HB 717

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to procurement of contractual services by
3	a state agency; creating s. 287.0575, F.S.; providing
4	definitions; providing intent with respect to certain
5	requirements relating to the provision of outsourced human
6	services related to mental health, substance abuse, child
7	welfare, or juvenile justice; requiring the acceptance by
8	state agencies of national accreditation of providers of
9	such human services in lieu of, and as a substitute for,
10	specified agency licensing, administrative, and program
11	requirements; requiring that a state agency designated by
12	the Federal Government as a controlling state authority
13	with respect to the provision of specific human services
14	function as the lead agency for the designated service
15	population; providing requirements of lead agencies;
16	providing requirements with respect to contracts for such
17	services; requiring state agencies to provide an analysis
18	that identifies specified costs to human services
19	providers; requiring a fiscal impact statement; requiring
20	state agencies to accept mandated reports and invoices
21	electronically and establish a procedure that allows for
22	posting of all core documents in secure electronic
23	storage; providing for agency access to such storage for
24	monitoring core documents; providing that failure by a
25	governmental entity to negotiate a contract amendment to
26	remedy a material adverse financial impact of a new
27	governmental mandate constitutes an agency action for
28	purposes of the Administrative Procedure Act; providing
29	for annual reports by state agencies; amending s. 216.136,
30	F.S.; requiring the Social Services Estimating Conference
31	to convene annually for the purpose of developing
32	information related to mental health, substance abuse,
33	child welfare, and juvenile justice services needs;
34	providing an effective date.
35
36	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
37
38	Section 1.  Section 287.0575, Florida Statutes, is created
39	to read:
40	287.0575  Outsourced human services related to mental
41	health, substance abuse, child welfare, or juvenile justice.-
42	(1)  For the purposes of this section:
43	(a)  "Material adverse financial impact" means an increase
44	in reasonable costs of $10,000 or more in the annual aggregate
45	to a contractor in performing a contract for the outsourcing of
46	human services related to mental health, substance abuse, child
47	welfare, or juvenile justice.
48	(b)  "New governmental mandate" means a statutory
49	requirement, administrative rule, regulation, assessment,
50	executive order, judicial order, or other governmental
51	requirement, or an agency policy, that was not in effect when a
52	contract for the outsourcing of human services related to mental
53	health, substance abuse, child welfare, or juvenile justice was
54	originally entered into and that directly imposes an obligation
55	on the contractor.
56	(2)  To create a more stable business environment for
57	providing outsourced human services related to mental health,
58	substance abuse, child welfare, or juvenile justice and to
59	ensure accountability, eliminate duplication, and improve
60	efficiency:
61	(a)  Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary,
62	national accreditation of human services providers by the Joint
63	Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the
64	Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, and
65	the Council on Accreditation shall be accepted by state agencies
66	in lieu of the agency's facility licensure onsite review
67	requirements and administrative and program monitoring
68	requirements and shall be accepted as a substitute for the state
69	agency's licensure, administrative, and program monitoring
70	requirements.
71	(b)  Each state agency that has been designated by the
72	Federal Government as the controlling state authority with
73	respect to the provision of specific services related to mental
74	health, substance abuse, child welfare, or juvenile justice
75	shall be the lead agency for the designated service population.
76	Each lead agency shall:
77	1.  Develop a common monitoring protocol that must be
78	utilized by all agencies serving the same population.
79	2.  Implement a plan to coordinate monitoring activities
80	related to the delivery of services to the populations being
81	served by multiple state agencies.
82	3.  Develop common rules that guide delivery of service
83	across the jurisdictions of multiple state agencies serving the
84	same population and coordinate all monitoring activities.
85	4.  Provide for a master list of core required documents
86	for contract monitoring purposes and provide for the collection
87	of such documents from each service provider.
88	(3)  Contracts to outsource human services related to
89	mental health, substance abuse, child welfare, or juvenile
90	justice shall:
91	(a)  Provide that, in the event that a material change to
92	the scope of the contract is imposed upon a service provider and
93	compliance with such change will have a material adverse
94	financial impact on the service provider, the contracting agency
95	shall negotiate a contract amendment with the service provider
96	to increase the maximum obligation amount or unit price of the
97	contract to offset the material adverse financial impact of the
98	change, provided the service provider furnishes evidence to the
99	contracting agency of such material adverse financial impact
100	along with a request to renegotiate the contract based on the
101	proposed change.
102	(b)  Ensure that:
103	1.  Payment will be made on all items not under dispute and
104	that in no event will payment be withheld on undisputed issues
105	pending the resolution of disputed issues.
106	2.  All disputed items shall be reconciled within 30 days.
107	(c)  Provide that any dispersed funds that remain
108	unexpended during the contract term be approved as authorized
109	revenue into the next year for the purposes of cash flow and
110	continuation of the contract.
111	(d)  Include language authorizing, subject to
112	appropriation, an annual cost-of-living adjustment that reflects
113	increases in the consumer price index.
114	(4)  State agencies shall provide an analysis of every new
115	form, procedure, or mandate required of a provider of human
116	services related to mental health, substance abuse, child
117	welfare, or juvenile justice under a contract for the
118	outsourcing of such human services that were not in effect when
119	the contract was originally entered into. The analysis shall
120	identify the cost to the provider of any such new requirements
121	and must be transmitted to the provider before any new form,
122	procedure, or mandate may be used or implemented. The analysis
123	shall also include a fiscal impact statement from the provider
124	with respect to each new form, procedure, or mandate required or
125	imposed.
126	(5)  State agencies shall be required to accept all
127	mandated reports and invoices from service providers
128	electronically and shall establish a procedure that allows for
129	posting of all core documents in secure electronic storage. If a
130	service provider utilizes secure electronic storage, the state
131	agency shall have access to such secure electronic storage for
132	monitoring core documents.
133	(6)  Any contractor aggrieved by the refusal or failure of
134	a governmental unit to negotiate a contract amendment to remedy
135	a material adverse financial impact of a new governmental
136	mandate pursuant to this section constitutes an agency action
137	for the purposes of the Administrative Procedure Act.
138	(7)  By December 30 annually, each agency that contracts
139	for the provision of human services shall prepare a
140	comprehensive list of all contract requirements, mandated
141	reports, outcome measures, and other requirements of a provider.
142	The list shall include citations to reference sources for the
143	mandate, such as laws, rules, or policies. The list shall be
144	submitted to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
145	Speaker of the House of Representatives.
146	Section 2.  Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (6) of
147	section 216.136, Florida Statutes, to read:
148	216.136  Consensus estimating conferences; duties and
149	principals.-
150	(6)  SOCIAL SERVICES ESTIMATING CONFERENCE.-
151	(c)  The Social Services Estimating Conference shall be
152	convened annually for the purpose of developing information
153	related to mental health, substance abuse, child welfare, and
154	juvenile justice services needs. The information developed by
155	the conference shall include, but not be limited to, enrollment,
156	caseloads, utilization, and expenditures and must be reflective
157	of population growth and economic trends.
158	Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.

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