HB 29 2025
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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 and meetings; 2
creating s. 491.023, F.S.; providing an exemption from 3
public records requirements for certain information 4
held by the Department of Health or the Board of 5
Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and 6
Mental Health Counseling pursuant to the Social Work 7
Licensure Interstate Compact; authorizing the 8
disclosure of such information under certain 9
circumstances; providing an exemption from public 10
meetings requirements for certain meetings or portions 11
of certain meetings of the Social Work Licensure 12
Interstate Compact Commission or its executive 13
committee or other committees; providing an exemption 14
from public records requirements for recordings, 15
minutes, and records generated during the exempt 16
meetings or portions of such meetings; providing for 17
future legislative review and repeal of the 18
exemptions; providing statements of public necessity; 19
providing a contingen t effective date. 20
21
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 22
23
Section 1. Section 491.023, Florida Statutes, is created 24
to read: 25
HB 29 2025
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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
491.023 Social Work Licensure Interstate Compact; public 26
records and meetings exemptions. — 27
(1) A social worker's personal identifying information, 28
other than the social worker's name, licensure status, or 29
licensure number, obtained from the data system, as described in 30
Art. XI of s. 491.022, and held by the department or the board 31
is exempt from s. 119.0 7(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 32
Constitution unless the state that originally reported the 33
information to the data system authorizes the disclosure of such 34
information by law. If disclosure is so authorized, such 35
information may be disclosed only to the extent authorized by 36
the law of the reporting state. 37
(2)(a) A meeting or a portion of a meeting of the Social 38
Work Licensure Interstate Compact Commission or the executive 39
committee or other committee of the commission held as provided 40
in s. 491.022 is exempt from s. 286.011 and s. 24(b), Art. I of 41
the State Constitution if the commission or committee needs to 42
receive legal advice or discuss any of the following: 43
1. Noncompliance of a member state with its obligations 44
under the compact. 45
2. The employment, compensation, discipline of, or other 46
matters, practices, or procedures related to specific employees. 47
3. Current or threatened discipline of a licensee by the 48
commission or by a member state's licensing authority. 49
4. Current, threatened, or reasonably anticipated 50
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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
litigation. 51
5. Negotiation of contracts for the purchase, lease, or 52
sale of goods, services, or real estate. 53
6. Accusing any person of a crime or formally censuring 54
any person. 55
7. Trade secrets or commercial or financial inform ation 56
that is privileged or confidential. 57
8. Information of a personal nature when disclosure would 58
constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. 59
9. Investigative records compiled for law enforcement 60
purposes. 61
10. Information related to any investigative reports 62
prepared by, or on behalf of or for the use of, the commission 63
or other committee charged with responsibility of investigation 64
or determination of compliance issues pursuant to the compact. 65
11. Matters specifically exempted from disclosure by 66
federal or member state law. 67
12. Other matters as adopted by commission rule. 68
(b) The presiding officer of the meeting shall state that 69
the meeting will be closed and reference each relevant exempting 70
provision, which must be recorde d in the meeting minutes. 71
(c) In keeping with the intent of the Social Work 72
Licensure Interstate Compact, recordings, minutes, and records 73
generated during an exempt meeting or portion of such a meeting 74
are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I o f the State 75
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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
Constitution. 76
(3) This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset 77
Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed 78
on October 2, 2030, unless reviewed and saved from repeal 79
through reenactment by the Legislature. 80
Section 2. (1) The Legislature finds that it is a public 81
necessity that a social worker's personal identifying 82
information, other than the social worker's name, licensure 83
status, or licensure number, obtained from the data system, as 84
described in Article XI of s. 491.022, Florida Statutes, and 85
held by the Department of Health or the Board of Clinical Social 86
Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling 87
be made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 88
24(a), Article I of the State C onstitution. Protection of such 89
information is required under the Social Work Licensure 90
Interstate Compact, which a state must adopt in order to become 91
a member state of the compact. Without the public records 92
exemption, this state will be unable to effect ively implement 93
and administer the compact. 94
(2)(a) The Legislature finds that it is a public necessity 95
that any meeting of the Social Work Licensure Interstate Compact 96
Commission or the executive committee or other committee of the 97
commission held as pro vided in s. 491.022, Florida Statutes, in 98
which matters specifically exempted from disclosure by federal 99
or state law are discussed be made exempt from s. 286.011, 100
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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
Florida Statutes, and s. 24(b), Article I of the State 101
Constitution. 102
(b) The Social Work L icensure Interstate Compact requires 103
the closure of any meeting, or any portion of a meeting, of the 104
Social Work Licensure Interstate Compact Commission or the 105
executive committee or other committee of the commission if the 106
presiding officer announces in a public meeting that, in 107
connection with the performance of the commission's duties, the 108
commission must discuss certain sensitive and confidential 109
subject matters. In the absence of a public meetings exemption, 110
this state would be prohibited from becoming a member state of 111
the compact. 112
(3) The Legislature also finds that it is a public 113
necessity that the recordings, minutes, and records generated 114
during a meeting held as provided in s. 491.022, Florida 115
Statutes, that is exempt from public meetings requir ements be 116
made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a), 117
Article I of the State Constitution. Release of such information 118
would negate the public meetings exemption. As such, the 119
Legislature finds that the public records exemption is a publ ic 120
necessity. 121
Section 3. This act shall take effect on the same date 122
that HB 27 or similar legislation takes effect , if such 123
legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an 124
extension thereof and becomes a law. 125