Florida Senate - 2014 SB 358
By Senator Ring
29-00558-14 2014358__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to volunteers for organized youth
3 sports and recreational programs; amending s.
4 943.0438, F.S.; defining the terms “volunteer” and
5 “youth sports or recreation authority”; expanding
6 provisions relating to athletic coaches for
7 independent sanctioning authorities to require youth
8 sports or recreation authorities to conduct specified
9 background screening of all volunteers with any youth
10 athletic team or organized youth recreational program
11 using publicly owned facilities; prohibiting a youth
12 sports or recreation authority from delegating such
13 duty; requiring that specified documentation be
14 maintained for a specified period by such authorities;
15 conforming provisions to changes made by the act;
16 providing an effective date.
17
18 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
19
20 Section 1. Section 943.0438, Florida Statutes, is amended
21 to read:
22 943.0438 Volunteers Athletic coaches for organized youth
23 sports and recreation independent sanctioning authorities.—
24 (1) As used in this section, the term:
25 (a) “Volunteer Athletic coach” means a person who:
26 1. Is authorized by a youth sports or recreation an
27 independent sanctioning authority to work for 20 or more hours
28 within a calendar year, whether for compensation or as a
29 volunteer, for a youth athletic team or organized youth
30 recreational program using publicly owned facilities based in
31 this state; and
32 2. Has direct contact with one or more minors on the youth
33 athletic team.
34 (b) “Youth sports or recreation Independent sanctioning
35 authority” means a private, nongovernmental entity that
36 organizes, operates, or coordinates a youth athletic team or
37 organized youth recreational program using publicly owned
38 facilities in this state if the team or program includes one or
39 more minors and is not affiliated with a private school as
40 defined in s. 1002.01.
41 (2) A youth sports or recreation An independent sanctioning
42 authority shall:
43 (a)1. Conduct a background screening of each current and
44 prospective volunteer athletic coach. The authority may not
45 delegate this responsibility to an individual team or program
46 and may not authorize a No person shall be authorized by the
47 independent sanctioning authority to act as a volunteer an
48 athletic coach unless a background screening is has been
49 conducted and does did not result in disqualification under
50 paragraph (b). Background screenings shall be conducted annually
51 for each volunteer athletic coach. For purposes of this section,
52 a background screening shall be conducted with a search of the
53 volunteer’s athletic coach’s name or other identifying
54 information against state and federal registries of sexual
55 predators and sexual offenders, which are available to the
56 public on Internet sites provided by:
57 a. The Department of Law Enforcement under s. 943.043; and
58 b. The Attorney General of the United States under 42
59 U.S.C. s. 16920.
60 2. For purposes of this section, a background screening
61 conducted by a commercial consumer reporting agency in
62 compliance with the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act using the
63 identifying information referenced in subparagraph 1. and that
64 includes searching that information against the sexual predator
65 and sexual offender Internet sites listed in sub-subparagraphs
66 1.a. and b. is shall be deemed to satisfy in compliance with the
67 requirements of this paragraph section.
68 (b) Disqualify a any person from acting as a volunteer an
69 athletic coach if he or she is identified on a registry
70 described in paragraph (a).
71 (c) Provide, within 7 business days after following the
72 background screening under paragraph (a), written notice to a
73 person disqualified under this section advising the person of
74 the results and of his or her disqualification.
75 (d) Maintain for at least 5 years documentation of:
76 1. The results for each person screened under paragraph
77 (a); and
78 2. The written notice of disqualification provided to each
79 person under paragraph (c).
80 (e) Adopt guidelines to educate volunteers athletic
81 coaches, officials, administrators, and youth athletes and their
82 parents or guardians of the nature and risk of concussion and
83 head injury.
84 (f) Adopt bylaws or policies that require the parent or
85 guardian of a youth who is participating in athletic competition
86 or other recreational programs or who is a candidate for an
87 athletic team or recreational program to sign and return an
88 informed consent that explains the nature and risk of concussion
89 and head injury, including the risk of continuing to play after
90 concussion or head injury, each year before participating in
91 athletic competition or other recreational programs, or engaging
92 in any practice, tryout, workout, or other physical activity
93 associated with the youth’s candidacy for an athletic team or
94 recreational program.
95 (g) Adopt bylaws or policies that require each youth
96 athlete or recreational program participant who is suspected of
97 sustaining a concussion or head injury in a practice or
98 competition to be immediately removed from the activity. A youth
99 athlete or recreational program participant who is has been
100 removed from an activity may not return to practice or
101 competition until the youth or participant submits to a
102 volunteer or volunteer supervisor the athletic coach a written
103 medical clearance to return stating that he or she the youth
104 athlete no longer exhibits signs, symptoms, or behaviors
105 consistent with a concussion or other head injury. Medical
106 clearance must be authorized by the appropriate health care
107 practitioner trained in the diagnosis, evaluation, and
108 management of concussions as defined by the Sports Medicine
109 Advisory Committee of the Florida High School Athletic
110 Association.
111 (3) In a civil action for the death of, or injury or damage
112 to, a third person caused by the intentional tort of a volunteer
113 an athletic coach that relates to alleged sexual misconduct by
114 the volunteer athletic coach, there is a rebuttable presumption
115 that the youth sports or recreation independent sanctioning
116 authority was not negligent in authorizing the person to act as
117 a volunteer athletic coach if the authority complied with the
118 background screening and disqualification requirements of
119 subsection (2) before prior to such authorization.
120 (4) The Legislature encourages youth sports and recreation
121 independent sanctioning authorities for youth athletic teams to
122 participate in the Volunteer and Employee Criminal History
123 System, as authorized by the National Child Protection Act of
124 1993 and s. 943.0542.
125 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.