Florida Senate - 2025 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 268
Ì890218,Î890218
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
02/18/2025 .
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The Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability
(Jones) recommended the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete lines 354 - 485
4 and insert:
5 (A) “Partial home addresses” means the dwelling location at
6 which an individual resides and includes the physical address,
7 mailing address, street address, parcel identification number,
8 plot identification number, legal property description,
9 neighborhood name and lot number, GPS coordinates, and any other
10 descriptive property information that may reveal the partial
11 home address, except for the city and zip code.
12 (B) “Public officer” means a person who holds one of the
13 following offices: Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Chief
14 Financial Officer, Attorney General, Agriculture Commissioner,
15 State Representative, State Senator, Property Appraiser,
16 Supervisor of Elections, School Superintendent, School Board
17 Member, Mayor, City Commissioner, or County Commissioner.
18 (II) The following information is exempt from s. 119.07(1)
19 and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution:
20 (A) The partial home addresses of a current public officer,
21 his or her spouse, and his or her adult child.
22 (B) The telephone numbers of a current public officer, his
23 or her spouse, and his or her adult child.
24 (C) The name, home addresses, telephone numbers, and date
25 of birth of a minor child of a current public officer and the
26 name and location of the school or day care facility attended by
27 the minor child.
28 (III) This sub-subparagraph is subject to the Open
29 Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and
30 shall stand repealed on October 2, 2030, unless reviewed and
31 saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.
32 3.a. An agency that is the custodian of the information
33 specified in subparagraph 2. and that is not the employer of the
34 officer, employee, justice, judge, or other person specified in
35 subparagraph 2. must maintain the exempt status of that
36 information only if the officer, employee, justice, judge, other
37 person, or employing agency of the designated employee submits a
38 written and notarized request for maintenance of the exemption
39 to the custodial agency. The request must state under oath the
40 statutory basis for the individual’s exemption request and
41 confirm the individual’s status as a party eligible for exempt
42 status.
43 b. An agency that is the custodian of information specified
44 in sub-subparagraph 2.z. and that is not the employer of the
45 public officer or other person specified in sub-subparagraph
46 2.z. must maintain the exempt status of that information only if
47 an individual who requests the maintenance of an exemption
48 pursuant to sub-subparagraph 2.z. on the basis of eligibility as
49 a current public officer, his or her spouse, or his or her
50 child, submits as part of the written and notarized request
51 required by subparagraph 3.a., the date of the public officer’s
52 election or appointment to public office, the date of which that
53 office is next subject to election, and, if applicable, the date
54 on which the current public officer’s child reaches the age of
55 majority. The custodian must maintain an exemption granted
56 pursuant to sub-subparagraph 2.z. until the qualifying
57 conditions for the exemption no longer apply to the person
58 subject to the exemption.
59 4.a. A county property appraiser, as defined in s.
60 192.001(3), or a county tax collector, as defined in s.
61 192.001(4), who receives a written and notarized request for
62 maintenance of the exemption pursuant to subparagraph 3. must
63 comply by removing the name of the individual with exempt status
64 and the instrument number or Official Records book and page
65 number identifying the property with the exempt status from all
66 publicly available records maintained by the property appraiser
67 or tax collector. For written requests received on or before
68 July 1, 2021, a county property appraiser or county tax
69 collector must comply with this sub-subparagraph by October 1,
70 2021. A county property appraiser or county tax collector may
71 not remove the street address, legal description, or other
72 information identifying real property within the agency’s
73 records so long as a name or personal information otherwise
74 exempt from inspection and copying pursuant to this section is
75 not associated with the property or otherwise displayed in the
76 public records of the agency.
77 b. Any information restricted from public display,
78 inspection, or copying under sub-subparagraph a. must be
79 provided to the individual whose information was removed.
80 5. An officer, an employee, a justice, a judge, or other
81 person specified in subparagraph 2. may submit a written request
82 for the release of his or her exempt information to the
83 custodial agency. The written request must be notarized and must
84 specify the information to be released and the party authorized
85 to receive the information. Upon receipt of the written request,
86 the custodial agency must release the specified information to
87 the party authorized to receive such information.
88 6. The exemptions in this paragraph apply to information
89 held by an agency before, on, or after the effective date of the
90 exemption.
91 7. Information made exempt under this paragraph may be
92 disclosed pursuant to s. 28.2221 to a title insurer authorized
93 pursuant to s. 624.401 and its affiliates as defined in s.
94 624.10; a title insurance agent or title insurance agency as
95 defined in s. 626.841(1) or (2), respectively; or an attorney
96 duly admitted to practice law in this state and in good standing
97 with The Florida Bar.
98 8. The exempt status of a home address contained in the
99 Official Records is maintained only during the period when a
100 protected party resides at the dwelling location. Upon
101 conveyance of real property after October 1, 2021, and when such
102 real property no longer constitutes a protected party’s home
103 address as defined in sub-subparagraph 1.a., the protected party
104 must submit a written request to release the removed information
105 to the county recorder. The written request to release the
106 removed information must be notarized, must confirm that a
107 protected party’s request for release is pursuant to a
108 conveyance of his or her dwelling location, and must specify the
109 Official Records book and page, instrument number, or clerk’s
110 file number for each document containing the information to be
111 released.
112 9. Upon the death of a protected party as verified by a
113 certified copy of a death certificate or court order, any party
114 can request the county recorder to release a protected
115 decedent’s removed information unless there is a related request
116 on file with the county recorder for continued removal of the
117 decedent’s information or unless such removal is otherwise
118 prohibited by statute or by court order. The written request to
119 release the removed information upon the death of a protected
120 party must attach the certified copy of a death certificate or
121 court order and must be notarized, must confirm the request for
122 release is due to the death of a protected party, and must
123 specify the Official Records book and page number, instrument
124 number, or clerk’s file number for each document containing the
125 information to be released. A fee may not be charged for the
126 release of any document pursuant to such request.
127 Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public
128 necessity that the partial home addresses and telephone numbers
129 of current public officers, their spouses, and their adult
130 children; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, and
131 dates of birth of the minor children of such officers; and the
132 names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended
133 by the minor children be made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida
134 Statutes, and s. 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution.
135 Public officers are often confronted with making difficult and
136 impactful policy decisions. As a result, public officers and
137 their families may receive threats, including, but not limited
138 to, verbal threats, harassment, and intimidation, while carrying
139 out their official duties. Vulnerability to such threats may
140 discourage residents of this state from seeking elected office
141 in order to protect themselves and their families. The
142 Legislature further finds that the harm that may result from the
143 release of such personal identifying and location information
144 outweighs any public benefit that may be derived from the
145 disclosure of the information.
146 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
147 And the title is amended as follows:
148 Delete lines 10 - 11
149 and insert:
150 such officers; providing methods for maintenance of an
151 exemption; providing for the