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:
28 414.393 Applicant 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.