F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
HB 555 2024
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to Child Protection Teams; amending s.
3 39.303, F.S.; expanding the types of reports that the
4 Department of Children and Families must refer to
5 Child Protection Teams; reenacting s. 39.301(14)(c),
6 F.S., relating to the initiation of protective
7 investigations, to incorporate the amendment made to
8 s. 39.303, F.S., in a reference thereto; providing an
9 effective date.
10
11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
12
13 Section 1. Paragraphs (j), (k), and (l) are added to
14 subsection (4) of section 39.303, Florida Statutes, to read:
15 39.303 Child Protection Teams and sexual abuse treatment
16 programs; services; eligible cases.—
17 (4) The child abuse, abandonment, and neglect reports that
18 must be referred by the department to Child Protection Teams of
19 the Department of Health for an assessment and other appropriate
20 available support services as set forth in subsection (3) must
21 include cases involving:
22 (j) A child who was not properly restrained in a motor
23 vehicle pursuant to s. 316.613 or s. 316.614 when, in the
24 opinion of a physician, the improper restraint exacerbated the
25 child's injuries in a motor vehicle accident or resulted in the
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26 child's death.
27 (k) A child who was left unattended or unsupervised in a
28 motor vehicle pursuant to s. 316.6135 and such action resulted
29 in an injury to the child or in the child's death.
30 (l) Any report from an emergency room physician.
31 Section 2. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
32 made by this act to section 39.303, Florida Statutes, in a
33 reference thereto, paragraph (c) of subsection (14) of section
34 39.301, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read:
35 39.301 Initiation of protective investigations.—
36 (14)
37 (c) The department, in consultation with the judiciary,
38 shall adopt by rule:
39 1. Criteria that are factors requiring that the department
40 take the child into custody, petition the court as provided in
41 this chapter, or, if the child is not taken into custody or a
42 petition is not filed with the court, conduct an administrative
43 review. Such factors must include, but are not limited to,
44 noncompliance with a safety plan or the case plan developed by
45 the department, and the family under this chapter, and prior
46 abuse reports with findings that involve the child, the child's
47 sibling, or the child's caregiver.
48 2. Requirements that if after an administrative review the
49 department determines not to take the child into custody or
50 petition the court, the department shall document the reason for
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51 its decision in writing and include it in the investigative
52 file. For all cases that were accepted by the local law
53 enforcement agency for criminal investigation pursuant to
54 subsection (2), the department must include in the file written
55 documentation that the administrative review included input from
56 law enforcement. In addition, for all cases that must be
57 referred to Child Protection Teams pursuant to s. 39.303(4) and
58 (5), the file must include written documentation that the
59 administrative review included the results of the team's
60 evaluation.
61 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.
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