Florida Senate - 2024 SB 862 By Senator Jones 34-00719A-24 2024862__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public records; amending s. 3 119.071, F.S.; providing an exemption from public 4 records requirements for the personal identifying and 5 location information of current county administrators, 6 deputy county administrators, assistant county 7 administrators, city managers, deputy city managers, 8 and assistant city managers, including the names and 9 personal identifying and location information of the 10 spouses and children of current county administrators, 11 deputy county administrators, assistant county 12 administrators, city managers, deputy city managers, 13 and assistant city managers; providing for future 14 legislative review and repeal; providing for 15 retroactive application; providing a statement of 16 public necessity; providing an effective date. 17 18 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 19 20 Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subsection (4) of section 21 119.071, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 22 119.071 General exemptions from inspection or copying of 23 public records.— 24 (4) AGENCY PERSONNEL INFORMATION.— 25 (d)1. For purposes of this paragraph, the term: 26 a. “Home addresses” means the dwelling location at which an 27 individual resides and includes the physical address, mailing 28 address, street address, parcel identification number, plot 29 identification number, legal property description, neighborhood 30 name and lot number, GPS coordinates, and any other descriptive 31 property information that may reveal the home address. 32 b. “Judicial assistant” means a court employee assigned to 33 the following class codes: 8140, 8150, 8310, and 8320. 34 c. “Telephone numbers” includes home telephone numbers, 35 personal cellular telephone numbers, personal pager telephone 36 numbers, and telephone numbers associated with personal 37 communications devices. 38 2.a. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 39 and photographs of active or former sworn law enforcement 40 personnel or of active or former civilian personnel employed by 41 a law enforcement agency, including correctional and 42 correctional probation officers, personnel of the Department of 43 Children and Families whose duties include the investigation of 44 abuse, neglect, exploitation, fraud, theft, or other criminal 45 activities, personnel of the Department of Health whose duties 46 are to support the investigation of child abuse or neglect, and 47 personnel of the Department of Revenue or local governments 48 whose responsibilities include revenue collection and 49 enforcement or child support enforcement; the names, home 50 addresses, telephone numbers, photographs, dates of birth, and 51 places of employment of the spouses and children of such 52 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 53 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 54 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 55 Constitution. 56 b. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 57 and photographs of current or former nonsworn investigative 58 personnel of the Department of Financial Services whose duties 59 include the investigation of fraud, theft, workers’ compensation 60 coverage requirements and compliance, other related criminal 61 activities, or state regulatory requirement violations; the 62 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 63 places of employment of the spouses and children of such 64 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 65 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 66 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 67 Constitution. 68 c. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 69 and photographs of current or former nonsworn investigative 70 personnel of the Office of Financial Regulation’s Bureau of 71 Financial Investigations whose duties include the investigation 72 of fraud, theft, other related criminal activities, or state 73 regulatory requirement violations; the names, home addresses, 74 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 75 the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and 76 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 77 children of such personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 78 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 79 d. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 80 and photographs of current or former firefighters certified in 81 compliance with s. 633.408; the names, home addresses, telephone 82 numbers, photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment 83 of the spouses and children of such firefighters; and the names 84 and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 85 children of such firefighters are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and 86 s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 87 e. The home addresses, dates of birth, and telephone 88 numbers of current or former justices of the Supreme Court, 89 district court of appeal judges, circuit court judges, and 90 county court judges, and of current judicial assistants; the 91 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 92 places of employment of the spouses and children of current or 93 former justices and judges and of current judicial assistants; 94 and the names and locations of schools and day care facilities 95 attended by the children of current or former justices and 96 judges and of current judicial assistants are exempt from s. 97 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This 98 sub-subparagraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review 99 Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on 100 October 2, 2028, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through 101 reenactment by the Legislature. 102 f. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 103 and photographs of current or former state attorneys, assistant 104 state attorneys, statewide prosecutors, or assistant statewide 105 prosecutors; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 106 photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment of the 107 spouses and children of current or former state attorneys, 108 assistant state attorneys, statewide prosecutors, or assistant 109 statewide prosecutors; and the names and locations of schools 110 and day care facilities attended by the children of current or 111 former state attorneys, assistant state attorneys, statewide 112 prosecutors, or assistant statewide prosecutors are exempt from 113 s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 114 g. The home addresses, dates of birth, and telephone 115 numbers of general magistrates, special magistrates, judges of 116 compensation claims, administrative law judges of the Division 117 of Administrative Hearings, and child support enforcement 118 hearing officers; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 119 dates of birth, and places of employment of the spouses and 120 children of general magistrates, special magistrates, judges of 121 compensation claims, administrative law judges of the Division 122 of Administrative Hearings, and child support enforcement 123 hearing officers; and the names and locations of schools and day 124 care facilities attended by the children of general magistrates, 125 special magistrates, judges of compensation claims, 126 administrative law judges of the Division of Administrative 127 Hearings, and child support enforcement hearing officers are 128 exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 129 Constitution. 130 h. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 131 and photographs of current or former human resource, labor 132 relations, or employee relations directors, assistant directors, 133 managers, or assistant managers of any local government agency 134 or water management district whose duties include hiring and 135 firing employees, labor contract negotiation, administration, or 136 other personnel-related duties; the names, home addresses, 137 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 138 the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and 139 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 140 children of such personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 141 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 142 i. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 143 and photographs of current or former code enforcement officers; 144 the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 145 and places of employment of the spouses and children of such 146 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 147 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 148 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 149 Constitution. 150 j. The home addresses, telephone numbers, places of 151 employment, dates of birth, and photographs of current or former 152 guardians ad litem, as defined in s. 39.820; the names, home 153 addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of 154 employment of the spouses and children of such persons; and the 155 names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended 156 by the children of such persons are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and 157 s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 158 k. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 159 and photographs of current or former juvenile probation 160 officers, juvenile probation supervisors, detention 161 superintendents, assistant detention superintendents, juvenile 162 justice detention officers I and II, juvenile justice detention 163 officer supervisors, juvenile justice residential officers, 164 juvenile justice residential officer supervisors I and II, 165 juvenile justice counselors, juvenile justice counselor 166 supervisors, human services counselor administrators, senior 167 human services counselor administrators, rehabilitation 168 therapists, and social services counselors of the Department of 169 Juvenile Justice; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 170 dates of birth, and places of employment of spouses and children 171 of such personnel; and the names and locations of schools and 172 day care facilities attended by the children of such personnel 173 are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 174 Constitution. 175 l. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 176 and photographs of current or former public defenders, assistant 177 public defenders, criminal conflict and civil regional counsel, 178 and assistant criminal conflict and civil regional counsel; the 179 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 180 places of employment of the spouses and children of current or 181 former public defenders, assistant public defenders, criminal 182 conflict and civil regional counsel, and assistant criminal 183 conflict and civil regional counsel; and the names and locations 184 of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of 185 current or former public defenders, assistant public defenders, 186 criminal conflict and civil regional counsel, and assistant 187 criminal conflict and civil regional counsel are exempt from s. 188 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 189 m. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 190 and photographs of current or former investigators or inspectors 191 of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation; the 192 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 193 places of employment of the spouses and children of such current 194 or former investigators and inspectors; and the names and 195 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 196 children of such current or former investigators and inspectors 197 are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 198 Constitution. 199 n. The home addresses, telephone numbers, and dates of 200 birth of county tax collectors; the names, home addresses, 201 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 202 the spouses and children of such tax collectors; and the names 203 and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 204 children of such tax collectors are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and 205 s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 206 o. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 207 and photographs of current or former personnel of the Department 208 of Health whose duties include, or result in, the determination 209 or adjudication of eligibility for social security disability 210 benefits, the investigation or prosecution of complaints filed 211 against health care practitioners, or the inspection of health 212 care practitioners or health care facilities licensed by the 213 Department of Health; the names, home addresses, telephone 214 numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of the spouses 215 and children of such personnel; and the names and locations of 216 schools and day care facilities attended by the children of such 217 personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of 218 the State Constitution. 219 p. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 220 and photographs of current or former impaired practitioner 221 consultants who are retained by an agency or current or former 222 employees of an impaired practitioner consultant whose duties 223 result in a determination of a person’s skill and safety to 224 practice a licensed profession; the names, home addresses, 225 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 226 the spouses and children of such consultants or their employees; 227 and the names and locations of schools and day care facilities 228 attended by the children of such consultants or employees are 229 exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 230 Constitution. 231 q. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 232 and photographs of current or former emergency medical 233 technicians or paramedics certified under chapter 401; the 234 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 235 places of employment of the spouses and children of such 236 emergency medical technicians or paramedics; and the names and 237 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 238 children of such emergency medical technicians or paramedics are 239 exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 240 Constitution. 241 r. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 242 and photographs of current or former personnel employed in an 243 agency’s office of inspector general or internal audit 244 department whose duties include auditing or investigating waste, 245 fraud, abuse, theft, exploitation, or other activities that 246 could lead to criminal prosecution or administrative discipline; 247 the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 248 and places of employment of spouses and children of such 249 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 250 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 251 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 252 Constitution. 253 s. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 254 and photographs of current or former directors, managers, 255 supervisors, nurses, and clinical employees of an addiction 256 treatment facility; the home addresses, telephone numbers, 257 photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment of the 258 spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and 259 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 260 children of such personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 261 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. For purposes of this 262 sub-subparagraph, the term “addiction treatment facility” means 263 a county government, or agency thereof, that is licensed 264 pursuant to s. 397.401 and provides substance abuse prevention, 265 intervention, or clinical treatment, including any licensed 266 service component described in s. 397.311(26). 267 t. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 268 and photographs of current or former directors, managers, 269 supervisors, and clinical employees of a child advocacy center 270 that meets the standards of s. 39.3035(2) and fulfills the 271 screening requirement of s. 39.3035(3), and the members of a 272 Child Protection Team as described in s. 39.303 whose duties 273 include supporting the investigation of child abuse or sexual 274 abuse, child abandonment, child neglect, and child exploitation 275 or to provide services as part of a multidisciplinary case 276 review team; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 277 photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment of the 278 spouses and children of such personnel and members; and the 279 names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended 280 by the children of such personnel and members are exempt from s. 281 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 282 u. The home addresses, telephone numbers, places of 283 employment, dates of birth, and photographs of current or former 284 staff and domestic violence advocates, as defined in s. 285 90.5036(1)(b), of domestic violence centers certified by the 286 Department of Children and Families under chapter 39; the names, 287 home addresses, telephone numbers, places of employment, dates 288 of birth, and photographs of the spouses and children of such 289 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 290 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 291 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 292 Constitution. 293 v. The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 294 and photographs of current or former inspectors or investigators 295 of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; the 296 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 297 places of employment of the spouses and children of current or 298 former inspectors or investigators; and the names and locations 299 of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of 300 current or former inspectors or investigators are exempt from s. 301 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This 302 sub-subparagraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review 303 Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on 304 October 2, 2028, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through 305 reenactment by the Legislature. 306 w. The home addresses, telephone numbers, and dates of 307 birth of current county administrators, deputy county 308 administrators, assistant county administrators, city managers, 309 deputy city managers, and assistant city managers; the names, 310 home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, photographs, 311 and places of employment of the spouses and children of current 312 county administrators, deputy county administrators, assistant 313 county administrators, city managers, deputy city managers, and 314 assistant city managers; and the names and locations of schools 315 and day care facilities attended by the children of current 316 county administrators, deputy county administrators, assistant 317 county administrators, city managers, deputy city managers, and 318 assistant city managers are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 319 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This sub-subparagraph 320 is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in 321 accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 322 2029, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment 323 by the Legislature. 324 3. An agency that is the custodian of the information 325 specified in subparagraph 2. and that is not the employer of the 326 officer, employee, justice, judge, or other person specified in 327 subparagraph 2. must maintain the exempt status of that 328 information only if the officer, employee, justice, judge, other 329 person, or employing agency of the designated employee submits a 330 written and notarized request for maintenance of the exemption 331 to the custodial agency. The request must state under oath the 332 statutory basis for the individual’s exemption request and 333 confirm the individual’s status as a party eligible for exempt 334 status. 335 4.a. A county property appraiser, as defined in s. 336 192.001(3), or a county tax collector, as defined in s. 337 192.001(4), who receives a written and notarized request for 338 maintenance of the exemption pursuant to subparagraph 3. must 339 comply by removing the name of the individual with exempt status 340 and the instrument number or Official Records book and page 341 number identifying the property with the exempt status from all 342 publicly available records maintained by the property appraiser 343 or tax collector. For written requests received on or before 344 July 1, 2021, a county property appraiser or county tax 345 collector must comply with this sub-subparagraph by October 1, 346 2021. A county property appraiser or county tax collector may 347 not remove the street address, legal description, or other 348 information identifying real property within the agency’s 349 records so long as a name or personal information otherwise 350 exempt from inspection and copying pursuant to this section is 351 not associated with the property or otherwise displayed in the 352 public records of the agency. 353 b. Any information restricted from public display, 354 inspection, or copying under sub-subparagraph a. must be 355 provided to the individual whose information was removed. 356 5. An officer, an employee, a justice, a judge, or other 357 person specified in subparagraph 2. may submit a written request 358 for the release of his or her exempt information to the 359 custodial agency. The written request must be notarized and must 360 specify the information to be released and the party authorized 361 to receive the information. Upon receipt of the written request, 362 the custodial agency must release the specified information to 363 the party authorized to receive such information. 364 6. The exemptions in this paragraph apply to information 365 held by an agency before, on, or after the effective date of the 366 exemption. 367 7. Information made exempt under this paragraph may be 368 disclosed pursuant to s. 28.2221 to a title insurer authorized 369 pursuant to s. 624.401 and its affiliates as defined in s. 370 624.10; a title insurance agent or title insurance agency as 371 defined in s. 626.841(1) or (2), respectively; or an attorney 372 duly admitted to practice law in this state and in good standing 373 with The Florida Bar. 374 8. The exempt status of a home address contained in the 375 Official Records is maintained only during the period when a 376 protected party resides at the dwelling location. Upon 377 conveyance of real property after October 1, 2021, and when such 378 real property no longer constitutes a protected party’s home 379 address as defined in sub-subparagraph 1.a., the protected party 380 must submit a written request to release the removed information 381 to the county recorder. The written request to release the 382 removed information must be notarized, must confirm that a 383 protected party’s request for release is pursuant to a 384 conveyance of his or her dwelling location, and must specify the 385 Official Records book and page, instrument number, or clerk’s 386 file number for each document containing the information to be 387 released. 388 9. Upon the death of a protected party as verified by a 389 certified copy of a death certificate or court order, any party 390 can request the county recorder to release a protected 391 decedent’s removed information unless there is a related request 392 on file with the county recorder for continued removal of the 393 decedent’s information or unless such removal is otherwise 394 prohibited by statute or by court order. The written request to 395 release the removed information upon the death of a protected 396 party must attach the certified copy of a death certificate or 397 court order and must be notarized, must confirm the request for 398 release is due to the death of a protected party, and must 399 specify the Official Records book and page number, instrument 400 number, or clerk’s file number for each document containing the 401 information to be released. A fee may not be charged for the 402 release of any document pursuant to such request. 403 10. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this 404 paragraph, this paragraph is subject to the Open Government 405 Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand 406 repealed on October 2, 2024, unless reviewed and saved from 407 repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. 408 Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public 409 necessity that the home addresses, telephone numbers, and dates 410 of birth of current county administrators, deputy county 411 administrators, assistant county administrators, city managers, 412 deputy city managers, and assistant city managers; the names, 413 home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, photographs, 414 and places of employment of the spouses and children of current 415 county administrators, deputy county administrators, assistant 416 county administrators, city managers, deputy city managers, and 417 assistant city managers; and the names and locations of schools 418 and day care facilities attended by the children of current 419 county administrators, deputy county administrators, assistant 420 county administrators, city managers, deputy city managers, and 421 assistant city managers be made exempt from s. 119.07(1), 422 Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a), Article I of the State 423 Constitution. Such identifying and location information can be 424 used as a tool to perpetrate fraud against an individual or to 425 acquire sensitive personal, financial, medical, or familial 426 information, the release of which could cause great financial or 427 professional harm to the individual. In the course of performing 428 their managerial functions, current county administrators, 429 deputy county administrators, assistant county administrators, 430 city managers, deputy city managers, and assistant city managers 431 may make decisions and determinations that upset members of the 432 public and may incur the ill will of those residents, making 433 current county administrators, deputy county administrators, 434 assistant county administrators, city managers, deputy city 435 managers, and assistant city managers and their spouses and 436 children targets for acts of revenge. If such identifying and 437 location information is released, the safety of current county 438 administrators, deputy county administrators, assistant county 439 administrators, city managers, deputy city managers, and 440 assistant city managers and their spouses and children could be 441 seriously jeopardized. For these reasons, the Legislature finds 442 that it is a public necessity that such information be made 443 exempt from public records requirements. 444 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.