Florida Senate - 2009 SB 166 By Senator Ring 32-00033-09 2009166__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public records; defining the term 3 “publicly owned building or facility”; creating an 4 exemption from public-records requirements for 5 information that identifies a donor or prospective 6 donor of a donation made for the benefit of a publicly 7 owned building or facility if the donor desires to 8 remain anonymous; providing for future legislative 9 review and repeal of the exemption under the Open 10 Government Sunset Review Act; providing a statement of 11 public necessity; providing an effective date. 12 13 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 14 15 Section 1. Confidentiality of certain donor information 16 related to a publicly owned building or facility.— 17 (1) As used in this section, the term “publicly owned 18 building or facility” means a building or facility the title to 19 which is vested in the state or a political subdivision of the 20 state. 21 (2) If a donor or prospective donor of a donation made for 22 the benefit of a publicly owned building or facility desires to 23 remain anonymous, information that would identify the name, 24 address, or telephone number of that donor or prospective donor 25 is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, 26 and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 27 (3) This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset 28 Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15, Florida Statutes, and 29 shall stand repealed on October 2, 2014, unless reviewed and 30 saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. 31 Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public 32 necessity that information that would identify the name, 33 address, or telephone number of a donor or prospective donor of 34 a donation made for the benefit of a publicly owned building or 35 facility be made confidential and exempt from public-records 36 requirements if the donor or prospective donor desires to remain 37 anonymous. In order to encourage private investment in publicly 38 owned buildings or facilities, it is a public necessity to 39 promote the giving of gifts to, and the raising of private funds 40 for, the acquisition, renovation, rehabilitation, and operation 41 of publicly owned buildings or facilities. An essential element 42 of a robust plan of promoting the giving of private gifts and 43 the raising of private funds is the need to protect the identity 44 of prospective and actual donors who desire to remain anonymous. 45 If the identity of prospective and actual donors who desire to 46 remain anonymous is subject to disclosure, there is a chilling 47 effect on donations because donors are concerned about 48 disclosure of personal information leading to theft and, in 49 particular, identity theft, including personal safety and 50 security. Therefore, the Legislature finds that it is a public 51 necessity to make confidential and exempt from public-records 52 requirements information that would identify a donor or 53 prospective donor of a donation made for the benefit of a 54 publicly owned building or facility if the donor or prospective 55 donor wishes to remain anonymous. 56 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.