The bill amends Section 877.19 of the Florida Statutes, shifting the responsibility for collecting and disseminating data on hate crimes from the Governor to the Attorney General, through the Department of Law Enforcement. It expands the public records exemption to include data on criminal acts that demonstrate prejudice as defined in sections 775.085 and 775.0863. The Attorney General is now required to publish an annual report instead of a summary, and the bill includes a provision for future review and potential repeal of the expanded exemption.

Additionally, the bill emphasizes the necessity of maintaining the confidentiality of the data collected under the Hate Crimes Reporting Act, ensuring that it is exempt from public records requirements. This is intended to protect the identities of victims while allowing law enforcement and researchers access to more comprehensive data on hate crimes, thereby improving resource allocation and transparency in addressing such incidents. The act will take effect contingent upon the passage of related legislation.

Statutes affected:
H 1031 Filed: 877.19