Senate Bill sb1654

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 1654

    By Senator Smith





    14-1098-03                                          See HB 325

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public libraries; amending

  3         s. 257.191, F.S.; revising provisions relating

  4         to public library construction grants;

  5         providing for waiver of local matching

  6         requirement under certain circumstances;

  7         authorizing the Division of Library and

  8         Information Services to administer certain

  9         funds; providing for eligibility for grant

10         funding; providing for the adoption of rules;

11         providing for effect contingent upon certain

12         appropriations; amending s. 257.261, F.S.;

13         revising provisions relating to confidentiality

14         of public library registration and circulation

15         records to authorize disclosure of information

16         to the parent or guardian of a library patron

17         under age 16, for the purpose of collecting

18         fines or recovering overdue books or other

19         materials; prohibiting access to library

20         records by law enforcement personnel who

21         presently have access; providing for

22         severability; providing an effective date.

23

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

25

26         Section 1.  Section 257.191, Florida Statutes, is

27  amended to read:

28         257.191  Public library construction grants.--

29         (1)  The Division of Library and Information Services

30  may accept and administer library construction moneys

31  appropriated to it and shall allocate such appropriation to

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 1654
    14-1098-03                                          See HB 325




  1  municipal or, county, and regional libraries in the form of

  2  public library construction grants on a matching basis. The

  3  local matching portion shall be no less than the grant amount,

  4  on a dollar-for-dollar basis, up to the maximum grant amount

  5  50 percent. The division shall waive the matching requirement

  6  if a county or municipality requests a waiver of the matching

  7  requirement and has been designated a rural community in

  8  accordance with ss. 288.0656(2)(b) and 288.06561. Initiation

  9  of a library construction project 12 months or less prior to

10  the grant award under this section shall not affect the

11  eligibility of an applicant to receive a public library

12  construction grant. The division shall adopt rules for the

13  administration of library construction grants. For the

14  purposes of this section, s. 257.21 does not apply.

15         (2)  The Division of Library and Information Services

16  may accept and administer moneys appropriated to it for small

17  county public library construction grants. The purpose of the

18  grants is to assist counties and municipalities that have been

19  designated rural communities in accordance with ss.

20  288.0656(2)(b) and 288.06561 to construct, expand, or renovate

21  public library facilities to meet the requirement of 0.6

22  square feet per capita of total library floor space.

23         (3)  To be eligible to compete for funds under this

24  section, a county or municipality shall:

25         (a)  Comply with the definition of rural community as

26  provided in s. 288.0656(2)(b).

27         (b)  Have less than 0.6 square feet per capita of total

28  library floor space.

29         (c)  Certify that the county or municipality will

30  appropriate and expend sufficient funds to operate the

31  completed library facility.

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 1654
    14-1098-03                                          See HB 325




  1         (d)  Not apply for a grant under the public library

  2  construction grant program provided in this section during the

  3  same fiscal year.

  4         (4)  The division shall adopt rules for the

  5  administration of small county public library construction

  6  grants. For the purposes of this section, s. 257.21 does not

  7  apply.

  8         (5)  Except as otherwise provided in this section, this

  9  section shall take effect after the Legislature adopts the

10  General Appropriations Act specifically appropriating to the

11  Department of State, for distribution to the counties, such

12  amounts as it determines and appropriates for the specific

13  purpose of funding this section.

14         Section 2.  Section 257.261, Florida Statutes, is

15  amended to read:

16         257.261  Library registration and circulation

17  records.--All registration and circulation records of every

18  public library, except statistical reports of registration and

19  circulation, are confidential and exempt from the provisions

20  of s. 119.07(1) and from s. 24(a) of Art. I of the State

21  Constitution. Except in accordance with proper judicial order,

22  a person may not make known in any manner any information

23  contained in such records, except as provided in this

24  section.  As used in this section, the term "registration

25  records" includes any information that a library requires a

26  patron to provide in order to become eligible to borrow books

27  and other materials, and the term "circulation records"

28  includes all information that identifies the patrons who

29  borrow particular books and other materials. This section does

30  not prohibit any library, or any business operating jointly

31  with the library, from disclosing information to the parent or

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 1654
    14-1098-03                                          See HB 325




  1  guardian of a public library patron under the age of 16, if

  2  the parent or guardian presents a copy of the birth

  3  certificate of the public library patron under the age of 16

  4  municipal or county law enforcement officials, or to judicial

  5  officials, for the purpose of collecting fines or recovering

  6  overdue books, documents, films, or other items or materials

  7  owned or otherwise belonging to the library. This section does

  8  not prohibit any library, or any business operating jointly

  9  with the library, from disclosing information to municipal or

10  county law enforcement officials or to judicial officials or

11  to any business, for the purpose of collecting fines or

12  recovering overdue books, documents, films, or other items or

13  materials owned or otherwise belonging to the library;

14  provided that,. in the case of a public library patron under

15  the age of 16, the a public library or business entity may

16  only release confidential information relating to the parent

17  or guardian of the person under the age of 16. Any person who

18  violates this section commits is guilty of a misdemeanor of

19  the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.

20  775.083.

21         Section 3.  If any provision of this act or its

22  application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the

23  invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of

24  the act which can be given effect without the invalid

25  provision or application, and to this end the provisions of

26  this act are declared severable.

27         Section 4.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

28  law.

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