HB 1159

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to public records and public meetings
3	exemptions; creating s. 215.5571, F.S.; providing an
4	exemption from public records requirements for certain
5	records of the Florida Hurricane Protection Program of the
6	Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund; authorizing the
7	release of confidential and exempt records under certain
8	circumstances; providing an exemption from public meetings
9	requirements for portions of a meeting of the State Board
10	of Administration during which confidential and exempt
11	records are discussed; requiring that exempt portions of
12	meetings be recorded, transcribed, and maintained for a
13	specified period; providing an exemption from public
14	records requirements for minutes and transcripts of exempt
15	portions of meetings; providing for future legislative
16	review and repeal of the exemptions under the Open
17	Government Sunset Review Act; providing a statement of
18	public necessity; providing a contingent effective date.
19
20	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
21
22	Section 1.  Section 215.5571, Florida Statutes, is created
23	to read:
24	215.5571  Public records and public meetings exemptions.--
25	(1)  The following records held by the Florida Hurricane
26	Protection Program of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund are
27	confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I
28	of the State Constitution:
29	(a)  Underwriting files, except that a policyholder or an
30	applicant shall be provided access to his or her own
31	underwriting files.
32	(b)  Claims files until termination of all litigation and
33	the settlement of all claims arising out of the same incident,
34	except that portions of the claims files may remain confidential
35	or exempt if otherwise provided by law.
36	(c)  Records obtained or generated by an auditor pursuant
37	to a routine audit until the audit is completed or, if the audit
38	is conducted as part of an investigation, until the
39	investigation is closed or ceases to be active. An investigation
40	is considered "active" while the investigation is being
41	conducted with a reasonable, good-faith belief that it could
42	lead to the filing of administrative, civil, or criminal
43	proceedings.
44	(d)1.  Proprietary information licensed to the Florida
45	Hurricane Protection Program under contract if the contract
46	requires the program to maintain the confidentiality of such
47	information; and
48	2.  Proprietary information licensed to the Florida
49	Hurricane Catastrophe Fund or the State Board of Administration
50	for use by the Florida Hurricane Protection Program.
51	(e)  Information relating to negotiations for financing,
52	reinsurance, or contractual services until the conclusion of the
53	negotiations.
54	(f)  Reports provided to or submitted by the program
55	regarding suspected fraud or other criminal activity and related
56	reporting regarding suspected misconduct until the investigation
57	of such suspected fraud, criminal activity, or misconduct is
58	closed or ceases to be active.
59	(g)  A public record prepared by an attorney employed or
60	retained by the program, the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund,
61	or the State Board of Administration to protect or represent the
62	interests of the program, or prepared at the attorney's express
63	direction, that reflects a mental impression, conclusion,
64	litigation strategy, or legal theory of the attorney or the
65	program, the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, or the State
66	Board of Administration. This protection is not waived by the
67	release of such public record to another employee or officer of
68	the program, fund, or board or to any person consulted by the
69	attorney.
70	(2)  Records made confidential and exempt by this section
71	may be released, upon written request, to another agency in the
72	performance of that agency's official duties and
73	responsibilities.
74	(3)(a)  That portion of a meeting of the State Board of
75	Administration at which records made confidential and exempt by
76	this section are discussed is exempt from s. 286.011 and s.
77	24(b), Art. I of the State Constitution.
78	(b)  All exempt portions of meetings shall be recorded and
79	transcribed. The board shall record the times of commencement
80	and termination of the meeting, all discussion and proceedings,
81	the names of all persons present at any time, and the names of
82	all persons speaking. An exempt portion of any meeting may not
83	be off the record.
84	(c)  Subject to this section and s. 119.021(2), the court
85	reporter's notes of any exempt portion of a meeting shall be
86	retained by the board for a minimum of 5 years.
87	(d)1.  A transcript and minutes of exempt portions of
88	meetings are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s.
89	24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.
90	2.  Those portions of the transcript or the minutes
91	pertaining to a confidential and exempt claims file are no
92	longer confidential and exempt upon termination of all
93	litigation with regard to that claim.
94	(4)  This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset
95	Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed
96	on October 2, 2014, unless reviewed and saved from repeal
97	through reenactment by the Legislature.
98	Section 2.  (1)  The Legislature finds that it is a public
99	necessity to make certain records of the Florida Hurricane
100	Protection Program of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund
101	confidential and exempt from public records requirements. The
102	program was created by the Legislature to provide hurricane
103	insurance coverage for residential properties in the state. The
104	Legislature finds that the exemption from public records
105	requirements for open claims files of the program is necessary
106	for the effective and efficient administration of an entity
107	created to provide residential hurricane insurance coverage as
108	provided in s. 215.555(18), Florida Statutes. Claims files
109	contain detailed information concerning the claim and may
110	contain sensitive personal information concerning the claimant,
111	and also contain information detailing the evaluation of the
112	legitimacy of the claim and the amounts of money involved, which
113	matters may become the subject of negotiation or litigation. The
114	Legislature finds that the program must conduct ongoing
115	negotiations for financing, reinsurance, and contractual
116	services to perform the duties assigned to the program. If such
117	information were made public prior to the conclusion of the
118	negotiations, the program's bargaining position would be
119	severely damaged, resulting in additional cost to the program
120	and the public. The Legislature also finds that, because the
121	program will investigate insurance fraud, criminal
122	investigations of insurance fraud would be harmed if reports of
123	suspected fraudulent activity were made public. The Legislature
124	finds that the internal audit process, and therefore
125	accountability to the public, will be damaged if records
126	relating to an incomplete internal audit or investigation are
127	made public. The Legislature finds that proprietary information
128	licensed to the Florida Hurricane Protection Program under
129	contract when confidentiality of such information is required
130	under the contract and proprietary information licensed to the
131	Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund or the State Board of
132	Administration for use by the program should be made
133	confidential and exempt because such proprietary information is
134	traditionally considered private. The Legislature finds that
135	although the program is a part of a state agency, it performs
136	functions that more closely resemble the functions of a private
137	enterprise, as distinguished from an agency whose core functions
138	are governmental in nature. The Legislature further finds that
139	the general exemptions in chapters 119 and 286 relating to
140	records created by attorneys and communications with attorneys
141	are designed to address the needs of agencies providing
142	governmental functions and are generally limited to matters
143	relating to litigation and adversarial administrative matters.
144	As distinguished from agencies providing governmental functions,
145	the program receives the advice of counsel on the entire range
146	of matters on which a similarly situated private business would
147	receive advice of counsel, including matters that do not involve
148	litigation or adversarial administrative matters. These include,
149	but are not limited to, legal advice relating to business
150	negotiations with private entities which provide the program
151	with reinsurance and with other entities which provide services
152	to private market insurers. Accordingly, the Legislature finds
153	that the program would not be able to carry out its core
154	business functions effectively without the free and confidential
155	exchange of attorneys' mental impressions, conclusions,
156	litigation strategies, and legal theories, both as to business
157	matters and as to litigation and adversarial administrative
158	matters.
159	(2)  The Legislature further finds that it is a public
160	necessity to exempt certain meetings of the State Board of
161	Administration relating to the operations of the Florida
162	Hurricane Protection Program from public meetings requirements.
163	Closing access to meetings of the board wherein confidential and
164	exempt records are discussed is essential to preserving the
165	confidentiality of those records and enabling the program to
166	carry out its statutory duty of providing residential hurricane
167	insurance coverage. Furthermore, the Legislature finds that
168	minutes and transcripts of exempt portions of meetings should be
169	made confidential and exempt from public records requirements.
170	Release of those records would defeat the purpose of holding a
171	closed meeting.
172	Section 3.  This act shall take effect on the same date
173	that HB 1157 or similar legislation creating the Florida
174	Hurricane Protection Program within the Florida Hurricane
175	Catastrophe Fund takes effect, if such legislation is adopted in
176	the same legislative session or an extension thereof and becomes
177	law.

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