Florida Senate - 2019                          SENATOR AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 342
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì803162{Î803162                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
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       Senator Lee moved the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete lines 33 - 41
    4  and insert:
    5         (d) The telephone number and e-mail address of a voter
    6  registration applicant or voter, except that such information
    7  must be made available to or reproduced only for the voter
    8  registration applicant or voter, an official elected to public
    9  office, a canvassing board, and an election official, or, for
   10  political purposes only, to a political party or official
   11  thereof, a candidate as defined in s. 106.011, and a registered
   12  political committee.
   13         (e) All information concerning preregistered voter
   14  registration applicants who are 16 or 17 years of age.
   15  
   16  Paragraphs (d) and (e) are subject to the Open Government Sunset
   17  Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed
   18  on October 2, 2024, unless reviewed and saved from repeal
   19  through reenactment by the Legislature.
   20         (3) This section applies to information held by an agency
   21  before, on, or after the effective date of this exemption.
   22         Section 2. (1) The Legislature finds that it is a public
   23  necessity that the telephone number and e-mail address of a
   24  voter registration applicant or voter which are held by an
   25  agency and obtained for the purpose of voter registration be
   26  made confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida
   27  Statutes, and s. 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution. The
   28  telephone number and e-mail address of a voter registration
   29  applicant or voter are personal and sensitive information and
   30  could be misused by a dishonest person if placed in the public
   31  domain along with the name of the applicant or voter. The
   32  information could be used for consumer scams, unwanted
   33  solicitations, or other forms of invasive contact. In addition,
   34  a voter registration applicant or voter may be harassed through
   35  these mediums if the information is publicly available. The
   36  potential for harm that results from unfettered access to a
   37  voter registration applicant’s or voter’s telephone number or e
   38  mail address exceeds any public benefit that may be derived from
   39  disclosure of such information.
   40         (2) The Legislature also finds that e-mail addresses are
   41  personal information that could be misused and could result in
   42  voter fraud if released. A voter may request a vote-by-mail
   43  ballot using an e-mail address. Unrestricted access to such e
   44  mail addresses may enable others to determine which voters are
   45  intending to vote by vote-by-mail ballot and result in the
   46  confiscation and misuse of a mailed vote-by-mail ballot by a
   47  person other than the requesting voter. In addition, collection
   48  of the e-mail address of a voter registration applicant or a
   49  voter would give supervisors of elections the opportunity to
   50  employ the cost-saving measure of electronically transmitting
   51  sample ballots. If a voter registration applicant or a voter
   52  knows that his or her e-mail address is subject to public
   53  disclosure, he or she may be less willing to provide the e-mail
   54  address to the supervisor of elections. Accordingly, the
   55  effective and efficient administration of a governmental program
   56  would be significantly impaired.
   57         (3) The Legislature also finds that it is a public
   58  
   59  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   60  And the title is amended as follows:
   61         Delete lines 5 - 10
   62  and insert:
   63         regarding voters and voter registration; providing
   64         exemptions from public records requirements for the
   65         telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of voter
   66         registration applicants and voters and for information
   67         concerning preregistered voter registration applicants
   68         who are minors; authorizing disclosure of telephone
   69         numbers and e-mail addresses under specified
   70         circumstances; providing for future legislative review
   71         and repeal of the exemptions; providing for
   72         retroactive application; providing statements of