Senate Bill sb0906c1

    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 906

    By the Committee on Governmental Oversight and Productivity;
    and Senator Garcia




    39-1516-01

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public records; providing an

  3         exemption from the public records law for

  4         individual records of children enrolled in

  5         Learning Gateway programs; providing for the

  6         release of such records for specified purposes;

  7         exempting from the public records law those

  8         records held by a Learning Gateway Program

  9         which would be confidential if held by a state

10         agency; providing for future legislative review

11         and repeal; providing a finding of public

12         necessity; providing a contingent effective

13         date.

14

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

16

17         Section 1.  Records of children in Learning Gateway

18  programs.--

19         (1)  The individual records of children enrolled in

20  Learning Gateway programs, when held in the possession of the

21  Learning Gateway program or the Learning Gateway Steering

22  Committee, are confidential and exempt from section 119.07,

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

24  Constitution. For the purposes of this section, records

25  include assessment data, health data, records of teacher

26  observations, and identifying data, including the child's

27  name, address, and social security number. A parent, guardian,

28  or individual acting as a parent in the absence of a parent or

29  guardian may inspect and review the individual Learning

30  Gateway program record of his or her child and may obtain a

31  copy of the record. Learning Gateway program records may be

                                  1

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






    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 906
    39-1516-01




  1  released to the Department of Education, the Department of

  2  Health, and the Department of Children and Family Services; to

  3  individuals or organizations conducting studies for

  4  institutions to develop, validate, or administer assessments

  5  or improve instruction; to appropriate parties in connection

  6  with an emergency if the information is necessary to protect

  7  the health or safety of the child or other individuals; to the

  8  Auditor General in connection with his or her official

  9  functions; to a court of competent jurisdiction in compliance

10  with an order of that court pursuant to a lawfully issued

11  subpoena; and to parties to an interagency agreement among

12  Learning Gateway programs, local governmental agencies,

13  providers of Learning Gateway programs, state agencies, and

14  the Learning Gateway Steering Committee for the purpose of

15  implementing the Learning Gateway program. Agencies,

16  organizations, or individuals that receive Learning Gateway

17  program records in order to carry out their official functions

18  must protect the data in a manner that will not permit the

19  personal identification of children and their parents by

20  persons other than those authorized to receive the records.

21  This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review

22  Act of 1995 in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand

23  repealed on October 2, 2006, unless reviewed and saved from

24  repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

25         (2)  Records, or information contained in such records,

26  held by a Learning Gateway program and which, if held by an

27  agency as defined in section 119.011, Florida Statutes, or any

28  other unit of government, would be confidential or exempt from

29  section 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, or otherwise exempt from

30  public disclosure, and records or information of the same type

31

                                  2

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






    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 906
    39-1516-01




  1  held by a Learning Gateway program, are confidential and

  2  exempt from inspection and copying.

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

  4  necessity to make confidential and exempt from the public

  5  records law information that would result in the

  6  identification of a participant in a Learning Gateway program,

  7  including a child's name, address, or social security number.

  8  Further, the Legislature finds that it is a public necessity

  9  to make confidential and exempt from the public records law a

10  participant's assessment data, health data, or teacher

11  observations of a participant. Children who participate in a

12  Learning Gateway program may have potential learning and other

13  developmental problems that the program seeks to address.

14  Young children develop at a very rapid rate compared to older

15  children. If a potential learning or other developmental

16  problem is identified and properly addresses at an early age,

17  it can be made less severe or can even be overcome entirely,

18  sometimes in a short period of time. Addressing potential

19  learning or other developmental problems that interfere with a

20  young child's development is an issue of great public

21  importance which affects the health, safety, and welfare of

22  the children of Florida, as well as the future of the state.

23  Learning or other developmental problems, therefore, must be

24  identified in a way that does not result in the labeling or

25  stigmatizing of a child in the public eye, especially as

26  intervention at an early age may resolve these problems. If a

27  parent fears that his or her child's identity can be

28  determined from records maintained by a Learning Gateway

29  program, or that assessment data, health data, or teacher

30  observations regarding his or her child are available for

31  public inspection or copying, that parent may not permit his

                                  3

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






    Florida Senate - 2001                            CS for SB 906
    39-1516-01




  1  or her child to participate in the program. As a result,

  2  children would not benefit from a Learning Gateway program and

  3  their learning or other developmental problems will not be

  4  ameliorated. Therefore, making a participant's identity,

  5  assessment data, health data, or teacher observations

  6  confidential and exempt from the public records law will

  7  permit parents and Learning Gateway program providers to

  8  ameliorate potential learning or other development problems

  9  while protecting the children who participate in the program.

10         Section 3.  This act shall take effect on the date

11  Senate Bill 1018, relating to learning disabilities, or

12  similar legislation becomes a law, and shall not take effect

13  if such legislation does not become a law.

14

15          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
16                              SB 906

17

18  Creates an exemption from public records requirements for
    specified records obtained by a Learning Gateway program.
19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

                                  4

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