SESSION WATCH
THE BILL ITSELF

CS/HB 269

Victims of Domestic Violence and Dating Violence

VERSION H 269 c1 · BACK TO THE SUMMARY · OFFICIAL RECORD

underlined language is being added; struck language is being deleted. Line numbers are the Legislature's own — the same ones amendments cite.

1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to victims of domestic violence and
3 dating violence; providing definitions; requiring the
4 Division of Telecommunications within the Department
5 of Management Services to consult with certain
6 entities to conduct a feasibility study regarding a
7 specified alert system; providing requirements for
8 such alert system; requiring the division to report to
9 the Legislature the results of the feasibility study
10 by a specified date; amending s. 741.401, F.S.;
11 revising legislative findings to include victims of
12 dating violence; amending s. 741.402, F.S.; defining
13 the term "dating violence"; amending s. 741.403, F.S.;
14 authorizing victims of dating violence to apply to
15 participate in the Attorney General's address
16 confidentiality program; amending ss. 741.408,
17 741.4651, and 960.001, F.S.; conforming provisions to
18 changes made by the act; providing an effective date.
20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
22 Section 1. Domestic and dating violence 911 alert system
23 feasibility study.—
24 (1) As used in this section, the term:
25 (a) "Division" means the Division of Telecommunications
26 within the Department of Management Services.
27 (b) "Enhanced 911" has the same meaning as in s.
28 365.172(3), Florida Statutes.
29 (c) "Next Generation 911" has the same meaning as in s.
30 365.172(3), Florida Statutes.
31 (d) "Public safety agency" has the same meaning as in s.
32 365.172(3), Florida Statutes.
33 (e) "Public safety answering point" or "PSAP" has the same
34 meaning as in s. 365.172(3), Florida Statutes.
35 (2) The division shall consult with enhanced 911 and Next
36 Generation 911 service providers; state, county, and municipal
37 PSAPs; and state and local public safety agencies to conduct a
38 feasibility study regarding the creation of a web-based 911
39 alert system for use by victims of domestic violence and dating
40 violence which is capable of:
41 (a) Ensuring real-time data-sharing between PSAPs and law
42 enforcement agencies.
43 (b) Creating a unique telephone number for each user which
44 will connect the user to a PSAP.
45 (c) Creating a user-generated numerical code or phrase
46 that can be used by the user after contacting a PSAP and that
47 indicates the user's need for immediate law enforcement
48 assistance.
49 (d) Transmitting specified data to law enforcement
50 agencies when a user calls from his or her unique telephone
51 number and enters his or her numerical code or phrase.
52 (3) By January 31, 2027, the division shall report to the
53 President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
54 Representatives the results of the feasibility study. Section 2. Section 741.401, Florida Statutes, is amended
56 to read:
57 741.401 Legislative findings; purpose.—The Legislature
58 finds that persons attempting to escape from actual or
59 threatened domestic violence or dating violence frequently
60 establish new addresses in order to prevent their assailants or
61 probable assailants from finding them. The purpose of ss.
62 741.401-741.409 is to enable state and local agencies to respond
63 to requests for public records without disclosing the location
64 of a victim of domestic violence or dating violence, to enable
65 interagency cooperation with the Attorney General in providing
66 address confidentiality for victims of domestic violence and
67 dating violence, and to enable state and local agencies to
68 accept a program participant's use of an address designated by
69 the Attorney General as a substitute mailing address.
70 Section 3. Section 741.402, Florida Statutes, is amended
71 to read:
72 741.402 Definitions; ss. 741.401-741.409.—Unless the
73 context clearly requires otherwise, as used in ss. 741.401-
74 741.409, the term:
75 (1) "Address" means a residential street address, school
76 address, or work address of an individual, as specified on the
77 individual's application to be a program participant under ss.
78 741.401-741.409.
79 (2) "Dating violence" means any assault, aggravated
80 assault, battery, aggravated battery, sexual assault, sexual
81 battery, stalking, aggravated stalking, kidnapping, false
82 imprisonment, or any criminal offense resulting in physical
83 injury or death, or the threat of any such act, committed by an
84 individual who has or has had a continuing and significant
85 relationship of a romantic or intimate nature as determined by
86 the factors listed in s. 784.046(1)(d) with the victim,
87 regardless of whether these acts or threats have been reported
88 to law enforcement officers.
89 (3) "Domestic violence" means an act as defined in s.
90 741.28 and includes a threat of such acts committed against an
91 individual in a domestic situation, regardless of whether these
92 acts or threats have been reported to law enforcement officers.
93 (4)(2) "Program participant" means a person certified as a
94 program participant under s. 741.403.
95 Section 4. Paragraphs (a) and (d) of subsection (1) of
96 section 741.403, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
97 741.403 Address confidentiality program; application;
98 certification.—
99 (1) An adult person, a parent or guardian acting on behalf
100 of a minor, or a guardian acting on behalf of a person
101 adjudicated incapacitated under chapter 744 may apply to the
102 Attorney General to have an address designated by the Attorney
103 General serve as the person's address or the address of the
104 minor or incapacitated person. To the extent possible within
105 funds appropriated for this purpose, the Attorney General shall
106 approve an application if it is filed in the manner and on the
107 form prescribed by the Attorney General and if it contains all
108 of the following:
109 (a) A sworn statement by the applicant that the applicant
110 has good reason to believe that the applicant, or the minor or
111 incapacitated person on whose behalf the application is made, is
112 a victim of domestic violence or dating violence, and that the
113 applicant fears for his or her safety or his or her children's
114 safety or the safety of the minor or incapacitated person on
115 whose behalf the application is made.
116 (d) A statement that the new address or addresses that the
117 applicant requests must not be disclosed for the reason that
118 disclosure will increase the risk of domestic violence or dating
119 violence.
120 Section 5. Section 741.408, Florida Statutes, is amended
121 to read:
122 741.408 Assistance for program applicants.—The Attorney
123 General shall designate state and local agencies and nonprofit
124 agencies that provide counseling and shelter services to victims
125 of domestic violence and dating violence to assist persons
126 applying to be program participants. Assistance and counseling
127 rendered by the Office of the Attorney General or its designees
128 to applicants does not constitute legal advice.
129 Section 6. Section 741.4651, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
131 741.4651 Public records exemption; victims of stalking or
132 aggravated stalking.—The names, addresses, and telephone numbers
133 of persons who are victims of stalking or aggravated stalking
134 are exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State
135 Constitution in the same manner that the names, addresses, and
136 telephone numbers of participants in the Address Confidentiality
137 Program for Victims of Domestic and Dating Violence which are
138 held by the Attorney General under s. 741.465 are exempt from
139 disclosure, provided that the victim files a sworn statement of
140 stalking with the Office of the Attorney General and otherwise
141 complies with the procedures in ss. 741.401-741.409.
142 Section 7. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section
143 960.001, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
144 960.001 Guidelines for fair treatment of victims and
145 witnesses in the criminal justice and juvenile justice systems.—
146 (1) The Department of Legal Affairs, the state attorneys,
147 the Department of Corrections, the Department of Juvenile
148 Justice, the Florida Commission on Offender Review, the State
149 Courts Administrator and circuit court administrators, the
150 Department of Law Enforcement, and every sheriff's department,
151 police department, or other law enforcement agency as defined in
152 s. 943.10(4) shall develop and implement guidelines for the use
153 of their respective agencies, which guidelines are consistent
154 with the purposes of this act and s. 16(b), Art. I of the State
155 Constitution and are designed to implement s. 16(b), Art. I of
156 the State Constitution and to achieve the following objectives:
157 (c) Information concerning protection available to victim
158 or witness.—A victim or witness shall be furnished, as a matter
159 of course, with information on steps that are available to law
160 enforcement officers and state attorneys to protect victims and
161 witnesses from intimidation. Victims of domestic violence and
162 dating violence shall also be given information about the
163 address confidentiality program provided under s. 741.403.
164 Section 8. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.