HB 1445 2022 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1445-00 Page 1 of 7 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S A bill to be entitled 1 An act relating to public records; amending s. 2 110.12301, F.S.; expanding the types of information 3 that the Department of Management Services or a 4 contractor providing dependent eligibility 5 verification services may require from subscribers in 6 order to establish dependent eligibility for state 7 group insurance program enrollment; removing the 8 requirement for certain disclosures by the Division of 9 State Group Insurance and the contractor; expanding 10 the public records exemption for information collected 11 by the department to establish dependent eligibility 12 to conform to changes made by the act; providing for 13 future legislative review and repeal of the exemption; 14 providing a statement of public necessity; providing a 15 contingent effective date. 16 17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 18 19 Section 1. Paragraphs (c) through (g) of subsection (2) of 20 section 110.12301, Florida Statutes, as amended by HB 1443, 2022 21 Regular Session, are redesignated as paragraphs (b) through (f), 22 respectively, and paragraph (a) and present paragraph (b) of 23 subsection (2) and subsection (3) of that section are amended to 24 read: 25 HB 1445 2022 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1445-00 Page 2 of 7 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S 110.12301 Competitive procurement of postp ayment claims 26 review services; dependent eligibility verification services; 27 public records exemption. — 28 (2) The department may directly provide or contract for 29 dependent eligibility verification services for the state group 30 insurance program. 31 (a) Subscribers must provide all of the following 32 information to the department or the contractor providing 33 dependent eligibility verification services: 34 1. To prove a spouse's eligibility: 35 a. If married fewer than 12 months and the subscriber and 36 his or her spouse have not filed a joint federal income tax 37 return, a government -issued marriage certificate; or 38 b. If married for 12 or more months, a transcript of the 39 most recently filed federal income tax return ; or 40 c. Documents evidencing joint ownership of prop erty and an 41 attestation of the marriage by sworn affidavit consistent with 42 s. 92.50, if the documentation specified in sub -subparagraph a. 43 or sub-subparagraph b. cannot be produced . 44 2. To prove a biological child's or a newborn grandchild's 45 eligibility:, 46 a. A government-issued birth certificate ; or 47 b. An attestation of the subscriber -dependent relationship 48 by sworn affidavit consistent with s. 92.50, if a birth 49 certificate cannot be produced . 50 HB 1445 2022 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1445-00 Page 3 of 7 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S 3. To prove an adopted child's eligibility: 51 a. An adoption certificate; or 52 b. An adoption placement agreement and a petition for 53 adoption; or 54 c. An attestation of the subscriber -dependent relationship 55 by sworn affidavit consistent with s. 92.50, if the 56 documentation specified in sub -subparagraph a. or sub-57 subparagraph b. cannot be produced . 58 4. To prove a stepchild's eligibility: 59 a. A government-issued birth certificate for the 60 stepchild; and 61 b. The transcript of the subscriber's most recently filed 62 federal income tax return. 63 5. To prove a foster child's eligibility, a copy of the 64 records showing the subscriber or the subscriber's spouse as the 65 child's foster parent. 66 6. To prove eligibility of a child who is under a 67 guardianship, a copy of the court order naming the subscriber or 68 the subscriber's spouse as the child's legal guardian or 69 custodian. 70 7. To prove eligibility of an unmarried child between the 71 age of 26 years and 30 years: 72 a. A copy of the child's government -issued birth 73 certificate or adoption certificate naming the subscri ber or the 74 subscriber's spouse as the child's parent or a copy of the court 75 HB 1445 2022 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1445-00 Page 4 of 7 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S order naming the subscriber or the subscriber's spouse as the 76 child's legal guardian or custodian; 77 b. A copy of a completed Certification of Over -Age 78 Dependent Eligibility Form; and 79 c.(I) A document confirming the child's enrollment as a 80 student at a state university or Florida College System 81 institution, including the child's full legal name, the name of 82 such university or institution, and the school term in which the 83 child is enrolled; or 84 (II) A bill or statement in the child's name that is dated 85 within the past 60 days and is mailed to the child at an address 86 in the state. 87 8. To prove eligibility of a disabled child 26 years of 88 age or older: 89 a. A copy of the child's gove rnment-issued birth 90 certificate or adoption certificate naming the subscriber or the 91 subscriber's spouse as the child's parent, legal guardian, or 92 legal custodian; and 93 b. A transcript of the subscriber's or the subscriber's 94 spouse's most recently filed f ederal income tax return that 95 lists the child's name and last four digits of the child's 96 social security number and identifies the child as a dependent 97 of the subscriber or the subscriber's spouse. 98 5. Any other information necessary to verify the 99 dependent's eligibility for enrollment in the state group 100 HB 1445 2022 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1445-00 Page 5 of 7 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S insurance program. 101 (b) If a document requested from a subscriber is not 102 confidential or exempt from public records requirements, the 103 division and the contractor shall disclose to all subscribers 104 that such information submitted to verify the eligibility of 105 dependents may be subject to disclosure and inspection under 106 chapter 119. 107 (3) Records collected for purposes of dependent 108 eligibility verification services conducted for the state group 109 insurance program, as authorized under subsection (2), and held 110 by the department are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) 111 and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This subsection 112 does not apply to records that are otherwise open for inspection 113 and copying which are held by the department for purposes other 114 than for the performance of dependent eligibility verification 115 services. This subsection is subject to the Open Government 116 Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand 117 repealed on October 2, 2027 2022, unless reviewed and saved from 118 repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. 119 Section 2. (1) The Legislature finds that it is a public 120 necessity that records collected for the purpose of dependent 121 eligibility verification services conduc ted for the state group 122 insurance program, as authorized under s. 110.12301(2), Florida 123 Statutes, pursuant to the amendments made by this act, and held 124 by the Department of Management Services be made confidential 125 HB 1445 2022 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1445-00 Page 6 of 7 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S and exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Stat utes, and s. 24(a), 126 Article I of the State Constitution. The existing public records 127 exemption is expanded to include additional records that 128 employees may submit under additional specified eligibility 129 categories as part of the existing dependent eligibili ty 130 verification process. Such records include records relating to 131 guardianship of a child, the fostering of a child, unmarried 132 adult children, and disabled adult children, which include court 133 orders, foster care records, birth certificates, adoption 134 certificates, student academic and financial records, medical 135 records, and transcripts of filed tax returns. Like other 136 records collected and held by the Department of Management 137 Services for dependent eligibility verification, these records 138 should be protected from public disclosure, as they contain 139 sensitive and personal information that may deter employees from 140 producing them in the absence of the same protections offered in 141 connection with the current eligibility categories. If the 142 public had unfettered acces s to the information contained within 143 these records, employees and their family members could be 144 placed at increased risk of identity theft and fraud. 145 (2) The Legislature further recognizes that this exemption 146 is narrowly tailored and applies only to tho se records collected 147 for the purpose of verifying eligible dependents for enrollment 148 in the state group insurance program. 149 Section 3. This act shall take effect on the same date 150 HB 1445 2022 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1445-00 Page 7 of 7 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S that HB 1443 or similar legislation takes effect , if such 151 legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an 152 extension thereof and becomes a law. 153