Florida Senate - 2024                                     SB 562
       
       
        
       By Senator Rouson
       
       
       
       
       
       16-00868-24                                            2024562__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to harassment of election workers;
    3         creating s. 104.47, F.S.; defining the term “election
    4         worker”; prohibiting a person from intimidating,
    5         threatening, coercing, harassing, or attempting to
    6         intimidate, threaten, coerce, or harass an election
    7         worker with specified intent; providing criminal
    8         penalties; providing an effective date.
    9          
   10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         Section 1. Section 104.47, Florida Statutes, is created to
   13  read:
   14         104.47 Harassment of election workers.—
   15         (1) For the purposes of this section, the term “election
   16  worker” means a member of a county canvassing board or an
   17  individual who is an election official or poll worker in
   18  connection with an election conducted in this state.
   19         (2) A person may not intimidate, threaten, coerce, or
   20  harass, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, coerce, or harass,
   21  an election worker with the intent to impede or interfere with
   22  the performance of the election worker’s official duties or with
   23  the intent to retaliate against the election worker for the
   24  performance of his or her official duties.
   25         (3) A person who violates this section commits a felony of
   26  the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
   27  775.083.
   28         Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2024.