The Florida Senate

Every state and county officer within this state authorized to collect funds due the state or county shall pay all sums officially received by the officer into the state or county treasury not later than 7 working days from the close of the week in which the officer received the funds. Funds received by the county officer on behalf of the state shall be deposited directly to the account of the State Treasury not later than 7 working days from the close of the week in which the officer received the funds. The clerk of the court, when collecting funds as part of the clerk’s court-related functions, must remit those funds as required under s. 28.245.

No officer shall hereafter be entitled to receive any commission or compensation for collecting said funds when the officer fails or refuses to pay over the same not later than 7 working days from the close of the week in which the officer received the funds.

Nothing herein shall require officers to pay into the state or county treasury those funds which are required by law or court order, or by the purpose for which they are collected, to be held and disbursed for a particular purpose in a manner different from that set forth in subsection (1).

The sheriffs and clerks of the courts of the various counties of the state are authorized at their discretion on or before September 25 of each and every year hereafter to pay into the fine and forfeiture fund of their respective counties, or the fine and forfeiture fund created under s. 142.01, any or all unclaimed moneys deposited or collected by them in their official capacity, which unclaimed moneys came into their hands prior to January 1 of the preceding year and for which moneys claim has not been made. Any unclaimed moneys collected or deposited by the clerk of the circuit court in the course of the clerk’s court-related activities may be processed under this chapter; however, the clerk must pay for the cost of publication of the list of unclaimed court-related funds. Any unclaimed court-related funds collected or deposited by the clerk which remain unclaimed must be deposited into the fine and forfeiture fund established under s. 142.01.

The sheriffs and clerks of the various courts of the respective counties may, during the month of July of each year, hereafter make and compile a list of any or all unclaimed moneys which came into their hands as provided in subsection (1) above. Such compilation shall list, in addition to the name of the defendant, the respective amounts of such unclaimed moneys. Such list or compilation shall be published one time during the month of July in a newspaper of general circulation in the county served by such sheriff or clerk, and the notice shall specify that unless such moneys are claimed on or before September 1 after such publication that same shall be declared forfeited to such county. Proof of such publication shall be made by the publisher of such newspaper and shall be filed and recorded in the minutes of the county commissioners of such county.

Persons having or claiming any interest in such funds or any portion of them shall file their written claims with the sheriff or clerk of the court of the county having custody of such funds within the time specified by the notice and shall make sufficient proof to the sheriff or clerk of their ownership and upon so doing shall be entitled to receive any part of the moneys so claimed. For the purposes of this section, any municipality that has a municipal detention facility and that prosecutes through its own municipal prosecutor shall have a claim against any unclaimed moneys collected due to violations of that municipality’s ordinances within the territorial jurisdiction of the county and for which a claim has not been made by the person entitled to such funds. Unless claim is filed within such time as aforesaid, all claims in reference thereto are forever barred.

Except for the cost of publishing the notice for the clerk’s unclaimed court-related moneys, the cost of publishing the notices as required by subsection (2) shall be paid by the county commissioners, and the sheriff or the clerk shall receive as compensation the regular fee allowed by statute for the collection of fines, fees, and costs adjudged to the state upon the amounts remitted to the fine and forfeiture fund. Upon such payment to the fine and forfeiture fund, the sheriff or clerk shall be released and discharged from any and all further responsibility or liability in connection therewith.

SHORT TITLE.—This act may be cited as the “Uniform Facsimile Signature of Public Officials Act.”

DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section:

USE OF FACSIMILE SIGNATURE.—Any authorized officer, after filing with the Department of State his or her manual signature certified by him or her under oath, may execute or cause to be executed with a facsimile signature in lieu of a manual signature:

Upon compliance with this act by the authorized officer, a facsimile signature has the same legal effect as a manual signature.

METHOD OF USE OF FACSIMILE SEAL.—When the seal of this state or any of its departments, agencies, public bodies, or other instrumentalities or of any of its political subdivisions is required in the execution of a public security or instrument of payment, the authorized officer may cause the seal to be printed, engraved, stamped or otherwise placed in facsimile thereon. The facsimile seal has the same legal effect as the impression of the seal.

VIOLATION AND PENALTY.—Any person who knowingly, without authorization or with intent to defraud, uses on any of the documents referred to in subsection (3), a facsimile signature, or any reproduction of it, of any authorized officer, or any facsimile seal, or any reproduction of it, of this state or any of its departments, agencies, public bodies, or other instrumentalities or of any of its political subdivisions, shall be guilty of a felony of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

UNIFORMITY OF INTERPRETATION.—This section shall be so construed as to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law of states which enact it.

Except as is hereinafter provided, all such notaries shall collect fees for their services as notaries performed in connection with such agency, board, commission or department at the rates provided for under chapter 117; provided, however, that in any case wherein a certain fee shall be provided by law for such service then in that event such fee as provided by law shall be collected.

No notary fee shall be charged or collected by such notaries in connection with such agency, board, commission or department, in connection with or incidental to the issuance of motor vehicle license tags or titles.

No notary public fees shall be charged by such notaries for notarizing loyalty oaths which are required by law.

The chief administrative officer of any such agency, board, commission or department may, upon determining that such service should be performed as a public service, authorize such service to be performed free of charge.