Bill Text: FL S2058 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Office of Legislative Services

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2012-03-07 - Ordered enrolled -SJ 958 [S2058 Detail]

Download: Florida-2012-S2058-Introduced.html

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       Florida Senate - 2012                                    SB 2058
       
       
       
       By the Committee on Rules
       
       
       
       
       595-02198B-12                                         20122058__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the Office of Legislative Services;
    3         amending ss. 11.045, 11.0455, and 112.3148, F.S.;
    4         providing for duties related to the registration and
    5         reporting of legislative lobbyists to be conducted by
    6         the office rather than the Division of Legislative
    7         Information Services within the office; amending s.
    8         11.242, F.S.; requiring that certain content relating
    9         to the published edition of the Florida Statutes be
   10         determined by the office rather than by the Division
   11         of Statutory Revision within the office; amending s.
   12         119.15, F.S.; requiring that the office, rather than
   13         the Division of Statutory Revision, certify to the
   14         Legislature public records and public meetings
   15         exemptions that are scheduled for repeal; providing an
   16         effective date.
   17  
   18  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   19  
   20         Section 1. Paragraphs (c) through (h) of subsection (1),
   21  paragraph (c) of subsection (2), and paragraphs (a), (b), and
   22  (d) of subsection (3) of section 11.045, Florida Statutes, are
   23  reordered and amended to read:
   24         11.045 Lobbying before the Legislature; registration and
   25  reporting; exemptions; penalties.—
   26         (1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise
   27  requires:
   28         (h)(c) “Office Division” means the Division of Legislative
   29  Information Services within the Office of Legislative Services.
   30         (c)(d) “Expenditure” means a payment, distribution, loan,
   31  advance, reimbursement, deposit, or anything of value made by a
   32  lobbyist or principal for the purpose of lobbying. The term
   33  “expenditure” does not include contributions or expenditures
   34  reported pursuant to chapter 106 or federal election law,
   35  campaign-related personal services provided without compensation
   36  by individuals volunteering their time, any other contribution
   37  or expenditure made by or to a political party or affiliated
   38  party committee, or any other contribution or expenditure made
   39  by an organization that is exempt from taxation under 26 U.S.C.
   40  s. 527 or s. 501(c)(4).
   41         (d)(e) “Legislative action” means introduction,
   42  sponsorship, testimony, debate, voting, or any other official
   43  action on any measure, resolution, amendment, nomination,
   44  appointment, or report of, or any matter that which may be the
   45  subject of action by, either house of the Legislature or any
   46  committee thereof.
   47         (e)(f) “Lobbying” means influencing or attempting to
   48  influence legislative action or nonaction through oral or
   49  written communication or an attempt to obtain the goodwill of a
   50  member or employee of the Legislature.
   51         (f)(g) “Lobbying firm” means any business entity, including
   52  an individual contract lobbyist, which that receives or becomes
   53  entitled to receive any compensation for the purpose of
   54  lobbying, where any partner, owner, officer, or employee of the
   55  business entity is a lobbyist.
   56         (g)(h) “Lobbyist” means a person who is employed and
   57  receives payment, or who contracts for economic consideration,
   58  for the purpose of lobbying, or a person who is principally
   59  employed for governmental affairs by another person or
   60  governmental entity to lobby on behalf of that other person or
   61  governmental entity.
   62         (2) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule, or
   63  may provide by a joint rule adopted by both houses, for the
   64  registration of lobbyists who lobby the Legislature. The rule
   65  may provide for the payment of a registration fee. The rule may
   66  provide for exemptions from registration or registration fees.
   67  The rule shall provide that:
   68         (c) A registrant shall promptly send a written statement to
   69  the office division canceling the registration for a principal
   70  upon termination of the lobbyist’s representation of that
   71  principal. However Notwithstanding this requirement, the office
   72  division may remove the name of a registrant from the list of
   73  registered lobbyists if the principal notifies the office that a
   74  person is no longer authorized to represent that principal.
   75         (3) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule the
   76  following reporting requirements by rule:
   77         (a)1. Each lobbying firm shall file a compensation report
   78  with the office division for each calendar quarter during any
   79  portion of which one or more of the firm’s lobbyists were
   80  registered to represent a principal. The report must shall
   81  include the:
   82         a. Full name, business address, and telephone number of the
   83  lobbying firm;
   84         b. Name of each of the firm’s lobbyists; and
   85         c. Total compensation provided or owed to the lobbying firm
   86  from all principals for the reporting period, reported in one of
   87  the following categories: $0; $1 to $49,999; $50,000 to $99,999;
   88  $100,000 to $249,999; $250,000 to $499,999; $500,000 to
   89  $999,999; $1 million or more.
   90         2. For each principal represented by one or more of the
   91  firm’s lobbyists, the lobbying firm’s compensation report must
   92  shall also include the:
   93         a. Full name, business address, and telephone number of the
   94  principal; and
   95         b. Total compensation provided or owed to the lobbying firm
   96  for the reporting period, reported in one of the following
   97  categories: $0; $1 to $9,999; $10,000 to $19,999; $20,000 to
   98  $29,999; $30,000 to $39,999; $40,000 to $49,999; or $50,000 or
   99  more. If the category “$50,000 or more” is selected, the
  100  specific dollar amount of compensation must be reported, rounded
  101  up or down to the nearest $1,000.
  102         3. If the lobbying firm subcontracts work from another
  103  lobbying firm and not from the original principal:
  104         a. The lobbying firm providing the work to be subcontracted
  105  shall be treated as the reporting lobbying firm’s principal for
  106  reporting purposes under this paragraph; and
  107         b. The reporting lobbying firm shall, for each lobbying
  108  firm identified under subparagraph 2., identify the name and
  109  address of the principal originating the lobbying work.
  110         4. The senior partner, officer, or owner of the lobbying
  111  firm shall certify to the veracity and completeness of the
  112  information submitted pursuant to this paragraph.
  113         (b) For each principal represented by more than one
  114  lobbying firm, the office division shall aggregate the
  115  reporting-period and calendar-year compensation reported as
  116  provided or owed by the principal.
  117         (d) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule, or
  118  both houses may provide by joint rule, a procedure by which a
  119  lobbying firm that fails to timely file a report shall be
  120  notified and assessed fines. The rule must shall provide for the
  121  following:
  122         1. Upon determining that the report is late, the person
  123  designated to review the timeliness of reports shall immediately
  124  notify the lobbying firm as to the failure to timely file the
  125  report and that a fine is being assessed for each late day. The
  126  fine shall be $50 per day per report for each late day, not to
  127  exceed $5,000 per report.
  128         2. Upon receipt of the report, the person designated to
  129  review the timeliness of reports shall determine the amount of
  130  the fine due based upon the earliest of the following:
  131         a. When a report is actually received by the lobbyist
  132  registration and reporting office.
  133         b. When the electronic receipt issued pursuant to s.
  134  11.0455 is dated.
  135         3. Such fine must shall be paid within 30 days after the
  136  notice of payment due is transmitted by the Lobbyist
  137  Registration Office, unless appeal is made to the office
  138  division. The moneys shall be deposited into the Legislative
  139  Lobbyist Registration Trust Fund.
  140         4. A fine may shall not be assessed against a lobbying firm
  141  the first time any reports for which the lobbying firm is
  142  responsible are not timely filed. However, to receive the one
  143  time fine waiver, all reports for which the lobbying firm is
  144  responsible must be filed within 30 days after notice that any
  145  reports have not been timely filed is transmitted by the
  146  Lobbyist Registration Office. A fine shall be assessed for any
  147  subsequent late-filed reports.
  148         5. Any lobbying firm may appeal or dispute a fine, based
  149  upon unusual circumstances surrounding the failure to file on
  150  the designated due date, and may request and is shall be
  151  entitled to a hearing before the General Counsel of the Office
  152  of Legislative Services, who shall recommend to the President of
  153  the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, or
  154  their respective designees, that the fine be waived in whole or
  155  in part for good cause shown. The President of the Senate and
  156  the Speaker of the House of Representatives, or their respective
  157  designees, may concur in the recommendation and waive the fine
  158  in whole or in part. Any such request must shall be made within
  159  30 days after the notice of payment due is transmitted by the
  160  Lobbyist Registration Office. In such case, the lobbying firm
  161  shall, within the 30-day period, notify the person designated to
  162  review the timeliness of reports in writing of his or her
  163  intention to request a hearing.
  164         6. A lobbying firm may request that the filing of a report
  165  be waived upon good cause shown, based on unusual circumstances.
  166  The request must be filed with the General Counsel of the Office
  167  of Legislative Services, who shall make a recommendation
  168  concerning the waiver request to the President of the Senate and
  169  the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The President of
  170  the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives may
  171  grant or deny the request.
  172         7. All lobbyist registrations for lobbyists who are
  173  partners, owners, officers, or employees of a lobbying firm that
  174  fails to timely pay a fine are automatically suspended until the
  175  fine is paid or waived, and the office division shall promptly
  176  notify all affected principals of any suspension or
  177  reinstatement.
  178         8. The person designated to review the timeliness of
  179  reports shall notify the coordinator director of the office
  180  division of the failure of a lobbying firm to file a report
  181  after notice or of the failure of a lobbying firm to pay the
  182  fine imposed.
  183         Section 2. Subsections (2), (4), and (5), paragraph (a) of
  184  subsection (6), and subsection (7) of section 11.0455, Florida
  185  Statutes, are amended to read:
  186         11.0455 Electronic filing of compensation reports and other
  187  information.—
  188         (2) Each lobbying firm that is required to file reports
  189  with the Office Division of Legislative Information Services
  190  pursuant to s. 11.045 must file such reports with the office
  191  division by means of the office’s division’s electronic filing
  192  system.
  193         (4) Each report filed pursuant to this section is deemed
  194  considered to meet the certification requirements of s.
  195  11.045(3)(a)4., and as such subjects the person responsible for
  196  filing and the lobbying firm to the provisions of s. 11.045(7)
  197  and (8). Persons given a secure sign-on to the electronic filing
  198  system are responsible for protecting it from disclosure and are
  199  responsible for all filings using such credentials, unless they
  200  have notified the office division that their credentials have
  201  been compromised.
  202         (5) The electronic filing system developed by the office
  203  division must:
  204         (a) Be based on access by means of the Internet.
  205         (b) Be accessible by anyone with Internet access using
  206  standard web-browsing software.
  207         (c) Provide for direct entry of compensation report
  208  information as well as upload of such information from software
  209  authorized by the office division.
  210         (d) Provide a method that prevents unauthorized access to
  211  electronic filing system functions.
  212         (6) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule, or
  213  may provide by a joint rule adopted by both houses, procedures
  214  to implement and administer this section, including, but not
  215  limited to:
  216         (a) Alternate filing procedures in case the office’s
  217  division’s electronic filing system is not operable.
  218         (7) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule
  219  that the office division make all the data filed available on
  220  the Internet in an easily understood and accessible format. The
  221  Internet website must shall also include, but not be limited to,
  222  the names and business addresses of lobbyists, lobbying firms,
  223  and principals, the affiliations between lobbyists and
  224  principals, and the classification system designated and
  225  identified by each principal pursuant to s. 11.045(2).
  226         Section 3. Paragraph (d) of subsection (4) of section
  227  11.242, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  228         11.242 Powers, duties, and functions as to statutory
  229  revision.—The powers, duties, and functions of the Office of
  230  Legislative Services in the operation and maintenance of a
  231  statutory revision program shall be as follows:
  232         (4) The published edition of the Florida Statutes shall
  233  contain the following:
  234         (d) Such other matters, notes, data, and other material as
  235  may be deemed necessary or admissible by the Division of
  236  Statutory Revision of the Office of Legislative Services for
  237  reference, convenience, or interpretation.
  238         Section 4. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section
  239  112.3148, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  240         112.3148 Reporting and prohibited receipt of gifts by
  241  individuals filing full or limited public disclosure of
  242  financial interests and by procurement employees.—
  243         (5)
  244         (b) However, a person who is regulated by this subsection,
  245  who is not regulated by subsection (6), and who makes, or
  246  directs another to make, an individual gift having a value in
  247  excess of $25, but not in excess of $100, other than a gift that
  248  which the donor knows will be accepted on behalf of a
  249  governmental entity or charitable organization, must file a
  250  report on the last day of each calendar quarter, for the
  251  previous calendar quarter in which a reportable gift is made.
  252  The report shall be filed with the Commission on Ethics, except
  253  with respect to gifts to reporting individuals of the
  254  legislative branch, in which case the report shall be filed with
  255  the Division of Legislative Information Services in the Office
  256  of Legislative Services. The report must contain a description
  257  of each gift, the monetary value thereof, the name and address
  258  of the person making such gift, the name and address of the
  259  recipient of the gift, and the date such gift is given. In
  260  addition, if when a gift is made which requires the filing of a
  261  report under this subsection, the donor must notify the intended
  262  recipient at the time the gift is made that the donor, or
  263  another on his or her behalf, will report the gift under this
  264  subsection. Under this paragraph, a gift need not be reported by
  265  more than one person or entity.
  266         Section 5. Subsection (5) of section 119.15, Florida
  267  Statutes, is amended to read:
  268         119.15 Legislative review of exemptions from public meeting
  269  and public records requirements.—
  270         (5)(a) By June 1 in the year before the repeal of an
  271  exemption under this section, the Division of Statutory Revision
  272  of the Office of Legislative Services shall certify to the
  273  President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
  274  Representatives the language and statutory citation of each
  275  exemption scheduled for repeal the following year.
  276         (b) An Any exemption that is not identified and certified
  277  to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
  278  Representatives is not subject to legislative review and repeal
  279  under this section. If the office division fails to certify an
  280  exemption that it subsequently determines should have been
  281  certified, it shall include the exemption in the following
  282  year’s certification after that determination.
  283         Section 6. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.