| 25 | 25 | | providing an effective date. 12 |
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| 26 | 26 | | 13 |
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| 27 | 27 | | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 14 |
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| 28 | 28 | | 15 |
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| 29 | 29 | | Section 1. Subsection (9) is added to section 286.011 , 16 |
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| 30 | 30 | | Florida Statutes, to read: 17 |
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| 31 | 31 | | 286.011 Public meetings and records; public inspection; 18 |
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| 32 | 32 | | criminal and civil penalties. — 19 |
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| 33 | 33 | | (9)(a) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a regional 20 |
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| 34 | | - | advisory committee that is created to provide technical 21 |
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| 35 | | - | expertise and support to the Na tional Estuary Program 22 |
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| 36 | | - | established by Congress under s. 320 of the Clean Water Act and 23 |
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| 37 | | - | whose membership is composed of representatives from four or 24 |
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| 38 | | - | more counties may conduct public meetings and workshops by means 25 |
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| 34 | + | advisory committee that is composed of representatives from four 21 |
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| 35 | + | or more counties, and whose geographic distance between the 22 |
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| 36 | + | county seats of the two most distant counties is at least 100 23 |
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| 37 | + | miles, may conduct public meetings and workshops by means of 24 |
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| 38 | + | communications media technology as defined in s. 120.54(5)(b)2. 25 |
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| 51 | | - | of communications media technology as defin ed in s. 26 |
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| 52 | | - | 120.54(5)(b)2. An advisory committee member who participates in 27 |
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| 53 | | - | a public meeting or workshop by communications media technology 28 |
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| 54 | | - | is deemed to be present at the meeting or workshop. The use of 29 |
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| 55 | | - | communications media technology must allow for all perso ns 30 |
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| 56 | | - | attending the meeting or workshop to audibly communicate as if 31 |
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| 57 | | - | they are physically present. 32 |
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| 58 | | - | (b) The notice for a public meeting or workshop must state 33 |
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| 59 | | - | whether the meeting or workshop will be conducted using 34 |
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| 60 | | - | communications media technology, how an inte rested person may 35 |
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| 61 | | - | participate, and the location of facilities where communications 36 |
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| 62 | | - | media technology will be available during the meeting or 37 |
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| 63 | | - | workshop. 38 |
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| 64 | | - | Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 39 |
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| 51 | + | An advisory committee member who participates in a meeting or 26 |
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| 52 | + | workshop by communications media technology is deemed to be 27 |
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| 53 | + | present at such meeting or workshop. The communications media 28 |
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| 54 | + | technology must allow for all persons attending such public 29 |
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| 55 | + | meeting or workshop to audibly co mmunicate as if they were 30 |
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| 56 | + | physically present. 31 |
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| 57 | + | (b) The notice for such a meeting or workshop must state 32 |
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| 58 | + | whether it will be conducted using communications media 33 |
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| 59 | + | technology, how an interested person may participate, and the 34 |
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| 60 | + | location of any facilities where communications media technology 35 |
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| 61 | + | will be available. 36 |
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| 62 | + | (c) Any other laws applicable to public meetings or 37 |
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| 63 | + | workshops conducted by means of communications media technology 38 |
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| 64 | + | must be liberally construed in their application to meetings and 39 |
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| 65 | + | workshops conducted as provided in this subsection. 40 |
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| 66 | + | Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 41 |
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