FL · jury_instructions
Fla. Std. Jury Instr. (Crim.) 20.11
WELFARE FRAUD — BILLING IN EXCESS
§ 414.39(4)(a), Fla. Stat.
To prove the crime of Welfare Fraud — Billing in Excess, the State must prove the following element beyond a reasonable doubt:
(Defendant) knowingly billed the recipient of benefits under a state or federally funded assistance program, or [his] [her] family, for an amount in excess of that provided for by law or regulation.
§ 414.39(5), Fla. Stat.
If you find (Defendant) guilty of Welfare Fraud, you must also determine if the State proved beyond a reasonable doubt whether the amount wrongfully billed was:
a. less than $200 in any 12 consecutive months.
b. $200 or more, but less than $20,000 in any 12 consecutive months.
c. $20,000 or more, but less than $100,000 in any 12 consecutive months.
d. $100,000 or more in any 12 consecutive months.
Definition.
“Knowingly” means with actual knowledge and understanding of the facts or the truth.
Optional Definition
“Knowingly” means an act done voluntarily and intentionally and not because of mistake or accident or other innocent reason. (Devitt & Blackmar — Federal Jury Practice and Instructions, Sec. 16.07)
Give if applicable. § 414.39(7), Fla. Stat.
It is not a defense that the defendant repaid assistance or services obtained.
Lesser Included Offenses
No lesser included offenses have been identified for this offense.
Provenance
- Source
- floridabar.org
- Retrieved
- 2026-08-18
- Edition
- 2026-08-18
- Content hash
91acc4531286931e4036edf3d44119f091a6b151b619bd9945be7b90047f29fb
The link goes to the issuing authority’s own document — the one we read to produce this record. Where a source publishes whole titles rather than sections, your browser may need a moment to jump to the provision.
Unofficial copy of government-published law, reproduced from official sources with full provenance. Not an official publication; verify against official sources before relying on it in a filing. Records in the 'guidance' corpus, and only that corpus, are sub-regulatory (interpretive guidelines, survey procedures) and are not binding law. Validity bounds follow each jurisdiction's declared temporalBasis.