House Bill 4829

    Florida House of Representatives - 1998               HCR 4829

        By the Committee on Rules, Resolutions, & Ethics and
    Representatives Thrasher and Crady





  1                   House Concurrent Resolution

  2         A concurrent resolution authorizing the

  3         creation of an interim task force study for

  4         review and improvement of the provisions of

  5         Florida's ethics laws.

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  7  Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of

  8  Florida, the Senate Concurring:

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10         Section 1.  The President of the Senate and the Speaker

11  of the House of Representatives are hereby authorized to

12  create an interim task force study for review and improvement

13  of the provisions of Florida's ethics laws. The President of

14  the Senate shall appoint a member of the Senate as chair of

15  the task force and two other members of the Senate as members

16  of the task force, at least one of whom shall be a member from

17  the minority party. The Speaker of the House of

18  Representatives shall appoint a member of the House of

19  Representatives as vice chair of the task force and two other

20  members of the House of Representatives as members of the task

21  force, at least one of whom shall be a member from the

22  minority party.

23         Section 2.  The members of the task force are requested

24  to invite representatives from the Florida Commission on

25  Ethics, the Florida League of Cities, the Florida Association

26  of Counties, and the Executive Branch of Florida Government,

27  as well as interested members of the public, to assist the

28  task force in such review.

29         Section 3.  The task force is directed to review and

30  make recommendations concerning issues on ethics, including,

31  but not limited to, the following:

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1998               HCR 4829

    175-136A-98






  1         (1)  The scope of personnel and officials covered by

  2  the financial disclosure components of Florida's ethics laws.

  3         (2)  The criteria and methods for calculating the

  4  information required on financial disclosure forms.

  5         (3)  The requirements and procedures for filing amended

  6  financial disclosure forms and the appropriate repository for

  7  such disclosure filings.

  8         (4)  The appropriate requirements for gift reporting

  9  and for the time periods within which reimbursement for gifts

10  or benefits received by a reporting official must be made.

11         (5)  The appropriate degree of confidentiality, if any,

12  for disclosure filings under Florida's ethics laws;

13         (6)  The appropriate designated filing dates for

14  disclosure forms.

15         (7)  Clarification of Florida's ethics laws when more

16  than one agency has jurisdiction over alleged ethics

17  violations.

18         (8)  The options to consider prevailing party

19  attorney's fees and methods to improve the investigatory

20  powers of the Commission on Ethics in conjunction with alleged

21  violations of ethics laws.

22         (9)  The appropriate standard of conduct of a reporting

23  official after an official leaves the public sector.

24         (10)  Clarification of ambiguities in the law relating

25  to former reporting officials.

26         (11)  The appropriate disclosure requirements

27  concerning subsidiary business organizations and related

28  business activities of a reporting official.

29         (12)  The circumstances under which voting conflicts

30  arise in which a special gain may inure to the benefit of

31  reporting official.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1998               HCR 4829

    175-136A-98






  1         (13)  The circumstances under which the use of inside

  2  information should not inure to the benefit of a reporting

  3  official.

  4         Section 4.  The subject matters set forth in section 3

  5  shall be illustrative and shall not be intended to limit the

  6  analysis of the task force. The task force shall make such

  7  recommendations as it deems appropriate to resolve

  8  ambiguities, close loopholes, and otherwise improve the

  9  provisions of Florida's ethics laws.

10         Section 5.  Staffing assistance and support to the task

11  force shall be provided by the Florida Senate and the Florida

12  House of Representatives.

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