Legislative Session Wrap Up

By Director Barbara Palmer

It was a busy legislative session for the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, and the agency received some vital funding for critical issues. We are very excited about rate increases for direct service providers which everyone pushed hard to receive this year.

We thank our legislators for making our agency a priority this year. For the first time ever, APD will have a budget of more than $2 billion. All this funding is contingent on Governor Ron DeSantis’ final approval.

Some of the appropriations highlights include:

$403 million in recurring funds for increases in Provider Rates for Direct Care employees, as follows:

Residential Habilitation - $135.6 million
Life Skills Development Level 3, Adult Day Training - $25.5 million
Life Skills Development Level 2, Supported Employment - $49,342
Life Skills Development Level 1, Companion - $54.9 million
Behavior Assistant Services - $1.1 million
Personal Supports - $174.9 million
Respite - $10.8 million

$59.6 million in recurring funds to provide Waiver Services to APD clients on the waiver waiting list. Approximately 1,200 people will be enrolled onto the iBudget Florida waiver next fiscal year.

$14.2 million in recurring funds for Waiver Rate increases for Behavioral Services.

$8.5 million to procure a contract for a statewide dental services program for the developmentally disabled.

$6.7 million for forensic Fixed Capital Outlay projects.

$2.9 million provided to Consumer Directed Care Plus (CDC+) for administration costs.

$1.6 million to hire 22 OPS QSI Assessors to handle the annual number of QSI assessments required each year.

$1.5 million to contract with a nurse staffing company to recruit and retain skilled nurses to provide services to the Tacachale Center residents in Gainesville.

$1.5 million to contract for Architectural and Engineering Site Design of a new forensic facility on the Campus of Sunland Center in Marianna.

$1.7 million in position transfers to support agency initiatives, as follows:

6 Regional Incident Management Positions
6 Regional Qualified Organizations Positions
1 State Office Qualified Organizations Positions
4 Psychological Assessment Positions
2 State Office Residential Planning Positions
2 Senior Attorney Positions to support Qualified Organizations activities.

$1.4 million to continue implementation of APD iConnect, APD’s central client database, which includes electronic visit verification of some waiver services.

$1 million in recurring funds to continue the Employment Enhancement Project to provide supported employment services to individuals on the waiver waiting list.

$475,000 to implement the Florida Planning, Accounting, and Ledger Management (PALM) Project. This system is replacing the State’s current accounting and cash management system.

$314,052 for the acquisition of Motor Vehicles at both Sunland and Tacachale, as follows:

One Wheelchair Lift Van
One Food Delivery Truck
Six 12-Passenger Vans

$250,000 to contract with a vendor to assess existing hardware and software to determine the best Incident Management Solution to help APD meet all CMS requirements with one system.

$265,260 to engage a third-party project management consultant to provide security recommendations, and general guidance for site-to-cloud migration services.

$244,680 to replace two (2) prefabricated buildings that house Pathway’s Vocational Program at Sunland Center.

$231,895 to replace video surveillance system for the security and safety of the residents at the Developmental Disabilities Defendant Program (DDDP).

$103,265 to install a Fence Alert System for the safety of the residents at DDDP.

There is also good news for state employees. All permanent positions will receive a 5.38 percent pay increase on July 1. Additionally, hourly rates were increased to $15 for anyone making below that rate including OPS positions. A minimum salary of $41,600 was established for all security officer positions at our facilities. With inflation in double digits, these pay enhancements will be essential to our valued state employees.

We are so thankful to the Legislature for all of this wonderful news. We look forward to another good year as we work together to make a difference in the lives of the individuals and families we serve.