Florida Senate - 2023 SB 994 By Senator Calatayud 38-00915A-23 2023994__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public nuisances; amending s. 3 403.413, F.S.; prohibiting the distribution of certain 4 materials which leads to littering; providing for 5 reclassification of certain offenses; providing 6 criminal penalties; requiring that certain violations 7 be reported as hate crimes; amending s. 784.048, F.S.; 8 prohibiting the stalking of certain individuals based 9 on their wearing of certain garments; providing 10 criminal penalties; requiring that violations be 11 reported as hate crimes; amending s. 806.13, F.S.; 12 prohibiting willful and malicious defacement of or 13 injury or damage to certain religious property; 14 removing a minimum damage requirement for a violation; 15 providing construction; prohibiting the projection of 16 certain images onto buildings or other property 17 without the written consent of the owner; providing 18 criminal penalties; requiring that certain violations 19 be reported as hate crimes; amending s. 871.01, F.S.; 20 prohibiting the willful interference with assemblies 21 of people meeting for the purpose of acknowledging the 22 death of an individual; providing enhanced criminal 23 penalties for persons who commit violations while 24 evidencing religious or ethnic intimidation, threat, 25 or intent to harm; requiring that certain violations 26 be reported as hate crimes; providing an effective 27 date. 28 29 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 30 31 Section 1.Paragraph (a) of subsection (6) of section 32 403.413, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 33 403.413Florida Litter Law. 34 (6)PENALTIES; ENFORCEMENT. 35 (a)1.Except as provided in subparagraph 2., any person who 36 dumps litter in violation of subsection (4) in an amount not 37 exceeding 15 pounds in weight or 27 cubic feet in volume and not 38 for commercial purposes commits a noncriminal infraction, 39 punishable by a civil penalty of $150, from which $50 shall be 40 deposited into the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund to be used 41 for the solid waste management grant program pursuant to s. 42 403.7095. 43 2.a.Except as provided in sub-subparagraph b., a person 44 who distributes pamphlets, flyers, or other materials, whether 45 for commercial or noncommercial purposes, in a public place, 46 including outside a private residence, and such materials 47 discarded by recipients, leads to littering, commits a 48 misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 49 775.082 or s. 775.083. 50 b.If a violation of sub-subparagraph a. involves material 51 that evidences religious or ethnic intimidation, threat, or 52 intent to harm, including content described in s. 806.13(2)(b), 53 the offense is reclassified as a felony of the third degree, 54 punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 55 A violation of this sub-subparagraph shall be considered a hate 56 crime for purposes of the reporting requirements of s. 877.19. 57 58 In addition, the court may require a person who violates this 59 subsection the violator to pick up litter or perform other labor 60 commensurate with the offense committed. 61 Section 2.Present subsection (9) of section 784.048, 62 Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (10), and a new 63 subsection (9) is added to that section, to read: 64 784.048Stalking; definitions; penalties. 65 (9)A person who willfully follows, harasses, or interferes 66 with another persons quiet enjoyment based on the persons 67 wearing of religious-based garments or garments commonly 68 associated with a particular religious or ethnic group or any 69 other indicia of any religious or ethnic heritage commits the 70 offense of aggravated stalking, a felony of the third degree, 71 punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 72 A violation of this subsection shall be considered a hate crime 73 for purposes of the reporting requirements of s. 877.19. 74 Section 3.Present subsections (6) through (10) of section 75 806.13, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (7) 76 through (11), respectively, a new subsection (6) is added to 77 that section, and subsection (2) and present subsection (9) of 78 that section are amended, to read: 79 806.13Criminal mischief; penalties; penalty for minor. 80 (2)(a)Any person who willfully and maliciously defaces, 81 injures, or damages by any means: 82 1.Any church, synagogue, mosque, or other place of 83 worship, or any religious article contained therein;, 84 2.Any religious cemetery, gravesite, or grave marker, 85 including, but not limited to, any Holocaust memorial or any 86 plaque, statue, or museum with any indication of religious or 87 ethnic heritage; 88 3.Any school or community center with any indicia of any 89 religious or ethnic heritage; or 90 4.Any public or private property in a manner that 91 evidences religious or ethnic intimidation, threat, or intent to 92 harm, 93 94 commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in 95 s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, if the damage to the 96 property is greater than $200. 97 (b)A violation of this subsection includes any physical 98 manifestations of anti-Semitism directed toward a Jewish or non 99 Jewish individual or his or her property or toward Jewish 100 community institutions or religious facilities, Jewish 101 cemeteries, or Jewish gravesites. Such expression includes the 102 use of a Nazi symbol, such as a swastika. 103 (c)A violation of this subsection shall be considered a 104 hate crime for purposes of the reporting requirements of s. 105 877.19. 106 (6)A person who projects an image outdoors onto a publicly 107 or privately owned building or other property without the 108 written consent of the owner of the building or other property 109 commits: 110 (a)Except as provided in paragraph (b), a misdemeanor of 111 the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 112 775.083. 113 (b)If the image projected evidences religious or ethnic 114 intimidation, threat, or intent to harm, including content 115 described in paragraph (2)(b), a felony of the third degree, 116 punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 117 A violation of this paragraph shall be considered a hate crime 118 for purposes of the reporting requirements of s. 877.19. 119 (10)(9)A minor whose driver license or driving privilege 120 is revoked, suspended, or withheld under subsection (9) (8) may 121 elect to reduce the period of revocation, suspension, or 122 withholding by performing community service at the rate of 1 day 123 for each hour of community service performed. In addition, if 124 the court determines that due to a family hardship, the minors 125 driver license or driving privilege is necessary for employment 126 or medical purposes of the minor or a member of the minors 127 family, the court shall order the minor to perform community 128 service and reduce the period of revocation, suspension, or 129 withholding at the rate of 1 day for each hour of community 130 service performed. As used in this subsection, the term 131 community service means cleaning graffiti from public 132 property. 133 Section 4.Subsection (1) of section 871.01, Florida 134 Statutes, is amended to read: 135 871.01Disturbing schools and religious and other 136 assemblies. 137 (1)Whoever willfully interrupts or disturbs any school or 138 any assembly of people meeting to met for the worship, meeting 139 for the purpose of acknowledging the death of an individual, of 140 God or meeting for any other lawful purpose commits: 141 (a)Except as provided in paragraph (b), a misdemeanor of 142 the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 143 775.083. 144 (b)If a person who violates this subsection evidences 145 religious or ethnic intimidation, threat, or intent to harm, 146 including content described in s. 806.13(2)(b), during the 147 commission of the offense, the offense is reclassified as a 148 felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 149 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. A violation of this 150 paragraph shall be considered a hate crime for purposes of the 151 reporting requirements of s. 877.19. 152 Section 5.This act shall take effect October 1, 2023.