Florida Florida Statutes
§ 28.2221 — Electronic access to official records
FS § 28.2221Ch. 28
Statute text
View on source(1)The Legislature finds that a proper and legitimate state purpose is served by providing the public with access to public records and information on the Internet. The Legislature further finds that a proper and legitimate state purpose is also served by preventing disclosure of records and information made exempt by law from public disclosure. (2)(a) The county recorder in each county must provide a current index of documents recorded in the official records of the county for the period beginning no later than January 1, 1990, on a publicly available Internet website which must also contain a document requisition point for obtaining images or copies of the documents reflected in the index and which has the capability of electronically providing the index data to a central statewide search site. The index must be limited to grantor and grantee names, party names, date, book and page number, comments, and type of record.
(b)Unless otherwise required by the court, a county recorder may not remove the grantor name, grantee name, or party name from the register of the Official Records, as described in s. 28.222(2), and the index on the publicly available Internet website on the basis of an exemption as defined in s. 119.011 unless the name of the grantor or grantee includes the street address portion of the home address as defined in s. 119.071(4)(d), in which case the county recorder must remove the street address portion from display. Home addresses, as defined in s. 119.071(4)(d), which are exempt from inspection or copying under s. 119.071 must be included within the Official Records as described in s. 28.222(2) but may not be included within the index or otherwise displayed on the county recorder's publicly available Internet website on which images or copies of the county's official records are placed.
(3)Each county recorder shall use appropriate Internet security measures to ensure that no person has the ability to alter or to modify records placed on the Internet by the county recorder.
(4)Unless otherwise provided by law, no information retrieved electronically pursuant to this section shall be admissible in court as an authenticated document. (5)(a) A county recorder may not place on a publicly available Internet website for general public display information made exempt from inspection or copying under s. 119.071 or any image or copy of a public record, including an official record, if that image or copy is of a military discharge; death certificate; or a court file, record, or paper relating to matters or cases governed by the Florida Rules of Family Law, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, or the Florida Probate Rules.
(b)Any records specified in this subsection made available by the county recorder or clerk of the court on a publicly available Internet website for general public display prior to June 5, 2002, must be removed if the affected party identifies the record and requests that it be removed. Such request must be in writing and delivered by mail, facsimile, or electronic transmission, or in person to the county recorder or clerk of the court. The request must specify the identification page number of the document to be removed. No fee may be charged for the removal of a document pursuant to such request.
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