HB 1277 2023
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hb1277-00
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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. 402.88, 2
F.S.; providing a definition for the term "persons 3
with disabilities registry"; exempting from public 4
records requirements all records and personal 5
identifying information relating to the enrollment of 6
persons in a persons with disabilities registry and to 7
persons enrolled in a persons with disabilities 8
registry held by a local law enforcement agency; 9
providing for retroactive application; authorizing 10
local law enforcement agencies to disclose 11
confidential and exempt information to certain persons 12
under certain circumstances; providing for the exempt 13
status of such information held by those individuals 14
and entities to be maintained; providing for future 15
legislative review and repeal of the exemption; 16
providing a statement of public necessity; providing a 17
contingent effective date. 18
19
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 20
21
Section 1. Subsection (7) is added to section 402.88, 22
Florida Statutes, as created by HB 1275 or similar legislation, 23
to read: 24
402.88 Special Persons with Disabilities Registry in 25
HB 1277 2023
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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
interactions with law enforcement ; public records exemption .— 26
(7)(a) All records a nd personal identifying information 27
relating to the enrollment of persons in a persons with 28
disabilities registry held by a local law enforcement agency are 29
confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I 30
of the State Constitution. It is the intent of the Legislature 31
that this exemption apply to persons with disabilities 32
registries held by a local law enforcement agency before, on, or 33
after the effective date of this paragraph. This paragraph is 34
subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Ac t in accordance 35
with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2028, 36
unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the 37
Legislature. 38
(b) Information made confidential and exempt by this 39
subsection may be disclosed upon a showing of good cause before 40
a court of competent jurisdiction, or in furtherance of the 41
official duties and responsibilities of the agency holding the 42
information, to: 43
1. Another local law enforcement agency; 44
2. A county emergency management agency; 45
3. A local fire department; or 46
4. Another local, state, or federal agency. 47
(c) The entities or persons receiving such information 48
shall maintain the exempt status of the information. 49
Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public 50
HB 1277 2023
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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
necessity to make all records and personal identifying 51
information relating to the enrollment of persons in the Persons 52
with Disabilities Registry under s. 402.88, Florida Statutes, 53
confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and 54
s. 24(a), Article I of the Sta te Constitution. The Legislature 55
recognizes that criminals often target individuals who have the 56
same conditions as those enrolled in a persons with disabilities 57
registry in acts of abuse or exploitation. The Legislature 58
further recognizes that records rel ating to enrollment in a 59
persons with disabilities registry would include personal 60
medical information about the persons listed in a persons with 61
disabilities registry. Therefore, the Legislature finds that the 62
disclosure of such information would deter pe rsons from being 63
enrolled in a persons with disabilities registry, which would 64
prevent local law enforcement agencies from effectively and 65
efficiently administering a persons with disabilities registry. 66
The Legislature further finds that the release of per sonal 67
identifying information of an individual in a persons with 68
disabilities registry could jeopardize the safety of such 69
individuals. The harm from disclosing the personal identifying 70
information of an individual contained in a persons with 71
disabilities registry outweighs any public benefit that can be 72
derived from widespread and unfettered access to such 73
information. The exemption is narrowly written so that a local 74
law enforcement agency may share the personal information of an 75
HB 1277 2023
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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
individual enrolled in a persons with disabilities registry with 76
other local law enforcement agencies, county emergency 77
management agencies, local fire departments, and other local, 78
state, or federal agencies in furtherance of that agency's 79
official duties and responsibilities. Pr oviding information in a 80
persons with disabilities registry to these agencies is 81
necessary for the goal of a persons with disabilities registry 82
to be achieved, which is to create safer interactions between 83
these agencies and individuals with certain condit ions. 84
Section 3. This act shall take effect on the same date 85
that HB 1275 or similar legislation takes effect , if such 86
legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an 87
extension thereof and becomes a law. 88