Florida Senate - 2022 SB 598 By Senator Baxley 12-00604-22 2022598__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public records; amending s. 3 320.025, F.S.; expanding a public records exemption to 4 include all records pertaining to a registration 5 application submitted by any criminal conflict and 6 civil regional counsel office; providing for future 7 legislative review and repeal; providing a statement 8 of public necessity; providing a contingent effective 9 date. 10 11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 12 13 Section 1.Subsection (3) of section 320.025, Florida 14 Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to that 15 section, to read: 16 320.025Registration certificate and license plate or decal 17 issued under fictitious name; application. 18 (3)This section constitutes an exception to other statutes 19 relating to falsification of public records, false swearing, and 20 similar matters. All records relating to the registration 21 application of the Attorney Generals Medicaid Fraud Control 22 Unit, a law enforcement agency, or any state public defenders 23 office, or any office of criminal conflict and civil regional 24 counsel, and records necessary to carry out the intended purpose 25 of this section, are exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1), 26 and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution as long as the 27 information is retained by the department. This section does not 28 prohibit other personations, fabrications, or creations of false 29 identifications by the Attorney Generals Medicaid Fraud Control 30 Unit, or law enforcement or public defenders officers, or a 31 regional counsel office in the official performance of covert 32 operations. 33 (4)This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset 34 Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed 35 on October 2, 2027, unless reviewed and saved from repeal 36 through reenactment by the Legislature. 37 Section 2.The Legislature finds that it is a public 38 necessity that all records relating to the application for a 39 confidential registration certificate and registration license 40 plate or decal submitted by an office of criminal conflict and 41 civil regional counsel, and any other records necessary to carry 42 out the intended purpose of s. 320.025, Florida Statutes, be 43 made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a), 44 Article I of the State Constitution. Investigations by an office 45 of criminal conflict and civil regional counsel may be 46 jeopardized by the registration of motor vehicles under the 47 offices name or under the names of the offices investigators 48 in that persons under investigation may acquire such 49 registration information in order to seek retaliation against 50 the office or its investigators. Authorizing offices of criminal 51 conflict and civil regional counsel to obtain confidential 52 registration certificates and registration license plates or 53 decals in the same manner as other law enforcement agencies 54 would better ensure the safety of the regional counsel offices 55 investigators in performing their official duties. 56 Section 3.This act shall take effect on the same date that 57 SB ____ or similar legislation takes effect, if such legislation 58 is adopted in the same legislative session or an extension 59 thereof and becomes a law.