Florida Senate - 2025 CS for SB 300 By the Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability; and Senator Rouson 585-03133-25 2025300c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public records; amending s. 3 119.071, F.S.; defining the term appellate court; 4 providing an exemption from public records 5 requirements for the personal identifying and location 6 information of current appellate court clerks and the 7 spouses and children of such appellate court clerks; 8 providing for future legislative review and repeal of 9 the exemption; providing a method for maintenance of 10 an exemption; providing for retroactive application of 11 the exemption; amending s. 744.21031, F.S.; conforming 12 a cross-reference; providing a statement of public 13 necessity; providing an effective date. 14 15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 16 17 Section 1.Paragraph (d) of subsection (4) of section 18 119.071, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 19 119.071General exemptions from inspection or copying of 20 public records. 21 (4)AGENCY PERSONNEL INFORMATION. 22 (d)1.For purposes of this paragraph, the term: 23 a.Appellate court means the Florida Supreme Court or a 24 district court of appeal. 25 b.Home addresses means the dwelling location at which an 26 individual resides and includes the physical address, mailing 27 address, street address, parcel identification number, plot 28 identification number, legal property description, neighborhood 29 name and lot number, GPS coordinates, and any other descriptive 30 property information that may reveal the home address. 31 c.b.Judicial assistant means a court employee assigned 32 to the following class codes: 8140, 8150, 8310, and 8320. 33 d.c.Telephone numbers includes home telephone numbers, 34 personal cellular telephone numbers, personal pager telephone 35 numbers, and telephone numbers associated with personal 36 communications devices. 37 2.a.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 38 and photographs of active or former sworn law enforcement 39 personnel or of active or former civilian personnel employed by 40 a law enforcement agency, including correctional and 41 correctional probation officers, personnel of the Department of 42 Children and Families whose duties include the investigation of 43 abuse, neglect, exploitation, fraud, theft, or other criminal 44 activities, personnel of the Department of Health whose duties 45 are to support the investigation of child abuse or neglect, and 46 personnel of the Department of Revenue or local governments 47 whose responsibilities include revenue collection and 48 enforcement or child support enforcement; the names, home 49 addresses, telephone numbers, photographs, dates of birth, and 50 places of employment of the spouses and children of such 51 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 52 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 53 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 54 Constitution. 55 b.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 56 and photographs of current or former nonsworn investigative 57 personnel of the Department of Financial Services whose duties 58 include the investigation of fraud, theft, workers compensation 59 coverage requirements and compliance, other related criminal 60 activities, or state regulatory requirement violations; the 61 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 62 places of employment of the spouses and children of such 63 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 64 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 65 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 66 Constitution. 67 c.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 68 and photographs of current or former nonsworn investigative 69 personnel of the Office of Financial Regulations Bureau of 70 Financial Investigations whose duties include the investigation 71 of fraud, theft, other related criminal activities, or state 72 regulatory requirement violations; the names, home addresses, 73 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 74 the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and 75 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 76 children of such personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 77 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 78 d.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 79 and photographs of current or former firefighters certified in 80 compliance with s. 633.408; the names, home addresses, telephone 81 numbers, photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment 82 of the spouses and children of such firefighters; and the names 83 and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 84 children of such firefighters are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and 85 s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 86 e.The home addresses, dates of birth, and telephone 87 numbers of current or former justices of the Supreme Court, 88 district court of appeal judges, circuit court judges, and 89 county court judges and current judicial assistants; the names, 90 home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of 91 employment of the spouses and children of current or former 92 justices and judges and current judicial assistants; and the 93 names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended 94 by the children of current or former justices and judges and 95 current judicial assistants are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 96 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This sub-subparagraph 97 is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in 98 accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 99 2028, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment 100 by the Legislature. 101 f.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 102 and photographs of current or former state attorneys, assistant 103 state attorneys, statewide prosecutors, or assistant statewide 104 prosecutors; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 105 photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment of the 106 spouses and children of current or former state attorneys, 107 assistant state attorneys, statewide prosecutors, or assistant 108 statewide prosecutors; and the names and locations of schools 109 and day care facilities attended by the children of current or 110 former state attorneys, assistant state attorneys, statewide 111 prosecutors, or assistant statewide prosecutors are exempt from 112 s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 113 g.The home addresses, dates of birth, and telephone 114 numbers of general magistrates, special magistrates, judges of 115 compensation claims, administrative law judges of the Division 116 of Administrative Hearings, and child support enforcement 117 hearing officers; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 118 dates of birth, and places of employment of the spouses and 119 children of general magistrates, special magistrates, judges of 120 compensation claims, administrative law judges of the Division 121 of Administrative Hearings, and child support enforcement 122 hearing officers; and the names and locations of schools and day 123 care facilities attended by the children of general magistrates, 124 special magistrates, judges of compensation claims, 125 administrative law judges of the Division of Administrative 126 Hearings, and child support enforcement hearing officers are 127 exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 128 Constitution. 129 h.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 130 and photographs of current or former human resource, labor 131 relations, or employee relations directors, assistant directors, 132 managers, or assistant managers of any local government agency 133 or water management district whose duties include hiring and 134 firing employees, labor contract negotiation, administration, or 135 other personnel-related duties; the names, home addresses, 136 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 137 the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and 138 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 139 children of such personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 140 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 141 i.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 142 and photographs of current or former code enforcement officers; 143 the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 144 and places of employment of the spouses and children of such 145 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 146 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 147 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 148 Constitution. 149 j.The home addresses, telephone numbers, places of 150 employment, dates of birth, and photographs of current or former 151 guardians ad litem, as defined in s. 39.01; the names, home 152 addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of 153 employment of the spouses and children of such persons; and the 154 names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended 155 by the children of such persons are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and 156 s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 157 k.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 158 and photographs of current or former juvenile probation 159 officers, juvenile probation supervisors, detention 160 superintendents, assistant detention superintendents, juvenile 161 justice detention officers I and II, juvenile justice detention 162 officer supervisors, juvenile justice residential officers, 163 juvenile justice residential officer supervisors I and II, 164 juvenile justice counselors, juvenile justice counselor 165 supervisors, human services counselor administrators, senior 166 human services counselor administrators, rehabilitation 167 therapists, and social services counselors of the Department of 168 Juvenile Justice; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 169 dates of birth, and places of employment of spouses and children 170 of such personnel; and the names and locations of schools and 171 day care facilities attended by the children of such personnel 172 are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 173 Constitution. 174 l.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 175 and photographs of current or former public defenders, assistant 176 public defenders, criminal conflict and civil regional counsel, 177 and assistant criminal conflict and civil regional counsel; the 178 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 179 places of employment of the spouses and children of current or 180 former public defenders, assistant public defenders, criminal 181 conflict and civil regional counsel, and assistant criminal 182 conflict and civil regional counsel; and the names and locations 183 of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of 184 current or former public defenders, assistant public defenders, 185 criminal conflict and civil regional counsel, and assistant 186 criminal conflict and civil regional counsel are exempt from s. 187 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 188 m.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 189 and photographs of current or former investigators or inspectors 190 of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation; the 191 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 192 places of employment of the spouses and children of such current 193 or former investigators and inspectors; and the names and 194 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 195 children of such current or former investigators and inspectors 196 are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 197 Constitution. 198 n.The home addresses, telephone numbers, and dates of 199 birth of county tax collectors; the names, home addresses, 200 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 201 the spouses and children of such tax collectors; and the names 202 and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 203 children of such tax collectors are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and 204 s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 205 o.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 206 and photographs of current or former personnel of the Department 207 of Health whose duties include, or result in, the determination 208 or adjudication of eligibility for social security disability 209 benefits, the investigation or prosecution of complaints filed 210 against health care practitioners, or the inspection of health 211 care practitioners or health care facilities licensed by the 212 Department of Health; the names, home addresses, telephone 213 numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of the spouses 214 and children of such personnel; and the names and locations of 215 schools and day care facilities attended by the children of such 216 personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of 217 the State Constitution. 218 p.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 219 and photographs of current or former impaired practitioner 220 consultants who are retained by an agency or current or former 221 employees of an impaired practitioner consultant whose duties 222 result in a determination of a persons skill and safety to 223 practice a licensed profession; the names, home addresses, 224 telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of employment of 225 the spouses and children of such consultants or their employees; 226 and the names and locations of schools and day care facilities 227 attended by the children of such consultants or employees are 228 exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 229 Constitution. 230 q.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 231 and photographs of current or former emergency medical 232 technicians or paramedics certified under chapter 401; the 233 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 234 places of employment of the spouses and children of such 235 emergency medical technicians or paramedics; and the names and 236 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 237 children of such emergency medical technicians or paramedics are 238 exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 239 Constitution. 240 r.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 241 and photographs of current or former personnel employed in an 242 agencys office of inspector general or internal audit 243 department whose duties include auditing or investigating waste, 244 fraud, abuse, theft, exploitation, or other activities that 245 could lead to criminal prosecution or administrative discipline; 246 the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 247 and places of employment of spouses and children of such 248 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 249 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 250 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 251 Constitution. 252 s.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 253 and photographs of current or former directors, managers, 254 supervisors, nurses, and clinical employees of an addiction 255 treatment facility; the home addresses, telephone numbers, 256 photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment of the 257 spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and 258 locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the 259 children of such personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 260 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. For purposes of this 261 sub-subparagraph, the term addiction treatment facility means 262 a county government, or agency thereof, that is licensed 263 pursuant to s. 397.401 and provides substance abuse prevention, 264 intervention, or clinical treatment, including any licensed 265 service component described in s. 397.311(27). 266 t.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 267 and photographs of current or former directors, managers, 268 supervisors, and clinical employees of a child advocacy center 269 that meets the standards of s. 39.3035(2) and fulfills the 270 screening requirement of s. 39.3035(3), and the members of a 271 Child Protection Team as described in s. 39.303 whose duties 272 include supporting the investigation of child abuse or sexual 273 abuse, child abandonment, child neglect, and child exploitation 274 or to provide services as part of a multidisciplinary case 275 review team; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, 276 photographs, dates of birth, and places of employment of the 277 spouses and children of such personnel and members; and the 278 names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended 279 by the children of such personnel and members are exempt from s. 280 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 281 u.The home addresses, telephone numbers, places of 282 employment, dates of birth, and photographs of current or former 283 staff and domestic violence advocates, as defined in s. 284 90.5036(1)(b), of domestic violence centers certified by the 285 Department of Children and Families under chapter 39; the names, 286 home addresses, telephone numbers, places of employment, dates 287 of birth, and photographs of the spouses and children of such 288 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 289 facilities attended by the children of such personnel are exempt 290 from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State 291 Constitution. 292 v.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 293 and photographs of current or former inspectors or investigators 294 of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; the 295 names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and 296 places of employment of the spouses and children of current or 297 former inspectors or investigators; and the names and locations 298 of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of 299 current or former inspectors or investigators are exempt from s. 300 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This 301 sub-subparagraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review 302 Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on 303 October 2, 2028, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through 304 reenactment by the Legislature. 305 w.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 306 and photographs of current county attorneys, assistant county 307 attorneys, deputy county attorneys, city attorneys, assistant 308 city attorneys, and deputy city attorneys; the names, home 309 addresses, telephone numbers, photographs, dates of birth, and 310 places of employment of the spouses and children of current 311 county attorneys, assistant county attorneys, deputy county 312 attorneys, city attorneys, assistant city attorneys, and deputy 313 city attorneys; and the names and locations of schools and day 314 care facilities attended by the children of current county 315 attorneys, assistant county attorneys, deputy county attorneys, 316 city attorneys, assistant city attorneys, and deputy city 317 attorneys are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of 318 the State Constitution. This exemption does not apply to a 319 county attorney, assistant county attorney, deputy county 320 attorney, city attorney, assistant city attorney, or deputy city 321 attorney who qualifies as a candidate for election to public 322 office. This sub-subparagraph is subject to the Open Government 323 Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand 324 repealed on October 2, 2029, unless reviewed and saved from 325 repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. 326 x.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 327 and photographs of current or former commissioners of the 328 Florida Gaming Control Commission; the names, home addresses, 329 telephone numbers, dates of birth, photographs, and places of 330 employment of the spouses and children of such current or former 331 commissioners; and the names and locations of schools and day 332 care facilities attended by the children of such current or 333 former commissioners are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), 334 Art. I of the State Constitution. This sub-subparagraph is 335 subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance 336 with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2029, 337 unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the 338 Legislature. 339 y.The home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, 340 and photographs of current clerks of the appellate and circuit 341 courts court, deputy clerks of the appellate and circuit courts 342 court, and clerk of the appellate and circuit courts court 343 personnel; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, dates 344 of birth, and places of employment of the spouses and children 345 of current clerks of the appellate and circuit courts court, 346 deputy clerks of the appellate and circuit courts court, and 347 clerk of the appellate and circuit courts court personnel; and 348 the names and locations of schools and day care facilities 349 attended by the children of current clerks of the appellate and 350 circuit courts court, deputy clerks of the appellate and circuit 351 courts court, and clerk of the appellate and circuit courts 352 court personnel are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. 353 I of the State Constitution. This sub-subparagraph is subject to 354 the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 355 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2030 2029, unless 356 reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the 357 Legislature. 358 3.a.An agency that is the custodian of the information 359 specified in subparagraph 2. and that is not the employer of the 360 officer, employee, justice, judge, or other person specified in 361 subparagraph 2. must maintain the exempt status of that 362 information only if the officer, employee, justice, judge, other 363 person, or employing agency of the designated employee submits a 364 written and notarized request for maintenance of the exemption 365 to the custodial agency. The request must state under oath the 366 statutory basis for the individuals exemption request and 367 confirm the individuals status as a party eligible for exempt 368 status. 369 b.An agency that is the custodian of information specified 370 in sub-subparagraph 2.y. and that is not the employer of the 371 current appellate or circuit court clerk, current deputy clerk 372 of an appellate of circuit court, or clerk of the appellate and 373 circuit courts personnel, his or her spouse, or his or her child 374 must maintain the exempt status of that information only while 375 the qualifying conditions for the exemption apply. The person 376 who qualifies for an exemption pursuant to sub-subparagraph 2.y, 377 must submit a written and notarized letter to a non-employing 378 custodial agency that holds information specified in sub 379 subparagraph 2.y. of the current appellate or circuit court 380 clerk, current deputy clerk of an appellate of circuit court, or 381 clerk of the appellate and circuit courts personnel, his or her 382 spouse, or his or her child, notifying it of the cessation of 383 his or her qualification for the exemption. 384 4.a.A county property appraiser, as defined in s. 385 192.001(3), or a county tax collector, as defined in s. 386 192.001(4), who receives a written and notarized request for 387 maintenance of the exemption pursuant to subparagraph 3. must 388 comply by removing the name of the individual with exempt status 389 and the instrument number or Official Records book and page 390 number identifying the property with the exempt status from all 391 publicly available records maintained by the property appraiser 392 or tax collector. For written requests received on or before 393 July 1, 2021, a county property appraiser or county tax 394 collector must comply with this sub-subparagraph by October 1, 395 2021. A county property appraiser or county tax collector may 396 not remove the street address, legal description, or other 397 information identifying real property within the agencys 398 records so long as a name or personal information otherwise 399 exempt from inspection and copying pursuant to this section is 400 not associated with the property or otherwise displayed in the 401 public records of the agency. 402 b.Any information restricted from public display, 403 inspection, or copying under sub-subparagraph a. must be 404 provided to the individual whose information was removed. 405 5.An officer, an employee, a justice, a judge, or other 406 person specified in subparagraph 2. may submit a written request 407 for the release of his or her exempt information to the 408 custodial agency. The written request must be notarized and must 409 specify the information to be released and the party authorized 410 to receive the information. Upon receipt of the written request, 411 the custodial agency must release the specified information to 412 the party authorized to receive such information. 413 6.The exemptions in this paragraph apply to information 414 held by an agency before, on, or after the effective date of the 415 exemption. 416 7.Information made exempt under this paragraph may be 417 disclosed pursuant to s. 28.2221 to a title insurer authorized 418 pursuant to s. 624.401 and its affiliates as defined in s. 419 624.10; a title insurance agent or title insurance agency as 420 defined in s. 626.841(1) or (2), respectively; or an attorney 421 duly admitted to practice law in this state and in good standing 422 with The Florida Bar. 423 8.The exempt status of a home address contained in the 424 Official Records is maintained only during the period when a 425 protected party resides at the dwelling location. Upon 426 conveyance of real property after October 1, 2021, and when such 427 real property no longer constitutes a protected partys home 428 address as defined in sub-subparagraph 1.b. 1.a., the protected 429 party must submit a written request to release the removed 430 information to the county recorder. The written request to 431 release the removed information must be notarized, must confirm 432 that a protected partys request for release is pursuant to a 433 conveyance of his or her dwelling location, and must specify the 434 Official Records book and page, instrument number, or clerks 435 file number for each document containing the information to be 436 released. 437 9.Upon the death of a protected party as verified by a 438 certified copy of a death certificate or court order, any party 439 can request the county recorder to release a protected 440 decedents removed information unless there is a related request 441 on file with the county recorder for continued removal of the 442 decedents information or unless such removal is otherwise 443 prohibited by statute or by court order. The written request to 444 release the removed information upon the death of a protected 445 party must attach the certified copy of a death certificate or 446 court order and must be notarized, must confirm the request for 447 release is due to the death of a protected party, and must 448 specify the Official Records book and page number, instrument 449 number, or clerks file number for each document containing the 450 information to be released. A fee may not be charged for the 451 release of any document pursuant to such request. 452 Section 2.Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section 453 744.21031, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 454 744.21031Public records exemption. 455 (1)For purposes of this section, the term: 456 (c)Telephone numbers has the same meaning as provided in 457 s. 119.071(4)(d)1.d. s. 119.071(4)(d)1.c. 458 Section 3.The Legislature finds that it is a public 459 necessity that the home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of 460 birth, and photographs of current appellate court clerks, deputy 461 clerks, and clerk of the appellate court personnel; the names, 462 home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, and places of 463 employment of the spouses and children of such appellate court 464 clerks, deputy clerks, and clerk of the appellate court 465 personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care 466 facilities attended by the children of such appellate court 467 clerks, deputy clerks, and clerk of the appellate court 468 personnel be made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, 469 and s. 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution. While 470 performing their duties to issue court orders, maintain case 471 dockets, answer telephone calls, respond to correspondence, and 472 interact with visitors to the courthouse, appellate court 473 clerks, deputy clerks, and clerk of the appellate court 474 personnel may incur the ill will of litigants and their 475 associates and families. As a result, current appellate court 476 clerks, deputy clerks, and clerk of the appellate court 477 personnel and their spouses and children may be targets for acts 478 of revenge. If such identifying and location information is 479 released, the safety of current appellate court clerks, deputy 480 clerks, and clerk of the appellate court personnel and their 481 spouses and children could be seriously jeopardized. For this 482 reason, the Legislature finds that it is a public necessity that 483 such information be made exempt from public records 484 requirements. 485 Section 4.This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.