Florida 2023 2023 Regular Session

Florida House Bill H1617 Introduced / Bill

Filed 03/07/2023

                       
 
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A bill to be entitled 1 
An act relating to unlawful immigration; amending s. 2 
97.051, F.S.; revising the oath taken by a person 3 
registering to vote; creating ss. 125.0156 and 4 
166.246, F.S.; prohibiting counties and 5 
municipalities, respectively, from providing funds to 6 
any person, entity, or organization to issue 7 
identification documents to an individual who does not 8 
provide proof of lawful presence in the United States; 9 
creating s. 322.033, F.S.; specifying that certain 10 
driver licenses and permits issued by other states 11 
exclusively to unauthorized immigrants are not valid 12 
in this state; requiring law enforcement officers and 13 
authorized representatives of the Department of 14 
Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to cite a person 15 
driving with a such a license; requiring the 16 
department to maintain a list on its website of out -17 
of-state classes of driver licenses that are invalid 18 
in this state; amending s. 322.04, F.S.; revising the 19 
circumstances under which certain persons are exempt 20 
from obtaining a driver license; creating s. 395.3027, 21 
F.S.; requiring certain hospitals to collect patient 22 
immigration status data information on admission or 23 
registration forms; requiring a statement on such 24 
forms specifying that patient care will be unaffected; 25     
 
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requiring hospitals to submit quarterly reports to the 26 
Agency for Health Care Administration containing 27 
specified information; requiring the agency to submit 28 
an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature 29 
containing specified information; authorizing the 30 
agency to adopt rules; prohibiting rules requi ring the 31 
disclosure of patient names to the agency; amending s. 32 
448.095, F.S.; requiring private employers to use the 33 
E-Verify system to verify the employment eligibility 34 
of persons who accept employment offers or renewals or 35 
extensions of employment contr acts; requiring 36 
employers to retain a copy of the official 37 
verification obtained from the E -Verify system and 38 
supporting documentation for a specified amount of 39 
time; revising liability requirements for private 40 
employers relating to employment verification ; 41 
authorizing the Department of Economic Opportunity to 42 
enforce requirements to use E -Verify and to conduct 43 
random audits of employers; revising the circumstances 44 
under which a private employer's licenses must be 45 
revoked; authorizing persons to file compla ints with 46 
the department relating to the employment of 47 
unauthorized aliens; providing a criminal penalty for 48 
false or frivolous complaints; authorizing the 49 
department to investigate such complaints; requiring 50     
 
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the department to notify United States Immigrat ion and 51 
Customs Enforcement of unauthorized aliens under 52 
certain circumstances; providing a criminal penalty 53 
for providing a false identification document or 54 
fraudulently using the identification document of 55 
another person for the purpose of obtaining 56 
employment; providing that certain actions are 57 
considered deceptive and unfair trade practices 58 
subject to specified provisions; amending s. 454.021, 59 
F.S.; deleting a provision authorizing an unauthorized 60 
immigrant to obtain a license to practice law in this 61 
state under certain circumstances; providing 62 
applicability; amending s. 943.325, F.S.; revising the 63 
definition of the term "qualifying offender" to 64 
include certain persons who are the subject of an 65 
immigration detainer; requiring certain qualifying 66 
offenders to submit DNA samples at a specified time; 67 
requiring law enforcement agencies to immediately take 68 
DNA samples from certain qualifying offenders under 69 
certain circumstances; providing an effective date. 70 
 71 
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 72 
 73 
 Section 1.  Section 97.051, Florida Statutes, is amended to 74 
read: 75     
 
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 97.051  Oath upon registering. —A person registering to vote 76 
must subscribe to the following oath: "I do solemnly swear (or 77 
affirm) that I will protect and defend the Constitut ion of the 78 
United States and the Constitution of the State of Florida, that 79 
I am a citizen of the United States and a legal resident of 80 
Florida, that I am qualified to register as an elector under the 81 
Constitution and laws of the State of Florida, and that all 82 
information provided in this application is true." 83 
 Section 2.  Section 125.0156, Florida Statutes, is created 84 
to read: 85 
 125.0156  Restriction on providing funds for identification 86 
documents.—A county may not provide funds to any person, entity, 87 
or organization for the purpose of issuing an identification 88 
card or document to an individual who does not provide proof of 89 
lawful presence in the United States. 90 
 Section 3.  Section 166.246, Florida Statutes, is created 91 
to read: 92 
 166.246  Restriction on p roviding funds for identification 93 
documents.—A municipality may not provide funds to any person, 94 
entity, or organization for the purpose of issuing an 95 
identification card or document to an individual who does not 96 
provide proof of lawful presence in the Uni ted States. 97 
 Section 4.  Section 322.033, Florida Statutes, is created 98 
to read: 99 
 322.033  Unauthorized aliens; invalid out -of-state driver 100     
 
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licenses.— 101 
 (1)  If a driver license is of a class of licenses issued 102 
by another state exclusively to undocumented immigrants who are 103 
unable to prove lawful presence in the United States when the 104 
licenses are issued, the driver license, or other permit 105 
purporting to authorize the holder to operate a motor vehicle on 106 
public roadways, is invalid in this state and does no t authorize 107 
the holder to operate a motor vehicle in this state. Such 108 
classes of licenses include licenses that are issued exclusively 109 
to undocumented immigrants or licenses that are substantially 110 
the same as licenses issued to citizens, residents, or thos e 111 
lawfully present in the United States but have markings 112 
establishing that the license holder did not exercise the option 113 
of providing proof of lawful presence. 114 
 (2)  A law enforcement officer or other authorized 115 
representative of the department who stops a person driving with 116 
an invalid license as described in subsection (1) and driving 117 
without a valid license shall issue a citation to the driver for 118 
driving without a license in violation of s. 322.03. 119 
 (3)  The department, to facilitate the enforcement o f this 120 
section and to aid in providing notice to the public and 121 
visitors of invalid licenses, shall maintain on its website a 122 
list of out-of-state classes of driver licenses that are invalid 123 
in this state. 124 
 Section 5.  Section 322.04, Florida Statutes, i s amended to 125     
 
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read: 126 
 322.04  Persons exempt from obtaining driver license. — 127 
 (1)  The following persons are exempt from obtaining a 128 
driver license: 129 
 (a)  Any employee of the United States Government, while 130 
operating a noncommercial motor vehicle owned by or leased to 131 
the United States Government and being operated on official 132 
business. 133 
 (b)  Any person while driving or operating any road 134 
machine, farm tractor, or implement of husbandry temporarily 135 
operated or moved on a highway. 136 
 (c)  A nonresident who is at least 16 years of age and who 137 
has in his or her immediate possession a valid noncommercial 138 
driver license issued to the nonresident in his or her home 139 
state or country operating a motor vehicle of the type for which 140 
a Class E driver license is required in this state, if the 141 
nonresident's license is not invalid under s. 322.033 relating 142 
to proof of the licensee's lawful presence in the United States . 143 
 (d)  A nonresident who is at least 18 years of age and who 144 
has in his or her immediate possession a valid n oncommercial 145 
driver license issued to the nonresident in his or her home 146 
state or country operating a motor vehicle, other than a 147 
commercial motor vehicle, in this state , if the nonresident's 148 
license is not invalid under s. 322.033 relating to proof of the 149 
licensee's lawful presence in the United States . 150     
 
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 (e)  Any person operating a golf cart, as defined in s. 151 
320.01, which is operated in accordance with the provisions of 152 
s. 316.212. 153 
 (2)  This section does not apply to any person to whom s. 154 
322.031 applies. 155 
 (3)  Any person working for a firm under contract to the 156 
United States Government whose residence is outside this state 157 
and whose main point of employment is outside this state may 158 
drive a noncommercial vehicle on the public roads of this state 159 
for periods up to 60 days while in this state on temporary duty, 160 
if the person has a valid driver license from the state of the 161 
person's residence and if the license is not invalid under s. 162 
322.033 relating to proof of the licensee's lawful presence in 163 
the United States. 164 
 Section 6.  Section 395.3027, Florida Statutes, is created 165 
to read: 166 
 395.3027  Patient immigration status data collection. — 167 
 (1)  Each hospital that accepts Medicaid must include a 168 
provision on its patient admission or registration forms for the 169 
patient or the patient's representative to state or indicate 170 
whether the patient is a United States citizen or lawfully 171 
present in the United States or is not lawfully present in the 172 
United States. The inquiry must be followed by a statement that 173 
the response will not affect patient care or result in a report 174 
of the patient's immigration status to immigration authorities. 175     
 
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 (2)  Each hospital must submit a quarterly report to the 176 
agency within 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter 177 
which reports the number of hospital admissions or visits within 178 
the previous quarter that were made by a patient who indicated 179 
that he or she was a citizen of the United States or lawfully 180 
present in the United States, was not lawfully present in the 181 
United States, or dec lined to answer. 182 
 (3)  By March 1 of each year, the agency shall submit a 183 
report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the 184 
Speaker of the House of Representatives which includes the total 185 
number of hospital admissions and visits for the previou s 186 
calendar year for which the patient or patient's representative 187 
reported that the patient was a citizen of the United States or 188 
lawfully present in the United States, was not lawfully present 189 
in the United States, or declined to answer. The report must 190 
also describe information relating to the costs of uncompensated 191 
care for aliens who are not lawfully present in the United 192 
States, the impact of uncompensated care on the cost or ability 193 
of hospitals to provide services to the public, hospital funding 194 
needs, and other related information. 195 
 (4)  The agency may adopt rules relating to the format and 196 
information to be contained in quarterly reports and the 197 
acceptable formats for hospitals to use in requesting 198 
information regarding a patient's immigration statu s on hospital 199 
admission or registration forms. The rules may not require the 200     
 
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disclosure of patient names to the agency. 201 
 Section 7.  Subsection (4) of section 448.095, Florida 202 
Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (7), new subsections (4), 203 
(5), and (6) are  added to that section, and subsection (3) of 204 
that section is amended, to read: 205 
 448.095  Employment eligibility. — 206 
 (3)  PRIVATE EMPLOYERS. — 207 
 (a)  A private employer shall verify a person's employment 208 
eligibility using the E -Verify system within 30 days Beginning 209 
January 1, 2021, a private employer shall, after making an offer 210 
of employment which has been accepted by a person, and within 30 211 
days after a person accepts a renewal or extension of an 212 
employment contract with the employer. The employer must r etain 213 
a copy of the official verification generated by the E -Verify 214 
system and any supporting documentation used to generate the 215 
verification for at least 3 years after the date the 216 
verification was generated verify such person's employment 217 
eligibility. A private employer is not required to verify the 218 
employment eligibility of a continuing employee hired before 219 
January 1, 2021. However, if a person is a contract employee 220 
retained by a private employer, the private employer must verify 221 
the employee's employm ent eligibility upon the renewal or 222 
extension of his or her contract. 223 
 (b)  A private employer shall verify a person's employment 224 
eligibility by: 225     
 
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 1.  Using the E-Verify system; or 226 
 2.  Requiring the person to provide the same documentation 227 
that is required by the United States Citizenship and 228 
Immigration Services on its Employment Eligibility Verification 229 
form (Form I-9). The private employer must retain a copy of the 230 
documentation provided under this subparagraph for at least 3 231 
years after the person's in itial date of employment. 232 
 (b)(c) A private employer that reasonably and in good 233 
faith relies on identification documents submitted by an 234 
applicant or employee and complies with this subsection may not 235 
be held civilly or criminally liable under state law for hiring, 236 
continuing to employ, or refusing to hire an unauthorized alien 237 
if the information obtained from the E-Verify system pursuant to 238 
paragraph (a) under paragraph (b) indicates that the person's 239 
work authorization status was not that of an unauthor ized alien. 240 
 (d)  For purposes of this subsection, compliance with 241 
paragraph (b) creates a rebuttable presumption that a private 242 
employer did not knowingly employ an unauthorized alien in 243 
violation of s. 448.09(1). 244 
 (c)(e) For the purpose of enforcement o f this section, the 245 
following persons or entities may request, and a private 246 
employer must provide, copies of any documentation relied upon 247 
by the private employer for the verification of a person's 248 
employment eligibility , including, but not limited to, an y 249 
documentation required under paragraph (b) : 250     
 
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 1.  The Department of Law Enforcement. 251 
 2.  The Attorney General. 252 
 3.  The state attorney. 253 
 4.  The statewide prosecutor. 254 
 5.  The Department of Economic Opportunity. 255 
 256 
A person or entity that makes a request under this paragraph 257 
must rely upon the federal government to verify a person's 258 
employment eligibility and may not independently make a final 259 
determination as to whether a person is an unauthorized alien. 260 
 (d)  The Department of Economic Opportunity is aut horized 261 
to conduct random audits of employers for compliance with 262 
paragraph (a). The department may not audit an employer more 263 
than once every 5 years unless an audit within the previous 24 264 
months found the employer out of compliance with paragraph (a) 265 
or the employer or an agent or employee of the employer was 266 
convicted of employing an unauthorized alien in violation of s. 267 
448.09 or in violation of federal immigration law. 268 
 (e)(f) If a private employer does not comply with 269 
paragraph (a) (b), the department shall require the private 270 
employer to provide an affidavit to the department stating that 271 
the private employer will comply with paragraph (a) (b), the 272 
private employer has terminated the employment of all 273 
unauthorized aliens employed in this state, and the employer 274 
will not intentionally or knowingly employ an unauthorized alien 275     
 
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in this state. If the private employer does not provide the 276 
required affidavit within 30 days after the department's 277 
request, the appropriate licensing agency shall suspend all 278 
applicable licenses held by the private employer until the 279 
private employer provides the department with the required 280 
affidavit. For purposes of this paragraph, the licenses that are 281 
subject to suspension under this paragraph are all licenses that 282 
are held by the private employer specific to the business 283 
location where the unauthorized alien performed work. If the 284 
private employer does not hold a license specific to the 285 
business location where the unauthorized alien performed work, 286 
but a license is necessary to operate the private employer's 287 
business in general, the licenses that are subject to suspension 288 
under this paragraph are all licenses that are held by the 289 
private employer at the private employer's primary place of 290 
business. 291 
 (f)(g) For any private employer found to have violated 292 
paragraph (e) two (f) three times within any 24-month 36 month 293 
period, the appropriate licensing agency shall permanently 294 
revoke all licenses that are held by the private employer 295 
specific to the business locatio n where the unauthorized alien 296 
performed work. If the private employer does not hold a license 297 
specific to the business location where the unauthorized alien 298 
performed work, but a license is necessary to operate the 299 
private employer's business in general, the appropriate 300     
 
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licensing agency shall permanently revoke all licenses that are 301 
held by the private employer at the private employer's primary 302 
place of business. 303 
 (g)  A person who has a good faith belief that an employer 304 
is employing an unauthorized alien may file a complaint with the 305 
department. 306 
 (h)  A person who knowingly files a false or frivolous 307 
complaint under this subsection, including any complaint that 308 
violates federal law, commits a misdemeanor of the second 309 
degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 310 
 (i)  Upon receipt of a valid complaint substantiated by 311 
evidence of a violation of paragraph (a), the department must 312 
notify the employer of the complaint and direct the employer to 313 
notify any employees named in the complaint. 314 
 (j)  The department shall request that the Federal 315 
Government verify, pursuant to 8 U.S.C. s. 1373(c), the 316 
citizenship or immigration status of any employee named in the 317 
complaint, and the department must rely upon such verification. 318 
 (k)  Upon finding that an employer has violated paragraph 319 
(a), the department must notify United States Immigration and 320 
Customs Enforcement of the identity of the unauthorized alien 321 
and, if known, the physical address at which the unauthorized 322 
alien resides. 323 
 (4)  CRIMINAL PENALTY FOR VIOLATION.—Any person who 324 
knowingly uses a false identification document, or fraudulently 325     
 
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uses the identification document of another person, for the 326 
purpose of obtaining employment commits a felony of the third 327 
degree, punishable as provided in s. 77 5.082, s. 775.083, or s. 328 
775.084. 329 
 (5)  CONSTRUCTION.-This section shall be enforced without 330 
regard to race, color, or national origin and shall be construed 331 
in a manner so as to be fully consistent with any applicable 332 
federal laws or regulations. 333 
 (6)  DECEPTIVE AND UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICES. -Acts, conduct, 334 
practices, omissions, failings, misrepresentations, or 335 
nondisclosures committed in violation of this section are 336 
deceptive and unfair trade practices under ss. 501.201 -501.213, 337 
The Florida Deceptive and Un fair Trade Practices Act, and 338 
administrative rules adopted in accordance with the act. Any 339 
consumer as defined in s. 501.203(7), may file a complaint 340 
against a public employer, private employer, contractor, or 341 
subcontractor, for violations of the act. 342 
 Section 8.  Effective November 1, 2026, subsection (3) of 343 
section 454.021, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 344 
 454.021  Attorneys; admission to practice law; Supreme 345 
Court to govern and regulate. — 346 
 (3)  Upon certification by the Florida Board of Bar 347 
Examiners that an applicant who is an unauthorized immigrant who 348 
was brought to the United States as a minor; has been present in 349 
the United States for more than 10 years; has received 350     
 
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documented employment authorization from the United States 351 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS); has been issued a 352 
social security number; if a male, has registered with the 353 
Selective Service System if required to do so under the Military 354 
Selective Service Act, 50 U.S.C. App. 453; and has fulfilled all 355 
requirements for admission to practice law in this state, the 356 
Supreme Court of Florida may admit that applicant as an attorney 357 
at law authorized to practice in this state and may direct an 358 
order be entered upon the court's records to that effect. 359 
 Section 9.  The repeal of s. 454.021(3), Florida Statutes, 360 
in this act does not affect the validity of any license to 361 
practice law issued pursuant to that subsection before November 362 
1, 2026. 363 
 Section 10.  Section 787.07, Florida Statutes, is amended 364 
to read: 365 
 787.07  Human smuggling.— 366 
 (1)  A person who knowingly and willfully: 367 
 (a) Transports into or within this state an individual 368 
whom who the person knows, or reasonably should know, has is 369 
illegally entered entering the United States in violation of law 370 
and has not been inspe cted by the United States Government since 371 
his or her unlawful entry; or from another country 372 
 (b)  Conceals, harbors, or shields from detection, or 373 
attempts to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection, in any 374 
place within this state, including any tempor ary or permanent 375     
 
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structure or any means of transportation, an individual whom the 376 
person knows, or reasonably should know, has entered the United 377 
States in violation of law and who has not been inspected by the 378 
United States Government since his or her unl awful entry, 379 
 380 
commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in 381 
s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 382 
 (c)  For purposes of this section, an individual has been 383 
inspected by the United States if he or she has been processed 384 
by the United States Government for admission into the United 385 
States in accordance with the federal Immigration and 386 
Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. ss. 1101 et seq. 387 
 (2)  A person who violates subsection (1) by transporting, 388 
concealing, harboring, or shielding from detection, or by 389 
attempting to transport, conceal, harbor, or shield from 390 
detection, within this state, any child younger than 18 years of 391 
age commits a felony of the second degree, punishable as 392 
provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 393 
 (3)(2) A person commits a separate offense for each 394 
individual he or she transports , conceals, harbors, or shields 395 
from detection, or attempts to transport, conceal, harbor, or 396 
shield from detection, into this state in violation of this 397 
section. 398 
 (4)  A person who commits fiv e or more separate offenses 399 
under this section during a single episode commits a felony of 400     
 
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the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 401 
775.083, or s. 775.084. 402 
 (5)(a)  A person with a prior conviction under this section 403 
who commits a violation of subsection (1) commits a felony of 404 
the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 405 
775.083, or s. 775.084. 406 
 (b)  A person with a prior conviction under this section 407 
who commits a violation of subsection (2) or subsection (4) 408 
commits a felony of the first degree, punishable as provided in 409 
s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or 775.084. 410 
 (c)  For purposes of this subsection, the term "conviction" 411 
means a determination of guilt that is the result of a plea or a 412 
trial, regardless of whether adjudi cation is withheld or a plea 413 
of nolo contendere is entered. 414 
 (6)  Proof that a person knowingly and willfully presented 415 
false identification or gave false information to a law 416 
enforcement officer who is conducting an investigation for any 417 
violation of this section, gives rise to an inference that such 418 
person was aware that the transported, concealed, harbored, or 419 
shielded individual had entered into the United States in 420 
violation of law and had not been inspected by the United States 421 
Government since his or her unlawful entry. 422 
 (7)  A person arrested for a violation of this section 423 
shall be held in custody until brought before the court for 424 
admittance to pretrial release in accordance with chapter 903. 425     
 
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 Section 11.  Section 908.104, Florida Statutes, is amended 426 
to read: 427 
 908.104  Cooperation with federal immigratio n authorities.— 428 
 (1)  A law enforcement agency shall use best efforts to 429 
support the enforcement of federal immigration law. This 430 
subsection applies to an official, representative, agent, or 431 
employee of the entity or agency only when he or she is acting 432 
within the scope of his or her official duties or within the 433 
scope of his or her employment. 434 
 (2)  Except as otherwise expressly prohibited by federal 435 
law, a state entity, local governmental entity, or law 436 
enforcement agency, or an employee, an agent, or a 437 
representative of the entity or agency, may not prohibit or in 438 
any way restrict a law enforcement agency from taking any of the 439 
following actions with respect to information regarding a 440 
person's immigration status: 441 
 (a)  Sending the information to or reques ting, receiving, 442 
or reviewing the information from a federal immigration agency 443 
for purposes of this chapter. 444 
 (b)  Recording and maintaining the information for purposes 445 
of this chapter. 446 
 (c)  Exchanging the information with a federal immigration 447 
agency or another state entity, local governmental entity, or 448 
law enforcement agency for purposes of this chapter. 449 
 (d)  Using the information to comply with an immigration 450     
 
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detainer. 451 
 (e)  Using the information to confirm the identity of a 452 
person who is detained b y a law enforcement agency. 453 
 (3)(a)  For purposes of this subsection, the term 454 
"applicable criminal case" means a criminal case in which: 455 
 1.  The judgment requires the defendant to be confined in a 456 
secure correctional facility; and 457 
 2.  The judge: 458 
 a.  Indicates in the record under s. 908.105 that the 459 
defendant is subject to an immigration detainer; or 460 
 b.  Otherwise indicates in the record that the defendant is 461 
subject to a transfer into federal custody. 462 
 (b)  In an applicable criminal case, when the judg e 463 
sentences a defendant who is the subject of an immigration 464 
detainer to confinement, the judge shall issue an order 465 
requiring the secure correctional facility in which the 466 
defendant is to be confined to reduce the defendant's sentence 467 
by a period of not m ore than 12 days on the facility's 468 
determination that the reduction in sentence will facilitate the 469 
seamless transfer of the defendant into federal custody. For 470 
purposes of this paragraph, the term "secure correctional 471 
facility" means a state correctional institution as defined in 472 
s. 944.02 or a county detention facility or a municipal 473 
detention facility as defined in s. 951.23. 474 
 (c)  If the information specified in sub -subparagraph 475     
 
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(a)2.a. or sub-subparagraph (a)2.b. is not available at the time 476 
the sentence is pronounced in the case, but is received by a law 477 
enforcement agency afterwards, the law enforcement agency shall 478 
notify the judge who shall issue the order described by 479 
paragraph (b) as soon as the information becomes available. 480 
 (4)  When a county c orrectional facility or the Department 481 
of Corrections receives verification from a federal immigration 482 
agency that a person subject to an immigration detainer is in 483 
the law enforcement agency's custody, the agency may securely 484 
transport the person to a fed eral facility in this state or to 485 
another point of transfer to federal custody outside the 486 
jurisdiction of the law enforcement agency. The law enforcement 487 
agency may transfer a person who is subject to an immigration 488 
detainer and is confined in a secure co rrectional facility to 489 
the custody of a federal immigration agency not earlier than 12 490 
days before his or her release date. A law enforcement agency 491 
shall obtain judicial authorization before securely transporting 492 
an alien to a point of transfer outside of this state. 493 
 (5)  This section does not require a state entity, local 494 
governmental entity, or law enforcement agency to provide a 495 
federal immigration agency with information related to a victim 496 
of or a witness to a criminal offense that occurred in the 497 
United States if: 498 
 (a) The victim or witness timely and in good faith 499 
responds to the entity's or agency's request for information and 500     
 
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cooperation in the investigation or prosecution of the offense ;. 501 
 (b)  The crime occurred 5 years before the alien's claim of 502 
relief under this section is made; and 503 
 (c)  The crime that the alien is claiming to be a victim of 504 
or witness to is unrelated to the crime for which the alien was 505 
arrested. 506 
 507 
In order to be eligible for relief under this subsection, the 508 
victim or witness must submit a law enforcement certification 509 
completed by a certifying agency. For purposes of this 510 
subsection, certifying agencies include all authorities 511 
responsible for the investigation, prosecution, conviction or 512 
sentencing of the crime. The law enf orcement certification is a 513 
required piece of evidence to confirm the victim or witness 514 
responded to and cooperated in the investigation or prosecution 515 
of the offense. 516 
 (6)  A state entity, local governmental entity, or law 517 
enforcement agency that, pursuant to subsection (5), withholds 518 
information regarding the immigration information of a victim of 519 
or witness to a criminal offense shall document the victim's or 520 
witness's cooperation in the entity's or agency's investigative 521 
records related to the of fense and shall retain the records for 522 
at least 10 years for the purpose of audit, verification, or 523 
inspection by the Auditor General. 524 
 (7)  This section does not authorize a law enforcement 525     
 
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agency to detain an alien unlawfully present in the United 526 
States pursuant to an immigration detainer solely because the 527 
alien witnessed or reported a crime or was a victim of a 528 
criminal offense. 529 
 (8)  This section does not apply to any alien unlawfully 530 
present in the United States if he or she is or has been a 531 
necessary witness or victim of a crime of domestic violence, 532 
rape, sexual exploitation, sexual assault, murder, manslaughter, 533 
assault, battery, human trafficking, kidnapping, false 534 
imprisonment, involuntary servitude, fraud in foreign labor 535 
contracting, blackmail, extortion, or witness tampering. 536 
 Section 12.  Paragraph (g) of subsection (2) and paragraph 537 
(a) of subsection (3) of section 943.325, Florida Statutes, are 538 
amended, and paragraph (f) is added to subsection (7) of that 539 
section, to read: 540 
 943.325  DNA database.— 541 
 (2)  DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 542 
 (g)  "Qualifying offender" means any person, including 543 
juveniles and adults, who is: 544 
 1.a.  Committed to a county jail; 545 
 b.  Committed to or under the supervision of the Department 546 
of Corrections, including persons incarcerated in a private 547 
correctional institution operated under contract pursuant to s. 548 
944.105; 549 
 c.  Committed to or under the supervision of the Department 550     
 
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of Juvenile Justice; 551 
 d.  Transferred to this state under the Interstate Compact 552 
on Juveniles, part XIII of chapter 985; or 553 
 e.  Accepted under Article IV of the Interstate Corrections 554 
Compact, part III of chapter 941; and who is: 555 
 2.a.  Convicted of any felony offense or attempted felony 556 
offense in this state or of a similar o ffense in another 557 
jurisdiction; 558 
 b.  Convicted of a misdemeanor violation of s. 784.048, s. 559 
810.14, s. 847.011, s. 847.013, s. 847.0135, or s. 877.26, or an 560 
offense that was found, pursuant to s. 874.04, to have been 561 
committed for the purpose of benefiting , promoting, or 562 
furthering the interests of a criminal gang as defined in s. 563 
874.03; or 564 
 c.  Arrested for any felony offense or attempted felony 565 
offense in this state ; or 566 
 d.  In the custody of a law enforcement agency and is 567 
subject to an immigration deta iner issued by a federal 568 
immigration agency. 569 
 (3)  COLLECTION OF SAMPLES. — 570 
 (a)  Each qualifying offender shall submit a DNA sample at 571 
the time he or she is booked into a jail, correctional facility, 572 
or juvenile facility. A person who becomes a qualifying offender 573 
solely because of the issuance of an immigration detainer by a 574 
federal immigration agency must submit a DNA sample when the law 575     
 
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enforcement agency having custody of the offender receives the 576 
detainer. 577 
 (7)  COLLECTION OF DNA SAMPLES FROM OFFENDERS .— 578 
 (f)  A law enforcement agency having custody of a person 579 
who becomes a qualifying offender solely because of the issuance 580 
of an immigration detainer by a federal immigration agency shall 581 
ensure that a DNA sample is taken from the offender immediately 582 
after the agency receives the detainer and must secure and 583 
transmit the sample to the department in a timely manner. 584 
 Section 13.  Except as otherwise expressly provided in this 585 
act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 586