| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to public records; amending s. 119.071, |
| 3 | F.S.; providing an exemption from public records |
| 4 | requirements for information furnished by a person to an |
| 5 | agency for the purpose of being provided with emergency |
| 6 | notification by the agency; providing for retroactive |
| 7 | effect of the exemption; providing for future legislative |
| 8 | review and repeal of the exemption; providing a statement |
| 9 | of public necessity; providing an effective date. |
| 10 |
|
| 11 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 12 |
|
| 13 | Section 1. Paragraph (j) is added to subsection (5) of |
| 14 | section 119.071, Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 15 | 119.071 General exemptions from inspection or copying of |
| 16 | public records.- |
| 17 | (5) OTHER PERSONAL INFORMATION.- |
| 18 | (j)1. Any information furnished by a person to an agency |
| 19 | for the purpose of being provided with emergency notification by |
| 20 | the agency, including the person's name, address, telephone |
| 21 | number, e-mail address, or other electronic communication |
| 22 | address, is exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the |
| 23 | State Constitution. This exemption applies to information held |
| 24 | by an agency, before, on, or after the effective date of this |
| 25 | exemption. |
| 26 | 2. This paragraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset |
| 27 | Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15, and shall stand |
| 28 | repealed on October 2, 2016, unless reviewed and saved from |
| 29 | repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. |
| 30 | Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public |
| 31 | necessity to exempt from public records requirements any |
| 32 | information furnished by a person to an agency for the purpose |
| 33 | of being provided with emergency notification by the agency. |
| 34 | Through the use of current technology, agencies may contact |
| 35 | members of the public by a variety of electronic means, |
| 36 | including cellular telephones and electronic mail, to alert them |
| 37 | of imminent natural and manmade disasters, medical emergencies, |
| 38 | criminal emergencies, and other dangerous conditions. Public |
| 39 | safety is significantly enhanced through the use of such |
| 40 | emergency notification programs, and expansion of such programs |
| 41 | further increases public safety. A public records exemption for |
| 42 | information furnished to an agency for this purpose will |
| 43 | encourage greater participation in emergency notification |
| 44 | programs by alleviating concerns about disclosure of information |
| 45 | that could be used for criminal purposes. For these reasons, the |
| 46 | public records exemption provided in this act is necessary for |
| 47 | the effective implementation of and broad participation in |
| 48 | emergency notification programs conducted by agencies. |
| 49 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011. |