnished to the parent
or student upon request.
2.
Other school officials, including teachers within the educational insti­
tution or agency, who have legitimate educational interests in the informa­
tion contained in the records.
3.
The United States Secretary of Education, the Director of the National
Institute of Education, the Assistant Secretary for Education, the Comptrol­
ler General of the United States, or state or local educational authorities
who are authorized to receive such information subject to the conditions set
forth in applicable federal statutes and regulations of the United States
Department of Education, or in applicable state statutes and rules of the
State Board of Education.
4.
Other school officials, in connection with a student’s application for or
receipt of financial aid.
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5.
Individuals or organizations conducting studies for or on behalf of an
institution or a board of education for the purpose of developing, validating,
or administering predictive tests, administering student aid programs, or
improving instruction, if such studies are conducted in such a manner as will
not permit the personal identification of students and their parents by per­
sons other than representatives of such organizations and if such informa­
tion will be destroyed when no longer needed for the purpose of conducting
such studies.
6.
Accrediting organizations, in order to carry out their accrediting func­
tions.
7.
School readiness coalitions and the Florida Partnership for School
Readiness in order to carry out their assigned duties.
8.
For use as evidence in student expulsion hearings conducted by a
district school board pursuant to the provisions of chapter 120.
9.
Appropriate parties in connection with an emergency, if knowledge of
the information in the student’s educational records is necessary to protect
the health or safety of the student or other individuals.
10.
The Auditor General and the Office of Program Policy Analysis and
Government Accountability in connection with their official functions; how­
ever, except when the collection of personally identifiable information is
specifically authorized by law, any data collected by the Auditor General and
the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability is
confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and shall be
protected in such a way as will not permit the personal identification of
students and their parents by other than the Auditor General, the Office of
Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability, and their staff,
and such personally identifiable data shall be destroyed when no longer
needed for the Auditor General’s and the Office of Program Policy Analysis
and Government Accountability’s official use.
11.a.
A court of competent jurisdiction in compliance with an order of
that court or the attorney of record pursuant to a lawfully issued subpoena,
upon the condition that the student and the student’s parent are notified of
the order or subpoena in advance of compliance therewith by the educational
institution or agency.
b.
A person or entity pursuant to a court of competent jurisdiction in
compliance with an order of that court or the attorney of record pursuant to
a lawfully issued subpoena, upon the condition that the student, or his or
her parent if the student is either a minor and not attending a postsecondary
educational institution or a dependent of such parent as defined in 26 U.S.C.
s. 152 (s. 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954), is notified of the order
or subpoena in advance of compliance therewith by the educational institu­
tion or agency.
12.
Credit bureaus, in connection with an agreement for financial aid
that the student has executed, provided that such information may be dis­
closed only to the extent necessary to enforce the terms or conditions of the
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Ch. 2004-356
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Ch. 2004-356
financial aid agreement. Credit bureaus shall not release any information
obtained pursuant to this paragraph to any person.
13.
Parties to an interagency agreement among the Department of Juve­
nile Justice, school and law enforcement authorities, and other signatory
agencies for the purpose of reducing juvenile crime and especially motor
vehicle theft by promoting cooperation and collaboration, and the sharing
of appropriate information in a joint effort to improve school safety, to
reduce truancy and in-school and out-of-school suspensions, and to support
alternatives to in-school and out-of-school suspensions and expulsions that
provide structured and well-supervised educational programs supple­
mented by a coordinated overlay of other appropriate services designed to
correct behaviors that lead to truancy, suspensions, and expulsions, and
that support students in successfully completing their education. Informa­
tion provided in furtherance of such interagency agreements is intended
solely for use in determining the appropriate programs and services for each
juvenile or the juvenile’s family, or for coordinating the delivery of such
programs and services, and as such is inadmissible in any court proceedings
prior to a dispositional hearing unless written consent is provided by a
parent or other responsible adult on behalf of the juvenile.
14.
Consistent with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, the
Department of Children and Family Services or a community-based care
lead agency acting on behalf of the Department of Children and Family
Services, as appropriate.
This paragraph does not prohibit any educational institution from publish­
ing and releasing to the general public directory information relating to a
student if the institution elects to do so. However, no educational institution
shall release, to any individual, agency, or organization that is not listed in
subparagraphs 1.-14. 1.-13., directory information relating to the student
body in general or a portion thereof unless it is normally published for the
purpose of release to the public in general. Any educational institution
making directory information public shall give public notice of the categories
of information that it has designated as directory information with respect
to all students attending the institution and shall allow a reasonable period
of time after such notice has been given for a parent or student to inform the
institution in writing that any or all of the information designated should
not be released.
Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2004.
Approved by the Governor June 23, 2004.
Filed in Office Secretary of State June 23, 2004.
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