Florida Senate - 2015                              CS for SB 802
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Appropriations; and Senator Gaetz
       
       
       
       
       
       576-02887-15                                           2015802c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to vocational rehabilitation; amending
    3         s. 413.202, F.S.; providing for the future repeal of
    4         the designation of the Division of Vocational
    5         Rehabilitation as the administrative unit for purposes
    6         of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, subject
    7         to legislative review of a required report; amending
    8         s. 413.207, F.S.; requiring the Division of Vocational
    9         Rehabilitation to initiate, by a specified date, a
   10         performance improvement plan designed to achieve
   11         specified goals; requiring the division to submit a
   12         performance report annually, by a specified date, to
   13         the Governor and the Legislature which includes
   14         specified information; amending s. 413.23, F.S.;
   15         authorizing the division to develop and implement a
   16         pilot program; creating s. 413.80, F.S.; requiring the
   17         division to develop and implement a pilot program to
   18         improve the state vocational rehabilitation program;
   19         requiring the division to enter into partnership
   20         agreements with local, nonprofit organizations;
   21         authorizing the division to issue an invitation to
   22         negotiate under certain circumstances; requiring that
   23         the agreements include specific performance goals in
   24         certain areas; requiring the division to report
   25         activities and results of the pilot program to the
   26         Governor and the Legislature annually by a specified
   27         date; providing an effective date.
   28          
   29  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   30  
   31         Section 1. Section 413.202, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   32  read:
   33         413.202 Designated administrative unit.—Effective on the
   34  effective date of this act, for the purposes of effecting
   35  compliance with the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as
   36  amended, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation is designated
   37  as the administrative unit. This section is repealed June 30,
   38  2016, unless reenacted by the Legislature after review of the
   39  progress report on the achievement of the performance goals
   40  required by s. 413.207.
   41         Section 2. Section 413.207, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   42  read:
   43         413.207 Division of Vocational Rehabilitation; quality
   44  assurance.—
   45         (1) The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation shall
   46  maintain an internal system of quality assurance, have proven
   47  functional systems, perform due diligence, review provider
   48  systems of quality assurance, and be subject to monitoring for
   49  compliance with state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.
   50         (2)No later than October 1, 2015, the division shall
   51  develop and implement a performance improvement plan designed to
   52  achieve the following goals:
   53         (a) Increase the number and percentage of persons with a
   54  program record who receive services.
   55         (b)Increase the number of persons receiving postsecondary
   56  workforce education as defined in s. 1004.02(25).
   57         (c)Increase the number of persons earning CAPE industry
   58  certifications and CAPE postsecondary industry certifications
   59  approved pursuant to s. 1008.44.
   60         (d)Increase the number of cases closed due to the
   61  employment of the person who has a disability.
   62         (e)Decrease the average cost per employment outcome, as
   63  that term is defined in s. 413.20.
   64         (f)Decrease the proportion of full-time equivalent
   65  positions in the division devoted to administration.
   66         (3)The improvement plan goals shall be designed to elevate
   67  the state vocational rehabilitation program to one of the top 10
   68  in the nation.
   69         (4)By December 1 of each year, the division shall submit a
   70  performance report to the Governor, the President of the Senate,
   71  and the Speaker of the House of Representatives which includes
   72  the following information for each of the 5 most recent fiscal
   73  years:
   74         (a) Caseload data, including the number of individuals who
   75  apply for, and the number who receive, services, statewide and
   76  by service area, by service type.
   77         (b) Service use data, including the number of units of
   78  service provided, statewide and by service area, by service
   79  type.
   80         (c) Financial data, including expenditures for
   81  administration and the provision of services, by service type.
   82  Expenditure data shall be reported on a statewide basis and by
   83  service area, and expenditures for education-related services
   84  shall be identified in specific categories such as tuition and
   85  fees, program fees, and support services.
   86         (d) Outcome data, statewide and by service area, including
   87  the number of cases closed without employment and with
   88  employment. Employment data must specify whether the employment
   89  was supported or integrated.
   90         Section 3. Section 413.23, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   91  read:
   92         413.23 Administration.—The division shall provide
   93  vocational rehabilitation services to persons who have
   94  disabilities determined to be eligible therefor and, in carrying
   95  out the purposes of this part, is authorized, among other
   96  things:
   97         (1) To cooperate with other departments, agencies, and
   98  institutions, both public and private, in providing for the
   99  vocational rehabilitation of persons who have disabilities, in
  100  studying the problems involved therein, and in establishing,
  101  developing, and providing, in conformity with the purposes of
  102  this part, such programs, facilities, and services as may be
  103  necessary or desirable.;
  104         (2) To enter into reciprocal agreements with other states
  105  to provide for the vocational rehabilitation of residents of the
  106  states concerned.;
  107         (3) To conduct research and compile statistics relating to
  108  the vocational rehabilitation of persons who have disabilities.;
  109         (4) To prepare a federally required state plan for
  110  vocational rehabilitation, as required by the act. The state
  111  plan must contain all of the elements required by s. 101 of the
  112  act, including an assessment of the needs of persons who have
  113  disabilities and how those needs may be most effectively met.
  114  The division is authorized to make amendments to the state plan
  115  considered necessary to maintain compliance with the act and to
  116  implement such changes in order to qualify for and maintain
  117  federal funding. After completion of the state plan or making
  118  amendments to the state plan, the division must distribute
  119  copies of the state plan to the Governor, the President of the
  120  Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the
  121  United States Secretary of Education.
  122         (5) To develop and implement a pilot program under s.
  123  413.80 using such resources and operating in designated regions
  124  of the state as may be specified in the General Appropriations
  125  Act.
  126         Section 4. Section 413.80, Florida Statutes, is created to
  127  read:
  128         413.80 Partnership for Employment of Persons with Unique
  129  Abilities.—
  130         (1) The division shall develop and implement a Partnership
  131  for Employment of Persons with Unique Abilities pilot program
  132  aimed at achieving specific, measureable performance goals for
  133  the employment of persons who have a disability. To that end,
  134  the division shall partner with one or more local, nonprofit
  135  organizations with experience assisting persons who have a
  136  disability in gaining employment. If more than one qualifying
  137  organization in the pilot areas designated by the General
  138  Appropriations Act requests a partnership agreement, the
  139  division may issue an invitation to negotiate pursuant to s.
  140  287.057(1)(c).
  141         (2) The partner organizations must agree to performance
  142  goals established by the division based on improvement over past
  143  performance in at least the following areas:
  144         (a) The number and percentage of individuals with open
  145  records who receive services.
  146         (b) The number of individuals with open records who receive
  147  postsecondary workforce education pursuant to s. 1004.02(25).
  148         (c)The number of persons earning CAPE industry
  149  certifications and CAPE postsecondary industry certifications
  150  approved pursuant to s. 1008.44.
  151         (d) The number and percentage of cases closed due to the
  152  employment of the eligible individual.
  153         (e) The proportion of full-time equivalent positions in the
  154  organization devoted to administration.
  155         (3) The division shall report activities and results of the
  156  pilot program to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and
  157  the Speaker of the House of Representatives by December 31 of
  158  each year.
  159         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.