402.166  District human rights advocacy committees; confidential records and meetings.--

(1)  At least one district human rights advocacy committee is created in each service district of the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services. The district human rights advocacy committees shall be subject to direction from and the supervision of the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee. The district administrator shall assign staff to provide administrative support to the committees, and staff assigned to these positions shall perform the functions required by the committee without interference from the department. The district committees shall direct the activities of staff assigned to them to the extent necessary for the committees to carry out their duties. The number and areas of responsibility of the district human rights advocacy committees, not to exceed three in any district, shall be determined by the majority vote of district committee members. However, district II may have four committees. District committees shall meet at facilities under their jurisdiction whenever possible.

(2)  Each district human rights advocacy committee shall have no fewer than 7 members and no more than 15 members, 25 percent of whom are or have been clients of the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services within the last 4 years, except that one member of this group may be an immediate relative or legal representative of a current or former client; two providers, who deliver services or programs to clients of the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services; and two representatives of professional organizations, one of whom represents health-related professions and one of whom represents the legal profession. Priority of consideration shall be given to the appointment of at least one medical or osteopathic physician, as defined in chapters 458 and 459, and one member in good standing of The Florida Bar. Priority of consideration shall also be given to the appointment of an individual whose primary interest, experience, or expertise lies with a major client group of the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services not represented on the committee at the time of the appointment. In no case shall a person who is employed by the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services be selected as a member of a committee. At no time shall individuals who are providing contracted services to the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services constitute more than 25 percent of the membership of a district committee. Persons related to each other by consanguinity or affinity within the third degree shall not serve on the same district human rights advocacy committee at the same time. All members of district human rights advocacy committees must successfully complete a standardized training course for committee members within 3 months after their appointment to a committee. A member may not be assigned an investigation which requires access to confidential information prior to the completion of the training course. After he or she completes the required training course, a member of a committee shall not be prevented from participating in any activity of that committee, including investigations and monitoring, except due to a conflict of interest as described in the procedures established by the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee pursuant to subsection (7).

(3)(a)  With respect to existing committees, each member shall serve a term of 4 years. Upon expiration of a term and in the case of any other vacancy, the district committee shall appoint a replacement by majority vote of the committee, subject to the approval of the Governor. A member may serve no more than two consecutive terms.

(b)1.  The Governor shall appoint the first 4 members of any newly created committee; and those 4 members shall select the remaining 11 members, subject to approval of the Governor. If any of the first four members are not appointed within 60 days of a request being submitted to the Governor, those members shall be appointed by a majority vote of the district committee without further action by the Governor.

2.  Members shall serve for no more than two consecutive terms of 3 years, except that at the time of initial appointment, terms shall be staggered so that the first six members appointed serve for terms of 2 years and the remaining five members serve for terms of 3 years. Vacancies shall be filled as provided in subparagraph 1.

(c)  If no action is taken by the Governor to approve or disapprove a replacement of a member pursuant to this paragraph within 30 days after the district committee has notified the Governor of the appointment, then the appointment of the replacement shall be considered approved.

(d)  The limitation on the number of terms a member may serve applies without regard to whether a term was served before or after October 1, 1989.

(4)  Each committee shall elect a chairperson for a term of 1 year. A person may not serve as chairperson for more than two consecutive terms. The chairperson's term expires on the anniversary of the chairperson's election.

(5)  In the event that a committee member fails to attend two-thirds of the regular committee meetings during the course of a year, it shall be the responsibility of the committee to replace such member. If a district committee member is in violation of the provisions of this subsection or procedures adopted thereto, a district committee may recommend to the Governor that such member be removed.

(6)  A member of a district committee shall receive no compensation but shall receive per diem and shall be entitled to be reimbursed for travel expenses as provided in s. 112.061. Members may be provided reimbursement for long-distance telephone calls if such calls were necessary to an investigation of an abuse or deprivation of human rights.

(7)  A district human rights advocacy committee shall first seek to resolve a complaint with the appropriate local administration, agency, or program; any matter not resolved by the district committee shall be referred to the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee. A district human rights advocacy committee shall comply with appeal procedures established by the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee. The duties, actions, and procedures of both new and existing district human rights advocacy committees shall conform to the provisions of this act. The duties of each district human rights advocacy committee shall include, but are not limited to:

(a)  Serving as an independent third-party mechanism for protecting the constitutional and human rights of any client within a program or facility operated, funded, licensed, or regulated by the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services.

(b)  Monitoring by site visit and inspection of records, the delivery and use of services, programs or facilities operated, funded, regulated or licensed by the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services for the purpose of preventing abuse or deprivation of the constitutional and human rights of clients. A district human rights advocacy committee may conduct an unannounced site visit or monitoring visit that involves the inspection of records if such visit is conditioned upon a complaint. A complaint may be generated by the committee itself if information from the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services or other sources indicates a situation at the program or facility that indicates possible abuse or neglect of clients. The district human rights advocacy committees shall follow uniform criteria established by the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee for the review of information and generation of complaints. Routine program monitoring and reviews that do not require an examination of records may be made unannounced.

(c)  Receiving, investigating, and resolving reports of abuse or deprivation of constitutional and human rights.

(d)  Reviewing and making recommendation with respect to the involvement by clients of the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services as subjects for research projects, prior to implementation, insofar as their human rights are affected.

(e)  Reviewing existing programs or services and new or revised programs of the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services and making recommendations as to how the rights of clients are affected.

(f)  Appealing to the state committee any complaint unresolved at the district level. Any matter that constitutes a threat to the life, safety, or health of a client or is multidistrict in scope shall automatically be referred to the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee.

(g)  Submitting an annual report by September 30 to the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee concerning activities, recommendations, and complaints reviewed or developed by the committee during the year.

(h)  Conducting meetings at least six times a year at the call of the chairperson and at other times at the call of the Governor, at the call of the Statewide Human Rights Advocacy Committee, or by written request of a majority of the members of the committee.

(8)(a)  In the performance of its duties, a district human rights advocacy committee shall have:

1.  Access to all client records, files, and reports from any program, service, or facility that is operated, funded, licensed, or regulated by the Department of Children and Family Services and any records which are material to its investigation and which are in the custody of any other agency or department of government. The committee's investigation or monitoring shall not impede or obstruct matters under investigation by law enforcement or judicial authorities. Access shall not be granted if a specific procedure or prohibition for reviewing records is required by federal law and regulation which supersedes state law. Access shall not be granted to the records of a private licensed practitioner who is providing services outside agencies and facilities and whose client is competent and refuses disclosure.

2.  Standing to petition the circuit court for access to client records which are confidential as specified by law. The petition shall state the specific reasons for which the committee is seeking access and the intended use of such information. The court may authorize committee access to such records upon a finding that such access is directly related to an investigation regarding the possible deprivation of constitutional or human rights or the abuse of a client. Original client files, records, and reports shall not be removed from Department of Children and Family Services or agency facilities. Upon no circumstances shall the committee have access to confidential adoption records in accordance with the provisions of ss. 39.0132, 63.022, and 63.162. Upon completion of a general investigation of practices and procedures of the Department of Children and Family Services, the committee shall report its findings to that department.

(b)  All information obtained or produced by the committee which is made confidential by law, which relates to the identity of any client or group of clients subject to the protection of this section, or which relates to the identity of an individual who provides information to the committee about abuse or alleged violations of constitutional or human rights, is confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.

(c)  Portions of meetings of a district human rights advocacy committee which relate to the identity of any client or group of clients subject to the protections of this section, which relate to the identity of an individual who provides information to the committee about abuse or alleged violations of constitutional or human rights, or wherein testimony is provided relating to records otherwise made confidential by law, are exempt from the provisions of s. 286.011 and s. 24(b), Art. I of the State Constitution.

(d)  All records prepared by members of the committee which reflect a mental impression, investigative strategy, or theory are exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution until the investigation is completed or until the investigation ceases to be active. For purposes of this section, an investigation is considered "active" while such investigation is being conducted by the committee with a reasonable, good faith belief that it may lead to a finding of abuse or of a violation of human rights. An investigation does not cease to be active so long as the committee is proceeding with reasonable dispatch and there is a good faith belief that action may be initiated by the committee or other administrative or law enforcement agency.

(e)  Any person who knowingly and willfully discloses any such confidential information is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

History.--ss. 2, 5, ch. 89-215; s. 5, ch. 91-429; s. 807, ch. 95-148; s. 6, ch. 95-407; s. 237, ch. 96-406; s. 145, ch. 98-403.