| 1 | The Transportation Committee recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Council/Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to crash reports; amending s. 316.003, |
| 7 | F.S.; defining "victims services program"; amending s. |
| 8 | 316.066, F.S.; providing for release of crash reports by |
| 9 | the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to |
| 10 | victims services programs; requiring the programs to |
| 11 | maintain confidentiality; providing an effective date. |
| 12 |
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| 13 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 14 |
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| 15 | Section 1. Subsection (84) is added to section 316.003, |
| 16 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 17 | 316.003 Definitions.--The following words and phrases, |
| 18 | when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings respectively |
| 19 | ascribed to them in this section, except where the context |
| 20 | otherwise requires: |
| 21 | (84) VICTIMS SERVICES PROGRAM.--Any community-based |
| 22 | organization whose primary purpose is to act as an advocate for |
| 23 | the victims and survivors of traffic crashes and for their |
| 24 | families. The victims services offered by this program may |
| 25 | include grief and crisis counseling, assistance with preparing |
| 26 | victims compensation claims excluding third-party legal action, |
| 27 | connecting persons with other service providers, and providing |
| 28 | emergency financial assistance. |
| 29 | Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section |
| 30 | 316.066, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 31 | 316.066 Written reports of crashes.-- |
| 32 | (3) |
| 33 | (c) Crash reports required by this section which reveal |
| 34 | the identity, home or employment telephone number or home or |
| 35 | employment address of, or other personal information concerning |
| 36 | the parties involved in the crash and which are received or |
| 37 | prepared by any agency that regularly receives or prepares |
| 38 | information from or concerning the parties to motor vehicle |
| 39 | crashes are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. |
| 40 | 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution for a period of 60 days |
| 41 | after the date the report is filed. However, such reports may be |
| 42 | made immediately available to the parties involved in the crash, |
| 43 | their legal representatives, their licensed insurance agents, |
| 44 | their insurers or insurers to which they have applied for |
| 45 | coverage, persons under contract with such insurers to provide |
| 46 | claims or underwriting information, prosecutorial authorities, |
| 47 | victims services programs, radio and television stations |
| 48 | licensed by the Federal Communications Commission, newspapers |
| 49 | qualified to publish legal notices under ss. 50.011 and 50.031, |
| 50 | and free newspapers of general circulation, published once a |
| 51 | week or more often, available and of interest to the public |
| 52 | generally for the dissemination of news. For the purposes of |
| 53 | this section, the following products or publications are not |
| 54 | newspapers as referred to in this section: those intended |
| 55 | primarily for members of a particular profession or occupational |
| 56 | group; those with the primary purpose of distributing |
| 57 | advertising; and those with the primary purpose of publishing |
| 58 | names and other personal identifying information concerning |
| 59 | parties to motor vehicle crashes. Any local, state, or federal |
| 60 | agency, agent, or employee that is authorized to have access to |
| 61 | such reports by any provision of law shall be granted such |
| 62 | access in the furtherance of the agency's statutory duties |
| 63 | notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph. Any local, |
| 64 | state, or federal agency, agent, or employee or any victims |
| 65 | services program receiving such crash reports shall maintain the |
| 66 | confidential and exempt status of those reports and shall not |
| 67 | disclose such crash reports to any person or entity. As a |
| 68 | condition precedent to accessing a crash report within 60 days |
| 69 | after the date the report is filed, a person must present a |
| 70 | valid driver's license or other photographic identification, |
| 71 | proof of status, or identification that demonstrates his or her |
| 72 | qualifications to access that information, and file a written |
| 73 | sworn statement with the state or local agency in possession of |
| 74 | the information stating that information from a crash report |
| 75 | made confidential by this section will not be used for any |
| 76 | commercial solicitation of accident victims, or knowingly |
| 77 | disclosed to any third party for the purpose of such |
| 78 | solicitation, during the period of time that the information |
| 79 | remains confidential. In lieu of requiring the written sworn |
| 80 | statement, an agency may provide crash reports by electronic |
| 81 | means to third-party vendors under contract with one or more |
| 82 | insurers, but only when such contract states that information |
| 83 | from a crash report made confidential by this section will not |
| 84 | be used for any commercial solicitation of accident victims by |
| 85 | the vendors, or knowingly disclosed by the vendors to any third |
| 86 | party for the purpose of such solicitation, during the period of |
| 87 | time that the information remains confidential, and only when a |
| 88 | copy of such contract is furnished to the agency as proof of the |
| 89 | vendor's claimed status. This subsection does not prevent the |
| 90 | dissemination or publication of news to the general public by |
| 91 | any legitimate media entitled to access confidential information |
| 92 | pursuant to this section. A law enforcement officer as defined |
| 93 | in s. 943.10(1) may enforce this subsection. This exemption is |
| 94 | subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act of 1995 in |
| 95 | accordance with s. 119.15, and shall stand repealed on October |
| 96 | 2, 2006, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through |
| 97 | reenactment by the Legislature. |
| 98 | Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |