HB 677

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to child protective services; amending
3	s. 39.6012, F.S.; requiring a case plan for a child
4	receiving services from the Department of Children and
5	Family Services to include additional documentation
6	relating to a child's school attendance and parent or
7	caregiver efforts to permit the child to remain in the
8	school attended at the time of placement in care;
9	requiring a case plan for middle school or high school
10	students to include information regarding programs and
11	services that prepare the student for the transition
12	from care to independent living; requiring a case plan
13	to contain procedures for a child who is in middle
14	school or high school to directly access and manage a
15	personal allowance; creating s. 39.6015, F.S.;
16	requiring certain adult caregivers to serve as
17	education advocates for a child in middle school or
18	high school; providing a timeframe for appointing a
19	surrogate parent for a child who has a disability;
20	requiring the community-based provider to document the
21	selection of an education advocate or surrogate parent
22	in the child's case plan; providing an effective date.
23
24	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
25
26	Section 1.  Subsections (2) and (3) of section 39.6012,
27	Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (4) is added to
28	that section, to read:
29	39.6012  Case plan tasks; services.-
30	(2)  The case plan must include all available information
31	that is relevant to the child's care including, at a minimum:
32	(a)  A description of the identified needs of the child
33	while in care.
34	(b)  A description of the plan for ensuring that the child
35	receives safe and proper care and that services are provided to
36	the child in order to address the child's needs. To the extent
37	available and accessible, the following health, mental health,
38	and education information and records of the child must be
39	attached to the case plan and updated throughout the judicial
40	review process:
41	1.  The names and addresses of the child's health, mental
42	health, and educational providers;
43	2.  The child's grade level performance;
44	3.  The child's school record, including the child's
45	attendance record;
46	4.  A description of the parent or current caregiver's
47	efforts to address problems relating to school attendance and
48	improve the child's school attendance, if such problems exist;
49	5.4.  Assurances that the child's placement takes into
50	account proximity to the school in which the child is enrolled
51	at the time of placement and that efforts were made to allow the
52	child to remain in that school if it is in the best interest of
53	the child;
54	6.5.  A record of the child's immunizations;
55	7.6.  The child's known medical history, including any
56	known problems;
57	8.7.  The child's medications, if any; and
58	9.8.  Any other relevant health, mental health, and
59	education information concerning the child.
60	(3)  In addition to any other requirement, if the child is
61	in an out-of-home placement, the case plan must include:
62	(a)  A description of the type of placement in which the
63	child is to be living.
64	(b)  A description of the parent's visitation rights and
65	obligations and the plan for sibling visitation if the child has
66	siblings and is separated from them.
67	(c)  When appropriate, for a child who is in middle school
68	or high school 13 years of age or older, a written description
69	of the programs and services that will help the child prepare
70	for the transition from foster care to independent living.
71	(d)  A discussion of the safety and the appropriateness of
72	the child's placement, which placement is intended to be safe,
73	and the least restrictive and the most family-like setting
74	available consistent with the best interest and special needs of
75	the child and in as close proximity as possible to the child's
76	home.
77	(4)  The case plan must contain procedures for a child who
78	is in middle school or high school to directly access and manage
79	the personal allowance he or she receives from the department in
80	order to learn responsibility and participate, to the extent
81	feasible, in age-appropriate life skills activities.
82	Section 2.  Section 39.6015, Florida Statutes, is created
83	to read:
84	39.6015  Services for children in middle school or high
85	school in care.-
86	(1)  A child in middle school or high school in care shall
87	have an adult caregiver who is knowledgeable about schools and
88	children in care and who serves as an education advocate to
89	reinforce the value of the child's investment in education, to
90	ensure that the child receives a high-quality education, and to
91	help the child plan for middle school, high school, and
92	postschool training, employment, or college. The education
93	advocate may be a caregiver, care manager, guardian ad litem,
94	educator, community volunteer, or individual hired and trained
95	for the specific purpose of serving as an education advocate.
96	(2)  A child in middle school or high school in care who
97	has a disability and is eligible for the appointment of a
98	surrogate parent, as required in s. 39.0016, shall be assigned a
99	surrogate parent in a timely manner, but no later than 30 days
100	after a determination that a surrogate parent is needed.
101	(3)  The community-based provider shall document in the
102	child's case plan that an education advocate has been identified
103	for each child in care or that a surrogate parent has been
104	appointed for each child in care who has a disability.
105	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.

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