Title: Pub. Rec./Department of Financial Services E-Mail Address and Login Credentials

Summary: Provides public records exemption for e-mail addresses & secure login credentials obtained by DFS from certain insurance license applications; provides for future legislative review & repeal of exemption; provides statement of public necessity.

Full Text:
An act relating to public records; amending s. 626.171, F.S.; providing a public records exemption for e-mail addresses and secure login credentials obtained by the Department of Financial Services from certain insurance license applications; providing a definition; providing for future legislative review and repeal of the exemption; providing a statement of public necessity; providing a directive to the Division of Law Revision; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Subsection (8) is added to section 626.171, Florida Statutes, to read: 626.171 Application for license as an agent, customer representative, adjuster, service representative, or reinsurance intermediary.-(8)(a) E-mail addresses submitted to the department under subsection (2) are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This exemption applies to e-mail addresses held by the department before, on, or after the effective date of this act. (b) Secure login credentials held by the department for the purpose of allowing a person to electronically file or HB 2024 review records under this section are exempt fro ms. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. This exemption applies to secure login credentials held by the department before, on, or after the effective date of this act. As used in this paragraph, the term "secure login credential" mean sinformation held by the department for purposes of authenticating a user logging into a user account on a computer, a computer system, a computer network, or an electronic device; an online user account accessible via the Internet, whether through a mobi le device, a website, or any other electronic means; or information used for authentication or password recovery. (c) This subsection is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2029, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature. Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public necessity that all e-mail addresses and secure login credentials held by the Department of Financial Services relat ing to electronically filed applications for licenses as insurance agents, customer representatives, adjusters, service representatives, and reinsurance intermediaries be made exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and s. 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution. The Legislature finds that the unintentional publication of such information may subject the HB 2024 filer to identity theft, financial harm, or other adverse impacts. Without this public records exemption, the effective and efficient administration of the electronic filing system, which is otherwise designed to increase the ease of filing records, would be hindered. For these reasons, the Legislature finds that the public records exemption for all e-mail addresses and secure login credentials held by the Department of Financial Services relating to electronically filed applications for licenses as insurance agents, customer representatives, adjusters, service representatives, and reinsurance intermediaries serves a public purpose. Section 3. The Division of Law Revision is directed to replace the phrase "the effective date of this act" wherever it occurs in this act with the date this act becomes a law. Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.