Title: Public Records/Confidentiality/Department of Elderly Affairs

Summary: Creating an exemption from public records requirements for certain personal identifying information, personal health and financial records, and photographs and video recordings held by the Department of Elderly Affairs in connection with a complaint filed or an investigation conducted pursuant to part II of ch. 744, F.S.; specifying that information retains its confidential and exempt status for the duration of an investigation; providing for future legislative review and repeal; providing a statement of public necessity, etc.

Full Text:
An act relating to public records; creating s. 744.20042, F.S.; creating an exemption from public records requirements for certain personal identifying information, personal health and financial records, and photographs and video recordings held by the Department of Elderly Affairs in connection with a complaint filed or an investigation conducted pursuant to part II of ch. 744, F.S.; specifying that information retains its confidential and exempt status for the duration of an investigation; authorizing disclosure to specified entities and officers; providing for future legislative review and repeal; providing a statement of public necessity; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Section 744.20042, Florida Statutes, is created to read: 744.20042  Confidentiality.  (1)   The following are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution when held by the Department of Elderly Affairs in connection with a complaint filed and any subsequent investigation conducted pursuant to this part, unless the disclosure is required by court order: (a) The names or identities of the complainants and the ward involved in a complaint or subsequent investigation. (b) All personal health and financial records of the ward related to a complaint or obtained during the course of an investigation. (c) All photographs and video recordings related to a complaint or obtained during the course of an investigation. (2) Except as otherwise provided in this section, information held by the department pursuant to an investigation under this part is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution until the investigation is completed or ceases to be active, unless disclosure is required by court order. (3) This section does not prohibit the department from providing such information to any law enforcement agency, any other regulatory agency in the performance of its official duties and responsibilities, or the clerk of the circuit court pursuant to s. 744.368. (4) This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2022, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. Section 2.  The Legislature finds that it is a public necessity that information held by the Department of Elderly Affairs pursuant to an investigation conducted under part II of chapter 744, Florida Statutes, be made confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution for the following reasons: (1) If the complainants are identifiable, the disclosure of their identity to the public could cause unwarranted damage to their good name or reputation, especially if the information associated with them is inaccurate. Furthermore, if the complainants are identifiable, public access to such information could jeopardize the safety of such individuals by placing them at risk for retaliation. (2) An investigation of a complaint conducted by the Department of Elderly Affairs may lead to the filing of an administrative, civil, or criminal proceeding or to the denial or conditional granting of a registration. The release could frustrate or thwart the investigation and impair the ability of the department to effectively and efficiently administer part II of chapter 744, Florida Statutes. Information held by the Department of Elderly Affairs that is provided to a law enforcement agency, any other regulatory agency in the performance of its official duties and responsibilities, or the clerk of the circuit court pursuant to s. 744.368, Florida Statutes, should remain confidential and exempt from public records requirements. The release of this information could jeopardize the integrity of the investigation and impair the ability of other entities to carry out their statutory duties. Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2017.