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 HB 45 I V E 2020 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to private school eligibility 3 requirements; amending s. 1002.421, F.S.; revising 4 private school eligibility requirements for the state 5 school choice scholarship program; providing an 6 effective date. 7 8 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 9 10 11 12 13 14 Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 1002.421, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1002.421 State school choice scholarship program accountability and oversight.— (1) PRIVATE SCHOOL ELIGIBILITY AND OBLIGATIONS.—A private 15 school participating in an educational scholarship program 16 established pursuant to this chapter must be a private school as 17 defined in s. 1002.01(2) in this state, be registered, and be in 18 compliance with all requirements of this section in addition to 19 private school requirements outlined in s. 1002.42, specific 20 requirements identified within respective scholarship program 21 laws, and other provisions of Florida law that apply to private 22 schools; may not deny enrollment to a student based on the 23 student's race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, disability, 24 religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity;, and must: 25 (a) Comply with the antidiscrimination provisions of 42 Page 1 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 26 27 28 29 U.S.C. s. 2000d. (b) Notify the department of its intent to participate in a scholarship program. (c) Notify the department of any change in the school's name, school director, mailing address, or physical location 31 within 15 days after the change. (d) Provide to the department or scholarship-funding 33 organization all documentation required for a student's 34 participation, including the private school's and student's 35 individual fee schedule, and attendance verification as required 36 by the department or scholarship-funding organization, prior to 37 scholarship payment. 38 (e) Annually complete and submit to the department a 39 notarized scholarship compliance statement certifying that all 40 school employees and contracted personnel with direct student 41 contact have undergone background screening pursuant to s. 42 943.0542 and have met the screening standards as provided in s. 43 435.04. 44 (f) 45 1. Demonstrate fiscal soundness and accountability by: Being in operation for at least 3 school years or 46 obtaining a surety bond or letter of credit for the amount equal 47 to the scholarship funds for any quarter and filing the surety 48 bond or letter of credit with the department. 49 50 E 2020 30 32 V 2. Requiring the parent of each scholarship student to personally restrictively endorse the scholarship warrant to the Page 2 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 school or to approve a funds transfer before any funds are 52 deposited for a student. The school may not act as attorney in 53 fact for the parent of a scholarship student under the authority 54 of a power of attorney executed by such parent, or under any 55 other authority, to endorse a scholarship warrant or approve a 56 funds transfer on behalf of such parent. 58 (g) Meet applicable state and local health, safety, and welfare laws, codes, and rules, including: 59 1. Firesafety. 60 2. Building safety. 61 (h) Employ or contract with teachers who hold 62 baccalaureate or higher degrees, have at least 3 years of 63 teaching experience in public or private schools, or have 64 special skills, knowledge, or expertise that qualifies them to 65 provide instruction in subjects taught. 66 67 68 (i) Maintain a physical location in the state at which each student has regular and direct contact with teachers. (j) Publish on the school's website, or provide in a 69 written format, information for parents regarding the school, 70 including, but not limited to, programs, services, and the 71 qualifications of classroom teachers. 72 (k) At a minimum, provide the parent of each scholarship 73 student with a written explanation of the student's progress on 74 a quarterly basis. 75 E 2020 51 57 V (l) Cooperate with a student whose parent chooses to Page 3 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 76 77 participate in the statewide assessments pursuant to s. 1008.22. (m) Require each employee and contracted personnel with direct student contact, upon employment or engagement to provide 79 services, to undergo a state and national background screening, 80 pursuant to s. 943.0542, by electronically filing with the 81 Department of Law Enforcement a complete set of fingerprints 82 taken by an authorized law enforcement agency or an employee of 83 the private school, a school district, or a private company who 84 is trained to take fingerprints and deny employment to or 85 terminate an employee if he or she fails to meet the screening 86 standards under s. 435.04. Results of the screening shall be 87 provided to the participating private school. For purposes of 88 this paragraph: 1. An "employee or contracted personnel with direct 90 student contact" means any employee or contracted personnel who 91 has unsupervised access to a scholarship student for whom the 92 private school is responsible. 93 94 95 2. The costs of fingerprinting and the background check shall not be borne by the state. 3. Continued employment of an employee or contracted 96 personnel after notification that he or she has failed the 97 background screening under this paragraph shall cause a private 98 school to be ineligible for participation in a scholarship 99 program. 100 E 2020 78 89 V 4. An employee or contracted personnel holding a valid Page 4 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 Florida teaching certificate who has been fingerprinted pursuant 102 to s. 1012.32 is not required to comply with the provisions of 103 this paragraph. 5. All fingerprints submitted to the Department of Law 105 Enforcement as required by this section shall be retained by the 106 Department of Law Enforcement in a manner provided by rule and 107 entered in the statewide automated biometric identification 108 system authorized by s. 943.05(2)(b). Such fingerprints shall 109 thereafter be available for all purposes and uses authorized for 110 arrest fingerprints entered in the statewide automated biometric 111 identification system pursuant to s. 943.051. 112 E 2020 101 104 V 6. The Department of Law Enforcement shall search all 113 arrest fingerprints received under s. 943.051 against the 114 fingerprints retained in the statewide automated biometric 115 identification system under subparagraph 5. Any arrest record 116 that is identified with the retained fingerprints of a person 117 subject to the background screening under this section shall be 118 reported to the employing school with which the person is 119 affiliated. Each private school participating in a scholarship 120 program is required to participate in this search process by 121 informing the Department of Law Enforcement of any change in the 122 employment or contractual status of its personnel whose 123 fingerprints are retained under subparagraph 5. The Department 124 of Law Enforcement shall adopt a rule setting the amount of the 125 annual fee to be imposed upon each private school for performing Page 5 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 these searches and establishing the procedures for the retention 127 of private school employee and contracted personnel fingerprints 128 and the dissemination of search results. The fee may be borne by 129 the private school or the person fingerprinted. 7. Employees and contracted personnel whose fingerprints 131 are not retained by the Department of Law Enforcement under 132 subparagraphs 5. and 6. are required to be refingerprinted and 133 must meet state and national background screening requirements 134 upon reemployment or reengagement to provide services in order 135 to comply with the requirements of this section. 136 E 2020 126 130 V 8. Every 5 years following employment or engagement to 137 provide services with a private school, employees or contracted 138 personnel required to be screened under this section must meet 139 screening standards under s. 435.04, at which time the private 140 school shall request the Department of Law Enforcement to 141 forward the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation 142 for national processing. If the fingerprints of employees or 143 contracted personnel are not retained by the Department of Law 144 Enforcement under subparagraph 5., employees and contracted 145 personnel must electronically file a complete set of 146 fingerprints with the Department of Law Enforcement. Upon 147 submission of fingerprints for this purpose, the private school 148 shall request that the Department of Law Enforcement forward the 149 fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for national 150 processing, and the fingerprints shall be retained by the Page 6 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 151 152 V E 2020 Department of Law Enforcement under subparagraph 5. (n) Adopt policies establishing standards of ethical 153 conduct for instructional personnel and school administrators. 154 The policies must require all instructional personnel and school 155 administrators, as defined in s. 1012.01, to complete training 156 on the standards; establish the duty of instructional personnel 157 and school administrators to report, and procedures for 158 reporting, alleged misconduct by other instructional personnel 159 and school administrators which affects the health, safety, or 160 welfare of a student; and include an explanation of the 161 liability protections provided under ss. 39.203 and 768.095. A 162 private school, or any of its employees, may not enter into a 163 confidentiality agreement regarding terminated or dismissed 164 instructional personnel or school administrators, or personnel 165 or administrators who resign in lieu of termination, based in 166 whole or in part on misconduct that affects the health, safety, 167 or welfare of a student, and may not provide the instructional 168 personnel or school administrators with employment references or 169 discuss the personnel's or administrators' performance with 170 prospective employers in another educational setting, without 171 disclosing the personnel's or administrators' misconduct. Any 172 part of an agreement or contract that has the purpose or effect 173 of concealing misconduct by instructional personnel or school 174 administrators which affects the health, safety, or welfare of a 175 student is void, is contrary to public policy, and may not be Page 7 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 176 177 E 2020 enforced. (o) Before employing instructional personnel or school 178 administrators in any position that requires direct contact with 179 students, conduct employment history checks of each of the 180 personnel's or administrators' previous employers, screen the 181 personnel or administrators through use of the educator 182 screening tools described in s. 1001.10(5), and document the 183 findings. If unable to contact a previous employer, the private 184 school must document efforts to contact the employer. 185 V (p) Require each owner or operator of the private school, 186 prior to employment or engagement to provide services, to 187 undergo level 2 background screening as provided under chapter 188 435. For purposes of this paragraph, the term "owner or 189 operator" means an owner, operator, superintendent, or principal 190 of, or a person with equivalent decisionmaking authority over, a 191 private school participating in a scholarship program 192 established pursuant to this chapter. The fingerprints for the 193 background screening must be electronically submitted to the 194 Department of Law Enforcement and may be taken by an authorized 195 law enforcement agency or a private company who is trained to 196 take fingerprints. However, the complete set of fingerprints of 197 an owner or operator may not be taken by the owner or operator. 198 The owner or operator shall provide a copy of the results of the 199 state and national criminal history check to the Department of 200 Education. The cost of the background screening may be borne by Page 8 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 201 202 the owner or operator. 1. Every 5 years following employment or engagement to provide services, each owner or operator must meet level 2 204 screening standards as described in s. 435.04, at which time the 205 owner or operator shall request the Department of Law 206 Enforcement to forward the fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of 207 Investigation for level 2 screening. If the fingerprints of an 208 owner or operator are not retained by the Department of Law 209 Enforcement under subparagraph 2., the owner or operator must 210 electronically file a complete set of fingerprints with the 211 Department of Law Enforcement. Upon submission of fingerprints 212 for this purpose, the owner or operator shall request that the 213 Department of Law Enforcement forward the fingerprints to the 214 Federal Bureau of Investigation for level 2 screening, and the 215 fingerprints shall be retained by the Department of Law 216 Enforcement under subparagraph 2. 2. Fingerprints submitted to the Department of Law 218 Enforcement as required by this paragraph must be retained by 219 the Department of Law Enforcement in a manner approved by rule 220 and entered in the statewide automated biometric identification 221 system authorized by s. 943.05(2)(b). The fingerprints must 222 thereafter be available for all purposes and uses authorized for 223 arrest fingerprints entered in the statewide automated biometric 224 identification system pursuant to s. 943.051. 225 E 2020 203 217 V 3. The Department of Law Enforcement shall search all Page 9 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 arrest fingerprints received under s. 943.051 against the 227 fingerprints retained in the statewide automated biometric 228 identification system under subparagraph 2. Any arrest record 229 that is identified with an owner's or operator's fingerprints 230 must be reported to the owner or operator, who must report to 231 the Department of Education. Any costs associated with the 232 search shall be borne by the owner or operator. 4. An owner or operator who fails the level 2 background 234 screening is not eligible to participate in a scholarship 235 program under this chapter. 236 E 2020 226 233 V 5. In addition to the offenses listed in s. 435.04, a 237 person required to undergo background screening pursuant to this 238 part or authorizing statutes may not have an arrest awaiting 239 final disposition for, must not have been found guilty of, or 240 entered a plea of nolo contendere to, regardless of 241 adjudication, and must not have been adjudicated delinquent for, 242 and the record must not have been sealed or expunged for, any of 243 the following offenses or any similar offense of another 244 jurisdiction: 245 a. Any authorizing statutes, if the offense was a felony. 246 b. This chapter, if the offense was a felony. 247 c. Section 409.920, relating to Medicaid provider fraud. 248 d. Section 409.9201, relating to Medicaid fraud. 249 e. Section 741.28, relating to domestic violence. 250 f. Section 817.034, relating to fraudulent acts through Page 10 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 mail, wire, radio, electromagnetic, photoelectronic, or 252 photooptical systems. 254 g. Section 817.234, relating to false and fraudulent insurance claims. 255 h. Section 817.505, relating to patient brokering. 256 i. Section 817.568, relating to criminal use of personal 257 258 259 260 261 identification information. j. Section 817.60, relating to obtaining a credit card through fraudulent means. k. Section 817.61, relating to fraudulent use of credit cards, if the offense was a felony. 262 l. Section 831.01, relating to forgery. 263 m. Section 831.02, relating to uttering forged 264 instruments. 265 n. 266 267 268 269 270 271 Section 831.07, relating to forging bank bills, checks, drafts, or promissory notes. o. Section 831.09, relating to uttering forged bank bills, checks, drafts, or promissory notes. p. Section 831.30, relating to fraud in obtaining medicinal drugs. q. Section 831.31, relating to the sale, manufacture, 272 delivery, or possession with the intent to sell, manufacture, or 273 deliver any counterfeit controlled substance, if the offense was 274 a felony. 275 E 2020 251 253 V 6. At least 30 calendar days before a transfer of Page 11 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 ownership of a private school, the owner or operator shall 277 notify the parent of each scholarship student. 7. The owner or operator of a private school that has been 279 deemed ineligible to participate in a scholarship program 280 pursuant to this chapter may not transfer ownership or 281 management authority of the school to a relative in order to 282 participate in a scholarship program as the same school or a new 283 school. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term "relative" 284 means father, mother, son, daughter, grandfather, grandmother, 285 brother, sister, uncle, aunt, cousin, nephew, niece, husband, 286 wife, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, 287 brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, stepmother, stepson, 288 stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, or half- 289 sister. 290 E 2020 276 278 V (q) Provide a report from an independent certified public 291 accountant who performs the agreed-upon procedures developed 292 pursuant to s. 1002.395(6)(o) if the private school receives 293 more than $250,000 in funds from scholarships awarded under this 294 chapter in a state fiscal year. A private school subject to this 295 subsection must annually submit the report by September 15 to 296 the scholarship-funding organization that awarded the majority 297 of the school's scholarship funds. However, a school that 298 receives more than $250,000 in scholarship funds only through 299 the John M. McKay Scholarship for Students with Disabilities 300 Program pursuant to s. 1002.39 must submit the annual report by Page 12 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S 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 HB 45 V E 2020 301 September 15 to the department. The agreed-upon procedures must 302 be conducted in accordance with attestation standards 303 established by the American Institute of Certified Public 304 Accountants. 305 306 The department shall suspend the payment of funds to a private 307 school that knowingly fails to comply with this subsection, and 308 shall prohibit the school from enrolling new scholarship 309 students, for 1 fiscal year and until the school complies. If a 310 private school fails to meet the requirements of this subsection 311 or has consecutive years of material exceptions listed in the 312 report required under paragraph (q), the commissioner may 313 determine that the private school is ineligible to participate 314 in a scholarship program. 315 Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. Page 13 of 13 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb0045-00 S
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