What does the Florida Constitution require of an exemption?

The law must state the public need for it and be no broader than that need. Two thirds of the Senate and of the House must also vote for it.

What is the Open Government Sunset Review Act?

It is Section 119.15 of the Florida Statutes. Most new exemptions end on October 2 of their fifth year, but the Legislature can pass them again.

How can I tell when an exemption will end?

Read the last lines of the exemption. Most name the Open Government Sunset Review Act and give the date they end.

What happens to records made before an exemption ends?

They stay closed unless a law opens them. Records made after the repeal date are not shielded.

Home / Exemptions

Florida Open Government Sunset Review Act: How Public Records Exemptions Are Created and Repealed

Written by Adam Bair.Published July 6, 2026Updated October 20, 2026

TL;DR: Only the Florida Legislature can create a public records exemption, a law that keeps a record closed. It takes a two-thirds vote, and then the Florida Open Government Sunset Review Act starts a clock. Most new exemptions end in five years unless the Legislature votes to keep them.

A Florida state capitol building with a five-year countdown clock overlaid, representing the sunset review cycle for public records exemptions. — Most new Florida public records exemptions end after five years unless the Legislature passes them again.

Who can create a Florida public records exemption?

Only the Legislature can. Under Section 119.011(8), an exemption is a general law that closes a record or a meeting.

Courts cannot make one, and neither can an agency. Only the Legislature may close a public record. Wait v. Florida Power & Light Co., 372 So. 2d 420, 425 (Fla. 1979).

This matters in real life. Say an agency calls a record "internal" or points to its own policy. That is not an exemption, so ask it to name the statute.

What does the Florida Constitution require for a new exemption?

Article I, Section 24(c) of the Florida Constitution sets three rules, and a new exemption must meet all three. Here they are in plain terms.

The law must say why the public needs the record kept closed.
The law can be no broader than it needs to be to do that job.
It must pass by a two-thirds vote in the Senate and in the House of Representatives.

Courts enforce these rules. The state's top court threw out a law that closed parts of a hospital board's meetings. Halifax Hospital Medical Center v. News-Journal Corp., 724 So. 2d 567 (Fla. 1999).

That law did not state its need with enough detail, and it reached further than it had to.

The same court upheld a law that closed some prison records. There, the Legislature named the need: the safety of prison staff and inmates. Bryan v. State, 753 So. 2d 1244 (Fla. 2000).

A law that makes an exemption must also deal with just one subject. Art. I, s. 24(c), Fla. Const. To see how courts read these laws, see how courts read exemptions narrowly.

Three labeled boxes in a row: PUBLIC NECESSITY on the left, NO BROADER THAN NECESSARY in the center, and TWO-THIRDS VOTE on the right, with checkmarks indicating all three are required. — A new exemption must meet all three rules in the state constitution.

What is the Florida Open Government Sunset Review Act?

It is Section 119.15 of the Florida Statutes. Its first line gives its short name: the "Open Government Sunset Review Act." Section 119.15(1), Fla. Stat.

Its title says it sets up "review of exemptions from public meeting and public records requirements." Section 119.15, Fla. Stat.

That covers a record closed off from Section 119.07(1). It also covers a meeting closed off from Section 286.011, the Sunshine Law.

The point is to make the Legislature look again. A rule that made sense years ago may not make sense now. If the Legislature does not act, a new exemption ends on schedule.

When does a public records exemption face scheduled repeal?

Count to the fifth year after the Legislature passes a new exemption, or makes an old one bigger. On October 2 of that year, the exemption ends unless lawmakers pass it again. Section 119.15(3), Fla. Stat.

The date often sits in the exemption itself. Its last line may say the paragraph "is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act." Section 119.071, Fla. Stat.

It then says the paragraph "shall stand repealed on October 2, 2029." Section 119.071, Fla. Stat.

That kind of line goes on to say the exemption ends unless the Legislature saves it. The year changes from one exemption to the next.

What must a new exemption law say?

A law that makes or widens an exemption must state three things (Section 119.15(4)(a), Fla. Stat.). Here they are in short form.

The record or meeting is exempt from Article I, Section 24 of the constitution.
It is exempt from Section 119.07(1) or Section 286.011.
It will end in five years, and the Legislature must review it before then.

What counts as making an exemption bigger?

A change counts if it reaches more records or facts, or adds meetings to records. That starts a new five-year clock. A change that makes an exemption smaller does not (Section 119.15(4)(b), Fla. Stat.).

Does the two-thirds vote apply when the Legislature passes it again?

Yes. The Attorney General has said the two-thirds vote applies to a vote to keep an exemption, too (AGO 03-18). So passing it again is no rubber stamp.

Who tells the Legislature an exemption is about to end?

The Office of Legislative Services does. By June 1 of the year before the repeal, it sends a list of each exemption due to end. It goes to the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate (Section 119.15(5)(a), Fla. Stat.).

One catch matters: an exemption that never makes the list does not face review and repeal under the Act. If the office finds it missed one, it adds it to the next year's list. Section 119.15(5)(b), Fla. Stat.

What does the Legislature ask when it reviews an exemption?

Section 119.15(6)(a) lists six questions. In plain words, they are these.

Which records or meetings does it close?
Who does it touch in a special way, apart from the public at large?
What clear public goal does it serve?
Could someone get the same facts some other way, and if so, how?
Does some other exemption already cover the same record or meeting?
Are there several like exemptions that it makes sense to merge into one?

What test must an exemption pass to be kept?

The Legislature may create, change, or keep an exemption only if it serves a clear public purpose. It also may be no broader than that purpose needs (Section 119.15(6)(b), Fla. Stat.).

The Legislature must find the purpose strong enough to beat the "strong public policy of open government." Section 119.15(6)(b), Fla. Stat. It must also find it cannot reach that goal without the exemption.

Only three kinds of purpose count. Here they are in plain terms.

Running a program. The exemption lets the state or a local body run a program that would suffer badly without it.
Shielding people. It guards facts of a sensitive personal nature whose release would hurt a good name or put someone at risk. Only facts that would identify the person may stay closed.
Shielding trade secrets. It guards a firm's secret data, such as a formula, when release would hurt the firm in the market.

One more rule cuts the other way. Say the Legislature does not follow the Act to the letter. An otherwise valid vote to pass an exemption again still stands (Section 119.15(8)).

Which exemptions does the Act not cover?

Two kinds stay off the clock. The Act does not reach an exemption that federal law requires (Section 119.15(2)(a), Fla. Stat.).

It also does not reach one that covers only the State Court System or only the Legislature. Section 119.15(2)(b), Fla. Stat. If neither fits, the exemption is on the clock.

What about exemptions older than the constitutional rules?

Laws that limited access on July 1, 1993 stay in force until the Legislature repeals them. Art. I, s. 24(d), Fla. Const.

So some old exemptions never had to meet the public need test or the two-thirds vote. If an agency cites an old one, check its date.

What happens to records after an exemption ends?

They do not all open up at once. Records made before the repeal date stay closed unless a law says to open them (Section 119.15(7), Fla. Stat.).

To decide whether to open them, the Legislature weighs the harm to the people or firms the exemption shielded. Records made after the repeal date get no shield from the old exemption.

How do you use this when an agency claims an exemption?

Ask four plain questions. They help in the odd case where a claim does not fit a current law.

Which law creates it? If the agency cannot name a statute, there is no exemption.
Is it still in force? Read the end of the statute for the date it ends.
Does your record fall inside its words? An exemption covers only what it says.
Has a court struck it down? A law a court threw out is no exemption at all.

If an agency turns down your request, see what to do after a denial.

A timeline showing Year 1 with a new exemption created, Year 5 with a sunset review, and two branches: one showing reenacted and one showing repealed. — The five-year cycle makes the Legislature vote to keep an exemption or let it end.

Frequently asked questions

Who can create a Florida public records exemption?: Only the Legislature can. Courts cannot make one, and an agency cannot make one by policy.
What does the Florida Constitution require of an exemption?: The law must state the public need for it and be no broader than that need. Two thirds of the Senate and of the House must also vote for it.
What is the Open Government Sunset Review Act?: It is Section 119.15 of the Florida Statutes. Most new exemptions end on October 2 of their fifth year, but the Legislature can pass them again.
How can I tell when an exemption will end?: Read the last lines of the exemption. Most name the Open Government Sunset Review Act and give the date they end.
Does the two-thirds vote apply when the Legislature passes an exemption again?: Yes. The Attorney General has said the two-thirds vote applies to a vote to keep an exemption, too.
What happens to records made before an exemption ends?: They stay closed unless a law opens them. Records made after the repeal date are not shielded.

Not legal advice. Educational and informational content only. Reading this site does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice on a specific matter, consult a licensed Florida attorney.