Florida Senate - 2016                                     SB 582
       
       
        
       By Senator Gaetz
       
       
       
       
       
       1-00667A-16                                            2016582__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to public corruption; amending s.
    3         838.014, F.S.; deleting the definition of the term
    4         “corruptly” or “with corrupt intent”; defining the
    5         term “governmental entity”; expanding the definition
    6         of the term “public servant” to include certain
    7         persons who are acting on behalf of a governmental
    8         entity; amending s. 838.015, F.S.; redefining the term
    9         “bribery” to include knowing and intentional, rather
   10         than corrupt, acts; amending s. 838.016, F.S.;
   11         revising the prohibition against unlawful compensation
   12         or reward for official behavior to conform to changes
   13         made by the act; amending s. 838.022, F.S.; revising
   14         the prohibition against official misconduct to conform
   15         to changes made by the act; amending s. 838.22, F.S.;
   16         revising the prohibition against bid tampering to
   17         conform to changes made by the act; reenacting s.
   18         817.568(11), F.S., relating to criminal use of
   19         personal identification information, to incorporate
   20         the amendment made to s. 838.014, F.S., in a reference
   21         thereto; providing an effective date.
   22          
   23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   24  
   25         Section 1. Section 838.014, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   26  read:
   27         838.014 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term:
   28         (1) “Benefit” means gain or advantage, or anything regarded
   29  by the person to be benefited as a gain or advantage, including
   30  the doing of an act beneficial to any person in whose welfare he
   31  or she is interested, including any commission, gift, gratuity,
   32  property, commercial interest, or any other thing of economic
   33  value not authorized by law.
   34         (2) “Bid” includes a response to an “invitation to bid,”
   35  “invitation to negotiate,” “request for a quote,” or “request
   36  for proposals” as those terms are defined in s. 287.012.
   37         (3) “Commodity” means any goods, merchandise, wares,
   38  produce, chose in action, land, article of commerce, or other
   39  tangible or intangible property, real, personal, or mixed, for
   40  use, consumption, production, enjoyment, or resale.
   41         (4) “Governmental entity” means the state, including any
   42  unit of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of
   43  government, political subdivisions and any agency or office
   44  thereof, or any other public entity that independently exercises
   45  any type of governmental function “Corruptly” or “with corrupt
   46  intent” means acting knowingly and dishonestly for a wrongful
   47  purpose.
   48         (5) “Harm” means pecuniary or other loss, disadvantage, or
   49  injury to the person affected.
   50         (6) “Public servant” means:
   51         (a) Any officer or employee of a governmental state,
   52  county, municipal, or special district agency or entity;
   53         (b) Any legislative or judicial officer or employee;
   54         (c) Any person, except a witness, who acts as a general or
   55  special magistrate, receiver, auditor, arbitrator, umpire,
   56  referee, consultant, or hearing officer while performing a
   57  governmental function; or
   58         (d) A candidate for election or appointment to any of the
   59  positions listed in this subsection, or an individual who has
   60  been elected to, but has yet to officially assume the
   61  responsibilities of, public office; or
   62         (e) To the extent that the individual’s conduct relates to
   63  the performance of a public duty of a governmental entity, any
   64  officer, director, partner, manager, representative, or employee
   65  of a nongovernmental entity, private corporation, quasi-public
   66  corporation, or quasi-public entity, or any person subject to
   67  chapter 119 who is acting on behalf of a governmental entity.
   68  For purposes of this paragraph, “nongovernmental entity” means a
   69  person, association, cooperative, corporation, partnership,
   70  organization, or other entity, whether operating for profit or
   71  not for profit, which is not a governmental entity.
   72         (7) “Service” means any kind of activity performed in whole
   73  or in part for economic benefit.
   74         Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 838.015, Florida
   75  Statutes, is amended to read:
   76         838.015 Bribery.—
   77         (1) For purposes of this section, “bribery” means corruptly
   78  to knowingly and intentionally give, offer, or promise to any
   79  public servant, or, if a public servant, corruptly to knowingly
   80  and intentionally request, solicit, accept, or agree to accept
   81  for himself or herself or another, any pecuniary or other
   82  benefit not authorized by law with an intent or purpose to
   83  influence the performance of any act or omission which the
   84  person believes to be, or the public servant represents as
   85  being, within the official discretion of a public servant, in
   86  violation of a public duty, or in performance of a public duty.
   87         Section 3. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 838.016,
   88  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   89         838.016 Unlawful compensation or reward for official
   90  behavior.—
   91         (1) It is unlawful for any person corruptly to knowingly
   92  and intentionally give, offer, or promise to any public servant,
   93  or, if a public servant, corruptly to knowingly and
   94  intentionally request, solicit, accept, or agree to accept, any
   95  pecuniary or other benefit not authorized by law, for the past,
   96  present, or future performance, nonperformance, or violation of
   97  any act or omission which the person believes to have been, or
   98  the public servant represents as having been, either within the
   99  official discretion of the public servant, in violation of a
  100  public duty, or in performance of a public duty. This section
  101  may not Nothing herein shall be construed to preclude a public
  102  servant from accepting rewards for services performed in
  103  apprehending any criminal.
  104         (2) It is unlawful for any person corruptly to knowingly
  105  and intentionally give, offer, or promise to any public servant,
  106  or, if a public servant, corruptly to knowingly and
  107  intentionally request, solicit, accept, or agree to accept, any
  108  pecuniary or other benefit not authorized by law for the past,
  109  present, or future exertion of any influence upon or with any
  110  other public servant regarding any act or omission which the
  111  person believes to have been, or which is represented to him or
  112  her as having been, either within the official discretion of the
  113  other public servant, in violation of a public duty, or in
  114  performance of a public duty.
  115         Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 838.022, Florida
  116  Statutes, is amended, and subsection (2) of that section is
  117  republished, to read:
  118         838.022 Official misconduct.—
  119         (1) It is unlawful for a public servant, with corrupt
  120  intent to knowingly and intentionally obtain an improper a
  121  benefit for any person or to cause unlawful harm to another, by
  122  to:
  123         (a) Falsifying Falsify, or causing cause another person to
  124  falsify, any official record or official document;
  125         (b) Concealing, covering up, destroying, mutilating, or
  126  altering Conceal, cover up, destroy, mutilate, or alter any
  127  official record or official document or causing cause another
  128  person to perform such an act; or
  129         (c) Obstructing, delaying, or preventing Obstruct, delay,
  130  or prevent the communication of information relating to the
  131  commission of a felony that directly involves or affects the
  132  governmental public agency or public entity served by the public
  133  servant.
  134         (2) For the purposes of this section:
  135         (a) The term “public servant” does not include a candidate
  136  who does not otherwise qualify as a public servant.
  137         (b) An official record or official document includes only
  138  public records.
  139         Section 5. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 838.22,
  140  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  141         838.22 Bid tampering.—
  142         (1) It is unlawful for a public servant, with corrupt
  143  intent to knowingly and intentionally influence or attempt to
  144  influence, in an improper manner, the competitive bidding
  145  process undertaken by any governmental state, county, municipal,
  146  or special district agency, or any other public entity, for the
  147  procurement of commodities or services, by to:
  148         (a) Disclosing Disclose material information concerning a
  149  bid or other aspects of the competitive bidding process when
  150  such information is not publicly disclosed.
  151         (b) Altering or amending Alter or amend a submitted bid,
  152  documents or other materials supporting a submitted bid, or bid
  153  results for the purpose of intentionally providing a competitive
  154  advantage to any person who submits a bid.
  155         (2) It is unlawful for a public servant, with corrupt
  156  intent to knowingly and intentionally obtain an improper a
  157  benefit for any person or to cause unlawful harm to another, to
  158  circumvent a competitive bidding process required by law or rule
  159  by using a sole-source contract for commodities or services.
  160         Section 6. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
  161  made by this act to section 838.014, Florida Statutes, in a
  162  reference thereto, subsection (11) of section 817.568, Florida
  163  Statutes, is reenacted to read:
  164         817.568 Criminal use of personal identification
  165  information.—
  166         (11) A person who willfully and without authorization
  167  fraudulently uses personal identification information concerning
  168  an individual who is 60 years of age or older; a disabled adult
  169  as defined in s. 825.101; a public servant as defined in s.
  170  838.014; a veteran as defined in s. 1.01; a first responder as
  171  defined in s. 125.01045; an individual who is employed by the
  172  State of Florida; or an individual who is employed by the
  173  Federal Government without first obtaining the consent of that
  174  individual commits a felony of the second degree, punishable as
  175  provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.
  176         Section 7. This act shall take effect October 1, 2016.