Florida Senate - 2021 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1570
Ì243780,Î243780
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
03/24/2021 .
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The Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability
(Rodriguez) recommended the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete everything after the enacting clause
4 and insert:
5 Section 1. Section 20.059, Florida Statutes, is created to
6 read:
7 20.059 Quasi-public entities.—
8 (1) As used in this section, the term:
9 (a) “Governmental entity” means a state, regional, county,
10 municipal, special district, or other political subdivision,
11 whether executive, judicial, or legislative, including, but not
12 limited to, a department, a division, a bureau, a commission, an
13 authority, a district, or an agency thereof or a public school,
14 a Florida College System institution, a state university, or an
15 associated board.
16 (b) “Operational audit” has the same meaning as in s.
17 11.45(1).
18 (c) “Quasi-public entity” means an entity established by
19 general law, regardless of form, for a public purpose or to
20 effectuate a government program and which is not directly
21 controlled by a governmental entity. The term does not include a
22 citizen support organization or a direct-support organization.
23 (2)(a) For a quasi-public entity created in law before July
24 1, 2021:
25 1. The Governor must specify a department with which the
26 quasi-public entity will be affiliated, unless a department is
27 already specified in law, no later than December 31, 2021. The
28 affiliated department, whether specified by the Governor or in
29 law, shall serve in an advisory capacity to the governing body
30 of the affiliated quasi-public entity. The head of the
31 affiliated department shall review the activities of the
32 affiliated quasi-public entity at least annually and shall
33 recommend appropriate statutory changes to the Legislature, as
34 necessary, to ensure the most efficient and cost-effective
35 operation.
36 (b) For a quasi-public entity created in law on or after
37 July 1, 2021, the law creating the quasi-public entity shall
38 specify a department with which the quasi-public entity will be
39 affiliated. The affiliated department shall serve in an advisory
40 capacity to the governing body of the affiliated quasi-public
41 entity. The head of the affiliated department shall review the
42 activities of the affiliated quasi-public entity at least
43 annually and shall recommend appropriate statutory changes to
44 the Legislature, as necessary, to ensure the most efficient and
45 cost-effective operation.
46 (3) Each quasi-public entity shall have an operational
47 audit completed by the Auditor General at least once every three
48 years.
49 (4) By September 15 of each year, each quasi-public entity
50 shall submit a report to the Governor, the President of the
51 Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and its
52 affiliated department which includes all of the following
53 information:
54 (a) The name, mailing address, physical address, telephone
55 number, and website address of the quasi-public entity.
56 (b) The statutory authority creating the quasi-public
57 entity.
58 (c) A description of the quasi-public entity’s mission.
59 (d) A description of the quasi-public entity’s plans for
60 the next 3 fiscal years.
61 (e) A copy of the quasi-public entity’s code of ethics.
62 (f) If the quasi-public entity is a corporation not for
63 profit, a copy of the entity’s most recent federal Internal
64 Revenue Service Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax
65 Form (Form 990).
66 (g) If the quasi-public entity is organized as a
67 corporation, a copy of all of the following:
68 1. Corporate governance framework and structure.
69 2. Policies and practices of the corporation’s significant
70 committees, including any compensation committee.
71 3. Policies and practices for directing senior management.
72 4. Processes by which the board, its committees, and senior
73 management ensure an appropriate amount of oversight over the
74 corporation’s activities.
75 (h) If the quasi-public entity has created an entity of any
76 type with which it is affiliated, the following information must
77 be included for each such affiliated entity:
78 1. The name, mailing address, physical address, telephone
79 number, and website address of the affiliated entity.
80 2. The statutory authority creating or authorizing the
81 creation of the affiliated entity, if any.
82 3. A description of the affiliated entity’s mission.
83 4. If the affiliated entity is a corporation, a copy of all
84 of the information described in paragraph (g).
85 5. If the affiliated entity is a corporation not for
86 profit, a copy of the entity’s most recent federal Internal
87 Revenue Service Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax
88 Form (Form 990).
89 (5) Each quasi-public entity shall maintain a publicly
90 accessible website. The website must include the following:
91 (a) The report required pursuant to subsection (4).
92 (b) The most recently approved operating budget, which must
93 be maintained on the website for 2 years.
94 (c) Position title and annual salary or rate of pay for
95 each regularly established position.
96 (d) A link to any state audit or report of the entity’s
97 operations.
98 (e) A link to any program or activity descriptions for
99 which funds may be expended.
100 (f) All meeting notices for meetings of the entity’s
101 governing body, which must be maintained on the website for 2
102 years.
103 (g) The official minutes of each meeting of the entity’s
104 governing body, which must be posted no later than 7 days after
105 the date of the meeting in which the minutes are approved.
106 (6) A quasi-public entity may not use public funds to
107 retain a lobbyist to represent the entity before the legislative
108 or executive branch. However, a full-time employee of the quasi
109 public entity may register as a lobbyist and represent the
110 entity before the legislative or executive branch. Except as a
111 full-time employee, a person may not accept public funds from a
112 quasi-public entity for lobbying.
113 (7) Unless specifically authorized by law, a quasi-public
114 entity may not create an entity separate from itself, including
115 a citizen support organization or a direct-support organization.
116 (8) Any meeting of a quasi-public entity’s governing body
117 must be video recorded.
118 (9) The executive director of a quasi-public entity, or an
119 officer with responsibilities similar to that of an executive
120 director, may not recommend or otherwise be involved in the
121 selection, appointment, or retention of any member of the
122 entity’s governing body.
123 Section 2. Subsection (14) of section 215.985, Florida
124 Statutes, is amended to read:
125 215.985 Transparency in government spending.—
126 (14) The Chief Financial Officer shall establish and
127 maintain a secure contract tracking system available for viewing
128 and downloading by the public through a secure website. The
129 Chief Financial Officer shall use appropriate Internet security
130 measures to ensure that no person has the ability to alter or
131 modify records available on the website.
132 (a) Within 30 calendar days after executing a contract,
133 each state and quasi-public entity shall post the following
134 information relating to the contract on the contract tracking
135 system:
136 1. The names of the contracting entities.
137 2. The procurement method.
138 3. The contract beginning and ending dates.
139 4. The nature or type of the commodities or services
140 purchased.
141 5. Applicable contract unit prices and deliverables.
142 6. Total compensation to be paid or received under the
143 contract.
144 7. All payments made to the contractor to date.
145 8. Applicable contract performance measures.
146 9. If a competitive solicitation was not used to procure
147 the goods or services, the justification of such action,
148 including citation to a statutory exemption or exception from
149 competitive solicitation, if any.
150 10. Electronic copies of the contract and procurement
151 documents that have been redacted to exclude confidential or
152 exempt information.
153 (b) Within 30 calendar days after an amendment to an
154 existing contract, the state entity or quasi-public entity that
155 is a party to the contract must update the information described
156 in paragraph (a) in the contract tracking system. An amendment
157 to a contract includes, but is not limited to, a renewal,
158 termination, or extension of the contract or a modification of
159 the terms of the contract.
160 (c) By January 1, 2014, each state and quasi-public entity
161 shall post to the contract tracking system the information
162 required in paragraph (a) for each existing contract that was
163 executed before July 1, 2013, with payment from state funds made
164 after June 30, 2013.
165 (d)1. Records made available on the contract tracking
166 system may not reveal information made confidential or exempt by
167 law.
168 2. Each state and quasi-public entity that is a party to a
169 contract must redact confidential or exempt information from the
170 contract and procurement documents before posting an electronic
171 copy on the contract tracking system. If a state entity or
172 quasi-public entity that is a party to the contract becomes
173 aware that an electronic copy of a contract or a procurement
174 document has been posted but has not been properly redacted, the
175 state entity or quasi-public entity must immediately notify the
176 Chief Financial Officer and must immediately remove the contract
177 or procurement document from the contract tracking system.
178 Within 7 business days, the state entity or quasi-public entity
179 must post a properly redacted copy of the contract or
180 procurement document on the contract tracking system.
181 3.a. If a party to a contract, or an authorized
182 representative of a party to a contract, discovers that an
183 electronic copy of a contract or procurement document has been
184 posted to the contract tracking system but has not been properly
185 redacted, the party or representative may request the state
186 entity or quasi-public entity that is a party to the contract to
187 redact the confidential or exempt information. Upon receipt of
188 the request, the state entity or quasi-public entity shall
189 redact the confidential or exempt information.
190 b. A request to redact confidential or exempt information
191 must be made in writing and delivered by mail, facsimile,
192 electronic transmission, or in person to the state entity or
193 quasi-public entity that is a party to the contract. The request
194 must identify the specific document, the page numbers that
195 include the confidential or exempt information, the information
196 that is confidential or exempt, and the applicable statutory
197 exemption. A fee may not be charged for a redaction made
198 pursuant to the request.
199 c. A party to a contract may petition the circuit court for
200 an order directing compliance with this paragraph.
201 4. The contract tracking system shall display a notice of
202 the right of an affected party to request redaction of
203 confidential or exempt information contained on the system.
204 5.a. The Chief Financial Officer, the Department of
205 Financial Services, or an officer, employee, or contractor
206 thereof, is not responsible for redacting confidential or exempt
207 information from an electronic copy of a contract or procurement
208 document posted by another state entity or quasi-public entity
209 on the system.
210 b. The Chief Financial Officer, the Department of Financial
211 Services, or an officer, employee, or contractor thereof, is not
212 liable for the failure of a state entity or quasi-public entity
213 to redact the confidential or exempt information.
214 (e)1. The posting of information on the contract tracking
215 system or the provision of contract information on a website for
216 public viewing and downloading does not supersede the duty of a
217 state entity or quasi-public entity to respond to a public
218 records request or subpoena for the information.
219 2. A request for a copy of a contract or procurement
220 document or certified copy of a contract or procurement document
221 shall be made to the state entity or quasi-public entity that is
222 party to the contract. The request may not be made to the Chief
223 Financial Officer, the Department of Financial Services, or an
224 officer, employee, or contractor thereof, unless the Chief
225 Financial Officer or the department is a party to the contract.
226 3. A subpoena for a copy of a contract or procurement
227 document or certified copy of a contract or procurement document
228 must be served on the state entity or quasi-public entity that
229 is a party to the contract and that maintains the original
230 documents. The Chief Financial Officer, the Department of
231 Financial Services, or an officer, employee, or contractor
232 thereof, may not be served a subpoena for those records unless
233 the Chief Financial Officer or the department is a party to the
234 contract.
235 (f) The Chief Financial Officer may regulate and prohibit
236 the posting of records that could facilitate identity theft or
237 fraud, such as signatures; compromise or reveal an agency
238 investigation; reveal the identity of undercover personnel;
239 reveal proprietary business information or trade secrets; reveal
240 an individual’s medical information; or reveal another record or
241 information that the Chief Financial Officer believes may
242 jeopardize the health, safety, or welfare of the public.
243 However, such action by the Chief Financial Officer does not
244 supersede the duty of a state entity or quasi-public entity to
245 provide a copy of a public record upon request.
246 (g) The Chief Financial Officer may adopt rules to
247 administer this subsection.
248 (h) For purposes of this subsection, the term:
249 1. “Procurement document” means any document or material
250 provided to the public or any vendor as part of a formal
251 competitive solicitation of goods or services undertaken by a
252 state entity or quasi-public entity, and a document or material
253 submitted in response to a formal competitive solicitation by
254 any vendor who is awarded the resulting contract.
255 2. “Quasi-public entity” means an entity established by
256 law, regardless of form, for a public purpose or to effectuate a
257 government program and which is not directly controlled by a
258 governmental entity. This term does not include a citizen
259 support organization or a direct-support organization.
260 3.2. “State entity” means an official, officer, commission,
261 board, authority, council, committee, or department of the
262 executive branch of state government; a state attorney, public
263 defender, criminal conflict and civil regional counsel, capital
264 collateral regional counsel, and the Justice Administrative
265 Commission; the Public Service Commission; and any part of the
266 judicial branch of state government.
267 (i) In lieu of posting in the contract tracking system
268 administered by the Chief Financial Officer, the Department of
269 Legal Affairs and the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
270 Services may post the information described in paragraphs (a)
271 through (c) to its own agency-managed website. The data posted
272 on the agency-managed website must be downloadable in a format
273 that allows offline analysis.
274 (j) The requirement under paragraphs (a) through (c) that
275 each agency post information and documentation relating to
276 contracts on the tracking system does not apply to any record
277 that could reveal attorney work product or strategy.
278 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.
279
280 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
281 And the title is amended as follows:
282 Delete everything before the enacting clause
283 and insert:
284 A bill to be entitled
285 An act relating to quasi-public entities; creating s.
286 20.059, F.S.; providing definitions; requiring the
287 Governor to specify affiliated departments for certain
288 quasi-public entities by a certain date; providing
289 requirements for the affiliated departments; providing
290 requirements for a law creating a quasi-public entity;
291 requiring the completion of an operational audit at
292 certain intervals; requiring a quasi-public entity to
293 submit an annual report that includes certain
294 information to the Governor, the Legislature, and its
295 affiliated department by a certain date; requiring a
296 quasi-public entity to maintain a website that
297 includes certain information; prohibiting a quasi
298 public entity from using public funds to retain a
299 lobbyist; authorizing certain employees of a quasi
300 public entity to register as a lobbyist and represent
301 the quasi-public entity; prohibiting a quasi-public
302 entity from creating an entity separate from itself;
303 requiring that meetings of the quasi-public entity’s
304 governing body be video recorded; prohibiting an
305 executive director or similar officer of a quasi
306 public entity from certain involvement with the
307 entity’s governing body; amending s. 215.985, F.S.;
308 requiring a quasi-public entity to post and update
309 certain information on the secure contract tracking
310 system established and maintained by the Chief
311 Financial Officer; requiring a quasi-public entity to
312 redact certain information; providing that the Chief
313 Financial Officer, the Department of Financial
314 Services, and officers, employees, and contractors
315 thereof are not responsible for redacting, and are not
316 liable for the failure to redact, certain information
317 posted on the secure contract tracking system by a
318 quasi-public entity; providing that the posting of
319 certain information does not supersede the duty of a
320 quasi-public entity to respond to certain requests or
321 subpoenas; providing that certain actions by the Chief
322 Financial Officer do not supersede the duty of a
323 quasi-public entity to provide certain records upon
324 request; revising and providing definitions; providing
325 an effective date.