Florida lawmakers to clarify what groups subject to Sunshine Law

Florida lawmakers are planning to author a bill that will clarify which organizations receiving both public and private financing are subject to the state’s freedom of information laws, Panama City’s News Herald reported.

The confusion over which groups are subject to Flordia’s Sunshine Law began when the News Herald published a series of articles on Florida’s Great Northwest, an economic development organization that receives 60 percent of its funding from the government but claims it is not subject to the same open records laws as groups financed entirely with public funds.

Both open government advocates and representatives from state economic development groups will give their input on the bill at a meeting next week in Tallahassee.