HB 1357 2025
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A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to public records and public meetings; 2
amending ss. 394.464 and 397.6760, F.S.; specifying 3
that hearings relating to mental health and substance 4
abuse, respectively, are confidential and closed to 5
the public; providing exceptions; exempting certain 6
information from public records requirements; 7
expanding a public records exemption to include 8
certain petitions and applications; authorizing 9
disclosure of certain confidential and exempt 10
documents to certain service providers; authorizing 11
courts to use a respondent's name for certain 12
purposes; revising applicability; providing for future 13
legislative review and repeal of the exemption; making 14
technical changes; providing statements of public 15
necessity; providing a contingent effective date. 16
17
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 18
19
Section 1. Section 394.464, Florida Statutes, is amended 20
to read: 21
394.464 Court proceedings and records; confidentiality. — 22
(1) Absent the respondent's consent or a finding of good 23
cause by a judge or an administrative law judge, all hearings 24
conducted under this part are confidential and closed to the 25
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public. 26
(2)(a) The respondent's name, at a hear ing or on appeal, 27
and all petitions or applications for voluntary and involuntary 28
admission for mental health examination or treatment, court 29
orders, and related records that are filed with or by a court 30
under this part are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) 31
and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. Pleadings and 32
other documents made confidential and exempt by this section may 33
be disclosed by the clerk of the court, upon request, to any of 34
the following: 35
1.(a) The petitioner. 36
2.(b) The petitioner's attorney. 37
3.(c) The respondent. 38
4.(d) The respondent's attorney. 39
5.(e) The respondent's guardian or guardian advocate, if 40
applicable. 41
6.(f) In the case of a minor respondent, the respondent's 42
parent, guardian, legal custodian, or guardian advocate. 43
7.(g) The respondent's treating health care practitioner 44
and service provider . 45
8.(h) The respondent's health care surrogate or proxy. 46
9.(i) The Department of Children and Families, without 47
charge. 48
10.(j) The Department of Corrections, without charge, if 49
the respondent is committed or is to be returned to the custody 50
HB 1357 2025
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of the Department of Corrections from the Department of Children 51
and Families. 52
11.(k) A person or an entity authorized to view records 53
upon a court order for good cause. In determining whether if 54
there is good cause for the disclosure of records, the court 55
must weigh the person's person or entity's need for the 56
information against potential harm to the respondent from the 57
disclosure. 58
(b)(2) This subsection section does not preclude the clerk 59
of the court from submitting the information required by s. 60
790.065 to the Department of Law Enforcement. 61
(c)(3) The clerk of the court may not publish personal 62
identifying information on a court dock et or in a publicly 63
accessible file, but the court may use the respondent's name to 64
schedule and adjudicate cases, including the transmission of any 65
court order to the parties or the service provider . 66
(d)(4) A person or an entity receiving information 67
pursuant to this subsection section shall maintain that 68
information as confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 69
24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 70
(e)(5) The exemption under this subsection section applies 71
to all documents filed with a court before, on, or after July 1, 72
2019, and appeals pending or filed on or after July 1, 2025 . 73
(f) This subsection applies to records held by the 74
Division of Administrative Hearings to the same extent as 75
HB 1357 2025
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records held by a court. 76
(g) This subsection is subject to the Open Government 77
Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand 78
repealed on October 2, 2030, unless reviewed and saved from 79
repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. 80
Section 2. Section 397.6760, Florida Statutes, is amended 81
to read: 82
397.6760 Court proceedings and records; confidentiality. — 83
(1) Absent a judicial finding of good cause or the 84
respondent's consent, all hearings under this part or part IV 85
are confidential and clos ed to the public. 86
(2)(a) The respondent's name, at trial and on appeal, and 87
all petitions or applications for voluntary and involuntary 88
substance abuse treatment or assessment and stabilization, court 89
orders, and related records that are filed with or by a court 90
under this part or part IV are confidential and exempt from s. 91
119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 92
Pleadings and other documents made confidential and exempt by 93
this section may be disclosed by the clerk of the court, upon 94
request, to any of the following: 95
1.(a) The petitioner. 96
2.(b) The petitioner's attorney. 97
3.(c) The respondent. 98
4.(d) The respondent's attorney. 99
5.(e) The respondent's guardian or guardian advocate, if 100
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applicable. 101
6.(f) In the case of a minor resp ondent, the respondent's 102
parent, guardian, legal custodian, or guardian advocate. 103
7.(g) The respondent's treating health care practitioner 104
and service provider . 105
8.(h) The respondent's health care surrogate or proxy. 106
9.(i) The Department of Children a nd Families, without 107
charge. 108
10.(j) The Department of Corrections, without charge, if 109
the respondent is committed or is to be returned to the custody 110
of the Department of Corrections from the Department of Children 111
and Families. 112
11.(k) A person or an entity authorized to view records 113
upon a court order for good cause. In determining whether if 114
there is good cause for the disclosure of records, the court 115
must weigh the person's person or entity's need for the 116
information against potential harm to the res pondent from the 117
disclosure. 118
(b)(2) This subsection section does not preclude the clerk 119
of the court from submitting the information required by s. 120
790.065 to the Department of Law Enforcement. 121
(c)(3) The clerk of the court may not publish personal 122
identifying information on a court docket or in a publicly 123
accessible file, but the court may use the respondent's name to 124
schedule and adjudicate cases, including the transmission of any 125
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court order to the parties or the service provider . 126
(d)(4) A person or an entity receiving information 127
pursuant to this subsection section shall maintain that 128
information as confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 129
24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 130
(e)(5) The exemption under this subsection section applies 131
to all documents filed with a court before, on, or after July 1, 132
2017, and appeals pending or filed on or after July 1, 2025 . 133
(f) This subsection is subject to the Open Government 134
Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand 135
repealed on October 2, 2030, unless reviewed and saved from 136
repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. 137
Section 3. (1) The Legislature finds that it is a public 138
necessity that court hearings under part I of chapter 394 and 139
parts IV or V of chapter 397, Florida Statutes, be made 140
confidential and closed to the public unless the court finds 141
good cause to open a hearing to the public or the respondent 142
consents to a hearing being open to the public. The mental 143
health or substance abuse disorders of a person are medical 144
conditions that should be protected from public disclosure. A 145
person's health and sensitive personal information regarding his 146
or her mental health or substance abuse disorders are intensely 147
private matters. Making hearings confidential and closed to the 148
public when such disorders, conditions, and personal information 149
may be communicated will protect such persons from the release 150
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of sensitive personal information that could damage their and 151
their families' reputations. Allowing public hearings relating 152
to such information defeats the purpose of protections otherwise 153
provided. Further, the knowledge that such sensitive personal 154
information is subject to disclosure could have a chilling 155
effect on a person's willingness to seek out and comply with 156
mental health or substance abuse treatment services. 157
(2) The Legislature finds that it is a public necessity 158
that voluntary applications or petitions for involuntary 159
examination or treatment, court orders, and related records that 160
are filed with or by a court or relevant service provider under 161
part I of chapter 394 and parts IV or V of chapter 397, Florida 162
Statutes, and the personal identifying information of a person 163
with a potential mental, emotional, or behavioral disorder or a 164
substance abuse disorder which is published on a court docket 165
and maintained by the clerk of the court under part I of chapter 166
394 and parts IV or V of chapter 397, Florida Statutes, or with 167
the relevant service provider be made confidential and exempt 168
from disclosure under s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 169
24(a), Article I of the State Constitution. The mental health or 170
substance abuse disorders of a person are medical conditions 171
that should be protected from public disclosure. A person's 172
health and sensitive personal information regarding his or her 173
mental health or substance abuse disorders are intensely private 174
matters. Making such applications, petitions, orders, records, 175
HB 1357 2025
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and personal identifying information confidential and exempt 176
from disclosure will protect such persons from the release of 177
sensitive personal information t hat could damage their and their 178
families' reputations. The publication of personal identifying 179
information on a physical or virtual docket, regardless of 180
whether any other record is published, defeats the purpose of 181
protections otherwise provided. Further , the knowledge that such 182
sensitive personal information is subject to disclosure could 183
have a chilling effect on a person's willingness to seek out and 184
comply with mental health or substance abuse treatment services. 185
Section 4. This act shall take eff ect on the same date 186
that HB 1355 or similar legislation takes effect , if such 187
legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an 188
extension thereof and becomes a law. 189