Senate Bill sb0030Ae1

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    SB 30-A                                        First Engrossed



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public records; creating an

  3         exemption from public disclosure requirements

  4         for information held by the Department of

  5         Financial Services pursuant a request for

  6         reimbursement under the multiple hurricane

  7         deductible reimbursement program; providing

  8         exemption to expire within a specified period;

  9         creating an exemption from public disclosure

10         requirements for information that would

11         identify an insurer or an insurer's employees;

12         creating an exemption from public disclosure

13         requirements for information held by the

14         department which relates to policyholders who

15         have not filed claims for reimbursement under

16         the program; providing for future repeal and

17         legislative review of the exemption under the

18         Open Government Sunset Review Act; providing a

19         statement of public necessity; providing a

20         contingent effective date.

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

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24         Section 1.  Confidentiality of information relating to

25  reimbursement for multiple hurricane deductibles.--

26         (1)  Information held by the Department of Financial

27  Services pursuant to a request for reimbursement under the

28  multiple hurricane deductible reimbursement program is exempt

29  from the provisions of section 119.07(1), Florida Statutes,

30  and Section 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution, until

31  90 days after a reimbursement payment has been made to the


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    SB 30-A                                        First Engrossed



 1  policyholder by the department, the request for reimbursement

 2  is denied, or an application for reimbursement is no longer

 3  active, whichever occurs later.

 4         (2)  Information held by the Department of Financial

 5  Services pursuant to the multiple hurricane deductible

 6  reimbursement program which would identify an insurer,

 7  including the insurer's name, address, form numbers, policy

 8  and claims numbers, and names and other information that would

 9  identify the insurer's employees, is exempt from the

10  provisions of section 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section

11  24(a), Article I of the State Constitution.

12         (3)  Information held by the Department of Financial

13  Services pursuant to the multiple hurricane deductible

14  reimbursement program which relates to policyholders who have

15  not filed claims for reimbursement is exempt from the

16  provisions of section 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section

17  24(a), Article I of the State Constitution.

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

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

20  Florida Statutes, and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2010,

21  unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by

22  the Legislature.

23         Section 2.  (1)  The legislative intent of the multiple

24  hurricane deductible reimbursement program, as expressed in

25  Senate Bill 10-A and House Bill 9-A, is to reimburse

26  policyholders in Florida for financial loss suffered due to

27  the application of multiple hurricane deductibles, which

28  constitutes a valid and necessary public and governmental

29  purpose and which serves the public health, safety, and

30  welfare. In order for the multiple hurricane deductible

31  reimbursement program to operate effectively and efficiently,


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    SB 30-A                                        First Engrossed



 1  the Department of Financial Services will receive information

 2  from insureds who will file claims under the program, as well

 3  as information from insurers which supports or verifies the

 4  claims for reimbursement made under the program.

 5         (2)  The Legislature finds that it is a public

 6  necessity to make exempt from the provisions of section

 7  119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section 24(a), Article I of

 8  the State Constitution, information held by the Department of

 9  Financial Services pursuant to a request for reimbursement

10  under the multiple hurricane deductible reimbursement program

11  until 90 days after a reimbursement payment has been made to

12  the policyholder by the department, the request for

13  reimbursement is denied, or an application for reimbursement

14  is no longer active, whichever occurs later. Given the

15  concerns involving the public health, safety, and welfare, the

16  urgency in providing relief to the appropriate residents of

17  the state, and the temporary nature of the program, it is

18  vital that the department be able to perform its duties under

19  the multiple hurricane deductible reimbursement program in the

20  most efficient and effective manner possible. The exemption

21  provided for information held by the department pursuant to a

22  request for reimbursement under the program is a time-limited

23  exemption only and is enacted to permit the department maximum

24  opportunity to fulfill its duties under the program with a

25  minimum amount of distraction while still preserving public

26  oversight by making information available 90 days after a

27  reimbursement payment has been made to the policyholder by the

28  department, the request for reimbursement is denied, or an

29  application for reimbursement is no longer active, whichever

30  occurs later.

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    SB 30-A                                        First Engrossed



 1         (3)  The Legislature also finds that it is a public

 2  necessity to make exempt from the provisions of section

 3  119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section 24(a), Article I of

 4  the State Constitution, information held by the Department of

 5  Financial Services pursuant to the multiple hurricane

 6  deductible reimbursement program which would identify an

 7  insurer, including the insurer's name, address, form numbers,

 8  policy and claims numbers, and names and other information

 9  that would identify the insurer's employees. In order for the

10  administration of this program to be effective, the department

11  must have access to information that is available only from

12  insurers in order to verify requests for reimbursement. This

13  insurer information may identify an insurer, including the

14  insurer's name, address, form numbers, policy and claims

15  numbers, and names and other information that would identify

16  the insurer's employees. If this information were to be made

17  available with the reimbursement requestor's information that

18  is later released under subsection (1), it could be used to

19  link insureds with insurers and effectively result in the

20  release of client lists, which is proprietary business

21  information. If this information is not made exempt, insurers

22  might be hesitant to provide the verification necessary to

23  implement the program, which would defeat its purpose. In

24  addition, the Legislature notes that release of proprietary

25  business information of this sort could result in serious

26  economic consequences for insurers and, ultimately, the State

27  of Florida. Furthermore, the Legislature finds that it is a

28  public necessity to make exempt from the provisions of section

29  119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and Section 24(a), Article I of

30  the State Constitution, information held by the Department of

31  Financial Services pursuant to the multiple hurricane


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    SB 30-A                                        First Engrossed



 1  deductible reimbursement program which relates to

 2  policyholders who have not filed claims for reimbursement.

 3  Under the multiple hurricane deductible reimbursement program,

 4  insurers may be providing the Department of Financial Services

 5  with information concerning large numbers of their insureds,

 6  some of whom will not file claims under the program. Insurers

 7  could provide information related to each requestor upon a

 8  request of the department, but this would increase the amount

 9  of time required to fulfill the purpose of the program.

10  Transfer of large databases by insurers is a faster, more

11  efficient, and more effective method of giving the department

12  the information it needs, but this method also will give the

13  department information concerning individual insureds who make

14  no request for reimbursement under the program. As a result,

15  information concerning policyholders who do not make claims

16  for reimbursement should be protected to preserve their

17  privacy and to protect proprietary business information of

18  insurers.

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

20  that Senate Bill 10-A or House Bill 9-A takes effect, if such

21  legislation is enacted in the same legislative session, or an

22  extension thereof, and becomes law.

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