Florida Senate - 2017 CS for SB 1072
By the Committee on Ethics and Elections; and Senator Hutson
582-03403-17 20171072c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to public records; amending s. 98.075,
3 F.S.; creating a public records exemption for certain
4 information received by the Department of State
5 through an interstate agreement from another state
6 which is confidential or exempt pursuant to the laws
7 of that state; providing for future legislative review
8 and repeal of the exemption; providing a statement of
9 public necessity; providing a contingent effective
10 date.
11
12 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
13
14 Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section
15 98.075, Florida Statutes, as created by CS/SB 1070, 2017 Regular
16 Session, is amended to read:
17 98.075 Registration records maintenance activities;
18 ineligibility determinations.—
19 (2) DUPLICATE REGISTRATION.—
20 (b)1. The department may enter into interstate agreements
21 or become a member of a nongovernmental entity whose membership
22 is composed solely of state government election officials if the
23 sole purpose of the agreement or membership is to share and
24 exchange information in order to verify voter registration
25 information. If the department intends to become a member of
26 such a nongovernmental entity, the agreement to join the entity
27 must require that the Secretary of State, or his or her
28 designee, serve as a full member with voting rights on the
29 nongovernmental entity’s board of directors. The department
30 shall provide information it receives as a result of the
31 agreements or memberships to the supervisors to conduct
32 registration list maintenance activities.
33 2. If the department enters into an interstate agreement or
34 becomes a member of a nongovernmental entity pursuant to
35 subparagraph 1., each state that is a participant in the
36 agreement or a member of the nongovernmental entity must agree
37 to maintain the confidentiality of personal information as
38 required by the laws of the state supplying the information to
39 the entity or participating states. The bylaws of a
40 nongovernmental entity must also contain a provision requiring
41 member states and the entity to maintain the confidentiality of
42 personal information as required by the laws of the state
43 supplying the information to the entity.
44 3. The department may only participate in an interstate
45 agreement or become a member of a nongovernmental entity as
46 provided in subparagraph 1. if the agreement or entity is
47 controlled and operated by the participating states. The
48 interstate agreement or entity may not be operated or controlled
49 by the Federal Government or any other entity acting on behalf
50 of the Federal Government. The department must be able to
51 withdraw at any time from any interstate agreement or membership
52 entered into.
53 4. If the department enters into an interstate agreement or
54 becomes a member of a nongovernmental entity as provided in
55 subparagraph 1., the department must submit a report to the
56 Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the
57 House of Representatives by December 1 of each year. The report
58 must describe the agreement or membership and provide
59 information on the total number of voters removed from the voter
60 registration system as a result of the agreement or membership
61 and the reasons for their removal.
62 5. Information received by the department, pursuant to an
63 interstate agreement, from another state which is confidential
64 or exempt pursuant to the laws of that state, is exempt from s.
65 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This
66 subparagraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act
67 in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October
68 2, 2022, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through
69 reenactment by the Legislature.
70 Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public
71 necessity that information received by the Department of State,
72 pursuant to an interstate agreement entered into under s.
73 98.075(2)(b), Florida Statutes, from another state which is
74 confidential or exempt pursuant to the laws of that state be
75 made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a),
76 Article I of the State Constitution. Participating in interstate
77 agreements to share and exchange information with other states
78 in order to verify voter registration information is critical to
79 ensuring the accuracy of the statewide voter registration
80 system. Maintaining an accurate statewide voter registration
81 system is critical to fair elections in this state. Without the
82 public records exemption, the department will be unable to
83 receive information from other states that might otherwise be
84 confidential or exempt pursuant to the laws of those states,
85 which would impair the ability of the department and supervisors
86 of elections to maintain accurate voter rolls. As a result, the
87 effective and efficient administration of the statewide voter
88 registration system would be hindered.
89 Section 3. This act shall take effect on the same date that
90 CS/SB 1070 or similar legislation takes effect, if such
91 legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an
92 extension thereof and becomes a law.