Senate Bill 1872

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



    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1872

    By Senator Sullivan





    22-1186A-00                                         See HB 439

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public records; amending s.

  3         288.99, F.S.; providing exemptions from public

  4         records requirements for information obtained

  5         from a certified capital company during

  6         investigation or review by the Department of

  7         Banking and Finance, certain reports related

  8         thereto, and certain personal information

  9         relating to investigative personnel, customers,

10         complainants, and others; providing a privilege

11         against civil liability; providing for release

12         to certain entities; providing for future

13         review and repeal; providing a finding of

14         public necessity; providing an effective date.

15

16  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

17

18         Section 1.  Subsections (15) and (16) are added to

19  section 288.99, Florida Statutes, to read:

20         288.99  Certified Capital Company Act.--

21         (15)(a)  CONFIDENTIALITY OF INVESTIGATION AND REVIEW

22  INFORMATION.--Except as otherwise provided by this section,

23  any information relating to an investigation or department

24  review of a certified capital company, including any consumer

25  complaint, is confidential and exempt from the provisions of

26  s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution

27  until the investigation or review is complete or ceases to be

28  active.  Such information shall remain confidential and exempt

29  from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of

30  the State Constitution after the investigation or review is

31  complete or ceases to be active if the information is

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






    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1872
    22-1186A-00                                         See HB 439




  1  submitted to any law enforcement or administrative agency for

  2  further investigation and shall remain confidential and exempt

  3  from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of

  4  the State Constitution until that agency's investigation is

  5  complete or ceases to be active. For purposes of this

  6  subsection, an investigation or review shall be considered

  7  "active" so long as the department, a law enforcement agency,

  8  or an administrative agency is proceeding with reasonable

  9  dispatch and has a reasonable good faith belief that the

10  investigation may lead to the filing of an administrative,

11  civil, or criminal proceeding.  This section shall not be

12  construed to prohibit disclosure of information that is

13  required by law to be filed with the department and that, but

14  for the investigation, would otherwise be subject to s.

15  119.07(1).

16         (b)  Except as necessary to enforce the provisions of

17  this chapter, a consumer complaint or information relating to

18  an investigation or review shall remain confidential and

19  exempt from s. 119.07(1) after an investigation or review is

20  complete or ceases to be active to the extent disclosure

21  would:

22         1.  Reveal a trade secret as defined in s. 688.002 or

23  s. 812.081.

24         2.  Jeopardize the integrity of another active

25  investigation or review.

26         3.  Disclose the identity of a confidential source or

27  investigative techniques or procedures.

28         (c)  Nothing in this section shall be construed to

29  prohibit the department from providing information to any law

30  enforcement or administrative agency.  Any law enforcement or

31  administrative agency receiving confidential information in

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1872
    22-1186A-00                                         See HB 439




  1  connection with its official duties shall maintain the

  2  confidentiality of the information so long as it would

  3  otherwise be confidential.

  4         (d)  In the event department personnel are or have been

  5  involved in an investigation or review of such nature as to

  6  endanger their lives or physical safety or that of their

  7  families, the home addresses, telephone numbers, places of

  8  employment, and photographs of such personnel, together with

  9  the home addresses, telephone numbers, photographs, and places

10  of employment of spouses and children of such personnel and

11  the names and locations of schools and day care facilities

12  attended by the children of such personnel are confidential

13  and exempt from s. 119.07(1).

14         (e)  All information obtained by the department from

15  any person which is made available to the department only on a

16  confidential or similarly restricted basis shall be

17  confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1).  This exemption

18  shall not be construed to prohibit disclosure of information

19  that is specifically required by law to be filed with the

20  department or that is otherwise subject to s. 119.07(1).

21         (f)  If information subject to this subsection is

22  offered in evidence in any administrative, civil, or criminal

23  proceeding, the presiding officer may, in his or her

24  discretion, prevent the disclosure of information that would

25  be confidential pursuant to paragraph (b).

26         (g)  A privilege against civil liability is granted to

27  a person who furnishes information or evidence to the

28  department, unless such person acts in bad faith or with

29  malice in providing such information or evidence.

30         (h)  This subsection is subject to the Open Government

31  Sunset Review Act of 1995 in accordance with s. 119.15, and

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1872
    22-1186A-00                                         See HB 439




  1  shall stand repealed on October 2, 2005, unless reviewed and

  2  saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

  3         (16)  The social security number of any customer of a

  4  certified capital company, complainant, or person associated

  5  with a certified capital company or qualified business is

  6  exempt from s. 119.07(1).  This subsection is subject to the

  7  Open Government Sunset Review Act of 1995 in accordance with

  8  s. 119.15, and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2005, unless

  9  reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the

10  Legislature.

11         Section 2.  The Legislature finds that the people of

12  Florida will benefit from the operation of certified capital

13  companies in this state by virtue of potential job creation, a

14  potentially expanded tax base, and overall economic

15  improvement resulting from investment of certified capital in

16  emerging small businesses in Florida.  The Legislature further

17  finds that it is a public necessity to exempt from public

18  records requirements certain information obtained during an

19  investigation or annual review of a certified capital company,

20  and certain personal information related to customers of a

21  certified capital company, complainants, or persons associated

22  with a certified capital company or qualified business.  These

23  exemptions are essential to protect the integrity of contract

24  negotiations inherent to this industry, which include complex

25  financial transactions and negotiations between certified

26  capital companies and insurance companies that invest capital

27  in the certified capital companies, and to protect the privacy

28  of customers of a certified capital company, complainants, or

29  persons associated with a certified capital company or

30  qualified business.  If information collected during

31  investigations or reviews of certified capital companies is

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1872
    22-1186A-00                                         See HB 439




  1  not protected, critical proprietary information regarding

  2  investment contracts and the structuring of investments in

  3  certified capital companies will be revealed.  Disclosure of

  4  this information would place those certified capital companies

  5  at a competitive disadvantage in all states in which the

  6  companies currently operate or intend to operate.

  7  Consequently, companies whose records are not otherwise open

  8  to public inspection may refrain from seeking certification as

  9  certified capital companies in Florida, or expanding their

10  current presence in Florida. As a result, Florida would lose a

11  significant source of venture capital for small early-stage

12  businesses, economic growth resulting from the establishment

13  of new businesses funded by certified capital, tax revenue

14  generated by new jobs and businesses, and employment

15  opportunities for the people of this state.  In addition,

16  required disclosure of personal information concerning

17  customers of a certified capital company, complainants, or

18  persons associated with a certified capital company or

19  qualified business would have a negative impact on growth of

20  the certified capital company industry in Florida by

21  unnecessarily exposing those individuals to an invasive

22  scrutiny of personal information.  Accordingly, the harm that

23  would result from requiring public disclosure of proprietary

24  information of the certified capital companies or personal

25  information concerning customers of a certified capital

26  company, complainants, or persons associated with a certified

27  capital company or qualified business far outweighs any public

28  benefit derived from the release of such information. The

29  Legislature also finds that it is a public necessity to exempt

30  information that is made available to the department only on a

31  confidential basis. Maintaining the confidentiality of such

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1872
    22-1186A-00                                         See HB 439




  1  information protects the concerns of the persons regarding

  2  privacy, trade secrets, physical safety, or other such

  3  reasons. The public benefit of maintaining the confidentiality

  4  outweighs the public benefit derived from the release of such

  5  information, since such information would otherwise not be

  6  available to the department to carry out its regulatory or

  7  investigatory duties. Furthermore, the Legislature finds that

  8  the exemption of the personal information relating to

  9  investigatory personnel and their families from public records

10  requirements is a public necessity because release of this

11  information would jeopardize the safety and welfare of

12  departmental investigatory personnel and their families.  The

13  release of this personal information would not benefit the

14  public or aid it in monitoring the effective and efficient

15  operation of government.  The exemption of this personal

16  information would minimize the possibility that those persons

17  under investigation might use the information to threaten,

18  intimidate, harass, or cause physical harm or other injury to

19  these persons or members of their family.

20         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

21  law.

22

23            *****************************************

24                       LEGISLATIVE SUMMARY

25
      Provides exemptions from public records requirements for
26    information obtained from a certified capital company
      during investigation or review by the Department of
27    Banking and Finance, for certain reports related thereto,
      and for personal financial information relating to a
28    principal of such a company or an applicant for
      certification, unless such information is released by the
29    company or applicant. Provides for future review and
      repeal.
30

31

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