SB 794 — Agency for Persons with Disabilities

Florida Senate - 2026 CS for CS for SB 794 By the Appropriations Committee on HealthChildren, Families, and HumanElder Services;Affairs;

theand CommitteeSenator onJones Children,586-02687-26 Families,2026794c1 andA Elderbill Affairs;to be entitled An act relating to the Agency for Persons with Disabilities;

and Senators Jones and Garcia 603-03212-26 2026794c2 A bill to be entitled An act relating to the Agency for Persons with Disabilities;

amendingproviding s.an effective date.

393.063, F.S.;

revising the definition of the term “developmental disability”;

defining the term “Tatton- Brown-Rahman syndrome”;

providing effective dates.

Subsection (1) of section 393.0655, Florida PageStatutes, 1is ofamended 6to CODING:read:

393.0655 Screening of direct service providers.— Page 1 of 5 CODING:

Florida Senate - 2026 CS for CSSB 794 586-02687-26 2026794c1 (1) MINIMUM STANDARDS.—The agency shall require level 2 employment screening pursuant to chapter 435 for SBdirect 794service 603-03212-26providers 2026794c2who Statutes,are isunrelated amendedto their clients, including support coordinators, and all employees managers and supervisors of residential facilities or adult day training programs licensed under this chapter and any other persons, including volunteers, who provide care or services, who have access to read:a client’s living areas, or who have access to a client’s funds or personal property.

393.0655 Screening of direct service providers.— (1) MINIMUM STANDARDS.—The agency shall require level 2 employment screening pursuant to chapter 435 for direct service providers who are unrelated to their clients, including support coordinators, and all employees managers and supervisors of residential facilities or adult day training programs licensed under this chapter and any other persons, including volunteers, who provide care or services, who have access to a client’s living areas, or who have access to a client’s funds or personal property.

(d) Persons 12 years of age or older, including family members, residing with a direct services provider who provides Pageservices 2to clients in his or her own place of 6residence CODING:are subject to background screening;

however, such persons who are Page 2 of 5 CODING:

Florida Senate - 2026 CS for CS for SB 794 603-03212-26586-02687-26 2026794c22026794c1 services12 to clients18 inyears hisof orage hershall ownbe placescreened offor residencedelinquency arerecords subjectonly. to background screening;

however, such persons who are 12 to 18 years of age shall be screened for delinquency records only.

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Words stricken are deletions;

words underlined are additions.

Florida Senate - 2026 CS for CS for SB 794 603-03212-26 2026794c2 c.

d.Page 3 of 5 CODING:

Words stricken are deletions;

words underlined are additions.

Florida Senate - 2026 CS for SB 794 586-02687-26 2026794c1 d.

(b) By October 1, 2026, the state university shallmust submit a final report to the agency, including a compilation and analysis of the survey results.

(4) Using the information gathered under this section, the agency shall identify specific core competencies for waiver support coordinators, identify specific performance metrics to Pageassess 4those ofcore 6competencies, CODING:and make recommendations on how to standardize their assessment.

By February 15, 2027, the Page 4 of 5 CODING:

Florida Senate - 2026 CS for CS for SB 794 603-03212-26586-02687-26 2026794c22026794c1 assessagency thoseshall coresubmit competencies,a report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and makethe recommendationsSpeaker of the House of Representatives on howits tofindings standardizeand theirrecommendations, assessment.and include the full report submitted by the state university under subsection (1).

By February 15, 2027, the agency shall submit a report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives on its findings and recommendations, and include the full report submitted by the state university under subsection (1).

(5) This section shall take effect upon this act becoming a law.

PresentThis subsectionsact (46)shall andtake (47)effect ofupon sectionbecoming 393.063, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (47) and (48), respectively, a newlaw. subsection (46) is added to that section, and subsection (11) of that section is amended, to read:

393.063Page Definitions.—For5 the purposes of this5 chapter,CODING: the term:

(11) “Developmental disability” means a disorder or syndrome that is attributable to intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, autism, spina bifida, Down syndrome, Phelan- McDermid syndrome, or Prader-Willi syndrome, or Tatton-Brown- Rahman syndrome;

that manifests before the age of 18;

and that constitutes a substantial handicap that can reasonably be expected to continue indefinitely.

(46) “Tatton-Brown-Rahman syndrome” means a disorder caused by a mutation in the DNMT3A gene typified by mild to severe intellectual disability;

macrocephaly;

stature and weight that are greater than or equal to two or more standard deviations above the mean for the person’s age and sex;

and any of the following features presenting in infancy, childhood, or adolescence:

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