Florida Senate - 2022 CS for SB 598 By the Committee on Judiciary; and Senator Baxley 590-01915-22 2022598c1 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 for a registration 7 certificate and registration license plate or decal 8 issued under a fictitious name; providing for future 9 legislative review and repeal; providing a statement 10 of public necessity; providing a contingent effective 11 date. 12 13 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 14 15 Section 1.Subsection (3) of section 320.025, Florida 16 Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to that 17 section, to read: 18 320.025Registration certificate and license plate or decal 19 issued under fictitious name; application. 20 (3)This section constitutes an exception to other statutes 21 relating to falsification of public records, false swearing, and 22 similar matters. All records relating to the registration 23 application of the Attorney Generals Medicaid Fraud Control 24 Unit, a law enforcement agency, or any state public defenders 25 office, or any office of criminal conflict and civil regional 26 counsel, and records necessary to carry out the intended purpose 27 of this section, are exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1), 28 and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution as long as the 29 information is retained by the department. This section does not 30 prohibit other personations, fabrications, or creations of false 31 identifications by the Attorney Generals Medicaid Fraud Control 32 Unit, or law enforcement or public defenders officers, or a 33 regional counsel office in the official performance of covert 34 operations. 35 (4)This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset 36 Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed 37 on October 2, 2027, unless reviewed and saved from repeal 38 through reenactment by the Legislature. 39 Section 2.The Legislature finds that it is a public 40 necessity that all records relating to the application for a 41 confidential registration certificate and registration license 42 plate or decal submitted by an office of criminal conflict and 43 civil regional counsel, and any other records necessary to carry 44 out the intended purpose of s. 320.025, Florida Statutes, be 45 made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a), 46 Article I of the State Constitution. Investigations by an office 47 of criminal conflict and civil regional counsel may be 48 jeopardized by the registration of motor vehicles under the 49 offices name or under the names of the offices investigators 50 in that persons under investigation may acquire such 51 registration information in order to seek retaliation against 52 the office or its investigators. Authorizing offices of criminal 53 conflict and civil regional counsel to obtain confidential 54 registration certificates and registration license plates or 55 decals in the same manner as other law enforcement agencies 56 would better ensure the safety of the regional counsel offices 57 investigators in performing their official duties. 58 Section 3.This act shall take effect on the same date that 59 SB 596 or similar legislation takes effect, if such legislation 60 is adopted in the same legislative session or an extension 61 thereof and becomes a law.