House Bill 2123

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                HB 2123

        By Representatives Sanderson, Greenstein, C. Smith,
    Eggelletion, Gottlieb, Ritter, Effman and Wasserman Schultz





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public records; providing an

  3         exemption from the public records requirements

  4         for information that reveals the identify of

  5         applicants and recipients of child-support

  6         services in the possession of a non-Title IV-D

  7         county child-support-enforcement agency;

  8         providing for future legislative review and

  9         repeal; providing a finding of public

10         necessity; providing an effective date.

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

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14         Section 1.  (1)  Any information that reveals the

15  identify of applicants for or recipients of child-support

16  services, including the name, address, and telephone number of

17  such persons, in the possession of a non-Title IV-D county

18  child-support-enforcement agency is confidential and exempt

19  from public disclosure pursuant to section 119.07(1), Florida

20  Statutes, and Section 24(a) of Article I of the State

21  Constitution. The use or disclosure of such information by the

22  non-Title IV-D county child-support-enfocement agency is

23  limited to the purposes directly connected with:

24         (a)  Any investigation, prosecution, or criminal or

25  civil proceeding connected with the administration of any

26  non-Title IV-D county child-support-enforcement program; and

27         (b)  Mandatory disclosure of identifying and location

28  information as provided in section 61.13(9), Florida Statutes,

29  by the non-Title IV-D county child-support-enforcement agency

30  when providing non-Title IV-D services.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                HB 2123

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  1         (2)  The county child-support-enforcement agency shall

  2  not disclose information that identifies by name and address

  3  an applicant or recipient of child-support services or the

  4  whereabouts of such party or child to another person against

  5  whom a protective order with respect to the former party or

  6  the child has been entered if the county agency has reason to

  7  believe that the release of information to such person could

  8  result in physical or emotional harm to the party or the

  9  child.

10         (3)  This section is subject to the Open Government

11  Sunset Review Act of 1995 in accordance with section 119.15,

12  Florida Statutes, and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2005,

13  unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by

14  the Legislature.

15         Section 2.  The Legislature finds that it is a public

16  necessity to exempt from disclosure pursuant to section

17  119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section 24 of Article I of

18  the State Constitution, all identifying information concerning

19  applicants for and recipients of child-support services which

20  is in the possession of non-Title IV-D county

21  child-support-enforcement agencies. The Legislature recognizes

22  that all persons served by a non-Title IV-D county

23  child-support-enforcement agency are eligible to receive

24  services from the Department of Revenue, the state's Title

25  IV-D agency. The Legislature further recognizes that

26  information concerning applicants for and recipients of

27  child-support services who are served by these county agencies

28  would otherwise be exempt from disclosure pursuant to section

29  409.2579, Florida Statutes, if served by the Department of

30  Revenue. Therefore, because provision of child-support

31  services by such county agencies provides a useful and

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  1  appropriate alternative to the child-support services provided

  2  by the state, the Legislature finds that persons served by

  3  such county agencies should be entitled to similar disclosure

  4  protections afforded to persons receiving child-support

  5  services from the state. Additionally, the Legislature finds

  6  that many of the child-support-enforcement cases handled by

  7  these agencies are also domestic violence cases. In such

  8  cases, agency clients have been subjected to domestic violence

  9  or abuse and fear for their lives and those of their minor

10  children. The Legislature further finds that federal and state

11  law currently prohibit the disclosure of information

12  concerning clients served by the Title IV-D cases when a

13  protective order has been issued or the Title IV-D agency has

14  reason to believe that disclosure of information may result in

15  physical or emotional harm to the client or child and wishes

16  to extend similar protections to the clients of non-Title IV-D

17  county child-support-enforcement agencies. Therefore, the

18  Legislature determines that public disclosure, of the

19  information concerning applicants for, or recipients of

20  child-support services from county child-support-enforcement

21  agencies is outweighed by the risk of harm to the persons and

22  children and that there is present need to exempt such

23  information from disclosure under the public records laws of

24  this state.

25         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                HB 2123

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  2                          SENATE SUMMARY

  3    Provides an exemption from the public records
      requirements for information that reveals the identity of
  4    applicants and recipients of child-support services in
      the possession of a non-Title IV-D county
  5    child-support-enforcement agency. Provides for future
      legislative review and repeal. Provides a finding of
  6    public necessity.

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