Senate Bill sb1138
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1138
By Senator Jones
40-615-01
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to elections; amending s.
3 97.012, F.S.; prohibiting the Secretary of
4 State from specified political activities;
5 authorizes the Commission on Ethics to
6 investigate violations; providing penalties;
7 authorizing the Attorney General to bring a
8 civil action to recover civil penalties
9 assessed by the commission; providing an
10 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. Section 97.012, Florida Statutes, is
15 amended to read:
16 97.012 Secretary of State as chief election officer.--
17 (1) The Secretary of State is the chief election
18 officer of the state, and it is his or her responsibility to:
19 (a)(1) Obtain and maintain uniformity in the
20 application, operation, and interpretation of the election
21 laws.
22 (b)(2) Provide uniform standards for the proper and
23 equitable implementation of the registration laws.
24 (c)(3) Actively seek out and collect the data and
25 statistics necessary to knowledgeably scrutinize the
26 effectiveness of election laws.
27 (d)(4) Provide technical assistance to the supervisors
28 of elections on voter education and election personnel
29 training services.
30 (e)(5) Provide technical assistance to the supervisors
31 of elections on voting systems.
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1138
40-615-01
1 (f)(6) Provide voter education assistance to the
2 public.
3 (g)(7) Coordinate the state's responsibilities under
4 the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
5 (h)(8) Provide training to all affected state agencies
6 on the necessary procedures for proper implementation of this
7 chapter.
8 (i)(9) Ensure that all registration applications and
9 forms prescribed or approved by the department are in
10 compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
11 (j)(10) Coordinate with the United States Department
12 of Defense so that armed forces recruitment offices administer
13 voter registration in a manner consistent with the procedures
14 set forth in this code for voter registration agencies.
15 (k)(11) Create and maintain a central voter file.
16 (l)(12) Maintain a voter fraud hotline and provide
17 election fraud education to the public.
18 (2)(a) The Secretary of State may not:
19 1. Act as a leader of or hold an office in a political
20 organization.
21 2. Publicly endorse or publicly oppose any candidate
22 for public office or any ballot issue.
23 3. Make speeches on behalf of a political
24 organization.
25 4. Attend political party functions.
26 5. Solicit funds for or pay an assessment or make a
27 contribution to a political organization or candidate, or
28 purchase tickets for a political party dinner or other
29 function.
30 6. Accept funds for or from any candidate or political
31 organization.
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 1138
40-615-01
1 (b) For purposes of this subsection, the term
2 "political organization" means any political committee,
3 committee of continuous existence, or political party and
4 includes any other entity engaging in partisan political
5 activity on behalf of any candidate or ballot issue.
6 (3) The Commission on Ethics shall investigate
7 violations of this section as provided in s. 112.322.
8 (4) A person who violates any provision of this
9 section may be punished as provided in s. 112.317. The
10 Attorney General may bring a civil action to recover any civil
11 penalty assessed by the Commission on Ethics as provided in s.
12 112.317(2).
13 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2001.
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16 SENATE SUMMARY
17 Prohibits the Secretary of State from specified political
activities. Authorizes the Commission on Ethics to
18 investigate violations. Authorizes the Attorney General
to bring a civil action to recover civil penalties
19 assessed by the commission under s. 112.317(2), F.S.
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