Florida Senate - 2025 SB 1610 By Senator Burgess 23-01399A-25 20251610__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to the disclosure of public servants’ 3 personal information; providing legislative findings; 4 creating s. 111.101, F.S.; defining terms; providing 5 that certain public employees and officials may 6 provide a written notice to a data broker to prevent 7 disclosure of specified personal data concerning 8 themselves and related persons; prohibiting the 9 release of data after receipt of such notice; 10 providing for civil actions against a data broker for 11 failure to comply; providing the standard of fault in 12 such action; providing that it is not a defense that 13 protected information was obtained through specified 14 means; providing construction; providing that it is an 15 affirmative defense to assert that the person is not a 16 covered person; providing exceptions; providing for 17 damages and costs; providing construction; providing 18 severability; providing an effective date. 19 20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 21 22 Section 1. The Legislature finds that the state’s judges, 23 prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and other public servants 24 play an essential role in the functioning of the government of 25 this state, and that the nature of their public duties regularly 26 places them in danger of death, serious physical injury, 27 threats, intimidation, and other reprisals. Violence, threats, 28 and intimidation targeted at such public servants and their 29 families is on the rise. Technology has broadened access to the 30 personal information of such persons, defined herein as 31 “protected information,” which can be and has been used to 32 facilitate violence, threats, and intimidation. Accordingly, the 33 provisions set forth herein are both necessary and appropriate 34 to protect the privacy, safety, and security of such public 35 servants and to prevent interference in the administration of 36 justice and the operation of government in this state. 37 Section 2. Section 111.101, Florida Statutes, is created to 38 read: 39 111.101 Nondisclosure of public servants’ personal 40 information.— 41 (1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 42 (a) “Assignee” means a person or entity to whom a covered 43 person’s right to bring a civil action for a violation of 44 paragraph (2)(b) has been assigned, in writing, by the covered 45 person or his or her authorized agent. 46 (b) “Authorized agent” means any of the following persons 47 or entities authorized to submit or revoke a request for 48 nondisclosure of protected information on behalf of a covered 49 person and to engage in communications and enforcement related 50 thereto: 51 1. A designated trustee or other agent acting pursuant to a 52 written power of attorney or other legal instrument on behalf of 53 any covered person who is physically or mentally incapacitated. 54 2. A parent or legal guardian on behalf of any child who is 55 a minor and who is otherwise entitled to nondisclosure pursuant 56 to this section. 57 3. A person or entity that has been appointed pursuant to a 58 written power of attorney by a covered person to act on the 59 covered person’s behalf with respect to this section. 60 4. An agent acting on behalf of any federal judge, a 61 designee of the United States Marshals Service, or the clerk of 62 any United States District Court. 63 (c) “Covered person” means any of the following persons: 64 1. Active or former sworn law enforcement personnel or 65 active or former civilian personnel employed by a law 66 enforcement agency, including law enforcement officers; 67 correctional officers; correctional probation officers; 68 personnel of the Department of Children and Families whose 69 duties include the investigation of abuse, neglect, 70 exploitation, fraud, theft, or other criminal activities; and 71 personnel of the Department of Revenue or local governments 72 whose responsibilities include revenue collection and 73 enforcement or child support enforcement. 74 2. Current or former federal judges, justices of the 75 Supreme Court, district court of appeal judges; circuit court 76 judges; county court judges; and current judicial assistants. 77 3. Current or former general magistrates, special 78 magistrates, judges of compensation claims, administrative law 79 judges of the Division of Administrative Hearings, and child 80 support enforcement hearing officers. 81 4. Current or former state attorneys, assistant state 82 attorneys, statewide prosecutors, or assistant statewide 83 prosecutors. 84 5. Current or former juvenile probation officers, juvenile 85 probation supervisors, detention superintendents, assistant 86 detention superintendents, juvenile justice detention officers I 87 and II, juvenile justice detention officer supervisors, juvenile 88 justice residential officers, juvenile justice residential 89 officer supervisors I and II, juvenile justice counselors, 90 juvenile justice counselor supervisors, human services counselor 91 administrators, senior human services counselor administrators, 92 rehabilitation therapists, and social services counselors of the 93 Department of Juvenile Justice. 94 6. Current or former public defenders, assistant public 95 defenders, criminal conflict and civil regional counsel, and 96 assistant criminal conflict and civil regional counsel. 97 7. The parents, grandparents, siblings, spouses, children, 98 and grandchildren of persons identified in subparagraphs 1.-6. 99 8. A person sharing custody of a minor child with a person 100 identified in subparagraphs 1.-6. 101 9. A person sharing a primary residence with a person 102 identified in subparagraphs 1.-6. 103 10. Any person who holds or previously held a position in 104 another state comparable to those identified in subparagraphs 105 1.-6. and who has a home address in this state. 106 (d) “Data broker” means a person or entity that knowingly 107 collects or obtains the protected information of a consumer and 108 then discloses that information to a third party. The term does 109 not include any governmental agency and its representatives 110 acting in their official capacity. 111 (e) “Disclose” shall mean to solicit, sell, manufacture, 112 give, provide, lend, trade, mail, deliver, transfer, post, 113 publish, distribute, circulate, disseminate, present, exhibit, 114 advertise, offer, or include within a searchable list or 115 database, regardless of whether any other person or entity has 116 actually searched such list or database for such person’s 117 information. 118 (f) “Federal judge” has the same meaning as in the Daniel 119 Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act of 2022, Pub. L. No. 120 117-263, div. E, title LIX, subtitle D, Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 121 3458. 122 (g) “Home addresses” means the dwelling location at which a 123 person resides and includes the physical address, mailing 124 address, street address, parcel identification number, plot 125 identification number, legal property description, neighborhood 126 name and lot number, GPS coordinates, and any other descriptive 127 property information that may reveal the home address. 128 (h) “Home telephone number” means any telephone number used 129 primarily for personal communications or associated with 130 personal communications devices, including a landline or 131 cellular number. 132 (i) “Judicial assistant” means a court employee assigned to 133 the following class codes: 8140, 8150, 8310, and 8320. 134 (j) “Protected information” means: 135 1. A home address, including a primary residence or 136 secondary residences. 137 2. A home telephone number. 138 3. A personal e-mail address. 139 4. A social security number or driver license number. 140 5. A license plate number or other unique identifiers of a 141 vehicle owned, leased, or regularly used by the covered person. 142 6. The mobile advertising ID or other unique identifiers 143 used for tracking cellular phones or smart devices regularly 144 used by the covered person. 145 (2) NONDISCLOSURE OF PROTECTED INFORMATION.— 146 (a) A covered person or their authorized agent seeking to 147 prohibit the disclosure by a data broker of the protected 148 information of the covered person shall provide written notice 149 to the data broker referencing this section and requesting that 150 the data broker cease the disclosure of the covered person’s 151 protected information, as described in such notice. 152 (b) Upon notification pursuant to paragraph (a), and not 153 later than 10 business days following physical or electronic 154 receipt thereof, a data broker may not disclose or redisclose, 155 including, but not limited to, on the Internet, the protected 156 information of the covered person. 157 (3) ENFORCEMENT.— 158 (a) A data broker that violates paragraph (2)(b) shall be 159 liable to the covered person or the covered person’s assignee, 160 who may bring a civil action in circuit court. 161 (b) In any judicial proceeding hereunder, the standard of 162 fault shall be ordinary negligence, and it is not a defense to 163 liability in such proceeding that the covered person’s protected 164 information is or was available to the public from other sources 165 or available by inspection of public records. A party accessing 166 a data broker’s website or other products or services for the 167 purpose of determining whether the covered person’s protected 168 information is disclosed therein shall not, as a result of such 169 access, be deemed to have agreed on behalf of the covered person 170 or the covered person’s assignee to any website terms and 171 conditions, including waivers of claims or limitations of 172 liability, with respect to the covered person’s or the covered 173 person’s assignee’s rights under this section. Prior 174 verification of a covered person’s status is not required for 175 the notice under paragraph (2)(a) to be effective, but it shall 176 be an affirmative defense to liability that a person is not a 177 covered person. 178 (c) A disclosure of protected information is not a 179 violation of this section if the disclosure is: 180 1. Made with the express authorization of the covered 181 person, contingent upon such authorization being provided 182 subsequent to the relevant nondisclosure request described in 183 paragraph (2)(b); or 184 2. For the sole purpose of facilitating a transaction 185 initiated by the covered person. 186 (d) For violations of paragraph (2)(b), the court shall 187 award: 188 1. The greater of actual damages or liquidated damages 189 computed at the rate of $1,000 for each violation of paragraph 190 (2)(b). 191 2. Punitive damages upon proof of willful or reckless 192 disregard of the law. 193 3. Reasonable attorney fees and other litigation costs 194 reasonably incurred. 195 4. Any other preliminary and equitable relief as the court 196 determines to be appropriate. 197 (4) CONSTRUCTION.— 198 (a) This section shall be liberally construed in order to 199 accomplish its purpose. 200 (b) If any provision of this section or its application to 201 any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does 202 not affect other provisions or applications of this section that 203 can be given effect without the invalid provision or 204 application, and to this end the provisions of this section are 205 severable. 206 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.