Senate Bill sb0772c1

    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 772

    By the Committee on Children and Families; and Senator
    Sanderson




    300-1487-01

  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 in the possession of a

  5         non-Title IV-D county child-support-enforcement

  6         agency which reveals the identity of applicants

  7         for and recipients of child-support services;

  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  identity 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;

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; or

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 772
    300-1487-01




  1         (c)  Mandatory disclosure of information as required by

  2  sections 409.2577, 61.181, 61.1825, and 61.1826, Florida

  3  Statutes, and Title IV-D of the Social Security Act.

  4         (2)  The Non-Title IV-D county

  5  child-support-enforcement agency shall not disclose

  6  information that identifies by name and address an applicant

  7  for or recipient of child-support services or the whereabouts

  8  of such party or child to another person against whom a

  9  protective order with respect to the former party or the child

10  has been entered if the county agency has reason to believe

11  that the release of information to such person could result in

12  physical or emotional harm to the party or the child.

13         (3)  As used in this section, "Non-Title IV-D county

14  child-support-enforcement agency" means a department,

15  division, or other agency of a county government which is

16  operated by the county, excluding local depositories pursuant

17  to section 61.181, Florida Statutes, operated by the clerk of

18  the court, to provide child-support-enforcement and depository

19  services to county residents.

20         (4)  This section is subject to the Open Government

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

22  Florida Statutes, and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2005,

23  unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by

24  the Legislature.

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

26  necessity to exempt from disclosure pursuant to section

27  119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section 24 of Article I of

28  the State Constitution all identifying information concerning

29  applicants for and recipients of child-support services which

30  is in the possession of any non-Title IV-D county

31  child-support-enforcement agency. The Legislature recognizes

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 772
    300-1487-01




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

  2  child-support-enforcement agency are eligible to receive

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

  4  IV-D agency. The Legislature further recognizes that

  5  information concerning applicants for and recipients of

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

  7  would otherwise be exempt from disclosure pursuant to section

  8  409.2579, Florida Statutes, if served by the Department of

  9  Revenue. Therefore, because provision of child-support

10  services by such county agencies provides a useful and

11  appropriate alternative to the child-support services provided

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

13  such county agencies should be entitled to similar disclosure

14  protections afforded to persons receiving child-support

15  services from the state. Additionally, the Legislature finds

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

17  these agencies are also domestic violence cases. In such

18  cases, agency clients have been subjected to domestic violence

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

20  children. The Legislature further finds that federal and state

21  law currently prohibit the disclosure of information

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

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

24  reason to believe that disclosure of information may result in

25  physical or emotional harm to the client or child, and the

26  Legislature wishes to extend similar protections to the

27  clients of non-Title IV-D county child-support-enforcement

28  agencies. Therefore, the Legislature determines that any

29  benefit that could occur from public disclosure of the

30  information concerning applicants for or recipients of

31  child-support services from county child-support-enforcement

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    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 772
    300-1487-01




  1  agencies is outweighed by the risk of harm to the clients and

  2  their children and that there is present need to exempt such

  3  information from disclosure under the public-records laws of

  4  this state.

  5         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2001.

  6

  7          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  8                         Senate Bill 772

  9

10  Provides for a consistent reference to the Non-Title IV-D
    county child support enforcement agency.
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    Clarifies that the definition of  "county child support
12  enforcement agency" excludes the Clerks of the Circuit Courts.

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