Florida Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Florida, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Is Florida's Education Practices Commission, which disciplines teachers and school administrators, treated as a 'state agency' for purposes of the public records law, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the open-meetings rules?
Yes. The AG read the EPC as a state agency for purposes of chapter 119 (public records), chapter 120 (APA), and chapter 286 (open meetings).
Can a Florida public agency hire a third-party cybersecurity firm to do penetration testing on its computers, knowing that during the test the vendor might see records (like Social Security numbers and law enforcement officers' home addresses) that are confidential or exempt under Florida's public records law?
Yes, with conditions. The AG concluded that incidental access to confidential or exempt records during properly scoped penetration testing under a confidentiality agreement does not violate Chapter 11…
Can a Florida town close meetings and records about security plans for school facilities under the security-system exemption to the Sunshine Law?
Records that directly reveal a security system plan (as defined in § 119.071(3)(a)) are confidential and exempt from public-records disclosure. Meetings are exempt only for the portions in which those…
Is the list of Twitter accounts an elected official has blocked from their personal feed a public record under Florida's Sunshine Law?
The AG declined to answer because the question turned on facts the office could not resolve. The informal comments said that if the official's tweets themselves were public records (made in connection…
Is a settlement demand letter sent to a Florida city a public record?
Responding informally to the Town of Miami Lakes, the Attorney General's office did not issue a formal ruling but pointed the town to the 2015 Government-in-the-Sunshine Manual, which collects court d…
Are job applications sent to a Florida public agency public records, even unopened ones?
Job applications received by a Florida public agency are public records under Chapter 119, open to inspection and copying once received, even if the agency never opened them. An agency cannot 'seal' j…
Are a public agency's security camera surveillance tapes exempt from Florida's public records law?
No. The Attorney General concluded that surveillance video from a public agency's security cameras, here the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, is confidential and exempt from disclosure. While the …
Are the names of undercover police officers on a department roster a public record in Florida?
The Attorney General advised that the names of undercover officers, even when they appear on a general personnel roster that does not flag their undercover status, can be 'information revealing underc…
Does Florida law require redacting or distorting a 911 caller's voice before releasing the recording?
The Attorney General advised that section 365.171(12), Florida Statutes, makes confidential the identifying information in an E911 call (the caller's name, address, telephone number, and personal info…
When is a private organization like a chamber of commerce subject to Florida's public records and Sunshine laws?
It depends on what the private organization actually does. The Attorney General's office explained that simply contracting with a public agency or receiving public funds does not, by itself, make a pr…
Does leaking what was said in a closed shade meeting violate Florida's Sunshine Law?
Not the Sunshine Law itself. The AG advised that a council member who spoke publicly about strategy from a closed attorney-client shade meeting under section 286.011(8) did not violate the Sunshine La…
Can a Florida public hospital keep its sale-or-lease evaluation secret as a strategic plan?
No. The AG advised that the evaluation a public hospital board must perform under section 155.40(5) before selling or leasing the hospital is not a 'strategic plan' under section 395.3035. The board c…
Is a video recording of a Florida school board meeting a public record?
Likely yes. The AG advised that a video of a school board meeting, made at a board member's direction and intended to perpetuate the discussion, appears to be a public record under Chapter 119, especi…
Does a Florida property appraiser have to keep a protected officer's home address confidential even if that officer does not own the property?
The AG advised yes on both points. The home-address exemption in section 119.071(4)(d) protects listed officials (law enforcement, judges, prosecutors, code officers, and others) regardless of whether…
Can a private vendor use a non-disclosure clause to keep its contract terms and pricing secret from public records requests in Florida?
The AG gave general comments rather than ruling on the specific case, since it cannot comment on another agency's actions without that agency's request. Florida's Public Records Act is read broadly in…
Does every private contractor that signs a contract with a Florida public agency have to follow the Public Records Law?
No, not automatically. The AG concluded that section 119.0701's public-records requirements apply only to contractors who both contract with a public agency and are 'acting on behalf of' that agency, …
Does Florida's Sunshine Law require a city commission to approve the final written employment contract at a public meeting if the terms were already approved publicly?
No. The AG concluded that the Sunshine Law does not require a town commission to present, consider, and re-approve a final drafted employment contract at a public meeting when the terms were already a…
After a Florida lawsuit ends in a dismissal with prejudice, can a public board keep its closed-meeting transcripts secret because a related derivative claim was filed?
No. The AG concluded that a dismissal with prejudice is the conclusion of the litigation, so under section 286.011(8)(e) the transcripts of the board's closed strategy meetings become public record. T…
Can a public records requester plug in their own hard drive to copy a Florida agency's database directly?
No. The AG concluded that the Village of Palmetto Bay does not have to let a requester copy its database directly onto the requester's own hard drive, because doing so would expose exempt and confiden…
Can a Florida agency charge a fee to email public records instead of making paper copies?
Only narrowly. The Attorney General concluded that an agency may charge the 'actual cost of duplication' for records sent by email in place of photocopying, but that cost covers only materials and sup…
Do Florida's Sunshine Law and public records litigation exemptions last through the appeals process?
Generally yes, through appeals. The Attorney General's office gave general guidance that the phrase 'conclusion of the litigation' in both the Government in the Sunshine Law (section 286.011(8)) and t…
Is a Florida airport authority an 'economic development agency' that can keep business records confidential?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the St. Augustine - St. Johns County Airport Authority is not an 'economic development agency' as defined in section 288.075, Florida Statutes, so it cannot use…
Do Florida criminal investigative records stay exempt from public records after the case is over?
The office explained that section 119.071's exemption for criminal intelligence and investigative information only applies while the information is 'active.' Once a case has been resolved, the informa…
Can a Florida county refuse to release the booking photo of an arrested police officer?
The office advised that a current or former law enforcement officer's photograph, including a booking 'mug shot,' is exempt from the mandatory public-records disclosure in section 119.07(1), so the co…
Can a Florida school board remove or destroy an employee evaluation that was filed without following the statute?
No. The AG concluded that an assessment of an assistant superintendent's performance was a public record and part of his personnel file even though the superintendent filed it without discussing it wi…
How long does a Florida law enforcement agency have to keep evidence when no charges were filed?
There is no single statewide rule, and the AG declined to set one. For evidence that is a public record under Chapter 119, an agency may dispose of it only under the Division of Library and Informatio…
Can a Florida agency make a public-records requester give a mailing address, show up in person, or explain why they want the records?
No. The Attorney General's office explained that under Chapter 119 an agency cannot make a requester provide a mailing address, appear in person, or reveal why they want the records. The 'reasonable c…
Does a nonprofit foundation set up by a Florida city to raise money have to follow public records and open meetings laws?
Yes. The Biscayne Park Foundation, a nonprofit the village created and controls as its 'fundraising arm,' is an 'agency' under Chapter 119, so its records are open, and it is also subject to the open-…
Are a government employee's private handwritten notes public records that the public can demand to see in Florida?
Not necessarily. Personal notes a public employee makes only to help remember things, that have not been transcribed or shown to anyone and were not meant to perpetuate, communicate, or formalize know…
Can a county inspector general share a whistle-blower's confidential complaint with the county ethics commission?
Only for the limited purpose of carrying out a whistle-blower investigation. Because Palm Beach County designated both its inspector general and its ethics commission as officials authorized to receiv…
Are a Florida county inspector general's investigation records and meetings confidential under the Sunshine and Public Records laws?
Partly. The 2010 public-records and open-meeting exemption (Chapter 2010-130) covered the Palm Beach County Inspector General only when investigating ethics-code complaints. Investigations of waste, i…
Does Florida's home-address exemption for police protect a former officer's old addresses, and must he request it?
Two points. First, a former law enforcement officer now working for a town in a non-police job had to ask in writing to keep the public-records exemption for his home address, because the town was a r…
Are red-light and speed-camera infraction notices public records in Florida, or confidential under driver-privacy law?
Yes. The office advised that section 119.0712(2), Florida Statutes, and the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act protect personal information held by the state motor vehicle department, but once a …
Do my confidential tax returns stay private if I use them to appeal my property assessment to a value adjustment board?
Not once you submit them as evidence. In informal comments, the office explained that tax returns are confidential in the hands of the property appraiser under section 193.074, but its prior opinion (…
Can a Florida charter school avoid nepotism rules by having a committee make hiring decisions, and are that committee's meetings public?
Partly. The AG concluded that creating a three-member team to make hiring, promotion, and discipline decisions would not by itself violate the charter school nepotism statute, section 1002.33(24), bec…
Is a letter sent to a Florida agency by mistake a public record that anyone can request?
Maybe, and the agency decides. The office gave informal comments explaining that whether a document is a public record is controlled by the statutory definition in section 119.011(12), not by the send…
Is a driver's license number in a Florida police report public, and what motor vehicle records are confidential?
A driver's license number that appears in a law enforcement officer's report is not confidential and is subject to public disclosure, no matter how the officer obtained it. Separately, 'personal infor…
Does a Florida clerk of court have to record a document someone claims is an 'agreement'?
It depends, and the clerk decides. The office gave informal comments noting that a clerk may not record a document the law does not authorize or require to be recorded, and that section 28.222(3)(a) l…
Are government text messages and BlackBerry PIN messages public records that must be kept in Florida?
This was a policy letter, not a legal opinion answering a question. Attorney General Bill McCollum wrote to the Secretary of State after a Public Service Commission controversy over BlackBerry PIN mes…
Who keeps the records when a county supervisor of elections runs a city's election under contract?
The city, in the office's general view, but the contract and charter control. The office could not resolve the custodian question because it turns on a mixed question of fact and law (the terms of the…
When must a Florida agency release social security numbers to a commercial company that asks for them?
The AG concluded the two statutory subsections on releasing agency-held social security numbers do not conflict and must be read together: an agency may not deny a qualifying commercial entity that su…
Is a private economic-development nonprofit subject to Florida's Sunshine and public records laws?
This informal letter declined to issue a formal opinion (the office could only address the legislators' own official duties). On the facts provided, it concluded that Florida's Great Northwest, Inc., …
Can Florida city commissioners submit written questions to staff before a meeting without breaking the Sunshine Law?
The office did not flatly prohibit the plan but flagged two problems. Routing commissioners' questions through the city manager and back to all commissioners risks becoming a de facto meeting if staff…
When a Florida special taxing unit is replaced by a new district, who gets its old public records?
Attorney General Bill McCollum concluded that the public records of the Spring Hill Fire & Rescue District Municipal Services Benefit Unit should be delivered under section 119.021(4) to the records c…
Are teacher-made practice tests for AP exams public records you can request from a Florida school district?
Attorney General Bill McCollum concluded that student assessment tests developed by teachers to measure preparedness for college board advanced placement exams are confidential and exempt from the ins…
Can you get an outside auditor's working papers for a city audit through a Florida public records request?
In an informal opinion, the Attorney General's office explained that under section 473.318, a CPA's working papers remain the private property of the firm, except for reports given to the client or re…
Can a Florida newspaper get the names and addresses of people who made 911 medical calls from county EMS records?
Attorney General Bill McCollum concluded that the entire record of an emergency call containing patient examination or treatment information is confidential and exempt from the public records law unde…
Are a Florida city commissioner's private handwritten meeting notes public records the public can request?
In an informal opinion, Assistant Attorney General Lagran Saunders explained that handwritten notes a city commissioner takes purely for personal use, not intended to perpetuate, communicate, or forma…
Can a Florida board member share a written report with other members before a public meeting without violating the Sunshine Law?
In an informal letter, Assistant Attorney General Joslyn Wilson noted that this office could only issue a formal opinion if a majority of the board requested it. As general guidance, the letter explai…
Is a Florida city's Facebook page a public record, and does the Sunshine Law apply to it?
Mostly yes. Because a city's Facebook page must serve a municipal purpose, the AG presumed its contents are public records under Chapter 119, subject to records-retention schedules, and that constitut…
Can a Florida school district delay releasing payroll records so employees can claim exemptions?
Mostly no. The AG's office explained that the Public Records Law sets no fixed deadline but allows only a limited reasonable time to retrieve records and redact exempt portions. Payroll deduction reco…
Are a Florida school employee's tax withholding records public under the public records law?
No, they are confidential. The AG concluded that a school board employee's tax information on the payroll database (Federal Withholding, FICA, and Medicare deductions) qualifies as 'payroll deduction …
Can a settled employment discrimination complaint be kept confidential under Florida public records law?
No. The AG concluded that the confidentiality exemption in section 119.071(2)(g)2. applies only when the alleged victim chooses not to file or pursue a discrimination complaint. Once someone has filed…
Can a Florida city council member post how they plan to vote on a blog or in the newspaper?
The Hallandale Beach City Attorney asked whether a council member could publish his planned vote on a blog or in the newspaper, and whether the city could ban that. The AG explained that simply postin…
Can a Florida state agency keep a company's trade secrets confidential under the public records law?
The Division of Plant Industry asked whether it could protect confidential business information so it could join a USDA biotechnology pilot. The AG concluded that the division's authorized representat…
Can a Florida school district delay a public records request to let employees claim an exemption?
A school superintendent asked whether HIPAA let the district withhold the identities of employees in its self-insured health plan, and whether it could pause a public records request to let employees …
Is a private nonprofit community land trust that runs a city's affordable-housing program covered by Florida's open-meetings and public-records laws?
The AG agreed with the Delray Beach city attorney that the Delray Beach Community Land Trust, although a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is an 'agency' subject to both the Government in the Sunshine Law …
Are the names and addresses of government employees covered by a public group health plan public records in Florida?
In informal comments, the AG's office concluded that Florida's exemptions clearly protect the medical condition information of employees and dependents in a public group insurance plan (sections 112.0…
Does Florida's public-records exemption for police officers' personal information stop a private company like Intelius from publishing it?
In informal comments, the AG's office corrected a police chief's assertion that disclosing an officer's identity is illegal. Section 119.071(4)(d) exempts the home addresses, phone numbers, Social Sec…
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Attorney general opinions in Florida are written by the Florida Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.