Florida Senate - 2017                                    SB 1016
       
       
        
       By Senator Passidomo
       
       
       
       
       
       28-00858A-17                                          20171016__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to family self-sufficiency; creating
    3         s. 414.393, F.S.; requiring the department to
    4         implement an asset verification service to verify
    5         eligibility for public assistance; amending s.
    6         445.004, F.S.; requiring CareerSource Florida, Inc.,
    7         to include certain data relating to the performance
    8         outcomes of local workforce development boards and
    9         associated pilot programs in an annual report to the
   10         Governor and Legislature; providing legislative
   11         findings; providing definitions; requiring
   12         CareerSource Florida, Inc., to contract with a vendor
   13         to develop a pilot program to increase employment
   14         among certain persons receiving temporary cash
   15         assistance by a specified date; providing criteria for
   16         selecting a vendor; providing criteria for selecting
   17         local workforce development boards to conduct the
   18         pilot program; requiring CareerSource Florida, Inc.,
   19         to submit a comprehensive report on the outcome of the
   20         pilot program to the Governor and Legislature by a
   21         specified date; providing appropriations; providing an
   22         effective date.
   23          
   24  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   25  
   26         Section 1. Section 414.393, Florida Statutes, is created to
   27  read:
   28         414.393Applicant asset verification.—The department shall
   29  implement an asset verification service for the purpose of
   30  determining eligibility for public assistance programs.
   31         Section 2. Paragraphs (c) and (d) are added to subsection
   32  (7) of section 445.004, Florida Statutes, and subsection (13) is
   33  added to that section, to read:
   34         445.004 CareerSource Florida, Inc.; creation; purpose;
   35  membership; duties and powers.—
   36         (7) By December 1 of each year, CareerSource Florida, Inc.,
   37  shall submit to the Governor, the President of the Senate, the
   38  Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Senate Minority
   39  Leader, and the House Minority Leader a complete and detailed
   40  annual report setting forth:
   41         (c)For each local workforce development board, participant
   42  statistics and employment outcomes, by program, for individuals
   43  subject to mandatory work requirements due to receipt of
   44  temporary cash assistance or food assistance under chapter 414,
   45  including:
   46         1.Individuals served.
   47         2.Services received.
   48         3.Activities in which individuals participated.
   49         4.Types of employment secured.
   50         5.Individuals securing employment but remaining in each
   51  program.
   52         6.Individuals exiting programs due to employment.
   53         7.Employment status at 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months
   54  after exiting the program, for the past 3 years.
   55         (d)Interim outcomes of any pilot program implemented by a
   56  local workforce development board selected pursuant to
   57  subsection (13).
   58         (13)The Legislature finds that some mandatory work
   59  registrants in the Temporary Cash Assistance Program face
   60  significant barriers to employment, which must be addressed with
   61  services beyond those offered under a traditional workforce
   62  program. To address this problem, CareerSource Florida, Inc., in
   63  consultation with the department, shall implement a pilot
   64  program to increase unsubsidized employment and earned income
   65  among such registrants while reducing their reliance on public
   66  assistance. The pilot program may not serve registrants who are
   67  assessed as work ready or who do not face significant barriers
   68  to employment.
   69         (a)For the purposes of this subsection, “significant
   70  barriers to employment” means at least one critical barrier or
   71  three or more stand-alone barriers.
   72         1.“Critical barriers” include substance abuse, mental
   73  illness, physical or mental disability, domestic violence,
   74  homelessness, and a criminal record affecting employment.
   75         2.“Stand-alone barriers” include significant job skill
   76  deficiencies; significant soft-skill deficiencies, such as
   77  communication, time management, and problem-solving skills;
   78  child welfare system involvement; and a negative or nonexistent
   79  employment history.
   80         (b)CareerSource Florida, Inc., in consultation with the
   81  department, shall contract with a vendor by October 31, 2017, to
   82  develop the pilot program according to the following guidelines:
   83         1.The vendor must have expertise in the design and
   84  development of workforce programs.
   85         2.The program design shall be based on the best available
   86  research and shall include, at a minimum:
   87         a.A comprehensive assessment to identify significant
   88  barriers to employment, which shall be updated on an ongoing
   89  basis. Such an assessment may collect information about the
   90  registrant’s educational attainment, level of literacy and
   91  numeracy, basic skills, work experience, receipt of public
   92  benefits, and other indicators of significant barriers.
   93         b.An individual responsibility plan based on the
   94  assessment, which includes a comprehensive service strategy to
   95  address barriers to employment, whether sequentially or
   96  simultaneously.
   97         c.Intensive case management, including, but not limited
   98  to, ongoing one-on-one guidance, motivation, and support for
   99  registrants by assessing their needs and barriers, identifying
  100  resources, and advising on career and training opportunities.
  101  Intensive case management also includes collaborative work with
  102  community partners to provide comprehensive services to
  103  registrants which are designed to address their barriers and
  104  achieve program goals.
  105         3.The program may include other elements to address
  106  significant barriers, such as a combination of job search
  107  assistance, basic skills training, vocational education,
  108  strategies that connect registrants to relevant career
  109  opportunities by supporting their efforts to obtain educational
  110  certificates or industry certification, and transitional
  111  employment subsidies to achieve the desired improvements in
  112  employment and earnings.
  113         (c)CareerSource Florida, Inc., in consultation with the
  114  department, shall select at least three local workforce
  115  development boards to conduct the pilot program based on a
  116  board’s:
  117         1.Commitment to effectively serve the target population;
  118         2.Established record of innovation in the delivery of
  119  workforce services, preferably to the target population;
  120         3.Existing strong community partnerships, including
  121  partnerships with nonprofit entities and community colleges, to
  122  provide workforce services; and
  123         4.Commitment to implement the program for the target
  124  population while continuing to serve other Temporary Cash
  125  Assistance Program mandatory work registrants.
  126         (d)The local workforce development boards selected for the
  127  pilot program shall contract with vendors to implement the
  128  program. The local workforce development board shall give
  129  preference to vendors with a demonstrated commitment to
  130  innovation in providing workforce services or in serving
  131  populations with significant barriers.
  132         (e)CareerSource Florida, Inc., shall submit a report to
  133  the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of
  134  the House of Representatives by December 15, 2020. The report
  135  shall include the program design; participating entities;
  136  participant demographics, including, but not limited to,
  137  barriers identified; and the case management processes,
  138  assessment processes, and services provided to participants, as
  139  compared to those available under the local workforce
  140  development board’s traditional workforce program. The report
  141  shall also include an analysis of the effect of the program on
  142  participants’ barriers to employment, employment outcomes,
  143  household income, reliance on public assistance, and other
  144  measures of household well-being and self-sufficiency.
  145         Section 3. For fiscal year 2017-2018, the sum of $3,342,525
  146  in recurring funds is appropriated from the Federal Grants Trust
  147  Fund to the Department of Children and Families to contract with
  148  a vendor to develop an asset verification service for public
  149  assistance programs pursuant to s. 414.393, Florida Statutes, as
  150  created in this act, and the sum of $300,000 in nonrecurring
  151  funds is appropriated from the Federal Grants Trust Fund to the
  152  Department of Children and Families to perform the technology
  153  modifications necessary to implement the asset verification
  154  service.
  155         Section 4. For fiscal year 2017-2018, the sum of $500,000
  156  in nonrecurring funds is appropriated from the Federal Grants
  157  Trust Fund to the Department of Economic Opportunity for
  158  distribution to CareerSource Florida, Inc., to contract for
  159  development of a program to serve temporary cash assistance work
  160  registrants with significant barriers to employment pursuant to
  161  this act, including, but not limited to, providing the initial
  162  program design, evaluation design, training curricula
  163  development and delivery of training, implementation oversight,
  164  development of informational materials for participants, and
  165  technical assistance; and for distribution to selected local
  166  workforce development boards for startup expenses incurred by
  167  vendors implementing the program, including, but not limited to,
  168  information technology updates, program coordination, and staff
  169  training. Case management and direct services for all temporary
  170  cash assistance recipients shall be provided within current
  171  resources.
  172         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2017.