Florida Senate - 2011    (Corrected Copy)    (Proposed Committee
       Bill) SPB 7224
       
       
       FOR CONSIDERATION By the Committee on Rules
       
       
       
       
       595-02997B-11                                         20117224__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to ethics; amending s. 112.312, F.S.;
    3         redefining the term “gift” to exclude contributions or
    4         expenditures reported under federal election law;
    5         amending s. 112.3143, F.S.; providing for an exception
    6         to a provision authorizing a state public officer to
    7         vote in an official capacity on any matter, to conform
    8         to changes made by the act; creating s. 112.31435,
    9         F.S.; defining the term “relative”; prohibiting a
   10         member of the Legislature from voting upon any
   11         legislation inuring to his or her special private gain
   12         or loss; prohibiting a member of the Legislature from
   13         voting upon any legislation that the member knows
   14         would inure to the special private gain or loss of a
   15         principal by whom the member is retained or the
   16         corporate parent or subsidiary of a corporate
   17         principal by which the member is retained; prohibiting
   18         a member of the Legislature from voting on legislation
   19         that the member knows would inure to the special
   20         private gain or loss of a relative, a business
   21         associate, an employer, or a board upon which the
   22         member sits; requiring that a member disclose all such
   23         interests to the applicable legislative body or
   24         committee before the legislation is considered;
   25         requiring that the member disclose the specific nature
   26         of any such interests within a specified period after
   27         the date on which a vote on the legislation occurs;
   28         requiring that such disclosure be made by written
   29         memorandum and filed with the Secretary of the Senate
   30         or the Clerk of the House of Representatives;
   31         requiring that the memorandum be recorded in the
   32         journal of the house of which the legislator is a
   33         member; providing that the act does not prevent the
   34         member from voting on a General Appropriations Act or
   35         implementing legislation; amending s. 112.3144, F.S.;
   36         requiring the Commission on Ethics to review certain
   37         filings of full and public disclosure of financial
   38         interests made by certain public officers, including
   39         supporting documentation; requiring the commission to
   40         provide notice of the sufficiency of the financial
   41         disclosure; requiring that an amended or corrected
   42         disclosure be filed if the filing is insufficient;
   43         providing that the amended or corrected disclosure is
   44         not subject to sufficiency review; providing for a
   45         fine if the amended or corrected disclosure is not
   46         filed by a certain date; relieving an officer of
   47         liability for fines and penalties if a complete and
   48         sufficient full and public disclosure of financial
   49         interests is filed by September 1; specifying that any
   50         full and public financial disclosure that is not
   51         timely received is not entitled to review; permitting
   52         the commission to delegate to the commission’s staff
   53         the responsibilities to review and provide notices
   54         relating to the disclosure filings; amending s.
   55         112.3145, F.S.; redefining the term “local officer”
   56         for the purposes of disclosing financial interests to
   57         include members of a community redevelopment agency
   58         board and any finance director of a county,
   59         municipality, or other political subdivision; amending
   60         s. 838.014, F.S.; deleting the definition of the term
   61         “corruptly” or “with corrupt intent” to conform
   62         provisions to changes made by the act; amending s.
   63         838.015, F.S.; redefining the term “bribery” as it
   64         relates to the requisite mental state for the offense
   65         of bribery; amending ss. 838.016 and 838.022, F.S.;
   66         revising provisions relating to the requisite mental
   67         state for the offenses of unlawful compensation and
   68         reward for official behavior and official misconduct,
   69         to conform to changes made by the act; providing an
   70         effective date.
   71  
   72  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   73  
   74         Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (12) of section
   75  112.312, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   76         112.312 Definitions.—As used in this part and for purposes
   77  of the provisions of s. 8, Art. II of the State Constitution,
   78  unless the context otherwise requires:
   79         (12)
   80         (b) “Gift” does not include:
   81         1. Salary, benefits, services, fees, commissions, gifts, or
   82  expenses associated primarily with the donee’s employment,
   83  business, or service as an officer or director of a corporation
   84  or organization.
   85         2. Contributions or expenditures reported pursuant to
   86  chapter 106 or federal election law, campaign-related personal
   87  services provided without compensation by individuals
   88  volunteering their time, or any other contribution or
   89  expenditure by a political party.
   90         3. An honorarium or an expense related to an honorarium
   91  event paid to a person or the person’s spouse.
   92         4. An award, plaque, certificate, or similar personalized
   93  item given in recognition of the donee’s public, civic,
   94  charitable, or professional service.
   95         5. An honorary membership in a service or fraternal
   96  organization presented merely as a courtesy by such
   97  organization.
   98         6. The use of a public facility or public property, made
   99  available by a governmental agency, for a public purpose.
  100         7. Transportation provided to a public officer or employee
  101  by an agency in relation to officially approved governmental
  102  business.
  103         8. Gifts provided directly or indirectly by a state,
  104  regional, or national organization which promotes the exchange
  105  of ideas between, or the professional development of,
  106  governmental officials or employees, and whose membership is
  107  primarily composed of elected or appointed public officials or
  108  staff, to members of that organization or officials or staff of
  109  a governmental agency that is a member of that organization.
  110         Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 112.3143, Florida
  111  Statutes, is amended to read:
  112         112.3143 Voting conflicts.—
  113         (2) Except as provided in s. 112.31435, no state public
  114  officer is prohibited from voting in an official capacity on any
  115  matter. However, any state public officer voting in an official
  116  capacity upon any measure that which would inure to the
  117  officer’s special private gain or loss; that which he or she
  118  knows would inure to the special private gain or loss of any
  119  principal by whom the officer is retained or to the parent
  120  organization or subsidiary of a corporate principal by which the
  121  officer is retained; or that which the officer knows would inure
  122  to the special private gain or loss of a relative or business
  123  associate of the public officer shall, within 15 days after the
  124  vote occurs, disclose the nature of his or her interest as a
  125  public record in a memorandum filed with the person responsible
  126  for recording the minutes of the meeting, who shall incorporate
  127  the memorandum in the minutes.
  128         Section 3. Section 112.31435, Florida Statutes, is created
  129  to read:
  130         112.31435Voting conflicts; state legislators.—
  131         (1) As used in this section, the term “relative” means any
  132  father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, brother, sister,
  133  father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law.
  134         (2)A member of the Legislature may not vote upon any
  135  legislation that would inure to his or her special private gain
  136  or loss; that he or she knows would inure to the special private
  137  gain or loss of any principal by whom the member is retained or
  138  to the parent organization or subsidiary of a corporate
  139  principal by which the member is retained; or that the member
  140  knows would inure to the special private gain or loss of a
  141  relative, a business associate, an employer, or a board upon
  142  which the member sits. The member must, before a vote is taken
  143  on the legislation by the legislative body of which he or she is
  144  a member or any committee on which the member sits, publicly
  145  state to the body or committee all of his or her interests in
  146  the legislation or all of the relative’s interests in the
  147  legislation which are known to the member. Within 15 days after
  148  the date on which the vote on the legislation occurred, the
  149  member must disclose the specific nature of those interests as a
  150  public record in a memorandum filed with the Secretary of the
  151  Senate, if the member is a Senator, or filed with the Clerk of
  152  the House of Representatives, if the member is a Representative.
  153  The memorandum shall be spread upon the pages of the journal of
  154  the house of which the legislator is a member.
  155         (3) This section does not prevent a member of the
  156  Legislature from voting on a General Appropriations Act or
  157  implementing legislation on the floor of the Senate or House of
  158  Representatives.
  159         Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 112.3144, Florida
  160  Statutes, is amended to read:
  161         112.3144 Full and public disclosure of financial
  162  interests.—
  163         (1)(a) An officer who is required by s. 8, Art. II of the
  164  State Constitution to file a full and public disclosure of his
  165  or her financial interests for any calendar or fiscal year shall
  166  file that disclosure with the Florida Commission on Ethics.
  167         (b)The commission shall review the information contained
  168  in each full and public disclosure of financial interests of,
  169  and any supporting or supplemental documentation filed
  170  concurrently by, an elected constitutional officer to determine
  171  whether the officer’s disclosure is sufficient; provided that
  172  the commission receives the filing by July 1.
  173         (c)1. If the commission determines that the officer’s
  174  disclosure is insufficient, the commission must send a notice by
  175  certified mail to the officer no later than 30 days after July
  176  1. The notice must identify the specific insufficiency and state
  177  with particularity the basis for the determination.
  178         2.Upon receipt of the notice of insufficiency, the officer
  179  must file an amended or corrected disclosure no later than
  180  September 1 of that year, which is not subject to sufficiency
  181  review. If the officer fails to file the amended or corrected
  182  disclosure by September 1, the automatic fine provided for in
  183  this section will begin to accrue. Any such officer accruing an
  184  automatic fine may appeal it as provided in subsection (5).
  185         3. A complaint may not be filed alleging a violation of
  186  this section for any insufficiency identified pursuant to
  187  subparagraph 1. unless such insufficiency remains uncorrected
  188  after September 1.
  189         (d) If the commission finds the disclosure legally
  190  sufficient, the commission must send a notice of sufficiency by
  191  certified mail to the officer no later than 30 days after July
  192  1. To the extent that the disclosure of financial interests and
  193  the accompanying documentation filed with the commission fully
  194  identify all information that is required to be disclosed, an
  195  officer whose disclosure is sufficient is not liable for any
  196  fines or penalties for a violation of this section.
  197         (e) If an officer’s full and public disclosure of financial
  198  interests is not received by 5 p.m. on July 1, the officer is
  199  not entitled to a sufficiency review.
  200         (f) The commission may delegate to its staff the authority
  201  to conduct the review required in this subsection.
  202         Section 5. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
  203  112.3145, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  204         112.3145 Disclosure of financial interests and clients
  205  represented before agencies.—
  206         (1) For purposes of this section, unless the context
  207  otherwise requires, the term:
  208         (a) “Local officer” means:
  209         1. Every person who is elected to office in any political
  210  subdivision of the state, and every person who is appointed to
  211  fill a vacancy for an unexpired term in such an elective office.
  212         2. Any appointed member of any of the following boards,
  213  councils, commissions, authorities, or other bodies of any
  214  county, municipality, school district, independent special
  215  district, or other political subdivision of the state:
  216         a. The governing body of the political subdivision, if
  217  appointed;
  218         b. An expressway authority or transportation authority
  219  established by general law;
  220         c. A community college or junior college district board of
  221  trustees;
  222         d. A board having the power to enforce local code
  223  provisions;
  224         e. A planning or zoning board, board of adjustment, board
  225  of appeals, community redevelopment agency board, or other board
  226  having the power to recommend, create, or modify land planning
  227  or zoning within the political subdivision, except for citizen
  228  advisory committees, technical coordinating committees, and such
  229  other groups who only have the power to make recommendations to
  230  planning or zoning boards;
  231         f. A pension board or retirement board having the power to
  232  invest pension or retirement funds or the power to make a
  233  binding determination of one’s entitlement to or amount of a
  234  pension or other retirement benefit; or
  235         g. Any other appointed member of a local government board
  236  who is required to file a statement of financial interests by
  237  the appointing authority or the enabling legislation, ordinance,
  238  or resolution creating the board.
  239         3. Any person holding one or more of the following
  240  positions: mayor; county or city manager; chief administrative
  241  employee of a county, municipality, or other political
  242  subdivision; county or municipal attorney; finance director of a
  243  county, municipality, or other political subdivision; chief
  244  county or municipal building code inspector; county or municipal
  245  water resources coordinator; county or municipal pollution
  246  control director; county or municipal environmental control
  247  director; county or municipal administrator, with power to grant
  248  or deny a land development permit; chief of police; fire chief;
  249  municipal clerk; district school superintendent; community
  250  college president; district medical examiner; or purchasing
  251  agent having the authority to make any purchase exceeding the
  252  threshold amount provided for in s. 287.017 for CATEGORY ONE, on
  253  behalf of any political subdivision of the state or any entity
  254  thereof.
  255         Section 6. Subsection (4) of section 838.014, Florida
  256  Statutes, is amended, and present subsections (5) through (7) of
  257  that section are renumbered as subsections (4) through (6),
  258  respectively, to read:
  259         838.014 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term:
  260         (4) “Corruptly” or “with corrupt intent” means acting
  261  knowingly and dishonestly for a wrongful purpose.
  262         Section 7. Subsection (1) of section 838.015, Florida
  263  Statutes, is amended to read:
  264         838.015 Bribery.—
  265         (1) “Bribery” means knowingly corruptly to give, offer, or
  266  promise to any public servant, or, if a public servant,
  267  knowingly corruptly to request, solicit, accept, or agree to
  268  accept for himself or herself or another, any pecuniary or other
  269  benefit not authorized by law with an intent or purpose to
  270  influence the performance of any act or omission which the
  271  person believes to be, or the public servant represents as
  272  being, within the official discretion of a public servant, in
  273  violation of a public duty, or in performance of a public duty.
  274         Section 8. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 838.016,
  275  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  276         838.016 Unlawful compensation or reward for official
  277  behavior.—
  278         (1) It is unlawful for any person knowingly corruptly to
  279  give, offer, or promise to any public servant, or, if a public
  280  servant, knowingly corruptly to request, solicit, accept, or
  281  agree to accept, any pecuniary or other benefit not authorized
  282  by law, for the past, present, or future performance,
  283  nonperformance, or violation of any act or omission which the
  284  person believes to have been, or the public servant represents
  285  as having been, either within the official discretion of the
  286  public servant, in violation of a public duty, or in performance
  287  of a public duty. Nothing herein shall be construed to preclude
  288  a public servant from accepting rewards for services performed
  289  in apprehending any criminal.
  290         (2) It is unlawful for any person knowingly corruptly to
  291  give, offer, or promise to any public servant, or, if a public
  292  servant, knowingly corruptly to request, solicit, accept, or
  293  agree to accept, any pecuniary or other benefit not authorized
  294  by law for the past, present, or future exertion of any
  295  influence upon or with any other public servant regarding any
  296  act or omission which the person believes to have been, or which
  297  is represented to him or her as having been, either within the
  298  official discretion of the other public servant, in violation of
  299  a public duty, or in performance of a public duty.
  300         Section 9. Subsection (1) of section 838.022, Florida
  301  Statutes, is amended to read:
  302         838.022 Official misconduct.—
  303         (1) It is unlawful for a public servant, to knowingly with
  304  corrupt intent to obtain a benefit for any person or to cause
  305  harm to another, to:
  306         (a) Falsify, or cause another person to falsify, any
  307  official record or official document;
  308         (b) Conceal, cover up, destroy, mutilate, or alter any
  309  official record or official document or cause another person to
  310  perform such an act; or
  311         (c) Obstruct, delay, or prevent the communication of
  312  information relating to the commission of a felony that directly
  313  involves or affects the public agency or public entity served by
  314  the public servant.
  315         Section 10. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.