The Florida Senate
BILL ANALYSIS AND FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
(This document is based on the provisions contained in the legislation as of the latest date listed below.)
Prepared By: The Professional Staff of the Committee on Criminal Justice
BILL: SB 978
INTRODUCER: Senator Rouson
SUBJECT: Public Records/Applications for Certification as a Victim of Florida Reform School
Abuse
DATE: January 10, 2022 REVISED:
ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR REFERENCE ACTION
1. Stokes Jones CJ Favorable
2. ATD
3. AP
I. Summary:
SB 978 is the public records exemption linked to SB 482. This bill creates a public records
exemption to exempt any personal identifying information on an application submitted to the
Department of State (DOS) by, or on behalf of, a person seeking certification as a victim of
Florida reform school abuse, as defined in the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys and
Okeechobee School Abuse Victim Certification Act.
SB 482 creates the “Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys and Okeechobee School Abuse Victim
Certification Act” which provides a process for former students from these schools who were
abused to be certified as victims. The bill defines “victim of Florida reform school abuse,” as a
living person who was confined at the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys or the Okeechobee
School at any time between 1940 and 1975 and who was subjected to mental, physical, or sexual
abuse perpetrated by school personnel during the period of confinement. More than 500 former
students have come forward with reports of physical, mental, and sexual abuse by school staff.
The bill further provides that the exemption is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review
Act and will be repealed on December 31, 2023, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through
reenactment by the Legislature.
The bill also contains a statement of public necessity as required by s. 24(c), Art. I of the State
Constitution. According to the statement, the release of personal identifying information
contained in a certification application could subject victims to further trauma, and victims
would be more likely to come forward to seek redress if such information were protected from
public disclosure.
Because this bill creates a public records exemption, it will require a two-thirds vote of each
house in order to pass.
BILL: SB 978 Page 2
The bill takes effect on the same date that SB 482 or similar legislation takes effect, if such
legislation is adopted in the same legislative session or an extension thereof and becomes a law.
II. Present Situation:
Access to Public Records - Generally
The Florida Constitution provides that the public has the right to inspect or copy records made or
received in connection with official governmental business.1 The right to inspect or copy applies
to the official business of any public body, officer, or employee of the state, including all three
branches of state government, local governmental entities, and any person acting on behalf of the
government.2
Additional requirements and exemptions related to public records are found in various statutes
and rules, depending on the branch of government involved. For instance, s. 11.0431, F.S.,
provides public access requirements for legislative records. Relevant exemptions are codified in
s. 11.0431(2)-(3), F.S., and adopted in the rules of each house of the legislature.3 Florida Rule of
Judicial Administration 2.420 governs public access to judicial branch records.4 Lastly, ch. 119,
F.S., known as the Public Records Act, provides requirements for public records held by
executive agencies.
Executive Agency Records – The Public Records Act
The Public Records Act provides that all state, county, and municipal records are open for
personal inspection and copying by any person, and that providing access to public records is a
duty of each agency.5
Section 119.011(12), F.S., defines “public records” to include:
All documents, papers, letters, maps, books, tapes, photographs, films,
sound recordings, data processing software, or other material, regardless of
the physical form, characteristics, or means of transmission, made or
received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connections with the transaction
of official business by any agency.
1
FLA. CONST. art. I, s. 24(a).
2
Id.
3
See Rule 1.48, Rules and Manual of the Florida Senate, (2018-2020) and Rule 14.1, Rules of the Florida House of
Representatives, Edition 2, (2018-2020).
4
State v. Wooten, 260 So. 3d 1060 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018).
5
Section 119.01(1), F.S. Section 119.011(2), F.S., defines “agency” as “any state, county, district, authority, or municipal
officer, department, division, board, bureau, commission, or other separate unit of government created or established by law
including, for the purposes of this chapter, the Commission on Ethics, the Public Service Commission, and the Office of
Public Counsel, and any other public or private agency, person, partnership, corporation, or business entity acting on behalf
of any public agency.”
BILL: SB 978 Page 3
The Florida Supreme Court has interpreted this definition to encompass all materials made or
received by an agency in connection with official business that are used to “perpetuate,
communicate, or formalize knowledge of some type.”6
The Florida Statutes specify conditions under which public access to public records must be
provided. The Public Records Act guarantees every person’s right to inspect and copy any public
record at any reasonable time, under reasonable conditions, and under supervision by the
custodian of the public record.7 A violation of the Public Records Act may result in civil or
criminal liability.8
The Legislature may exempt public records from public access requirements by passing a
general law by a two-thirds vote of both the House and the Senate.9 The exemption must state
with specificity the public necessity justifying the exemption and must be no broader than
necessary to accomplish the stated purpose of the exemption.10
General exemptions from the public records requirements are contained in the Public Records
Act.11 Specific exemptions often are placed in the substantive statutes relating to a particular
agency or program.12
When creating a public records exemption, the Legislature may provide that a record is “exempt”
or “confidential and exempt.” There is a difference between records the Legislature has
determined to be exempt from the Public Records Act and those which the Legislature has
determined to be exempt from the Public Records Act and confidential.13 Records designated as
“confidential and exempt” are not subject to inspection by the public and may only be released
under the circumstances defined by statute.14 Records designated as “exempt” may be released at
the discretion of the records custodian under certain circumstances.15
6
Shevin v. Byron, Harless, Schaffer, Reid and Assoc., Inc., 379 So. 2d 633, 640 (Fla. 1980).
7
Section 119.07(1)(a), F.S.
8
Section 119.10, F.S. Public records laws are found throughout the Florida Statutes, as are the penalties for violating those
laws.
9
FLA. CONST. art. I, s. 24(c).
10
Id. See, e.g., Halifax Hosp. Medical Center v. News-Journal Corp., 724 So. 2d 567 (Fla. 1999) (holding that a public
meetings exemption was unconstitutional because the statement of public necessity did not define important terms and did
not justify the breadth of the exemption); Baker County Press, Inc. v. Baker County Medical Services, Inc., 870 So. 2d 189
(Fla. 1st DCA 2004) (holding that a statutory provision written to bring another party within an existing public records
exemption is unconstitutional without a public necessity statement).
11
See, e.g., s. 119.071(1)(a), F.S. (exempting from public disclosure examination questions and answer sheets of
examinations administered by a governmental agency for the purpose of licensure).
12
See, e.g., s. 213.053(2)(a), F.S. (exempting from public disclosure information contained in tax returns received by the
Department of Revenue).
13
WFTV, Inc. v. The Sch. Bd. of Seminole County, 874 So. 2d 48, 53 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004).
14
Id.
15
Williams v. City of Minneola, 575 So. 2d 683 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991).
BILL: SB 978 Page 4
Open Government Sunset Review Act
The provisions of s. 119.15, F.S., known as the Open Government Sunset Review Act16 (the
Act), prescribe a legislative review process for newly created or substantially amended 17 public
records or open meetings exemptions, with specified exceptions.18 The Act requires the repeal of
such exemption on October 2nd of the fifth year after creation or substantial amendment, unless
the Legislature reenacts the exemption.19
The Act provides that a public records or open meetings exemption may be created or
maintained only if it serves an identifiable public purpose and is no broader than is necessary.20
An exemption serves an identifiable purpose if it meets one of the following purposes and the
Legislature finds that the purpose of the exemption outweighs open government policy and
cannot be accomplished without the exemption:
 It allows the state or its political subdivisions to effectively and efficiently administer a
governmental program, and administration would be significantly impaired without the
exemption;21
 It protects sensitive, personal information, the release of which would be defamatory, cause
unwarranted damage to the good name or reputation of the individual, or would jeopardize
the individual’s safety. If this public purpose is cited as the basis of an exemption, however,
only personal identifying information is exempt;22 or
 It protects information of a confidential nature concerning entities, such as trade or business
secrets.23
The Act also requires specified questions to be considered during the review process.24 In
examining an exemption, the Act directs the Legislature to question the purpose and necessity of
reenacting the exemption.
If the exemption is continued and expanded, then a public necessity statement and a two-thirds
vote for passage are required.25 If the exemption is continued without substantive changes or if
the exemption is continued and narrowed, then a public necessity statement and a two-thirds vote
16
Section 119.15, F.S.
17
An exemption is considered to be substantially amended if it is expanded to include more records or information or to
include meetings as well as records. Section 119.15(4)(b), F.S.
18
Section 119.15(2)(a) and (b), F.S., provides that exemptions required by federal law or applicable solely to the Legislature
or the State Court System are not subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act.
19
Section 119.15(3), F.S.
20
Section 119.15(6)(b), F.S.
21
Section 119.15(6)(b)1., F.S.
22
Section 119.15(6)(b)2., F.S.
23
Section 119.15(6)(b)3., F.S.
24
Section 119.15(6)(a), F.S. The specified questions are:
 What specific records or meetings are affected by the exemption?
 Whom does the exemption uniquely affect, as opposed to the general public?
 What is the identifiable public purpose or goal of the exemption?
 Can the information contained in the records or discussed in the meeting be readily obtained by alternative means?
If so, how?
 Is the record or meeting protected by another exemption?
 Are there multiple exemptions for the same type of record or meeting that it would be appropriate to merge?
25
See generally s. 119.15, F.S.
BILL: SB 978 Page 5
for passage are not required. If the Legislature allows an exemption to expire, the previously
exempt records will remain exempt unless otherwise provided by law.26
The Dozier School
From January 1, 1900, to June 30, 2011, the state operated the Florida State Reform School in
Marianna.27 Over the years, the school has operated under several different names: Florida State
Reform School, Florida Industrial School for Boys, Florida School for Boys, and Arthur G.
Dozier School for Boys (hereinafter, Dozier School). The school originally housed children as
young as five years old, who had committed minor criminal offenses, such as incorrigibility and
truancy. Additionally, many children who had not been charged with a crime were committed to
the school as wards of the state and orphans.28
As early as 1901, reports surfaced of children being chained to walls in irons, brutal whippings,
and peonage (involuntary servitude).29 In the first 13 years of operation, six state-led
investigations took place. Those investigations found that children as young as five years old
were being hired out for labor, unjustly beaten, and were without education or proper food and
clothing.30
In 1955, the state opened a new reform school in Okeechobee to address overcrowding at the
Dozier School.31 Staff members of the Dozier School were transferred to the Florida School for
Boys at Okeechobee (hereinafter, Okeechobee School), where they instituted the same degrading
policies and abusive practices as those implemented at the Dozier School.32
In 2005, former students of the Dozier School began to publish accounts of the abuse they
experienced at the school.33 These stories prompted Governor Charlie Crist to direct the Florida
Department of Law Enforcement to investigate the Dozier School and the deaths that were
alleged and occurred at the school.34
Victims of Florida Reform School Abuse
SB 482 creates the “Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys and Okeechobee School Abuse Victim
Certification Act.” The bill defines a “victim of Florida reform school abuse” as a living person
who was confined at the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys or the Okeechobee School at any
time between 1940 and 1975 and who was subjected to mental, physical, or sexual abuse
26
Section 119.15(7), F.S.
27
Erin H. Kimmerle, Ph.D., E. Christian Wells, Ph.D., and Antoinette Jackson, Ph.D.; Florida Institute for Forensic
Anthropology & Applied Sciences, University of South Florida, Report on the Investigation into the Deaths and Burials at
the Former Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida, pg. 22 (January 18, 2016), available at:
http://mediad.publicbroadcasting.net/p/wusf/files/201601/usf-final-dozier-summary-2016.pdf (last visited January 5, 2022).
28
Id.
29
Id. at 12.
30
Id. at 27.
31
Id. at 22.
32
Id.
33
Id. at 30.
34
Id.
BILL: SB 978 Page 6
perpetrated by personnel of the school during the period of confinement. More than 500 former
students have come forward with reports of physical, mental, and sexual abuse by school staff.
The bill requires a person seeking to be certified as a victim of Florida reform school abuse to
submit an application to the DOS by September 1, 2022. The application must include:
 An affidavit stating:
o That the applicant was confined at the Dozier School or the Okeechobee School;
o The beginning and ending days of the confinement; and
o That the applicant was subjected to mental, physical, or sexual abuse perpetrated by
school personnel during the confinement.
 Documentation from the State Archives of Florida, the Dozier School, or the Okeechobee
School, demonstrating that the applicant was confined at the school for any length of time
between 1940 and 1975; and
 Proof of identification, including a current form of photo ID.
III. Effect of Proposed Changes:
This bill is the public records exemption linked to SB 482. This bill creates a public records
exemption to exempt any personal identifying information on an application submitted to the
DOS by, or on behalf of, a person seeking certification as a victim of Florida reform school
abuse, as defined in the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys and Okeechobee School Abuse Victim
Certification Act. Such information shall be made exempt from s. 119.07(1), F.S., and s. 24(a),
Article I of the State Constitution.
The bill also contains a statement of public necessity as required by s. 24(c), Art. I of the State
Constitution. The public necessity statemen