HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: CS/HB 1377 Adoption of Children in Dependency Court
SPONSOR(S): Health & Human Services Committee, Stevenson
TIED BILLS: IDEN./SIM. BILLS: SB 1322
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
1) Children, Families & Seniors Subcommittee 17 Y, 0 N Brazzell Brazzell
2) Civil Justice Subcommittee 15 Y, 2 N Mathews Jones
3) Health & Human Services Committee 18 Y, 0 N, As CS Brazzell Calamas
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
The Florida Adoption Act, Ch. 63, F.S., applies to all adoptions, whether through a private entity or through the state
child welfare dependency system. Ch. 63 seeks to provide a stable and permanent home for an adoptable child
promptly while preventing the disruption of a child’s placement, and holding parents accountable for meeting the
needs of the child.
For a child in the dependency system whose permanency goal is adoption, state-funded community-based care
lead agencies are responsible for finding an adoptive family. However, s. 63.082, F.S., allows a private adoption
entity to intervene in a child welfare case to instead place a dependent child with prospective adoptive parents
chosen by the child’s parent or the private adoption entity. In making a decision on an intervention petition, the
court must consider how the proposed adoption meets best interest factors outlined in statute. If the court
determines the adoptive parents are appropriate and that the adoption is in the best interest of the child, the
court orders the transfer of custody to the prospective adoptive parents. Following the transition, the private
adoption entity is responsible for supervising the adoption process, and must update the court every 90 days.
CS/HB 1377 amends s. 63.082, F.S., related to interventions by private adoption agencies in dependency
court. The bill limits the time period in which a parent may consent to private adoption later during a
dependency case. The bill grants the court greater discretion regarding a private adoption entity’s ability to
intervene in the dependency process. Additionally, the bill grants the court greater discretion and authority
related to accepting a home study from prospective adoptive parents and requires the court to give greater
consideration to keeping the child in the current placement, under certain conditions. CS/HB 1377 also
requires birth certificates to be filed with petitions for adoptions and for clerks of court to maintain an adoption
case separately from the related termination of parental rights case; it also allows payment of a birth mother’s
medical expenses after a child’s birth without a finding that the medical needs require such support.
Finally, the bill requires the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to conduct a
national study of adoption intervention, and a review of adoption generally in Florida, and report to the
Legislature by January 1, 2024.
The bill has no fiscal impact on state or local government.
The bill provides an effective date of July 1, 2023.
This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives .
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 FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Background
Florida’s Dependency System
Ch. 39, F.S., creates the state dependency system, which is charged with protecting the welfare of
children in Florida. Florida’s dependency system identifies children and families in need of services
through reports to the central abuse hotline and through child protective investigations. The Department
of Children and Families (DCF) and the 18 DCF subcontracted community-based care lead agencies
(CBCs) throughout Florida1 work with families to address the problems endangering children and
provide resources when possible. If the concerns for the subject child’s welfare are not remedied, DCF
and the CBCs work to find safe out-of-home placements for him or her.
DCF’s practice model is based on the safety of the child within the home by using in-home services,
such as parenting, coaching, and counseling, to maintain and strengthen the child’s natural support
system while keeping the child in his or her own home and environment.
DCF contracts with CBCs for case management, out-of-home services, and related services. The
outsourced provision of child welfare services is intended to increase local community ownership of
service delivery and design. CBCs contract with a number of subcontractors for case management and
direct care services to children and families under the supervision of DCF.
DCF retains in-house responsibility for a number of child welfare functions, including:
 Operating the central abuse hotline;
 Performing child protective investigations; and
 Providing children’s legal services.2
Ultimately, DCF is responsible for program oversight and the overall performance of the child welfare
system.3
Child Welfare Outcomes
The Child Welfare Outcomes Report (Report) is an annual report which presents data on national
performance and child welfare-related contextual factors relevant to specific state performance.4 The
Report includes data and statistics about the performance of individual states in seven outcome
categories identified in close consultation with state and local child welfare agency administrators, child
advocacy organizations, child welfare researchers, state legislators, and other experts in the child
welfare field,5 including:
 Reducing recurrence of child abuse and/or neglect.
 Reducing the incidence of child abuse and/or neglect in foster care.
 Increasing permanency for children in foster care.
 Reducing time in foster care to reunification without increasing reentry.
 Reducing time in foster care to adoption.
 Increasing placement stability.
1 These 18 CBCs together serve the state’s 20 judicial circuits.
2 Ch. 39, F.S.
3 Id.
4 The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) created the Child Welfare Outcomes Report to meet requirements of
Section 203(a) of the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 (ASFA). ASFA created Section 479A of the Social Security Act (th e Act)
to require HHS to issue an annual report that assesses state performance in operating child protection and child welfare prog rams
under Titles IV-B and IV-E of the Act.
5 Child Welfare Outcomes 2019: Report to Congress, Executive Summary, pg. IV,
https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cb/cwo-report-to-congress-2019.pdf,
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  Reducing placements of young children in group homes or institutions.
The 2019 Report revealed that the national median performance over time on achieving timely
reunifications 6 has declined consistently over the preceding five years, with a 7.1-percent decline in
performance from 2015-2019. The Report also found that states were more likely to complete
adoptions between 12 and 23 months from the child’s entry into foster care.7 In 2019, Florida was only
one of two states, along with Utah, to report that at least ten percent of adoptions occurred in under 12
months.8
Dependency Process
Under current law, any person who knows or suspects that a child has been abused, abandoned,
or neglected must report such knowledge or suspicion to the Florida Abuse Hotline.9 The Florida Abuse
Hotline10 receives more than 350,000 child-related calls annually.11 Calls received are screened to
determine if the criteria are met which warrant initiating a protective investigation. Statewide, there are
more than 240,000 child protective investigations conducted annually.12
When a child protective investigation necessitates the removal of a child from his or her home, a series
of dependency court proceedings are triggered and must occur in order to adjudicate the child
“dependent” and subsequently place the child in out-of-home care. Main steps in the dependency
process include:
 An initial call or report of suspected abuse, abandonment, or neglect to the Florida Abuse
Hotline.
 A child protective investigation in response to the abuse hotline report to determine the safety of
the child.
 The court issuing a finding that the child is “dependent” and requires removal for his or her
safety and welfare.
 Case planning for the parents to address the problems which resulted in the child’s
dependency.
 Placement in out-of-home care, if necessary.
 Reunification with the child’s parent or another option to establish permanency, such as
adoption.13
The Dependency Court Process
Dependency
Description of Process Controlling Statute
Proceeding
A child protective investigation determines the child’s home is
Removal s. 39.401, F.S.
unsafe, and the child is removed.
6
For the Child Welfare Outcomes Reports, a reunification is considered to be timely if it occurs in less than 12 months from the date of
entry into foster care. Id. at pg. 44.
7 Id. at 47.
8 Id.
9 S. 39.201(1), F.S.
10 Department of Children and Families, Florida Ab use Hotline- Overview, https://www2.myflfamilies.com/service-programs/abuse-
hotline/overview.shtml, (last visited Mar. 11, 2023).
11 Child Welfare Key Indicators Monthly Report, System Overview, https://www2.myflfamilies.com/service-programs/child-
welfare/kids/results-oriented-accountability/performanceManagement/docs/KI_Monthly_Report_December%202022.pdf (last visited
Mar. 11, 2023).
12 Id.
13 The state has a compelling interest in providing stable and permanent homes for adoptive children in a prompt manner, in preventing
the disruption of adoptive placements, and in holding parents accountable for meeting the needs of children. S. 63.022, F.S .
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 Shelter A shelter hearing occurs within 24 hours after removal. The judge
s. 39.401, F.S.
Hearing determines whether to keep the child out-of-home.
Petition for A petition for dependency occurs within 21 days of the shelter
s. 39.501, F.S.
Dependency hearing. This petition seeks to find the child dependent.
An arraignment and shelter review occurs within 28 days of the
Arraignment
shelter hearing. This allows the parent to admit, deny, or consent to
Hearing and s. 39.506, F.S.
the allegations within the petition for dependency and allows the
Shelter Review
court to review any shelter placement.
Adjudicatory An adjudicatory trial is held within 30 days of arraignment. The
s. 39.507, F.S.
Trial judge determines whether a child is dependent during trial.
If the child is found dependent, disposition occurs within 15 days of
Disposition arraignment or 30 days of adjudication. The judge reviews the case s. 39.506, F.S.
Hearing plan and placement of the child. The judge orders the case plan for s. 39.521, F.S.
the family and the appropriate placement of the child.
The court may change temporary placement at a postdisposition
Postdisposition
hearing any time after disposition but before the child is residing in s. 39.522, F.S.
hearing
the permanent placement approved at a permanency hearing.
Judicial
The court must review the case plan and placement every 6
Review s. 39.701, F.S.
months, or upon motion of a party.
Hearings
Once the child has been out-of-home for 12 months, if DCF
Petition for s. 39.802, F.S.
determines that reunification is no longer a viable goal, termination
Termination of s. 39.8055, F.S.
of parental rights is in the best interest of the child, and other
Parental s. 39.806, F.S.
requirements are met, a petition for termination of parental rights is
Rights s. 39.810, F.S.
filed.
This hearing is set as soon as possible after all parties have been
Advisory served with the petition for termination of parental rights. The
s. 39.808, F.S.
Hearing hearing allows the parent to admit, deny, or consent to the
allegations within the petition for termination of parental rights.
An adjudicatory trial shall be set within 45 days after the advisory
Adjudicatory
hearing. The judge determines whether to terminate parental rights s. 39.809, F.S.
Hearing
to the child at this trial.
Permanency
When children are placed in out-of-home care, child welfare agencies must find safe, permanent
homes for them as quickly as possible. In most cases, children are reunified with their families upon the
parents’ completion of a specific case plan. When reunification is not possible, DCF will seek to place a
child in a permanent home with relatives or with a possible adoptive family. Florida law requires a
permanency hearing to occur no later than 12 months after the child was removed from the home or
within 30 days after a court determined that reasonable efforts to return the child to either parent are
not required or not possible, whichever occurs first.14 The purpose of the permanency hearing is for the
court to determine when the child will achieve permanency or whether modifying the permanency goal
is in the child’s best interest.15 A permanency hearing must be held at least every 12 months for any
child who continues to be supervised by DCF or awaits adoption. 16
The permanency goals under Florida law, listed in order of preference are:
 Reunification;
 Adoption, if a petition for termination of parental rights has been or will be filed;
 Permanent guardianship under s. 39.6221, F.S.;
14 S. 39.621(1), F.S.
15 Id.
16 Id.
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  Permanent placement with a fit and willing relative under 39.6231, F.S.; or
 Placement in another planned permanent living arrangement under s. 39.6241, F.S. 17
Permanency Outcomes by Age of Entry
The federal Department of Health and Human Services analyzed national permanency outcomes for
children in the foster care system using state reported data.18 The graph below illustrates the outcomes
of children exiting care, broken down by age at entry into the dependency system.
 Reunification is the most likely outcome for children who enter care between ages 1 and 16.
 Children under age 1 who enter care are the only group for whom adoption is the most likely
outcome. The likelihood of adoption decreases the older the child is when entering care.
 Guardianship likelihood increases the older the child is when entering care, until age 13.
 Most likely to still be in care after 4 years are those who enter care between ages 9 and 13.
 Emancipation likelihood increases the older the age of entry, for entry between ages 13 and 17.
Children who enter foster care between the ages of 9 and 13 who do not reunify within the first two
years are more likely to stay in foster care longer, either waiting to be adopted or aging out of care
without being adopted. For youth entering at age 16 or older, aging out of care is the most likely
outcome. Aging out of care generally means a youth reached the state’s legal age of adulthood without
achieving permanency. Additionally, older children who are not reunified within the first year are
significantly less likely to be reunified in subsequent years when compared to younger children who
enter care and do n