THE BILL ITSELF
SB 1792
Public Records/Pawnbroker Transactions
Florida Senate - 2026 SB 1792 By Senator Yarborough 4-02252-26 20261792__
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A bill to be entitled
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An act relating to public records; amending s.
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539.003, F.S.; expanding the exemption from public
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records requirements for records relating to
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pawnbroker transactions to include those records
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delivered to the Department of Law Enforcement;
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providing for future legislative review and repeal of
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the exemption; providing a statement of public
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necessity; providing a contingent effective date.
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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Section 1. Section 539.003, Florida Statutes, is amended to
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read:
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539.003 Confidentiality.—
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(1) All records relating to pawnbroker transactions
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delivered to appropriate law enforcement officials and the
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Department of Law Enforcement pursuant to s. 539.001 are
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confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and
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s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution and may be used only
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for official law enforcement purposes. This section does not
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prohibit the disclosure by the appropriate law enforcement
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officials or the Department of Law Enforcement of the name and
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address of the pawnbroker, the name and address of the conveying
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customer, or a description of pawned property to the alleged
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owner of pawned property.
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(2) This section is subject to the Open Government Sunset
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Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed
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on October 2, 2031, unless reviewed and saved from repeal
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through reenactment by the Legislature.
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Section 2. The Legislature finds that it is a public
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necessity that the records relating to pawnbroker transactions
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which are delivered to the Department of Law Enforcement be made
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confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1), Florida Statutes, and
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s. 24(a), Article I of the State Constitution. Such records
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contain sensitive personal identifying information from pawn
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transactions, such as the pledgor’s or seller’s name, address,
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telephone number, birth date, physical description, and right
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thumbprint. Access to such sensitive information would expose
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pledgors and sellers to increased risks of identity theft. The
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Legislature finds that expanding the public records exemption to
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include records of pawnbroker transactions delivered to the
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Department of Law Enforcement helps ensure uniformity with the
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current exemption when such records are delivered to other law
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enforcement officials and protects the effective administration
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of statewide data sharing of secondhand dealer transactions. The
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Legislature further finds that the harm that may result from the
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release of such personal identifying information outweighs any
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public benefit that may be derived from the disclosure of the
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information.
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Section 3. This act shall take effect on the same date that
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SB 1582 or similar legislation takes effect, if such legislation
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is adopted in the same legislative session or an extension
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thereof and becomes a law