THE BILL ITSELF
CS/CS/HB 565
Agency for Persons with Disabilities
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An act relating to the Agency for Persons with
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Disabilities; amending s. 393.063, F.S.; revising the
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definition of the term "developmental disability";
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defining the term "Tatton-Brown-Rahman syndrome";
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amending s. 393.0655, F.S.; requiring level 2
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employment screening for all employees of residential
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facilities and adult day training programs; requiring
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the agency to contract with a state university to
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develop and administer certain surveys; providing
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requirements for such surveys; requiring the state
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university to submit a certain report to the agency by
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a specified date; requiring the agency to conduct
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public hearings on specified information; conduct or
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contract for a gap analysis for specified purposes;
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identify core competencies and performance metrics and
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make recommendations for standardizing assessments;
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and submit a certain report to the Governor and the
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Legislature by a specified date; providing effective
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dates.
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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Section 1. Subsections (46) and (47) of section 393.063,
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Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (47) and (48),
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respectively, subsection (11) is amended, and a new subsection
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(46) is added to that section, to read:
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393.063 Definitions.—For the purposes of this chapter, the
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term:
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(11) "Developmental disability" means a disorder or
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syndrome that is attributable to intellectual disability,
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cerebral palsy, autism, spina bifida, Down syndrome, Phelan-
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McDermid syndrome, or Prader-Willi syndrome, or Tatton-Brown-
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Rahman syndrome; that manifests before the age of 18; and that
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constitutes a substantial handicap that can reasonably be
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expected to continue indefinitely.
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(46) "Tatton-Brown-Rahman syndrome" means a disorder
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caused by a mutation in the DNMT3A gene typified by mild to
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severe intellectual disability, macrocephaly, stature and weight
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that is greater than or equal to two or more standard deviations
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above the mean for the person's age and sex, and any of the
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following features presenting in infancy, childhood, or
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adolescence:
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(a) Mild facial dysmorphism.
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(b) Joint hypermobility.
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(c) Hypotonia.
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(d) Kyphoscoliosis.
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(e) Seizures.
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(f) Cryptorchidism.
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(g) Deficits in behavior.
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(h) Hematologic malignancies.
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Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 393.0655, Florida
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Statutes, is amended to read:
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393.0655 Screening of direct service providers.—
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(1) MINIMUM STANDARDS.—The agency shall require level 2
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employment screening pursuant to chapter 435 for direct service
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providers who are unrelated to their clients, including support
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coordinators, and all employees managers and supervisors of
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residential facilities or adult day training programs licensed
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under this chapter and any other persons, including volunteers,
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who provide care or services, who have access to a client's
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living areas, or who have access to a client's funds or personal
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property. Background screening must include employment history
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checks as provided in s. 435.03(1) and local criminal records
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checks through local law enforcement agencies.
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(a) A volunteer who assists on an intermittent basis for
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less than 10 hours per month does not have to be screened if a
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person who meets the screening requirement of this section is
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always present and has the volunteer within his or her line of
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sight.
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(b) Licensed physicians, nurses, or other professionals
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licensed and regulated by the Department of Health are not
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subject to background screening pursuant to this section if they
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are providing a service that is within their scope of licensed
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practice.
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(c) A person selected by the family or the individual with
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developmental disabilities and paid by the family or the
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individual to provide supports or services is not required to
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have a background screening under this section.
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(d) Persons 12 years of age or older, including family
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members, residing with a direct services provider who provides
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services to clients in his or her own place of residence are
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subject to background screening; however, such persons who are
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12 to 18 years of age shall be screened for delinquency records
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only.
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Section 3. (1)(a) For purposes of enhancing the quality,
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capacity, and consistency of waiver support coordination
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services, the Agency for Persons with Disabilities shall
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contract with a state university to develop and administer
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surveys regarding waiver support coordination services. The
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university shall administer surveys to owners and operators of
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all qualified organizations in this state; support coordinators
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currently employed by a qualified organization; and iBudget
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clients and their parents, caregivers, or legal guardians.
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1. The surveys must, at a minimum, solicit data and input
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regarding:
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a. The quality, consistency, and accessibility of services
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provided by support coordinators.
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b. Attributes and behaviors that define high-quality
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support coordination.
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c. Best practices and areas for improvement.
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d. Quantitative and qualitative metrics suitable for
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assessing support coordinator performance.
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e. Any other factors deemed pertinent by the university or
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the agency to improve service delivery.
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2. Surveys of qualified organizations must also
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specifically address:
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a. Professional and educational prerequisites established
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by the organization for employment as a support coordinator.
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b. Methods used to assess core competencies.
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c. The efficacy of the mentoring program required under s.
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393.0663(2)(b), Florida Statutes.
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d. Operational and systemic challenges with recruitment
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and retention of qualified support coordinators.
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3. Surveys of individual waiver support coordinators must
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also specifically address:
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a. Individual caseload ratios, capacity, and geographic
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service areas.
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b. The efficacy of the mentoring program required under s.
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393.0663(2)(b), Florida Statutes.
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c. Operational and systemic challenges to delivery of
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effective support coordination.
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4. Surveys of iBudget clients and their parents,
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caregivers, or legal guardians must also specifically address
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satisfaction with support coordination services.
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(b) By October 1, 2026, the state university must submit a
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final report to the agency, including a compilation and analysis
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of the survey results.
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(2) The agency shall solicit input on enhancing support
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coordinator quality, capacity and consistency from the whole
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community of waiver program stakeholders, and shall conduct at
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least one publicly noticed hearing for this purpose in each
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service region.
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(3) The agency shall conduct or contract for a gap
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analysis to assess the geographic distribution and caseload
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capacity of waiver support coordinators across this state.
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(4) Using the information gathered under this section, the
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agency shall identify specific core competencies for waiver
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support coordinators, identify specific performance metrics to
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assess those core competencies, and make recommendations on how
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to standardize their assessment. By February 15, 2027, the
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agency shall submit a report to the Governor, the President of
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the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives on
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its findings and recommendations, and include the full report
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submitted by the state university under subsection (1).
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(5) This section shall take effect upon becoming a law.
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Section 4. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
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act, and except for this section, which shall take effect upon
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this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect July 1,
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2026.