Senate Bill 0924

    Florida Senate - 2000                                   SB 924

    By Senator Webster





    12-309A-00

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to children; providing for

  3         early-intervention for certain children who are

  4         born visually impaired or blind; requiring a

  5         report; providing an appropriation; providing

  6         an effective date.

  7

  8  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

  9

10         Section 1.  The Legislature finds that all newborns

11  must have a healthy start in life, including babies who are

12  born visually impaired or blind. Early-intervention services

13  at the youngest age greatly improve a child's chances for

14  success in life and reduce the severity of long-term

15  disabilities resulting from babies not developing normally. It

16  is critical to teach parents and caregivers of newborns who

17  are born blind or with visual impairment the skills to assist

18  them so they do not miss critical developmental stages that

19  are normally dependent on vision.

20         Section 2.  (1)  The Blind Babies Program is created

21  within the Division of Blind Services of the Department of

22  Labor and Employment Security to provide community-based

23  early-intervention education to parents and caregivers of

24  visually impaired or blind babies, from birth through 5 years

25  of age, through community-based provider organizations.

26         (2)  The program is not an entitlement and must be made

27  available on a means basis only. The division shall develop a

28  formula for eligibility based on financial means and may

29  create a means-based matrix to set a co-payment fee for

30  families having sufficient financial means.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2000                                   SB 924
    12-309A-00




  1         Section 3.  The Office of Program, Policy Analysis, and

  2  Government Accountability shall conduct a review of, and

  3  prepare a report concerning the Blind Babies Program. The

  4  report must be submitted by January 1, 2002, to the Governor,

  5  the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of

  6  Representatives. The review must be comprehensive but, at a

  7  minimum, must specifically determine:

  8         (1)  The program's progress towards achieving its

  9  established outcomes.

10         (2)  The circumstances contributing to the program's

11  capacity to achieve, not achieve, or exceed its established

12  outcomes.

13         (3)  Whether it will be sound public policy to continue

14  funding the program and the consequences of discontinuing the

15  program.

16         Section 4.  The sum of $1 million is annually

17  appropriated from the General Revenue Fund to the Division of

18  Blind Services of the Department of Labor and Employment

19  Security to fund the Blind Babies Program.

20         Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

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23                          SENATE SUMMARY

24    Creates an early-intervention program for certain
      visually impaired or blind children. Requires a report.
25    Provides an annual appropriation.

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