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 Appropriations
BILL: CS/CS/SB 524
INTRODUCER: Appropriations Committee; Ethics and Elections Committee; and Senator Hutson
SUBJECT: Election Administration
DATE: February 28, 2022 REVISED:
ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR REFERENCE ACTION
1. Biehl Roberts EE Fav/CS
2. Biehl/Hrdlicka Sadberry AP Fav/CS
Please see Section IX. for Additional Information:
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE - Substantial Changes
I. Summary:
CS/CS/SB 524 makes the following changes related to elections:
 Creates the Office of Election Crimes and Security within the Department of State and
revises requirements for special officers who may investigate election law violations;
 Expands the prohibition against use of private donations for election-related expenses to
apply to any kind of expense, including but not limited to the costs of related litigation;
 Increases and creates penalties that may be assessed against a third-party voter registration
organization for certain violations;
 Increases the frequency with which voter registration list maintenance must be conducted,
creates additional requirements for related information that must be provided to the
Department of State, and requires inactive voters to confirm address of legal residence before
being restored to active status;
 Conforms the mailing and canvassing timeframes for all-mail-ballot elections to those for
vote-by-mail ballots in regular elections (effective January 1, 2024);
 Revises the date by which supervised voting must be requested;
 Expands a criminal penalty for early disclosure of election results and requires authorized
observers of vote-by-mail ballot duplication to sign an affidavit acknowledging they are
subject to the penalty;
 Prohibits the use of ranked-choice voting in any election in the state and preempts any
conflicting local ordinances;
 Revises retention, maintenance, and information posting requirements for citizens’ initiative
petition signature forms;
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 Authorizes amendment review processes to be halted if the validity of signatures for an
initiative petition have expired;
 Increases criminal penalties for ballot harvesting and crimes related to ballot petition
signatures;
 Requires county commissioners of single-member districts to run for election after each
decennial redistricting; and
 Requires the Department of State to make specified reports regarding investigations of
election law violations and to submit a plan to use identifying numbers to confirm the
identity of each elector returning a vote-by-mail ballot.
Except as otherwise provided in the bill, the bill takes effect upon becoming a law.
II. Present Situation:
For ease of organization and readability, the present situation is discussed below in conjunction
with the effect of the proposed changes.
III. Effect of Proposed Changes:
Investigations of Violations of Election Laws (Section 3, creating s. 97.022, F.S.; and
Sections 18 and 19, amending ss. 102.091 and 102.101 ,F.S.)
Present Situation
Current law vests jurisdiction to investigate and determine violations of chs. 104 and 106, F.S.,
in the Florida Elections Commission, but does not limit the jurisdiction of any other officers or
agencies of government empowered by law to investigate, act upon, or dispose of alleged
violations of the Election Code.1
In addition, the Secretary of State’s duties include:2
 Maintaining a voter fraud hotline; and
 Conducting preliminary investigations into any irregularities or fraud involving voter
registration, voting, candidate petition, or issue petition activities and reporting his or her
findings to the statewide prosecutor or relevant state attorney, if warranted.
Current law also authorizes the governor to appoint special officers to investigate alleged
violations of election laws, when it is deemed necessary to see that violators of election laws are
apprehended and punished.3 In addition, the sheriff must exercise vigilance in the detection of
any violations of the election laws and in apprehending the violators.
1
Section 106.25(1), F.S.
2
Sections 97.012(12) and (15), F.S.
3
Section 102.091, F.S.
BILL: CS/CS/SB 524 Page 3
Effect of Proposed Changes
The bill creates an Office of Election Crimes and Security (office) within the Department of
State (DOS) to aid the Secretary of State in completion of his or her existing duties by:
 Receiving and reviewing notices and reports generated by government officials or any other
person regarding alleged occurrences of election law violations or election irregularities;
 Initiating independent inquiries and conducting preliminary investigations into allegations of
election law violations or election irregularities; and
 Overseeing the voter fraud hotline.
The bill provides that the office shall:
 Have a director appointed by the Secretary of State;
 Be based in Tallahassee;
 Employ nonsworn investigators to conduct any investigations; and
 Obtain any positions and resources necessary to accomplish its duties via the legislative
appropriations process.
The bill specifies that its provisions do not limit the jurisdiction of any other office or agency of
the state empowered by law to investigate, act upon, or dispose of alleged election law
violations.
Regarding special officers, the bill:
 Requires the governor, in consultation with the executive director of the Florida Department
of Law Enforcement (FDLE), to appoint special officers to investigate alleged violations of
election laws.
 Requires a special officer to be a sworn special agent employed by the FDLE and specifies
that at least one special officer in each operational region of the FDLE must be dedicated to
the investigation of election laws.
 Provides that appointment as a special officer does not preclude a sworn special agent from
conducting other investigations as long as such other investigations do not hinder or interfere
with investigations of alleged violations of election laws.
 Adds special officers to the existing list of law enforcement officials who are prohibited from
entering a polling place without permission from the clerk or a majority of the inspectors.4
The bill requires the DOS to annually report to the governor, the Senate President, and the House
Speaker the following information related to investigations of alleged election law violations or
election irregularities:
 The total number of complaints received and independent investigations initiated and the
number referred to another agency for further investigation or prosecution, including the total
of those sent to a special officer.
 For each violation or irregularity investigated, the source of the alleged violation or
irregularity; the law allegedly violated or the nature of the irregularity reported; the county in
which it occurred; whether it was referred to another agency for further investigation or
prosecution, and if so, to which agency; and the current status of the investigation or
resulting criminal case.
4
See s. 102.101, F.S.
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This report is due each January 15 for activities during the prior calendar year.
Prohibition on Use of Private Donations for Election Administration Expenses (Section 4,
amending s. 97.0291, F.S.)
Present Situation
Current law prohibits an agency or state or local official responsible for conducting elections
from soliciting, accepting, or using any donation from an individual or nongovernmental entity
for the purpose of funding election-related expenses or voter education, outreach, or registration
programs.
Effect of Proposed Changes
The bill expands the prohibition to apply to any type of election administration-related expense,
specifically including, but not limited to, the cost of any related litigation.
Fines Imposed on Third-Party Voter Registration Organizations (Section 6, amending
s. 97.0575, F.S.)
Present Situation
A third-party voter registration organization is any person, entity, or organization soliciting or
collecting voter registration applications, but does not include:5
 A person who seeks only to register to vote or collect a voter registration application from
that person’s spouse, child, or parent; or
 A person engaged in registering to vote or collecting voter registration applications as an
employee or agent of the Division of Elections (division) within the DOS, supervisor of
elections (supervisor), Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV), or a
voter registration agency.6
An organization that collects voter registration applications must deliver each application to the
division or the supervisor in the county in which the applicant resides within 14 days after the
application was completed by the applicant, but not after registration closes for the next ensuing
election. If an organization fails to meet the deadline, it is liable for specified fines. The
aggregate fine which may be assessed against an organization, including affiliate organizations,
for violations committed in a calendar year is $1,000.7
Effect of Proposed Changes
The bill increases the calendar-year aggregate fine cap to $50,000.
5
Section 97.021(40), F.S.
6
A voter registration agency is any office that provides public assistance, any office that serves persons with disabilities, any
center for independent living, or any public library (s. 97.021(44), F.S.).
7
Section 97.0575(3)(a), F.S. The $1,000 cap was established in 2007 (s. 2, ch. 2007-30, Laws of Fla.).
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The bill also creates a new penalty that provides that if a person collecting applications on behalf
of an organization is found guilty of altering an application without consent,8 the organization is
subject to a fine of $1,000 per altered application.
Voter Registration List Maintenance (Sections 7, 8, 9, 10, and 14, amending ss. 98.065,
98.0655, 98.075, 98.093, and 101.043, F.S.)
Present Situation
Current law requires each supervisor to conduct a general voter registration list maintenance
program (program) to ensure accurate and current voter registration records.9 Each program must
be conducted, at a minimum, in each odd-numbered year and must be completed no later than
90 days prior to the start of any federal election,10 as required by the National Voter Registration
Act.
Each supervisor must incorporate in the program one or more of the following options for
identifying change-of-address information:11
 Information supplied by the U.S. Postal Service through its licensees;
 Information identified from returned nonforwardable return-if-undeliverable mail sent to all
registered voters in the county; or
 Information identified from returned nonforwardable return-if-undeliverable address
confirmation requests12 mailed to all registered voters who have not voted in the last two
years and who did not make any written requests that their registration records be updated
during that time.
Current law also requires the DOS to engage in list maintenance activities to ensure the
maintenance of accurate and current voter registration records.13 In part, those activities must
include identifying registered voters who are deceased by comparing information received from
either:14
 The Department of Health (DOH); or
 The U.S. Social Security Administration.
Certain officials are required to provide specified information to the DOS for its use in voter list
maintenance activities.15
8
Section 104.012(4), F.S., makes it a third-degree felony for a person to alter the voter registration application of any other
person without the other person’s knowledge and consent.
9
Section 98.065(1), F.S.
10
Section 98.065(3), F.S.
11
Section 98.065(2), F.S.
12
The address confirmation request is a form prescribed by the Department of State that must include the voter’s name and
address of legal residence as shown on the voter registration record and a request that the voter notify the supervisor if either
the voter’s name or address of legal residence is incorrect (s. 98.0655, F.S.). “Address of legal residence” means the legal
residential address of the elector and includes all information necessary to differentiate one residence from another,
including, but not limited to, a distinguishing apartment, suite, lot, room, or dormitory room number or other identifier
(s. 97.021(3), F.S.).
13
Section 98.075(1), F.S.
14
Section 98.075(3), F.S.
15
Section 98.093, F.S.
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A recent operational audit of the DOS relating to voting systems standards and certification,
voter registration records maintenance, selected administrative activities, and prior audit
follow-up included the following findings:16
 DOS controls over voter registration records maintenance need enhancement to better
identify duplicate registrations and registrations for deceased voters and convicted felons,
and to ensure that potential voter registration record errors are appropriately investigated and
corrected.
 DOS controls for ensuring that persons who register or preregister to vote satisfy statutory
age requirements need improvement.
 DOS records did not always evidence the timely receipt of forms from supervisors certifying
that voter address and voter registration records maintenance activities were conducted in
accordance with state law.
Effect of Proposed Changes
The bill increases the frequency with which each supervisor must conduct a program to at least
once every year. It revises the options for identifying change-of-address information to provide
that each supervisor must:
 Use change-of-address information from the U.S. Postal Service through its licensees and, in
odd-numbered years, identify change-of-address information from returned nonforwardable
return-if-undeliverable address confirmation requests mailed to all registered voters who
have not voted in the last three years and who did not make any written requests that their
registration records be updated during that time; or
 Identify change-of-address information from returned nonforwardable return-if-undeliverable
mail sent to all registered voters in the county.
Regarding voter addresses, the bill:
 Specifies procedures to be followed regarding which addresses should be used in conducting
program activities;
 Requires an inactive voter to confirm his or her current address of legal residence before he
or she may be restored to active status;
 Revises requirements for the address confirmation request form to require it to additionally
include a voter registration application and a notice regarding penalties for submitting false
voter registration information and requires the DOS to create a new identifying number
solicitation form for use in requesting such a number for each voter who does not have one
on file; and
 Clarifies that identification presented at a poll may be used to confirm the voter’s address.
The bill clarifies that a prohibition against removing a voter’s name from the statewide voter
registration system within 90 days of a federal election does not preclude the correction of
registration records based on information submitted by the voter.
16
State of Florida Auditor General, Operational Audit of Department of State, Report No. 2021-096, January 2021,
https://flauditor.gov/pages/pdf_fil