Agency Clerk

About the Agency Clerk

The Agency Clerk is Florida Department of Children and Families designated office to receive official filings under Florida’s Administrative Procedures Act (except for cases involving public benefits), retain the official record of administrative hearings (except for public benefits cases), maintain copies of DCF orders (except for public benefits cases), receive petitions for declaratory statements, for rulemaking and for variance from or waiver of rule requirements.

Department Orders

DCF orders rendered on or after July 1, 2015 are available via the Florida Agency Indexed Orders page on the Division of Administrative Hearings’ website at Florida Agency Indexed Orders , opens in a new window . Orders rendered before then may be available via a public records request or by contacting the Agency Clerk via one of the methods identified below.

Documents Received by the Agency Clerk

The following documents are to be filed with the Agency Clerk:

Applications for determination of civil indigent status (for waiver of the appellate filing fee)
Exceptions to recommended orders issued by administrative law judges or DCF hearing officers (except for Office of Appeal Hearings hearing officers – they issue final orders);
Notices of appeal from any DCF final order (including final orders issued by Office of Appeal Hearings hearing officers).
Petitions for administrative hearings (except for cases involving public benefits – those are filed with the Office of Appeal Hearings). Please note: When a DCF notice provides a local address for filing a hearing request, filing at the location designated in the DCF notice is considered the same as filing with the Agency Clerk.
Petitions for declaratory statements, (including those affecting public benefits);
Petitions to initiate rulemaking, (including those affecting public benefits);
Petitions for waiver of or variance from DCF rules, (including those affecting public benefits);

The Agency Clerk is located within the Department’s Office of the General Counsel and can be contacted at the following address, phone or fax numbers or email address.

Agency Clerk
Florida Department of Children and Families
2415 North Monroe Street
Suite 400
Tallahassee, Florida 32303
Phone: (850) 488-2381
Fax: (850) 922-3947
Email: Agency.Clerk@myflfamilies.com

Documents addressed to the Agency Clerk must be filed with the Agency Clerk through one of the following methods:

By physical delivery to the above address by hand-delivery, courier or US Mail.
By email to the above email address.
By facsimile transfer to the above fax number.

Filings will be accepted at the above address from 8:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. on business days. The filing date for a document transmitted by electronic mail or by facsimile shall be the date the agency receives the complete document. Any document received by the Agency Clerk after 5:00 p.m. shall be filed as of 8:00 a.m. on the next regular business day.

You are responsible for ensuring that any document that you submit to the Agency Clerk (physically or electronically) is received by the Agency Clerk no later than the applicable deadline. Any late receipt due to delivery or transmission problems may result in dismissal of your request.

Please note: When a Department notice provides a local address for filing a hearing request, receipt at that address is considered receipt by the Agency Clerk, and the foregoing conditions shall apply.

About the Office of Appeal Hearings

The Office of Appeal Hearings employs full-time hearing officers to conduct hearings for cases involving eligibility for an amount or type of Financial Assistance, Medical Assistance, Social Services, or Food Stamp Program Benefits. These hearings are generally referred to as "Fair Hearings" in federal regulations. Filings concerning such matters must be made with the Office of Appeal Hearings and not the Agency Clerk.

Statement of Agency Organization and Operation

The Florida Department of Children and Families’ Statement of Agency Organization and Operation is provided through DCF’s main web page, Florida Department of Children and Families website , which provides information on the agency head, the agency’s organizational units and subunits, and the manner by which publications, documents, forms, applications for licenses, and similar certifications or rights granted by the agency may be obtained.