Florida Senate - 2020 SB 1188 By Senator Albritton 26-00996A-20 20201188__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public records; creating s. 3 631.195, F.S.; defining the terms “consumer” and 4 “personal financial and health information”; exempting 5 from public records requirements consumer personal 6 financial and health information, certain underwriting 7 files, insurer personnel and payroll records, and 8 consumer claim files that are made or received by the 9 Department of Financial Services acting as receiver as 10 to an insurer; exempting from public records 11 requirements certain reports and documents held by the 12 department relating to insurer own-risk and solvency 13 assessments and corporate governance annual 14 disclosures and certain information received from the 15 National Association of Insurance Commissioners or 16 governments; providing retroactive applicability; 17 providing that exempted records may be released under 18 specified circumstances; providing for future 19 legislative review and repeal of the exemptions; 20 providing statements of public necessity; providing an 21 effective date. 22 23 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 24 25 Section 1. Section 631.195, Florida Statutes, is created to 26 read: 27 631.195 Records of insurers; public records exemptions.— 28 (1) As used in this section, the term: 29 (a) “Consumer” means a prospective purchaser of, a 30 purchaser of, a beneficiary of, or an applicant for any 31 insurance product or service. The term also includes a family 32 member or dependent of such person. 33 (b) “Personal financial and health information” means: 34 1. A consumer’s personal health condition, disease, or 35 injury; 36 2. A history of a consumer’s personal medical diagnosis or 37 treatment; 38 3. The existence, nature, source, or amount of a consumer’s 39 personal income or expenses; 40 4. Records of, or relating to, a consumer’s personal 41 financial transactions of any kind; 42 5. The existence, identification, nature, or value of a 43 consumer’s assets, liabilities, or net worth; 44 6. The existence or content of, or any individual coverage 45 or status under a consumer’s beneficial interest in, any 46 insurance policy or annuity contract; or 47 7. The existence, identification, nature, or value of a 48 consumer’s interest in any insurance policy, annuity contract, 49 or trust. 50 (2) The following records, in whatever form, of an insurer 51 which are made or received by the department, acting as receiver 52 pursuant to this chapter, are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 53 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution: 54 (a) All personal financial and health information of a 55 consumer. 56 (b) Underwriting files of a type customarily maintained by 57 an insurer transacting lines of insurance similar to those lines 58 transacted by the insurer. 59 (c) Personnel and payroll records of the insurer. 60 (d) Consumer claim files. 61 (3) The following records held by the department are 62 confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I 63 of the State Constitution: 64 (a) An ORSA summary report, a substantially similar ORSA 65 summary report, and supporting documents submitted to the office 66 pursuant to s. 628.8015. 67 (b) A corporate governance annual disclosure and supporting 68 documents submitted to the office pursuant to s. 628.8015. 69 (c) Information received from the National Association of 70 Insurance Commissioners, a governmental entity in this or 71 another state, the Federal Government, or a government of 72 another nation which is confidential or exempt if held by that 73 entity and which is held by the department for use in the 74 performance of its duties relating to insurer solvency. 75 (4) The exemptions in subsections (2) and (3) apply to 76 records held by the department before, on, and after July 1, 77 2020. 78 (5) Records or portions of records made confidential and 79 exempt by this section may be released under any of the 80 following circumstances: 81 (a) To any state or federal agency, upon written request, 82 if disclosure is necessary for the receiving entity to perform 83 its duties and responsibilities. The receiving agency shall 84 maintain the confidential and exempt status of such record or 85 portion of such record. 86 (b) To comply with a properly authorized civil, criminal, 87 or regulatory investigation or a subpoena or summons by a 88 federal, state, or local authority. 89 (c) To the National Association of Insurance Commissioners 90 and its affiliates and subsidiaries, if the recipient agrees in 91 writing to maintain the confidential and exempt status of the 92 records. 93 (d) To the guaranty associations and funds of the various 94 states which are receiving, adjudicating, and paying claims of 95 the insolvent insurer subject to delinquency proceedings 96 pursuant to this chapter. The receiving guaranty association 97 shall maintain the confidential and exempt status of such record 98 or portion of such record. 99 (e) Upon written request, to persons identified as 100 designated employees as described in s. 626.989(4)(d), whose 101 responsibilities include the investigation and disposition of 102 claims relating to suspected fraudulent insurance acts. 103 (f) In the case of personal financial and health 104 information of a consumer, upon written request of the consumer 105 or the consumer’s legally authorized representative. 106 (6) This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset 107 Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed 108 on October 2, 2025, unless reviewed and saved from repeal 109 through reenactment by the Legislature. 110 Section 2. (1) The Legislature finds it is a public 111 necessity to exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 112 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution all personal 113 financial and health information of a consumer, underwriting 114 files of a type customarily maintained by an insurer transacting 115 lines of insurance similar to those lines transacted by the 116 insurer, personnel and payroll records of an insurer, and 117 consumer claim files that are made or received by the Department 118 of Financial Services acting as receiver as to an insurer. 119 Disclosure of financial, health, underwriting, personnel, 120 payroll, or consumer claim information would create the 121 opportunity for theft or fraud, thereby jeopardizing the 122 financial security of a person. Limiting disclosure of such 123 information held by the department is also necessary in order to 124 protect the financial interests of the persons to whom that 125 information pertains. Such information could be used for 126 fraudulent or other illegal purposes, including identity theft, 127 and could result in substantial financial harm. Furthermore, 128 every person has an expectation of and a right to privacy in all 129 matters concerning his or her financial interests. The 130 Legislature further finds that it is a public necessity that 131 health information held by the department be made confidential 132 and exempt because matters of personal health are traditionally 133 private and confidential concerns between the patient and his or 134 her health care provider. The private and confidential nature of 135 personal health matters pervades both the public and private 136 health care sectors. Moreover, public disclosure of health 137 information could have a negative effect upon a person’s 138 business and personal relationships and could also have 139 detrimental financial consequences. 140 (2)(a) The Legislature further finds that it is a public 141 necessity to exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 142 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution the following records 143 held by the department: 144 1. An own-risk and solvency assessment (ORSA) summary 145 report, a substantially similar ORSA summary report, and 146 supporting documents submitted to the Office of Insurance 147 Regulation pursuant to s. 628.8015, Florida Statutes; 148 2. A corporate governance annual disclosure and supporting 149 documents submitted to the office pursuant to s. 628.8015, 150 Florida Statutes; and 151 3. Information received from the National Association of 152 Insurance Commissioners, a governmental entity in this or 153 another state, the Federal Government, or a government of 154 another nation which is confidential or exempt if held by that 155 entity and which is held by the department for use in the 156 performance of its duties relating to insurer solvency. 157 (b) In conducting an ORSA, an insurer or insurance group 158 identifies and evaluates the material and relevant risks to the 159 insurer or insurance group and the adequacy of capital resources 160 to support these risks. The ORSA summary report, substantially 161 similar ORSA report, and supporting documents contain highly 162 sensitive and strategic financial information about an insurer 163 or insurer group. Having a comprehensive and unbiased assessment 164 provides the office with an effective early warning mechanism 165 for preventing insolvencies and protecting policyholders and 166 promotes a stable insurance market. Divulging the ORSA summary 167 report, substantially similar ORSA summary report, and 168 supporting documents will injure the insurer or insurance group 169 by providing competitors with detailed insight into their 170 financial position, risk management strategies, business plans, 171 pricing and marketing strategies, management systems, and 172 operational protocols. 173 (c) The corporate governance annual disclosure describes an 174 insurer’s governance structure and the internal practices and 175 procedures used in conducting the business affairs of the 176 company, making strategic operational decisions affecting its 177 competitive position, and managing its financial condition. 178 Release of the corporate governance annual disclosure and 179 supporting documents will injure the insurer or insurance group 180 in the marketplace by providing competitors with the insurer’s 181 or the insurance group’s confidential business information. 182 Broad disclosure will give state regulators a thorough 183 understanding of the corporate governance structure and internal 184 policies and practices used by insurers and promote market 185 integrity. Effective governance mechanisms will enable insurers 186 to take any necessary corrective actions and achieve strategic 187 goals while allowing the office to perform its regulatory duties 188 effectively and efficiently. 189 (d) Divulgence of confidential or exempt information 190 received from the National Association of Insurance 191 Commissioners or governments could impede the exchange of 192 information and communication among regulators across multiple 193 agencies and jurisdictions and jeopardize the ability of 194 regulators to effectively supervise insurers and groups 195 operating in multiple jurisdictions and engaged in significant 196 cross-border activities. 197 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.