Senate Bill sb1466c1

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    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1466

    By the Committee on Banking and Insurance; and Senator
    Sanderson




    311-1620-01

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public records; amending s.

  3         316.066, F.S.; providing an exemption from

  4         public-records requirements for motor vehicle

  5         crash reports that reveal specified

  6         information; providing that such reports may be

  7         made available to certain parties; providing

  8         for future review and repeal; providing

  9         penalties for the unlawful disclosure of

10         confidential information and for unlawfully

11         obtaining or attempting to obtain confidential

12         information; providing findings of public

13         necessity; providing an effective date.

14

15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

16

17         Section 1.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section

18  316.066, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraphs (d) and

19  (e) are added to that subsection, to read:

20         316.066  Written reports of crashes.--

21         (3)

22         (c)  Crash reports required by this section which

23  reveal the identity, home or employment telephone number or

24  home or employment address of, or other personal information

25  concerning the parties involved in the crash and which are

26  received or prepared by any agency that regularly receives or

27  prepares information from or concerning the parties to motor

28  vehicle crashes are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1)

29  and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution for a period of

30  60 days after the date the report is filed. However, such

31  reports may be made immediately available to the parties

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    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1466
    311-1620-01




  1  involved in the crash, their legal representatives, their

  2  licensed insurance agents, their insurers or insurers to which

  3  they have applied for coverage, persons under contract with

  4  such insurers to provide claims or underwriting information,

  5  prosecutorial authorities, radio and television stations

  6  licensed by the Federal Communications Commission, newspapers

  7  qualified to publish legal notices under ss. 50.011 and

  8  50.031, and free newspapers of general circulation, published

  9  once a week or more often, available and of interest to the

10  public generally for the dissemination of news. For the

11  purposes of this section, the following products or

12  publications are not newspapers as referred to in this

13  section: those intended primarily for members of a particular

14  profession or occupational group; those with the primary

15  purpose of distributing advertising; and those with the

16  primary purpose of publishing names and other personally

17  identifying information concerning parties to motor vehicle

18  crashes.  Any state or federal agency that is authorized to

19  have access to such reports by any provision of law shall be

20  granted such access in the furtherance of the agency's

21  statutory duties notwithstanding the provisions of this

22  paragraph. Any person attempting to access crash reports

23  within 60 days after the date the report is filed must present

24  legitimate credentials or identification that demonstrates his

25  or her qualifications to access that information. This

26  exemption is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act

27  of 1995 in accordance with s. 119.15, and shall stand repealed

28  on October 1, 2006, unless reviewed and saved from repeal

29  through reenactment by the Legislature. Crash reports made by

30  law enforcement officers shall not be used for commercial

31  solicitation purposes; however, the use of a crash report for

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    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1466
    311-1620-01




  1  purposes of publication in a newspaper or other news

  2  periodical or a radio or television broadcast shall not be

  3  construed as "commercial purpose."

  4         (d)  Any employee of a state or local agency in

  5  possession of information made confidential by this section

  6  who knowingly discloses such confidential information to a

  7  person not entitled to access such information under this

  8  section is guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable

  9  as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

10         (e)  Any person who knowingly obtains or attempts to

11  obtain information made confidential by this section who is

12  not entitled to access such information under this section is

13  guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided

14  in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

15         Section 2.  The Legislature finds that there is a

16  public necessity that portions of crash reports which are

17  mandated to be provided by law and which reveal personal

18  information concerning parties to motor vehicle crashes be

19  withheld from public inspection or disclosure to protect the

20  privacy of persons that have been the subject of a motor

21  vehicle crash. Further, the exemption is necessary to protect

22  the public from unscrupulous individuals who promote the

23  filing of fraudulent insurance claims by obtaining such

24  information immediately after a crash and exploiting the

25  individual at a time of emotional distress. Crash reports made

26  by law enforcement officers should not be used for commercial

27  solicitation purposes; however, the use of a crash report for

28  purposes of publication in a newspaper or other news

29  periodical or a radio or television broadcast may not be

30  construed as a "commercial purpose." Motor vehicle insurance

31  fraud is estimated to add as much as $246 to the average motor

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    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1466
    311-1620-01




  1  vehicle insurance policy premium. In the past 5 years, the

  2  Department of Insurance has received nearly 5,000 referrals of

  3  personal injury protection (PIP) insurance fraud and has made

  4  more than 500 arrests, resulting in an 80-percent conviction

  5  rate. Motor vehicle insurance fraud is fueled by early access

  6  to crash reports, which provides the opportunity for the

  7  filing of fraudulent insurance claims.

  8         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

  9  law.

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11          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
12                             SB 1466

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14  Provides for crash reports to be exempt from the public
    records requirements for a period of 60 days after the date
15  the crash report is filed.

16  Provides that crash reports may be made immediately available
    to the licensed insurance agents of the parties involved in
17  the crash, their insurers or insurers to which such parties
    have applied for insurance coverage, persons under contract
18  with such insurers to provide claims or underwriting
    information, and prosecutorial authorities.
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    Provides that newspapers qualified to publish legal notices be
20  allowed access to crash reports and removes the provision
    which allowed crash reports be available to professional
21  journalists.

22  Increases the penalties for certain persons who disclose
    confidential information contained in crash reports and for
23  persons who obtain the confidential information who are not
    entitled access to such information.
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