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Miami Herald loses appeal of “black outs” in public records

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public records

A Florida appeals court has ruled that state agencies don’t have to give a specific reason when they black out an individual bit of information in a document produced under a public-records request. Specifically, a three-judge panel of the the 1st District Court of Appeal said the state’s “Public Records Act does not require agencies to specifically identify the statutory exemption relied upon for each redaction on a redaction-by-redaction basis.” But one of the judges separately warned that Monday’s opinion…

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Abortion, budget, tax cuts among new Florida laws

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Florida legislators passed 279 bills during this year’s session three months ago, and 162 of them take effect on Friday with the start of the state’s fiscal year, affecting school choice, abortion, tax cuts and many more aspects of life in the Sunshine State. Here’s a roundup of some of the measures taking effect: BUDGET: The $82.3 billion budget was passed by a combined vote of 159-1. It includes more than $700 million for school construction and $203.8 million for…

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Rick Scott signs raft of 33 bills into law

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A day after signing nine bills into law on Wednesday, Gov. Rick Scott gave final approval to 33 bills passed during the 2016 Legislative Session late Thursday morning. The raft of newly enacted legislation includes HB 93 by Democratic Rep. Shevrin Jones, which requires Florida law enforcement agencies to “establish policies and procedures regarding the use” of police body cameras. The bill does not require all police to actually use the cameras, but it does appear it could hasten the arrival of police body cameras…

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Obtaining police emails can take months, cost thousands

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When the editor of a gay-oriented newspaper in Florida requested records that he thought should be public, he cast a wide net, asking that the email of every employee of the Broward County Sheriff’s Office be searched for specific gay slurs over a five-month period. The sheriff’s office initially told Jason Parsley that his request would cost $399,000, take four years and require the hiring of a dedicated staffer. The response set off a public-records marathon that lasted nearly a…

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In Florida, most legislative documents are public records

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When Florida state House Minority Leader Mark Pafford puts a 6 a.m. workout before his legislative meetings on his daily schedule, it’s a public record. When concerned parent Kimberly Jones of Plantation emails House Speaker Steve Crisafulli saying she has two children going to Florida State University and wants him to oppose a bill allowing guns on college campuses, that’s a public record too. Reporters and other members of the public can get copies of those and almost all other…

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More bills headed to Rick Scott for signing

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The bill train to Gov. Rick Scott continued Tuesday, with another packet of legislation heading to his desk for review and possible signature. The latest bills include: HB 59 – Relating to Agritourism – Prohibits local government from regulating “agritourism” activity on land classified as agricultural. HB 75 – Relating to Electronic Monitoring Devices – Prohibits the wearer of such a device from “removing, destroying, altering, tampering with, damaging, or circumventing operation.” HB 91 – Relating to Severe Injuries Caused…

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Today on Context Florida: Public records, forfeitures, scam artists, Key West housing and risks & reward

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Today on Context Florida: They call us the Sunshine State, but Diane Roberts says Florida’s government prefers to operate in the shadows. Like vampire bats, cockroaches and mold spores. If you can’t see what the government is doing, you can’t fight it. That explains the 74 public records exemption bills before the Legislature this session. Yes, Robert says, there are 74 new attacks on your right to know what’s going on. There’s CS/HB 905, the Matt Gaetz Mug Shot Relief Act,…

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