Florida’s open records don’t need sunblock

Every year, lawmakers chip away at Florida’s presumption that governmental records should be open to the public. Some of the exemptions are narrowly drawn and reasonable, blocking access to sensitive financial data or private health records. But others go overboard, shutting down public records that could assist in research or reveal troubling patterns of behavior by government employees. This is one area where Democratic lawmakers could — if they chose — stand up for Floridians. Republicans control the House and have a majority in the Senate. But public records exemptions require a two-thirds vote to pass, and Democrats hold enough seats to thwart sunshine-blocking bills. The party’s leaders should seize the opportunity to stand up for Florida’s right to oversee its government. And principled Republicans should stand with them, because some of these bills could do significant harm to governmental accountability in Florida.

Among the bills that should be blocked:

HB 1141/SB 1614 Would exempt almost all of the identifying information from motor-vehicle crash reports. This information is already held confidential for 60 days following a collision, but sealing it permanently could be used to hide evidence of unfairly favorable (or harassing) behavior by police, and thwart researchers who want to analyze records in an attempt to make state roads safer.

HB 1513/SB 1550 Would exempt records of autopsies of minors who died of domestic violence. As harrowing as these records can be, they have at times been critical in spotting patterns of foster-care abuse.

HB 773/SB 1046 Would exempt geolocation data for police vehicles. Some law-enforcement agencies claim this information — which uses GPS to pinpoint the location of law enforcement vehicles over time — might reveal surveillance patterns or compromise ongoing investigations.

But it could also help the public understand how police resources — which they pay for with their taxes — are distributed throughout their communities. Ten years ago the South Florida Sun-Sentinel used this data to prove that many law-enforcement officers routinely violated the speed limit while driving official vehicles.

HB 873/SB 1204 Would hide the identities of anyone “involved” in the execution of a condemned criminal, as well as specifics about the mechanics of an execution and the mixture of drugs used. Florida has a dismal track record of botching executions, and if that happens again, this law could make it difficult to figure out what went wrong and how to prevent a brutal recurrence.

HB 703/SB 520 Would exempt the identity of candidates applying for the presidency of a state university or college through most of the process. This legislation comes up year after year, but this year the stakes are higher. Four of the state’s universities — including the flagship University of Florida — will be searching for new presidents, and these positions will be among the highest-paid positions in state government. Floridians need to know if powerful state politicians are maneuvering to grab these plum jobs for themselves — and whether any of the candidates is carrying baggage that would reflect badly on the institutions they seek to lead.

SB 7006 Extends an existing exemption for emergency response plans drafted by state colleges and universities. The original intent of this legislation was to hide details on how campus officials might respond to a potential terrorist attack — but during the pandemic it was also used by administrators who didn’t want to disclose their plans for dealing with COVID outbreaks. As the sponsor of the original legislation pointed out, that is far outside the bill’s original intent. This bill has passed the Senate, but the House should amend it to make it clear that it doesn’t apply to outbreaks of contagious diseases.