(1) Any child or young adult suspected of being commercially sexually exploited or labor trafficked shall be assessed using the “”Human Trafficking Screening Tool Administration Guide (HTST),”” CF-FSP 5406, July 2023, incorporated by reference and available at http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-15927. For the purpose of this rule chapter, a young adult is defined as someone who has reached 18 years of age but is not yet 23 years of age and who is in extended foster care or who is receiving other independent living services. In addition, any child or young adult who meets the criteria as defined in the list of indicators in the HTST, shall be assessed using the HTST.
    (2) Any professional administering the HTST must meet the training requirements set forth in Fl. Admin. Code R. 65C-43.005, and must have completed the Department approved training for the HTST prior to administering the tool.
    (3) The HTST shall be initiated within 24 hours of identifying one or more of the indicators listed in the HTST. For a child or young adult whose whereabouts are unknown, the HTST shall be initiated within 24 hours of the debriefing of a recovered child or young adult if the debriefing results in indicators of human trafficking as listed in the HTST.
    (4) If the HTST was previously administered by the Department of Juvenile Justice or one of the shared agencies as listed in the HTST, incorporated in subsection (1) of this rule, the results of the HTST shall be used in determining the most appropriate placement for the child or young adult.
Rulemaking Authority 409.1754(1)(c) FS. Law Implemented Florida Statutes § 409.1754. History-New 1-12-16, Amended 10-24-19, 10-9-23.