Senate Bill 0874
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Florida Senate - 1999 SB 874
By Senator Bronson
18-580B-99
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to unauthorized transmissions
3 on telecommunications frequencies; amending s.
4 843.165, F.S.; prohibiting an unauthorized
5 person from transmitting over a radio frequency
6 assigned to a governmental agency or an
7 emergency medical services provider; providing
8 penalties; providing exceptions; providing an
9 effective date.
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11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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13 Section 1. Section 843.165, Florida Statutes, is
14 amended to read:
15 843.165 Unauthorized transmissions and interference to
16 governmental and associated on police or fire radio
17 frequencies prohibited; penalties; exceptions.--
18 (1) A No person may not shall transmit, or cause to be
19 transmitted, over any radio frequency with knowledge that such
20 frequency is assigned by the Federal Communications Commission
21 to a state, county, or municipal governmental fire or police
22 agency, including, but not limited to, a law enforcement,
23 fire, government administration, or emergency management
24 agency or any public or private emergency medical services
25 provider, any sounds, jamming device, jamming transmissions,
26 or speech, or by radio frequency carrier wave except: those
27 persons who are unless authorized in writing to do so by the
28 agency's chief administrator; employees of the agency who are
29 authorized to transmit by virtue of their duties with the
30 agency; and those persons holding a valid station license
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Florida Senate - 1999 SB 874
18-580B-99
1 assigned by the Federal Communications Commission to transmit
2 on such frequencies head of such agency.
3 (2) A person may not knowingly obstruct, jam, or
4 interfere with radio transmissions made by volunteer
5 communications personnel of any state, county, or municipal
6 governmental agency, volunteers of any public or private
7 emergency medical services provider, or volunteers in any
8 established Skywarn program when the volunteers are providing
9 communications support upon request of the governmental agency
10 during tests, drills, field operations, or emergency events.
11 (3)(2) Any person who violates this section commits
12 subsection (1) is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree,
13 punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
14 (4)(3) It is lawful not unlawful for any person to
15 transmit, or cause to be transmitted, speech or sounds over
16 any authorized transmitter operating on assigned to police or
17 fire frequencies specified in subsection (1) when the person:
18 (a) Such person Has been commanded to do so by an
19 authorized operator of the transmitter; or
20 (b) Such person Is acting to summon assistance for the
21 authorized operator who, for any reason, is unable to make the
22 transmission; or.
23 (c) Is a radio technician or installer who is testing,
24 repairing, or installing radio equipment at the request of a
25 state, county, or municipal governmental agency or licensed
26 public or private emergency medical services provider.
27 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 1999.
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Florida Senate - 1999 SB 874
18-580B-99
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2 SENATE SUMMARY
3 Prohibits unauthorized transmissions on governmental and
emergency medical telecommunications radio frequencies.
4 Prohibits interference with volunteer communications
personnel when working on behalf of governmental
5 agencies. Provides for exceptions and criminal penalties.
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