SB 7072                                          First Engrossed
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       20217072e1
       
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to social media platforms; providing
    3         legislative findings; creating s. 106.072, F.S.;
    4         defining terms; prohibiting a social media platform
    5         from willfully deplatforming a candidate; providing
    6         fines for violations; authorizing social media
    7         platforms to provide free advertising for candidates
    8         under specified conditions; providing enforcement
    9         authority consistent with federal and state law;
   10         creating s. 287.137, F.S.; defining terms; providing
   11         requirements for public contracts and economic
   12         incentives related to entities that have been
   13         convicted or held civilly liable for antitrust
   14         violations; prohibiting a public entity from entering
   15         into any type of contract with a person or an
   16         affiliate on the antitrust violator vendor list;
   17         providing applicability; requiring certain contract
   18         documents to contain a specified statement; requiring
   19         the Department of Management Services to maintain a
   20         list of people or affiliates disqualified from the
   21         public contracting and purchasing process; specifying
   22         requirements for publishing such list; providing
   23         procedures for placing a person or an affiliate on the
   24         list; providing procedural and legal rights for a
   25         person or affiliate to challenge placement on the
   26         list; providing a procedure for temporarily placing a
   27         person on an antitrust violator vendor list; providing
   28         procedural and legal rights for a person to challenge
   29         temporary placement on the list; specifying conditions
   30         for removing certain entities and affiliates from the
   31         list; authorizing a person, under specified
   32         conditions, to retain rights or obligations under
   33         existing contracts or binding agreements; prohibiting
   34         a person who has been placed on the antitrust violator
   35         vendor list from receiving certain economic
   36         incentives; providing exceptions; providing
   37         enforcement authority consistent with federal and
   38         state law; creating s. 501.2041, F.S.; defining terms;
   39         providing that social media platforms that fail to
   40         comply with specified requirements and prohibitions
   41         commit an unfair or deceptive act or practice;
   42         requiring a notification given by a social media
   43         platform for censoring content or deplatforming a user
   44         to contain certain information; providing an exception
   45         to the notification requirements; authorizing the
   46         Department of Legal Affairs to investigate suspected
   47         violations under the Deceptive and Unfair Trade
   48         Practices Act and bring specified actions for such
   49         violations; specifying circumstances under which a
   50         private cause of action may be brought; specifying how
   51         damages are to be calculated; providing construction
   52         for violations of certain provisions of this act;
   53         granting the department specified subpoena powers;
   54         providing enforcement authority consistent with
   55         federal and state law; amending s. 501.212, F.S.;
   56         conforming a provision to changes made by the act;
   57         providing for severability; providing an effective
   58         date.
   59          
   60  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   61  
   62         Section 1. The Legislature finds that:
   63         (1) Social media platforms represent an extraordinary
   64  advance in communication technology for Floridians.
   65         (2) Users should be afforded control over their personal
   66  information related to social media platforms.
   67         (3) Floridians increasingly rely on social media platforms
   68  to express their opinions.
   69         (4) Social media platforms have transformed into the new
   70  public town square.
   71         (5) Social media platforms have become as important for
   72  conveying public opinion as public utilities are for supporting
   73  modern society.
   74         (6) Social media platforms hold a unique place in
   75  preserving first amendment protections for all Floridians and
   76  should be treated similarly to common carriers.
   77         (7) Social media platforms that unfairly censor, shadow
   78  ban, deplatform, or apply post-prioritization algorithms to
   79  Florida candidates, Florida users, or Florida residents are not
   80  acting in good faith.
   81         (8) Social media platforms should not take any action in
   82  bad faith to restrict access or availability to Floridians.
   83         (9) Social media platforms have unfairly censored, shadow
   84  banned, deplatformed, and applied post-prioritization algorithms
   85  to Floridians.
   86         (10) The state has a substantial interest in protecting its
   87  residents from inconsistent and unfair actions by social media
   88  platforms.
   89         (11) The state must vigorously enforce state law to protect
   90  Floridians.
   91         Section 2. Section 106.072, Florida Statutes, is created to
   92  read:
   93         106.072 Social media deplatforming of political
   94  candidates.—
   95         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   96         (a) “Candidate” has the same meaning as in s.
   97  106.011(3)(e).
   98         (b) “Deplatform” has the same meaning as in s. 501.2041.
   99         (c) “Social media platform” has the same meaning as in s.
  100  501.2041.
  101         (d) “User” has the same meaning as in s. 501.2041.
  102         (2) A social media platform may not willfully deplatform a
  103  candidate for office who is known by the social media platform
  104  to be a candidate, beginning on the date of qualification and
  105  ending on the date of the election or the date the candidate
  106  ceases to be a candidate. A social media platform must provide
  107  each user a method by which the user may be identified as a
  108  qualified candidate and which provides sufficient information to
  109  allow the social media platform to confirm the user’s
  110  qualification by reviewing the website of the Division of
  111  Elections or the website of the local supervisor of elections.
  112         (3) Upon a finding of a violation of subsection (2) by the
  113  Florida Elections Commission, in addition to the remedies
  114  provided in ss. 106.265 and 106.27, the social media platform
  115  may be fined $250,000 per day for a candidate for statewide
  116  office and $25,000 per day for a candidate for other offices.
  117         (4) A social media platform that willfully provides free
  118  advertising for a candidate must inform the candidate of such
  119  in-kind contribution. Posts, content, material, and comments by
  120  candidates which are shown on the platform in the same or
  121  similar way as other users’ posts, content, material, and
  122  comments are not considered free advertising.
  123         (5) This section may only be enforced to the extent not
  124  inconsistent with federal law and 47 U.S.C. s. 230(e)(3), and
  125  notwithstanding any other provision of state law.
  126         Section 3. Section 287.137, Florida Statutes, is created to
  127  read:
  128         287.137 Antitrust violations; denial or revocation of the
  129  right to transact business with public entities; denial of
  130  economic benefits.—
  131         (1) As used in this section, the term:
  132         (a) “Affiliate” means:
  133         1. A predecessor or successor of a person convicted of or
  134  held civilly liable for an antitrust violation; or
  135         2. An entity under the control of any natural person who is
  136  active in the management of the entity that has been convicted
  137  of or held civilly liable for an antitrust violation. The term
  138  includes those officers, directors, executives, partners,
  139  shareholders, employees, members, and agents who are active in
  140  the management of an affiliate. The ownership by one person of
  141  shares constituting a controlling interest in another person, or
  142  a pooling of equipment or income among persons when not for fair
  143  market value under an arm’s length agreement, is a prima facie
  144  case that one person controls another person. The term also
  145  includes a person who knowingly enters into a joint venture with
  146  a person who has violated an antitrust law during the preceding
  147  36 months.
  148         (b) “Antitrust violation” means any failure to comply with
  149  a state or federal antitrust law as determined in a civil or
  150  criminal proceeding brought by the Attorney General, a state
  151  attorney, a similar body or agency of another state, the Federal
  152  Trade Commission, or the United States Department of Justice.
  153         (c) “Antitrust violator vendor list” means the list
  154  required to be kept by the department pursuant to paragraph
  155  (3)(b).
  156         (d) “Conviction or being held civilly liable” or “convicted
  157  or held civilly liable” means a criminal finding of
  158  responsibility or guilt or conviction, with or without an
  159  adjudication of guilt, being held civilly responsible or liable,
  160  or having a judgment levied for an antitrust violation in any
  161  federal or state trial court of record relating to charges
  162  brought by indictment, information, or complaint on or after
  163  July 1, 2021, as a result of a jury verdict, nonjury trial, or
  164  entry of a plea of guilty or nolo contendere or other finding of
  165  responsibility or liability.
  166         (e) “Economic incentives” means state grants, cash grants,
  167  tax exemptions, tax refunds, tax credits, state funds, and other
  168  state incentives under chapter 288 or administered by Enterprise
  169  Florida, Inc.
  170         (f) “Person” means a natural person or an entity organized
  171  under the laws of any state or of the United States which
  172  operates as a social media platform, as defined in s. 501.2041,
  173  with the legal power to enter into a binding contract and which
  174  bids or applies to bid on contracts let by a public entity, or
  175  which otherwise transacts or applies to transact business with a
  176  public entity. The term includes those officers, directors,
  177  executives, partners, shareholders, employees, members, and
  178  agents who are active in the management of an entity.
  179         (g) “Public entity” means the state and any of its
  180  departments or agencies.
  181         (2)(a) A person or an affiliate who has been placed on the
  182  antitrust violator vendor list following a conviction or being
  183  held civilly liable for an antitrust violation may not submit a
  184  bid, proposal, or reply for any new contract to provide any
  185  goods or services to a public entity; may not submit a bid,
  186  proposal, or reply for a new contract with a public entity for
  187  the construction or repair of a public building or public work;
  188  may not submit a bid, proposal, or reply on new leases of real
  189  property to a public entity; may not be awarded or perform work
  190  as a contractor, supplier, subcontractor, or consultant under a
  191  new contract with a public entity; and may not transact new
  192  business with a public entity.
  193         (b) A public entity may not accept a bid, proposal, or
  194  reply from, award a new contract to, or transact new business
  195  with any person or affiliate on the antitrust violator vendor
  196  list unless that person or affiliate has been removed from the
  197  list pursuant to paragraph (3)(e).
  198         (c) This subsection does not apply to contracts that were
  199  awarded or business transactions that began before a person or
  200  an affiliate was placed on the antitrust violator vendor list or
  201  before July 1, 2021, whichever date occurs later.
  202         (3)(a) Beginning July 1, 2021, all invitations to bid,
  203  requests for proposals, and invitations to negotiate, as those
  204  terms are defined in s. 287.012, and any contract document
  205  described in s. 287.058 must contain a statement informing
  206  persons of the provisions of paragraph (2)(a).
  207         (b) The department shall maintain an antitrust violator
  208  vendor list of the names and addresses of the persons or
  209  affiliates who have been disqualified from the public
  210  contracting and purchasing process under this section. The
  211  department shall electronically publish the initial antitrust
  212  violator vendor list on January 1, 2022, and shall update and
  213  electronically publish the list quarterly thereafter.
  214  Notwithstanding this paragraph, a person or an affiliate
  215  disqualified from the public contracting and purchasing process
  216  pursuant to this section is disqualified as of the date the
  217  department enters the final order.
  218         (c)1. After receiving notice of a judgment, sentence, or
  219  order from any source that a person was convicted or held
  220  civilly liable for an antitrust violation and after the
  221  department has investigated the information and verified both
  222  the judgment, sentence, or order and the identity of the person
  223  named in the documentation, the department must immediately
  224  notify the person or affiliate in writing of its intent to place
  225  the name of that person or affiliate on the antitrust violator
  226  vendor list and of the person’s or affiliate’s right to a
  227  hearing, the procedure that must be followed, and the applicable
  228  time requirements. If the person or affiliate does not request a
  229  hearing, the department shall enter a final order placing the
  230  name of the person or affiliate on the antitrust violator vendor
  231  list. A person or affiliate may be placed on the antitrust
  232  violator vendor list only after the department has provided the
  233  person or affiliate with a notice of intent.
  234         2. Within 21 days after receipt of the notice of intent,
  235  the person or affiliate may file a petition for a formal hearing
  236  under ss. 120.569 and 120.57(1) to determine whether good cause
  237  has been shown by the department and whether it is in the public
  238  interest for the person or affiliate to be placed on the
  239  antitrust violator vendor list. A person or an affiliate may not
  240  file a petition for an informal hearing under s. 120.57(2). The
  241  procedures of chapter 120 shall apply to any formal hearing
  242  under this paragraph except, within 30 days after the formal
  243  hearing or receipt of the hearing transcript, whichever is
  244  later, the administrative law judge shall enter a final order
  245  that shall consist of findings of fact, conclusions of law,
  246  interpretation of agency rules, and any other information
  247  required by law or rule to be contained in the final order. The
  248  final order shall direct the department to place or not place
  249  the person or affiliate on the antitrust violator vendor list.
  250  The final order of the administrative law judge is final agency
  251  action for purposes of s. 120.68.
  252         3. In determining whether it is in the public interest to
  253  place a person or an affiliate on the antitrust violator vendor
  254  list under this paragraph, the administrative law judge shall
  255  consider the following factors:
  256         a. Whether the person or affiliate was convicted or held
  257  civilly liable for an antitrust violation.
  258         b. The nature and details of the antitrust violation.
  259         c. The degree of culpability of the person or affiliate
  260  proposed to be placed on the antitrust violator vendor list.
  261         d. Reinstatement or clemency in any jurisdiction in
  262  relation to the antitrust violation at issue in the proceeding.
  263         e. The needs of public entities for additional competition
  264  in the procurement of goods and services in their respective
  265  markets.
  266         f. The effect of the antitrust violations on Floridians.
  267         4. After the person or affiliate requests a formal hearing,
  268  the burden shifts to the department to prove that it is in the
  269  public interest for the person or affiliate to whom it has given
  270  notice under this paragraph to be placed on the antitrust
  271  violator vendor list. Proof that a person was convicted or was
  272  held civilly liable or that an entity is an affiliate of such
  273  person constitutes a prima facie case that it is in the public
  274  interest for the person or affiliate to whom the department has
  275  given notice to be put on the antitrust violator vendor list.
  276  Status as an affiliate must be proven by clear and convincing
  277  evidence. Unless the administrative law judge determines that
  278  the person was convicted or that the person was civilly liable
  279  or is an affiliate of such person, that person or affiliate may
  280  not be placed on the antitrust violator vendor list.
  281         5. Any person or affiliate who has been notified by the
  282  department of its intent to place his or her name on the
  283  antitrust violator vendor list may offer evidence on any
  284  relevant issue. An affidavit alone does not constitute competent
  285  substantial evidence that the person has not been convicted or
  286  is not an affiliate of a person convicted or held civilly
  287  liable. Upon establishment of a prima facie case that it is in
  288  the public interest for the person or affiliate to whom the
  289  department has given notice to be put on the antitrust violator
  290  vendor list, the person or affiliate may prove by a
  291  preponderance of the evidence that it would not be in the public
  292  interest to put him or her on the antitrust violator vendor
  293  list, based upon evidence addressing the factors in subparagraph
  294  3.
  295         (d)1. Upon receipt of an information or indictment from any
  296  source that a person has been charged with or accused of
  297  violating any state or federal antitrust law in a civil or
  298  criminal proceeding, including a civil investigative demand,
  299  brought by the Attorney General, a state attorney, the Federal
  300  Trade Commission, or the United States Department of Justice on
  301  or after July 1, 2021, the Attorney General must determine
  302  whether there is probable cause that a person has likely
  303  violated the underlying antitrust laws, which justifies
  304  temporary placement of such person on the antitrust violator
  305  vendor list until such proceeding has concluded.
  306         2. If the Attorney General determines probable cause
  307  exists, the Attorney General shall notify the person in writing
  308  of its intent to temporarily place the name of that person on
  309  the antitrust violator vendor list, and of the person’s right to
  310  a hearing, the procedure that must be followed, and the
  311  applicable time requirements. If the person does not request a
  312  hearing, the Attorney General shall enter a final order
  313  temporarily placing the name of the person on the antitrust
  314  violator vendor list. A person may be placed on the antitrust
  315  violator vendor list only after being provided with a notice of
  316  intent from the Attorney General.
  317         3. Within 21 days after receipt of the notice of intent,
  318  the person may file a petition for a formal hearing pursuant to
  319  ss. 120.569 and 120.57(1) to determine whether it is in the
  320  public interest for the person to be temporarily placed on the
  321  antitrust violator vendor list. A person may not file a petition
  322  for an informal hearing under s. 120.57(2). The procedures of
  323  chapter 120 shall apply to any formal hearing under this
  324  paragraph.
  325         4. In determining whether it is in the public interest to
  326  place a person on the antitrust violator vendor list under this
  327  paragraph, the administrative law judge shall consider the
  328  following factors:
  329         a. The likelihood the person will be convicted or held
  330  civilly liable for the antitrust violation.
  331         b. The nature and details of the antitrust violation.
  332         c. The degree of culpability of the person proposed to be
  333  placed on the antitrust violator vendor list.
  334         d. The needs of public entities for additional competition
  335  in the procurement of goods and services in their respective
  336  markets.
  337         e. The effect of the antitrust violations on Floridians.
  338         5. The Attorney General has the burden to prove that it is
  339  in the public interest for the person to whom it has given
  340  notice under this paragraph to be temporarily placed on the
  341  antitrust violator vendor list. Unless the administrative law
  342  judge determines that it is in the public interest to
  343  temporarily place a person on the antitrust violator vendor
  344  list, that person shall not be placed on the antitrust violator
  345  vendor list.
  346         6. This paragraph does not apply to affiliates.
  347         (e)1. A person or an affiliate may be removed from the
  348  antitrust violator vendor list subject to such terms and
  349  conditions as may be prescribed by the administrative law judge
  350  upon a determination that removal is in the public interest. In
  351  determining whether removal is in the public interest, the
  352  administrative law judge must consider any relevant factors,
  353  including, but not limited to, the factors identified in
  354  subparagraph (c)3. Upon proof that a person was found not guilty
  355  or not civilly liable, the antitrust violation case was
  356  dismissed, the court entered a finding in the person’s favor,
  357  the person’s conviction or determination of liability has been
  358  reversed on appeal, or the person has been pardoned, the
  359  administrative law judge shall determine that removal of the
  360  person or an affiliate of that person from the antitrust
  361  violator vendor list is in the public interest. A person or an
  362  affiliate on the antitrust violator vendor list may petition for
  363  removal from the list no sooner than 6 months after the date a
  364  final order is entered pursuant to this section but may petition
  365  for removal at any time if the petition is based upon a reversal
  366  of the conviction or liability on appellate review or pardon.
  367  The petition must be filed with the department, and the
  368  proceeding must be conducted pursuant to the procedures and
  369  requirements of this subsection.
  370         2. If the petition for removal is denied, the person or
  371  affiliate may not petition for another hearing on removal for a
  372  period of 9 months after the date of denial unless the petition
  373  is based upon a reversal of the conviction on appellate review
  374  or a pardon. The department may petition for removal before the
  375  expiration of such period if, in its discretion, it determines
  376  that removal is in the public interest.
  377         (4) The conviction of a person or a person being held
  378  civilly liable for an antitrust violation, or placement on the
  379  antitrust violator vendor list, does not affect any rights or
  380  obligations under any contract, franchise, or other binding
  381  agreement that predates such conviction, finding of civil
  382  liability, or placement on the antitrust violator vendor list.
  383         (5) A person who has been placed on the antitrust violator
  384  vendor list is not a qualified applicant for economic incentives
  385  under chapter 288, and such person shall not be qualified to
  386  receive such economic incentives. This subsection does not apply
  387  to economic incentives that are awarded before a person is
  388  placed on the antitrust violator vendor list or before July 1,
  389  2021.
  390         (6) This section does not apply to:
  391         (a) Any activity regulated by the Public Service
  392  Commission;
  393         (b) The purchase of goods or services made by any public
  394  entity from the Department of Corrections, from the nonprofit
  395  corporation organized under chapter 946, or from any qualified
  396  nonprofit agency for the blind or other severely handicapped
  397  persons under ss. 413.032-413.037; or
  398         (c) Any contract with a public entity to provide any goods
  399  or services for emergency response efforts related to a state of
  400  emergency declaration issued by the Governor.
  401         (7) This section may only be enforced to the extent not
  402  inconsistent with federal law and notwithstanding any other
  403  provision of state law.
  404         Section 4. Section 501.2041, Florida Statutes, is created
  405  to read:
  406         501.2041 Unlawful acts and practices by social media
  407  platforms.—
  408         (1) As used in this section, the term:
  409         (a) “Algorithm” means a mathematical set of rules that
  410  specifies how a group of data behaves and that will assist in
  411  ranking search results and maintaining order or that is used in
  412  sorting or ranking content or material based on relevancy or
  413  other factors instead of using published time or chronological
  414  order of such content or material.
  415         (b) “Censor” includes any action taken by a social media
  416  platform to delete, regulate, restrict, edit, alter, inhibit the
  417  publication or republication of, suspend a right to post,
  418  remove, or post an addendum to any content or material posted by
  419  a user. The term also includes actions to inhibit the ability of
  420  a user to be viewable by or to interact with another user of the
  421  social media platform.
  422         (c) “Deplatform” means the action or practice by a social
  423  media platform to permanently delete or ban a user or to
  424  temporarily delete or ban a user from the social media platform
  425  for more than 14 days.
  426         (d) “Journalistic enterprise” means an entity doing
  427  business in Florida that:
  428         1. Publishes in excess of 100,000 words available online
  429  with at least 50,000 paid subscribers or 100,000 monthly active
  430  users;
  431         2. Publishes 100 hours of audio or video available online
  432  with at least 100 million viewers annually;
  433         3. Operates a cable channel that provides more than 40
  434  hours of content per week to more than 100,000 cable television
  435  subscribers; or
  436         4. Operates under a broadcast license issued by the Federal
  437  Communications Commission.
  438         (e) “Post-prioritization” means action by a social media
  439  platform to place, feature, or prioritize certain content or
  440  material ahead of, below, or in a more or less prominent
  441  position than others in a newsfeed, a feed, a view, or in search
  442  results. The term does not include post-prioritization of
  443  content and material of a third party, including other users,
  444  based on payments by that third party, to the social media
  445  platform.
  446         (f) “Shadow ban” means action by a social media platform,
  447  through any means, whether the action is determined by a natural
  448  person or an algorithm, to limit or eliminate the exposure of a
  449  user or content or material posted by a user to other users of
  450  the social media platform. This term includes acts of shadow
  451  banning by a social media platform which are not readily
  452  apparent to a user.
  453         (g) “Social media platform” means any information service,
  454  system, Internet search engine, or access software provider
  455  that:
  456         1. Provides or enables computer access by multiple users to
  457  a computer server, including an Internet platform or a social
  458  media site;
  459         2. Operates as a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited
  460  liability company, corporation, association, or other legal
  461  entity;
  462         3. Does business in the state; and
  463         4. Satisfies at least one of the following thresholds:
  464         a. Has annual gross revenues in excess of $100 million, as
  465  adjusted in January of each odd-numbered year to reflect any
  466  increase in the Consumer Price Index.
  467         b. Has at least 100 million monthly individual platform
  468  participants globally.
  469  
  470  The term does not include any information service, system,
  471  Internet search engine, or access software provider operated by
  472  a company that owns and operates a theme park or entertainment
  473  complex as defined in s. 509.013.
  474         (h) “User” means a person who resides or is domiciled in
  475  this state and who has an account on a social media platform,
  476  regardless of whether the person posts or has posted content or
  477  material to the social media platform.
  478         (2) A social media platform that fails to comply with any
  479  of the provisions of this subsection commits an unfair or
  480  deceptive act or practice as specified in s. 501.204.
  481         (a) A social media platform must publish the standards,
  482  including detailed definitions, it uses or has used for
  483  determining how to censor, deplatform, and shadow ban.
  484         (b) A social media platform must apply censorship,
  485  deplatforming, and shadow banning standards in a consistent
  486  manner among its users on the platform.
  487         (c) A social media platform must inform each user about any
  488  changes to its user rules, terms, and agreements before
  489  implementing the changes and may not make changes more than once
  490  every 30 days.
  491         (d) A social media platform may not censor or shadow ban a
  492  user’s content or material or deplatform a user from the social
  493  media platform:
  494         1. Without notifying the user who posted or attempted to
  495  post the content or material; or
  496         2. In a way that violates this part.
  497         (e) A social media platform must:
  498         1. Provide a mechanism that allows a user to request the
  499  number of other individual platform participants who were
  500  provided or shown the user’s content or posts.
  501         2. Provide, upon request, a user with the number of other
  502  individual platform participants who were provided or shown
  503  content or posts.
  504         (f) A social media platform must:
  505         1. Categorize algorithms used for post-prioritization and
  506  shadow banning.
  507         2. Allow a user to opt out of post-prioritization and
  508  shadow banning algorithm categories to allow sequential or
  509  chronological posts and content.
  510         (g) A social media platform must provide users with an
  511  annual notice on the use of algorithms for post-prioritization
  512  and shadow banning and reoffer annually the opt-out opportunity
  513  in subparagraph (f)2.
  514         (h) A social media platform may not apply or use post
  515  prioritization or shadow banning algorithms for content and
  516  material posted by or about a user who is known by the social
  517  media platform to be a candidate as defined in s. 106.011(3)(e),
  518  beginning on the date of qualification and ending on the date of
  519  the election or the date the candidate ceases to be a candidate.
  520  Post-prioritization of certain content or material from or about
  521  a candidate for office based on payments to the social media
  522  platform by such candidate for office or a third party is not a
  523  violation of this paragraph. A social media platform must
  524  provide each user a method by which the user may be identified
  525  as a qualified candidate and which provides sufficient
  526  information to allow the social media platform to confirm the
  527  user’s qualification by reviewing the website of the Division of
  528  Elections or the website of the local supervisor of elections.
  529         (i) A social media platform must allow a user who has been
  530  deplatformed to access or retrieve all of the user’s
  531  information, content, material, and data for at least 60 days
  532  after the user receives the notice required under subparagraph
  533  (d)1.
  534         (j) A social media platform may not take any action to
  535  censor, deplatform, or shadow ban a journalistic enterprise
  536  based on the content of its publication or broadcast. Post
  537  prioritization of certain journalistic enterprise content based
  538  on payments to the social media platform by such journalistic
  539  enterprise is not a violation of this paragraph. This paragraph
  540  does not apply if the content or material is obscene as defined
  541  in s. 847.001.
  542         (3) For purposes of subparagraph (2)(d)1., a notification
  543  must:
  544         (a) Be in writing.
  545         (b) Be delivered via electronic mail or direct electronic
  546  notification to the user within 7 days after the censoring
  547  action.
  548         (c) Include a thorough rationale explaining the reason that
  549  the social media platform censored the user.
  550         (d) Include a precise and thorough explanation of how the
  551  social media platform became aware of the censored content or
  552  material, including a thorough explanation of the algorithms
  553  used, if any, to identify or flag the user’s content or material
  554  as objectionable.
  555         (4) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, a
  556  social media platform is not required to notify a user if the
  557  censored content or material is obscene as defined in s.
  558  847.001.
  559         (5) If the department, by its own inquiry or as a result of
  560  a complaint, suspects that a violation of this section is
  561  imminent, occurring, or has occurred, the department may
  562  investigate the suspected violation in accordance with this
  563  part. Based on its investigation, the department may bring a
  564  civil or administrative action under this part. For the purpose
  565  of bringing an action pursuant to this section, ss. 501.211 and
  566  501.212 do not apply.
  567         (6) A user may only bring a private cause of action for
  568  violations of paragraph (2)(b) or subparagraph (2)(d)1. In a
  569  private cause of action brought under paragraph (2)(b) or
  570  subparagraph (2)(d)1., the court may award the following
  571  remedies to the user:
  572         (a) Up to $100,000 in statutory damages per proven claim.
  573         (b) Actual damages.
  574         (c) If aggravating factors are present, punitive damages.
  575         (d) Other forms of equitable relief, including injunctive
  576  relief.
  577         (e) If the user was deplatformed in violation of paragraph
  578  (2)(b), costs and reasonable attorney fees.
  579         (7) For purposes of bringing an action in accordance with
  580  subsections (5) and (6), each failure to comply with the
  581  individual provisions of subsection (2) shall be treated as a
  582  separate violation, act, or practice. For purposes of bringing
  583  an action in accordance with subsections (5) and (6), a social
  584  media platform that censors, shadow bans, deplatforms, or
  585  applies post-prioritization algorithms to candidates and users
  586  in the state is conclusively presumed to be both engaged in
  587  substantial and not isolated activities within the state and
  588  operating, conducting, engaging in, or carrying on a business,
  589  and doing business in this state, and is therefore subject to
  590  the jurisdiction of the courts of the state.
  591         (8) In an investigation by the department into alleged
  592  violations of this section, the department’s investigative
  593  powers include, but are not limited to, the ability to subpoena
  594  any algorithm used by a social media platform related to any
  595  alleged violation.
  596         (9) This section may only be enforced to the extent not
  597  inconsistent with federal law and 47 U.S.C. s. 230(e)(3), and
  598  notwithstanding any other provision of state law.
  599         Section 5. Subsection (2) of section 501.212, Florida
  600  Statutes, is amended to read:
  601         501.212 Application.—This part does not apply to:
  602         (2) Except as provided in s. 501.2041, a publisher,
  603  broadcaster, printer, or other person engaged in the
  604  dissemination of information or the reproduction of printed or
  605  pictorial matter, insofar as the information or matter has been
  606  disseminated or reproduced on behalf of others without actual
  607  knowledge that it violated this part.
  608         Section 6. If any provision of this act or the application
  609  thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
  610  invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of
  611  the act which can be given effect without the invalid provision
  612  or application, and to this end the provisions of this act are
  613  declared severable.
  614         Section 7. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.
  615