SB 642- Relating to Drones
On Tuesday, January 19th, SB 642, relating to Drones, by Senator Miguel Diaz de la Portilla (R-Miami) was heard in its second committee stop of the process in the Senate Commerce and Tourism Committee  and passed with 6 yeas and 1 nay.

Last November, AIF reported on a Senate committee hearing where a harmful tort measure was passed that re-opened the doctrine of joint and several liability. The measure was amended to a bill relating to the operation of drones but that amendment attracted the attention of the business community and several senators spoke against the measure before its approval by the commit-tee. AIF's General Counsel Tammy Perdue led that opposition effort, stressing to the committee the importance of a fair and stable legal climate to Florida's continued economic success.

SB 642 was amended and we are pleased to report that our opposition last fall and our commitment to working with the bill sponsor, Senator Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, paid dividends and the harmful attack on joint and several liability was removed from the bill in committee today.  The bill is now completely contained in the statute regulating drones and not related to negligence. We thank Senator Diaz de la Portilla for his commitment to working with AIF in correcting this bill's focus and preserving the important balance of legal fairness in our state.

The next and final committee stop for this bill will be the Senate Rules Committee .

SB 562- Relating to Consumer Debt Collection
On Tuesday, January 19th, SB 562, relating to Consumer Debt Collection, by Senator Kelli Stargel (R-Lakeland) was also heard in front of the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee and passed with 7 yeas and 3 nays. AIF stood in support of this bill.

SB 562 provides that, when the person collecting a debt is aware that the consumer is represented by an attorney with respect to the debt, the debt collector would only be prohibited from contacting the consumer when the debt collector “has knowledge of” the name and address of the debtor’s attorney. The issue with the statute is that it does not define how a consumer or a consumer attorney should put the person that is attempting to collect the money owed on notice of the attorney representation, therefore, prohibition of contacting a consumer of monies owed does not apply if:

• The consumer’s attorney fails to provide notice of representation to the person collecting the debt at the address designated by the person collecting the debt. 
• The consumer or his or her attorney fails to send the notice by certified mail to the person collecting the debt at the address designated by the person that the debtor is represented by an attorney. The bill also allows the Office of Financial Regulation to adopt rules for notice of representation and receipt of response

This bill will now proceed to its second committee stop in the Senate Commerce and Tourism Committee.

AIF supports this legislation that eliminates a current scam against Florida’s employers while also protecting legitimate debt collection processes by companies. 

HB 761-Relating to Fraudulent Activities Associated with Payment Systems
On Tuesday, January 19th, HB 761, relating to Fraudulent Activities Associated with Payment Systems, by Rep. Dana Young (R-Tampa) was heard before the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee and unanimously passed with 11 yeas and 0 nays. AIF’s Senior Vice President of State and Federal Affairs, Brewster Bevis, stood in support of this bill.

HB 761 addresses “skimming” at gas stations, specifically at gas pumps themselves, which has become a significant issue in the state of Florida. “Skimmers” are typically found on the gas pumps themselves, disguised as the usual everyday credit card reader. Unbeknownst to the customer, their credit card information is stolen.

During recent investigations, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS) has found that skimmed payment information is being used as part of elaborate fraud schemes to purchase hundreds of gallons of gas that is pumped into unapproved, hidden gas tanks in vans, SUVs, and trucks. Such gas is then usually resold by the criminals to independent truck drivers at a fraction of its usual cost.

To establish greater protection for consumer payment information and enhance penalties for crimes involved in the fraud schemes, the bill:

• Requires owners and operators of retail fuel pumps in this state to install a security measure that hinders or prohibits the unauthorized opening of the panel on the fuel pump which leads to the scanning device used for customer payment.
• Increases the penalty for the offense of unlawfully conveying and fraudulently obtaining fuel from an unranked third degree felony to a second degree felony ranked as a Level 5 offense on the Offense Severity Ranking Chart (OSRC).
•  Reduces the number of counterfeit credit cards or related specified documents required to constitute second degree felony trafficking from 10 to five and ranks this felony as a Level 5 offense on the OSRC.
• Creates a second degree felony ranked as a Level 5 offense on the OSRC for the offense of possessing five or more counterfeit credit cards or related specified documents.
  

HB 761 will now go to the House Appropriations Committee.

AIF supports this legislation due to it cracking down on theft from Florida retailers while also protecting Florida's consumers. 

SB 1086-Relating to Prejudgment Interest
On Wednesday, January 20th, SB 1086, relating to Prejudgment Interest by Senator Rob Bradley (R-Orange Park) was heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee  and passed with 9 yeas and 1 nay after much debate and the adoption of two significant amendments.

The bill would apply pre-judgment interest to any negligence action where they plaintiff is entitled to recover economic/monetary damages. The two amendments adopted excluded attorney’s fees from the interest application and removed provisions from the bill which applied its measures retroactively. AIF General Counsel, Tammy Perdue, testified in opposition to the bill since it will drive the cost of litigation and force defendants to pay greater damage amounts due to delays that their actions did not cause or that could be deliberately incurred by the plaintiff simply to drive up the interest award. AIF was pleased that several senators today noted concerns with the bill and anticipate additional improvements prior to it reaching the full Senate floor.

SB 1086 will head to its second committee stop in the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice.

AIF opposes legislation that will increase the already daunting costs of litigation on Florida’s businesses.

SB 196- Relating to Public Records/State –Funded Infrastructure Bank
On Wednesday, January 20th, SB 196, relating to Public Records/State-funded Infrastructure Bank, by Senator Travis Hutson (R-Palm Coast) was heard today in the Senate Rules Committee , this bills last committee stop, and reportedly favorably with a vote of 11 yeas to 2 nays. AIF stood in support of this bill.

Currently, the state-funded infrastructure bank (SIB) is housed within Department of Transportation (department). The SIB provides loans and credit enhancements to public and private entities for constructing and improving transportation facilities. This bill creates a public record exemption for the financial statements or other financial information that is required for the application to the SIB. However, the public records exemption does not apply to the financial records of an applicant who is in default of an SIB loan.

This exemption is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act and will be repealed on October 2, 2021 unless this bill is reenacted by the Legislature.

SB 196 will now go to the Senate floor for consideration.

AIF supports protecting the financial information of private companies.

HB 273- Relating to Public Records
On Thursday, January 21st, HB 273, relating to Public Records, by Rep. Halsey Beshears (R-Monticello) was considered by the House State Affairs Committee and passed with 15 yeas and 1 nay. AIF’s Senior Vice President of State and Federal Affairs, Brewster Bevis, stood in support of this bill.

This bill addresses the procedure for obtaining records relating to a public agency’s contract for services with a private contractor. As it stands today, the Florida Constitution provides every person the right to inspect or copy any public record made or received in connection with the official business of any public body, officer, or employee of the state, or of persons acting on their behalf.
However, the issue is who the party responsible for providing these public records is. If this bill becomes law, requests for records relating to a public agency’s contract for services must be made to the contracting agency. An agency who receives a request for records possessed by a contractor must then attempt to obtain the records from the contractor.

HB 273 also provides that if a civil action is filed to compel production of public records, the court must assess and award against the contractor the reasonable costs of enforcement, including attorney fees, if the court determines that a contractor unlawfully refused to comply with the public records request within a reasonable time, and the plaintiff provided written notice of the public records request to the public agency and the contractor. The notice must be sent at least 8 business days before the plaintiff files the civil action. The bill specifies that a contractor who complies with the public records request within 8 business days after the notice is sent is not liable for the reasonable costs of enforcement.

This bill will now head to the House floor for consideration.

AIF supports legislation that reduces frivolous law suits against Florida businesses.