Florida Senate - 2015                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 288
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì291132rÎ291132                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  02/18/2015           .                                
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       The Committee on Communications, Energy, and Public Utilities
       (Bradley) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete lines 118 - 146
    4  and insert:
    5         350.042 Ex parte communications.—
    6         (1) A commissioner should accord to every person who is
    7  legally interested in a proceeding, or the person’s lawyer, full
    8  right to be heard according to law, and, except as authorized by
    9  law, shall neither initiate nor consider ex parte communications
   10  concerning the merits, threat, or offer of reward in any
   11  proceeding under s. 120.569 or s. 120.57 which is currently
   12  pending before the commission or which he or she knows or
   13  reasonably expects will be filed with the commission within 180
   14  days after the date of any such communication, other than a
   15  proceeding under s. 120.54 or s. 120.565, workshops, or internal
   16  affairs meetings. An No individual may not shall discuss ex
   17  parte with a commissioner the merits of any issue that he or she
   18  knows will be filed with the commission within 180 90 days. The
   19  provisions of This subsection does shall not apply to commission
   20  staff.
   21         (3)(a) The Legislature finds that it is important to have
   22  commissioners who are educated and informed on regulatory
   23  policies and developments in science, technology, business
   24  management, finance, law, and public policy which are associated
   25  with the industries that the commissioners regulate, and the
   26  Legislature also finds that it is in the public interest for
   27  commissioners to become educated and informed on these matters
   28  through active participation in meetings that are scheduled by
   29  the sponsoring organization, such as sessions, programs, or
   30  conferences, which are duly noticed and open to the public.
   31         (b) As used in this subsection, the term “active
   32  participation” or the term “participating in” includes, but is
   33  not limited to, attending or speaking at educational sessions,
   34  participating in organization governance by attending meetings,
   35  serving on committees, or in leadership positions, participating
   36  in panel discussions, and attending meals and receptions
   37  associated with such events that are open to all attendees.
   38         (c) The prohibition in subsection (1) remains in effect at
   39  all times at such meetings wherever located. While participating
   40  in such meetings, a commissioner shall:
   41         1. Refrain from commenting on or discussing the subject
   42  matter of any proceeding under s. 120.569 or s. 120.57 which is
   43  currently pending before the commission or which he or she knows
   44  or reasonably expects will be filed with the commission within
   45  180 days after the meeting; and
   46         2. Use reasonable care to ensure that the content of the
   47  educational session or other session in which the commissioner
   48  participates is not designed to address or create a forum to
   49  influence the commissioner on the subject matter of any
   50  proceeding under s. 120.569 or s. 120.57 which is currently
   51  pending before the commission or which he or she knows or
   52  reasonably expects will be filed with the commission within 180
   53  days after the meeting This section shall not apply to oral
   54  communications or discussions in scheduled and noticed open
   55  public meetings of educational programs or of a conference or
   56  other meeting of an association of regulatory agencies.
   57         (7)
   58         (b) If the Commission on Ethics finds that there has been a
   59  violation of this section by a public service commissioner, it
   60  shall provide the Governor and the Florida Public Service
   61  Commission Nominating Council with a report of its findings and
   62  recommendations. The Governor shall remove from office a
   63  commissioner who willfully and knowingly violates this section
   64  and is authorized to enforce the findings and recommendations of
   65  the Commission on Ethics, pursuant to part III of chapter 112.
   66  
   67  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   68  And the title is amended as follows:
   69         Delete lines 15 - 26
   70  and insert:
   71         350.042, F.S.; revising the prohibition against ex
   72         parte communication to apply to any matter that a
   73         commissioner knows or reasonably expects will be filed
   74         within a certain timeframe; providing legislative
   75         intent; defining terms; applying the prohibition
   76         against ex parte communications to specified meetings;
   77         requiring the Governor to remove from office any
   78         commissioner found to have willfully and knowingly
   79         violated the ex parte communications