ENROLLED
       2015 Legislature                        SB 2510-A, 1st Engrossed
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                                            20152510Aer
    1  
    2         An act relating to the Department of Children and
    3         Families; amending s. 409.991, F.S.; revising the
    4         equity allocation model for funding community-based
    5         care lead agencies; defining the term “proportion of
    6         child population”; revising the term “proportion of
    7         children in care”; creating s. 414.455, F.S.;
    8         requiring the department to receive legislative
    9         authorization before seeking, applying for, accepting,
   10         or renewing any waiver of work requirements under the
   11         federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program;
   12         providing for construction of the act in pari materia
   13         with laws enacted during the 2015 Regular Session of
   14         the Legislature; providing for contingent retroactive
   15         operation; providing effective dates.
   16          
   17  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   18  
   19         Section 1. Section 409.991, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   20  read:
   21         409.991 Allocation of funds for community-based care lead
   22  agencies.—
   23         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   24         (a) “Core services funds funding” means all funds allocated
   25  to community-based care lead agencies operating under contract
   26  with the department pursuant to s. 409.987, with the following
   27  exceptions:
   28         1. Funds appropriated for independent living;
   29         2. Funds appropriated for maintenance adoption subsidies;
   30         3. Funds allocated by the department for protective
   31  investigations training;
   32         4. Nonrecurring funds;
   33         5. Designated mental health wrap-around services funds; and
   34         6. Funds for special projects for a designated community
   35  based care lead agency.
   36         (b) “Equity allocation model” means an allocation model
   37  that uses the following factors:
   38         1. Proportion of the child population children in poverty;
   39         2. Proportion of child abuse hotline workload; and
   40         3. Proportion of children in care; and
   41         4. Proportion of contribution in the reduction of out-of
   42  home care.
   43         (c) “Proportion of child population” means the proportion
   44  of children up to 18 years of age during the previous calendar
   45  year in the geographic area served by the community-based care
   46  lead agency “Proportion of children in poverty” means the
   47  average of the proportion of children in the geographic area
   48  served by the community-based care lead agency based on the
   49  following subcomponents:
   50         1. Children up to 18 years of age who are below the poverty
   51  level as determined by the latest available Small Area Income
   52  and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) from the United States Census
   53  Bureau;
   54         2. Children eligible for free or reduced-price meals as
   55  determined by the latest available survey published by the
   56  Department of Education; and
   57         3. The number of children in families receiving benefits
   58  from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
   59  (SNAP) in the most recent month as determined by the department.
   60         (d) “Proportion of child abuse hotline workload” means the
   61  weighted average of the following subcomponents:
   62         1. The average number of initial and additional child abuse
   63  reports received during the month for the most recent 12 months
   64  based on child protective investigations trend reports as
   65  determined by the department. This subcomponent shall be
   66  weighted as 20 percent of the factor.
   67         2. The average count of children in investigations in the
   68  most recent 12 months based on child protective investigations
   69  trend reports as determined by the department. This subcomponent
   70  shall be weighted as 40 percent of the factor.
   71         3. The average count of children in investigations with a
   72  most serious finding of verified abuse in the most recent 12
   73  months based on child protective investigations trend reports as
   74  determined by the department. This subcomponent shall be
   75  weighted as 40 percent of the factor.
   76         (e) “Proportion of children in care” means the proportion
   77  of the sum of the number of children in care receiving in-home
   78  services and the number of children in out-of-home care with a
   79  case management overlay during the most recent 12-month period.
   80  This subcomponent shall be weighted as follows:
   81         1. Sixty percent shall be based on children in out-of-home
   82  care.
   83         2. Forty percent shall be based on children in in-home care
   84  at the end of the most recent month as reported in the child
   85  welfare services trend reports as determined by the department.
   86         (f) “Proportion of contribution in the reduction of out-of
   87  home care” means the proportion of the number of children in
   88  out-of-home care on December 31, 2006, minus the number of
   89  children in out-of-home care as of the end of the most recent
   90  month as reported in the child welfare services trend reports as
   91  determined by the department.
   92         (2) The equity allocation of core services funds shall be
   93  calculated based on the following weights:
   94         (a) Proportion of the child population children in poverty
   95  shall be weighted as 5 30 percent of the total;
   96         (b) Proportion of child abuse hotline workload shall be
   97  weighted as 15 30 percent of the total; and
   98         (c) Proportion of children in care shall be weighted as 80
   99  30 percent of the total; and
  100         (d) Proportion of contribution to the reduction in out-of
  101  home care shall be weighted as 10 percent of the total.
  102         (3) Beginning in the 2015-2016 2013-2014 state fiscal year,
  103  100 90 percent of the recurring core services funding for each
  104  community-based care lead agency shall be based on the prior
  105  year recurring base of core services funds and 10 percent shall
  106  be based on the equity allocation model.
  107         (4) Unless otherwise specified in the General
  108  Appropriations Act, any new core services funds shall be
  109  allocated based on the equity allocation model as follows:
  110         (a) Twenty percent of new funding shall be allocated among
  111  all community-based care lead agencies.
  112         (b) Eighty percent of new funding shall be allocated among
  113  community-based care lead agencies that are funded below their
  114  equitable share. Funds allocated pursuant to this paragraph
  115  shall be weighted based on each community-based care lead
  116  agency’s relative proportion of the total amount of funding
  117  below the equitable share. Such allocations must be proportional
  118  to the proportion of funding based on the equity model and
  119  allocated only to the community-based care lead agency contracts
  120  if the current funding proportion is less than the proportion of
  121  funding based on the equity model.
  122         Section 2. Effective January 1, 2016, section 414.455,
  123  Florida Statutes, is created to read:
  124         414.455 Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program;
  125  legislative authorization.—Notwithstanding s. 414.45, and unless
  126  expressly required by federal law, the department shall obtain
  127  specific authorization from the Legislature before seeking,
  128  applying for, accepting, or renewing any waiver of work
  129  requirements established by the Supplemental Nutrition
  130  Assistance Program under 7 U.S.C. s. 2015(o).
  131         Section 3. If any law amended by this act was also amended
  132  by a law enacted during the 2015 Regular Session of the
  133  Legislature, such laws shall be construed as if enacted during
  134  the same session of the Legislature, and full effect shall be
  135  given to each if possible.
  136         Section 4. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
  137  act and except for this section, which shall take effect upon
  138  this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect July 1,
  139  2015, or, if this act fails to become a law until after that
  140  date, it shall take effect upon becoming a law and operate
  141  retroactively to July 1, 2015.