| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to a review under the Open Government |
| 3 | Sunset Review Act; amending s. 97.0585, F.S., which |
| 4 | provides an exemption from public records requirements for |
| 5 | certain information regarding voters and voter |
| 6 | registration and which provides an exemption from the |
| 7 | copying requirements for signatures of voters and voter |
| 8 | registrants; making clarifying changes; creating a public- |
| 9 | records exemption for specified personal identifying |
| 10 | information of stalking victims held by the Attorney |
| 11 | General or contained in voter registration and voting |
| 12 | records held by the supervisor of elections or the |
| 13 | Department of State; providing for future legislative |
| 14 | review and repeal of the exemption under the Open |
| 15 | Government Sunset Review Act; providing a statement of |
| 16 | public necessity; repealing s. 3, ch. 2005-279, Laws of |
| 17 | Florida, which provides for repeal of the exemption; |
| 18 | providing an effective date. |
| 19 |
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| 20 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 21 |
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| 22 | Section 1. Section 97.0585, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 23 | to read: |
| 24 | 97.0585 Public records exemption; information regarding |
| 25 | voters and voter registration; confidentiality.- |
| 26 | (1) The following information concerning voters and voter |
| 27 | registration held by an agency as defined in s. 119.011 is |
| 28 | confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I |
| 29 | of the State Constitution and may be used only for purposes of |
| 30 | voter registration: |
| 31 | (a) All declinations to register to vote made pursuant to |
| 32 | ss. 97.057 and 97.058. |
| 33 | (b) Information relating to the place where a person |
| 34 | registered to vote or where a person updated a voter |
| 35 | registration. |
| 36 | (c) The social security number, driver's license number, |
| 37 | and Florida identification number of a voter registration |
| 38 | applicant or voter. |
| 39 | (2) The signature of a voter registration applicant or a |
| 40 | voter is exempt from the copying requirements may not be copied |
| 41 | and is exempt for that purpose from the provisions of s. |
| 42 | 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. |
| 43 | (3) The names, addresses, and telephone numbers of persons |
| 44 | who are victims of stalking or aggravated stalking are exempt |
| 45 | from s. 119.071(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State |
| 46 | Constitution in the same manner that the names, addresses, and |
| 47 | telephone numbers of participants in the Address Confidentiality |
| 48 | Program for Victims of Domestic Violence which are held by the |
| 49 | Attorney General under s. 741.465 are exempt from disclosure, |
| 50 | provided that the victim files a sworn statement of stalking |
| 51 | with the Office of the Attorney General and otherwise complies |
| 52 | with the procedures in ss. 741.401-741.409. |
| 53 | (4)(3) This section applies to information held by an |
| 54 | agency before, on, or after the effective date of this |
| 55 | exemption. |
| 56 | (5) Subsection (3) is subject to the Open Government |
| 57 | Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand |
| 58 | repealed on October 2, 2015, unless reviewed and saved from |
| 59 | repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. |
| 60 | Section 2. Section 3 of chapter 2005-279, Laws of Florida, |
| 61 | is repealed. |
| 62 | Section 3. The Legislature finds that it is a public |
| 63 | necessity that the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of |
| 64 | victims of stalking or aggravated stalking, which are held by |
| 65 | the Office of the Attorney General or contained in voter |
| 66 | registration records and voting records held by the Department |
| 67 | of State or the supervisor of elections, be made exempt from |
| 68 | public-records requirements. The victims, who may be members of |
| 69 | the voting public, must be afforded the ability to participate |
| 70 | in the election process. However, the department and supervisor |
| 71 | of elections must maintain a verifiable address in order to |
| 72 | place the voter in the proper voting precinct and to maintain |
| 73 | accurate records for compliance with state and federal |
| 74 | requirements. The public-records exemption for the name is a |
| 75 | public necessity because access to such name narrows the |
| 76 | location of a stalking victim to a specific, geographic voting |
| 77 | precinct. In addition, access to the address and telephone |
| 78 | number provides specific location and contact information for |
| 79 | the victim. Therefore, access to the name, address, and |
| 80 | telephone number defeats the goal of providing safety and |
| 81 | security. Allowing victims of stalking or aggravated stalking to |
| 82 | use a substitute mailing address designated by the Office of the |
| 83 | Attorney General facilitates the goal of providing safety and |
| 84 | security. Thus, the Legislature finds that it is a public |
| 85 | necessity to make exempt from public disclosure the names, |
| 86 | addresses, and telephone numbers of victims of stalking or |
| 87 | aggravated stalking held by the Office of the Attorney General, |
| 88 | by the department, or by a supervisor of elections. |
| 89 | Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |