Senate Bill sb0020Cc1

    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 20-C

    By the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senators Brown-Waite
    and Smith




    307-739-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public records; providing

  3         that information concerning the amount or type

  4         of pharmaceutical materials or the location of

  5         pharmaceutical depositories maintained or

  6         directed by the Department of Health in

  7         response to an act of terrorism are exempt from

  8         public-records requirements; providing for

  9         future review and repeal; providing a statement

10         of public necessity; providing a contingent

11         effective date.

12

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

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15         Section 1.  Information concerning the type or amount

16  of pharmaceutical materials or the location of any

17  pharmaceutical depository maintained or directed by the

18  Department of Health as a response to an act of terrorism as

19  defined in s. 775.30 is exempt from the requirements of

20  section 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section 24(a),

21  Article I of the State Constitution. The certification by the

22  Governor of the sufficiency of the type or amount of such

23  pharmaceutical materials or the security of the location of

24  the pharmaceutical depository is a public record. This

25  exemption is remedial in nature and it is the intent of the

26  Legislature that this exemption be applied to information

27  received by the Department of Health before, on, or after the

28  effective date of this section. Information made exempt by

29  this section may be disclosed by the custodial agency to

30  another state or federal agency in order to prevent, detect,

31  guard against, respond to, investigate, or manage the

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    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 20-C
    307-739-02




  1  consequences of any attempted or actual act of terrorism, or

  2  to prosecute those responsible for such attempts or acts, and

  3  the exempt status of such information shall be retained while

  4  in the possession of the receiving agency. This section is

  5  subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act of 1995 in

  6  accordance with section 119.15, Florida Statutes, and shall

  7  stand repealed October 2, 2006, unless reviewed and saved from

  8  repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

  9         Section 2.  The Legislature finds that the exemption

10  from public-records requirements provided by this act is a

11  public necessity because information concerning the type or

12  amount of pharmaceutical materials or the location of any

13  pharmaceutical depository that is maintained or directed by

14  the Department of Health as a response to an act of terrorism

15  is information that could be used by terrorists in planning

16  acts of terrorism. If terrorists were able to determine what

17  types of pharmaceutical materials are stored or maintained for

18  response to terrorism, or the amount of pharmaceutical

19  materials stored, they could use this information to craft a

20  terrorist act to which the state may not be as well prepared

21  to respond. This information could be used to increase the

22  number of people injured or killed in a terrorist act.

23  Although some skill would be required to use such information

24  to further an act of terrorism, ample evidence of the

25  capabilities of terrorists to conduct complicated acts of

26  terrorism exist. The September 11, 2001, attack on the World

27  Trade Center and the Pentagon, as well as the intentional

28  spread of anthrax in this country and state, which resulted in

29  the death of one Floridian, provide evidence that such

30  capabilities exist. These events also have shown the

31  importance of maintaining appropriate pharmaceutical materials

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    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 20-C
    307-739-02




  1  to respond to acts of terrorism and the need to ensure that

  2  the locations of pharmaceutical depositories are protected.

  3  Consequently, the Legislature finds that information

  4  concerning the type or amount of pharmaceutical materials or

  5  the location of any pharmaceutical depository that is

  6  maintained or directed by the Department of Health as a

  7  response to an act of terrorism must be kept exempt.

  8         Section 3.  This act shall take effect on the same date

  9  that Senate Bill 6-C or similar legislation defining

10  "terrorism" for purposes of the Florida Criminal Code takes

11  effect, if such legislation is adopted in the same legislative

12  session or an extension thereof and becomes law.

13

14          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
15                         Senate Bill 20-C

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17  -     Provides that information made confidential and exempt
          by the bill may be disclosed by the custodial agency to
18        another state or federal agency for specified purposes
          and that the confidential and exempt status of such
19        information is retained while in the possession of the
          receiving agency.
20
    -     Provides that the exemption is remedial in nature and
21        that it applies to records received before, on, or
          after, the effective date of the bill.
22
    -     Clarifies that the certification is to be made by the
23        Governor.

24  -     Clarifies that the exemption is for information held by
          the Department of Health.
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