The Florida Senate

The bill creates a public records exemption to provide that a county or municipal code inspector’s body camera recording, or a portion thereof, is confidential and exempt from public disclosure requirements if the recording is taken in:

• The interior of a private residence;
• The interior of a facility that offers health care, mental health care, or social services; or
• A place that a reasonable person would expect to be private.

In addition, the bill:

• Provides for certain circumstances under which such recordings are required to be disclosed or may be disclosed;
• Requires the court to consider certain factors in determining whether to order the disclosure of such a recording; and
• Requires that local governments must be given reasonable notice of hearings and an opportunity to participate in any proceeding regarding the disclosure of such a recording.

The bill requires code inspector body camera recordings to be retained for at least 90 days and requires the Division of Library and Information Services of the Department of State, by October 1, 2026, to incorporate this retention requirement into the appropriate general records schedule. The bill provides that the public records exemption created by the bill applies retroactively and does not supersede any other public records exemptions that existed before or created after the effective date of the bill.

The bill is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act and stands repealed on October 2, 2031, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

This act shall take effect on the same date that SB 504 or similar legislation takes effect, if such legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an extension thereof and becomes a law.

Vote: Senate 38-1; House 114-0