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The Florida Senate

2021 Florida Statutes (Including 2021B Session)

Title IX ELECTORS AND ELECTIONS
Chapter 98 REGISTRATION OFFICE, OFFICERS, AND PROCEDURES Entire Chapter
SECTION 015
Supervisor of elections; election, tenure of office, compensation, custody of registration-related documents, office hours, successor, seal; appointment of deputy supervisors; duties; public records exemption.
F.S. 98.015
98.015 Supervisor of elections; election, tenure of office, compensation, custody of registration-related documents, office hours, successor, seal; appointment of deputy supervisors; duties; public records exemption.—
(1) A supervisor of elections shall be elected in each county at the general election in each year the number of which is a multiple of four for a 4-year term commencing on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January succeeding his or her election. Each supervisor shall, before performing any of his or her duties, take the oath prescribed in s. 5, Art. II of the State Constitution.
(2) The supervisor’s compensation shall be paid by the board of county commissioners.
(3) The supervisor shall update voter registration information, enter new voter registrations into the statewide voter registration system, and act as the official custodian of documents received by the supervisor related to the registration of electors and changes in voter registration status of electors of the supervisor’s county.
(4) At a minimum, the office of the supervisor must be open Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays, for a period of not less than 8 hours per day, beginning no later than 9 a.m.
(5) The supervisor shall preserve statements and other information required to be filed with the supervisor’s office pursuant to chapter 106 for a period of 10 years from date of receipt.
(6) The supervisor shall, upon leaving office, deliver to his or her successor immediately all records belonging to the office.
(7) Each supervisor is authorized to obtain for the office an impression seal approved by the department. An impression of the seal with a description thereof shall be filed with the department. The supervisor is empowered to attach an impression of the seal upon official documents and certificates executed over the supervisor’s signature and take oaths and acknowledgments under the supervisor’s seal in matters pertaining to the office. However, said seal need not be affixed to registration certificates.
(8) Each supervisor may select and appoint, subject to removal by the supervisor, as many deputy supervisors as are necessary, whose compensation must be paid by the supervisor and who shall have the same powers and whose acts shall have the same effect as the acts of the supervisor; except that the supervisor shall limit the power to appoint deputy supervisors to designated deputy supervisors. Each deputy supervisor shall, before entering office, take an oath in writing that he or she will faithfully perform the duties of the deputy supervisor’s office, which oath must be acknowledged by the supervisor or a designated deputy supervisor and must be filed in the office of the supervisor.
(9) Each supervisor must make training in the proper implementation of voter registration procedures available to any individual, group, center for independent living, or public library in the supervisor’s county.
(10) Each supervisor shall ensure that all voter registration and list maintenance procedures conducted by such supervisor are in compliance with any applicable requirements prescribed by rule of the department through the statewide voter registration system or prescribed by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, or the Help America Vote Act of 2002.
(11) Each supervisor shall ensure that any voter registration system used by the supervisor for administering his or her duties as a voter registration official complies with the specifications and procedures established by rule of the department and the statewide voter registration system.
(12) Each supervisor shall maintain a list of valid residential street addresses for purposes of verifying the legal addresses of voters residing in the supervisor’s county. To the maximum extent practicable, the list shall include information necessary to differentiate one residence from another, including, but not limited to, a distinguishing apartment, suite, lot, room, or dormitory room number or other identifier. If a voter registration application does not include information necessary to differentiate one residence from another, the supervisor shall make all reasonable efforts to obtain such information in order to maintain the list of valid residential street addresses. The supervisor shall make all reasonable efforts to coordinate with county 911 service providers, property appraisers, the United States Postal Service, or other agencies as necessary to ensure the continued accuracy of such list. The supervisor shall provide the list of valid residential addresses to the statewide voter registration system in the manner and frequency specified by rule of the department.
(13)(a) Portions of records held by a supervisor of elections which contain network schematics, hardware and software configurations, or encryption, or which identify detection, investigation, or response practices for suspected or confirmed information technology security incidents, including suspected or confirmed breaches, are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution, if the disclosure of such records would facilitate unauthorized access to or the unauthorized modification, disclosure, or destruction of:
1. Data or information, whether physical or virtual; or
2. Information technology resources as defined in s. 119.011(9), which includes:
a. Information relating to the security of a supervisor of elections’ technology, processes, and practices designed to protect networks, computers, data processing software, and data from attack, damage, or unauthorized access; or
b. Security information, whether physical or virtual, which relates to a supervisor of elections’ existing or proposed information technology systems.
(b) The portions of records made confidential and exempt in paragraph (a) shall be available to the Auditor General and may be made available to another governmental entity for information technology security purposes or in the furtherance of the entity’s official duties.
(c) The public record exemption in paragraph (a) applies to records held by a supervisor of elections before, on, or after the effective date of the exemption.
(d) This subsection is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2026, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.
History.—chs. 3700, 3704, 1887; s. 8, ch. 3879, 1889; RS 162; s. 9, ch. 4328, 1895; GS 179, 180; s. 1, ch. 5614, 1907; s. 1, ch. 9271, 1923; RGS 223, 224; CGL 258, 259; ss. 1, 2, ch. 22759, 1945; s. 2, ch. 26870, 1951; s. 10, ch. 65-134; ss. 10, 11, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 33, ch. 69-216; s. 5, ch. 77-175; s. 25, ch. 94-224; s. 1385, ch. 95-147; s. 17, ch. 98-34; s. 2, ch. 98-129; s. 16, ch. 2005-278; s. 4, ch. 2016-23; s. 1, ch. 2021-73.
Note.—Former ss. 98.13, 98.14, 98.17; s. 98.161.