Senate Bill sb1648c1

    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1648

    By the Committee on Judiciary; and Senator Burt





    308-1941-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public-records exemptions

  3         relating to the judiciary; creating s. 44.1026,

  4         F.S.; providing for exemptions for social

  5         security numbers in judicial records and for

  6         communications and documents in presuit and

  7         voluntary mediations; providing an effective

  8         date.

  9

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

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12         Section 1.  Social security numbers of individuals

13  collected, used or otherwise in the possession of the courts

14  and the clerks of the court in accordance with section 25.375,

15  Florida Statutes, are confidential and exempt from the

16  requirements of Section 24(a), Article I of the State

17  Constitution. This section is subject to the Open Government

18  Sunset Review Act of 1995 in accordance with section 119.15,

19  Florida Statutes, and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2007,

20  unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by

21  the Legislature.

22         Section 2.  The Legislature finds that the

23  confidentiality and exemption from public records of social

24  security numbers is a public necessity because the public

25  availability of a person's social security number collected,

26  used, or otherwise possessed by the courts and the clerks of

27  the court and retained in public records can threaten a

28  person's safety, invade his or her privacy, lead to

29  unnecessary and illegal intrusion, and result in personal

30  identity theft. The Legislature further finds that persons,

31  however, are frequently involved in multiple or related court

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    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1648
    308-1941-02




  1  actions. The collection of personal identifying information

  2  such as social security numbers is integral to the development

  3  and implementation of a unique identifier system that

  4  facilitates the identification, coordination, management,

  5  tracking and resolution of all related cases affecting these

  6  persons and their families.

  7         Section 3.  Section 44.1026, Florida Statutes, is

  8  created to read:

  9         44.1026  Presuit and voluntary mediation; public

10  records exemption.--All oral or written communications or

11  documents, including written documents of the mediator, in a

12  presuit or voluntary mediation proceeding, are confidential

13  and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a),

14  Art. I of the State Constitution. Such communications and

15  documents, however, may be disclosed upon the consent of all

16  participants to the presuit mediation or parties to the

17  voluntary mediation. Executed settlement agreements or

18  communications as provided in s. 44.1025(3) are neither

19  confidential nor exempt.  This section is subject to the Open

20  Government Sunset Review Act of 1995 in accordance with s.

21  119.15, and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2007, unless

22  reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the

23  Legislature.

24         Section 4.  The Legislature finds that the

25  confidentiality and public records exemption for all oral and

26  written communications or documents in a presuit or voluntary

27  mediation is a public necessity in order to promote the

28  effective and efficient use of mediation and minimize court

29  involvement and intervention. Confidentiality enhances candor

30  and confidence in the mediation process such that participants

31  can develop creative solutions to the issues in dispute. The

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    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1648
    308-1941-02




  1  Legislature also finds that the public policy provided for in

  2  the promotion and use of presuit and voluntary mediations will

  3  be served by the confidentiality and public records exemption

  4  of the communications and documents made or created during the

  5  mediation process.

  6         Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002,

  7  but it shall not take effect unless Committee Substitute for

  8  SB 1226 and CS/SB 734 or similar legislation is enacted at the

  9  2002 Regular Session or an extension thereof.

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11          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
12                         Senate Bill 1648

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14       --     Creates public records exemption for social
                security numbers collected and used by the courts
15              and the clerks of the court for the purpose of
                facilitating comprehensive case management,
16              processing; and resolution; and

17       --     Creates public records exemption for specified
                communications and documents made during presuit
18              and voluntary mediations in order to promote the
                use of mediations, minimize court involvement, and
19              enhance alternative dispute resolution options to
                the adversarial process.
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.