Florida Public Records Request

FLORIDA PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST

(Chapter 119, Florida Statutes)

PRACTITIONER NOTES

1. Chapter 119 applies to state, county, and municipal records and grants access to any person. It is distinct from Florida's open-meetings “Sunshine Law.”
2. Florida does not impose a universal response deadline measured in days. The custodian or designee must acknowledge requests promptly and respond in good faith. Delay is limited to the reasonable time needed to retrieve the record and remove exempt material.
3. A good-faith response includes reasonable efforts to determine from other agency officers or employees whether a responsive record exists and where it can be accessed.
4. For an electronic record, the agency must provide the medium requested if it maintains the record in that medium. The agency need not convert to an unmaintained medium, compile information it does not routinely develop, or perform substantial manipulation or programming without a lawful charge under § 119.07(4).
5. Florida has no general federal-style public-interest fee waiver or expedited-processing provision in Chapter 119. An agency may voluntarily reduce or waive a charge under its lawful policy, but the request should not assert a statutory entitlement.
6. If an exemption applies to only part of a record, the custodian must redact that portion and produce the remainder. The custodian must state the exemption basis and statutory citation; if the requester asks, the custodian must give written reasons with particularity.
7. Chapter 119 does not require a federal-style Vaughn index. Ask for enough information to evaluate a withholding without demanding an index as a statutory entitlement.
8. A request is not a contract. Do not add representations, warranties, covenants, defaults, cure periods, indemnities, force majeure, arbitration, jury waivers, assignment restrictions, integration clauses, or signature formalities.
9. Enforcement is ordinarily by civil action, not an administrative appeal. Section 119.12's attorney-fee rules include written-notice and improper-purpose provisions that require careful pre-suit review by Florida counsel.

REQUEST LETTER

Date: [DATE]

Method: [EMAIL / MAIL / PORTAL / HAND DELIVERY]

To:
[CUSTODIAN OF PUBLIC RECORDS / DESIGNEE]
[AGENCY]
[OFFICE OR DIVISION]
[ADDRESS / EMAIL / PORTAL]

From:
[REQUESTER NAME]
[TITLE / ORGANIZATION, IF ANY]
[MAILING ADDRESS]
[EMAIL]
[TELEPHONE]

Re: Florida Public Records Request — [SUBJECT]

Dear Custodian of Public Records:

Under Chapter 119, Florida Statutes, I request inspection and/or copies of the following public records.

1. Records Requested

1. [DESCRIBE THE FIRST RECORD OR DISCRETE RECORD SET.]
2. [DESCRIBE THE SECOND RECORD OR DISCRETE RECORD SET.]
3. [ADD ADDITIONAL ITEMIZED REQUESTS.]

Date range: [START DATE] through [END DATE]

Relevant office, employee, project, contract, incident, matter, or file number: [DETAILS]

Helpful custodians, email addresses, search terms, or record systems: [DETAILS]

This request includes responsive material made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official business by the agency, regardless of physical form or means of transmission. If clarification would materially assist the search or reduce cost, please contact me at [EMAIL / TELEPHONE].

2. Inspection, Medium, and Delivery

I request:

• ☐ inspection at a reasonable time and under reasonable conditions;
• ☐ electronic copies in a medium the agency maintains: [PDF / NATIVE / CSV / OTHER];
• ☐ paper copies;
• ☐ certified copies; or
• ☐ another available method: [METHOD].

Preferred delivery or inspection method: [EMAIL / SECURE LINK / PORTAL / APPOINTMENT / MAIL / PICKUP].

Under § 119.01(2)(f), if the agency maintains the record in the requested medium, please provide it in that medium. If not, please identify the available medium and any lawful charge before performing conversion, compilation, manipulation, or programming.

3. Fees

I agree to pay lawful fees up to $[AMOUNT]. Please provide an itemized estimate and obtain my written authorization before exceeding that amount.

If no other fee is prescribed by law, please apply § 119.07(4):

• up to $0.15 per one-sided copy no larger than 14 inches by 8.5 inches;
• no more than an additional $0.05 for a two-sided copy;
• actual duplication cost for other copies;
• up to $1 for a certified copy; and
• a reasonable special-service charge only when the nature or volume requires extensive use of information-technology resources or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance.

“Actual cost of duplication” excludes labor and overhead under § 119.011(1). If a special-service charge is proposed, please identify the extensive use involved, personnel or technology basis, rate, and estimated time.

Optional courtesy request: [ASK THE AGENCY TO REDUCE OR WAIVE A CHARGE UNDER ITS POLICY WITHOUT ASSERTING A GENERAL STATUTORY PUBLIC-INTEREST WAIVER.]

4. Prompt Response and Withholdings

Section 119.07(1)(c) requires prompt acknowledgment and a good-faith response. Please make the records available promptly or provide a reasonable status and production schedule.

If the agency asserts that all or part of a record is exempt:

1. please state the basis and statutory citation as required by § 119.07(1)(e);
2. please redact only the portion to which an exemption validly applies and produce the remainder under § 119.07(1)(d); and
3. pursuant to § 119.07(1)(f), I request a written statement with particularity of the reasons for concluding that the material is exempt or confidential.

I understand that Chapter 119 does not require the agency to create a Vaughn index. If no responsive record exists or the agency is not the custodian, please say so and, if known, identify the likely custodian.

Optional rolling production request: If practical, please provide completed portions as they become available.

Thank you for your assistance.

Respectfully,

__________________________________
[REQUESTER NAME]
[TITLE / ORGANIZATION, IF ANY]
[DATE]

POST-SUBMISSION AND ENFORCEMENT NOTES

• No fixed day count: Measure compliance by prompt acknowledgment, good faith, and reasonable processing time rather than inserting a federal-style deadline.
• Written withholding reasons: The particularized written explanation in § 119.07(1)(f) must be requested; include that request in the letter.
• Thirty-day preservation rule: If the custodian asserts that a requested item is not a public record, § 119.07(1)(h) prohibits disposal for thirty days after the written request. If an enforcement action is filed within that period, disposal is barred except by court order after notice.
• Pre-suit fee notice: To seek attorney fees under § 119.12(1), the complainant generally must provide written notice identifying the request to the agency's custodian of public records at least five business days before filing, unless the posting exception in § 119.12(2) applies. Counsel should confirm the correct custodian, receipt date, and notice content.
• Improper purpose: Section 119.12(3) bars a complainant's fee award and requires an award to the agency if the court finds the request or litigation was primarily to cause a Chapter 119 violation or for a frivolous purpose.
• No damages under § 119.12: Subsection (4) does not create a private right of action for monetary damages; recoverable agency payments are limited to reasonable enforcement costs and attorney fees directly attributable to the enforcement action.
• Accelerated hearing: Section 119.11 requires an immediate hearing with priority over other pending cases. If the court orders access, the agency generally must comply within forty-eight hours unless the court provides otherwise or an appellate stay issues.
• Litigation preservation: Upon service of an enforcement complaint, counterclaim, or cross-claim, § 119.11(4) restricts transfer, alteration, destruction, or disposal of the record until the court directs otherwise.
• Keep the record: Retain the request, proof of receipt, acknowledgments, estimates, payments, productions, exemption explanations, and pre-suit notice.

CURRENT OFFICIAL SOURCES

• Florida Legislature — § 119.01 public-records policy and electronic access
• Florida Legislature — § 119.011 definitions
• Florida Legislature — § 119.07 inspection, copying, fees, and exemptions
• Florida Legislature — § 119.11 accelerated hearing
• Florida Legislature — § 119.12 attorney fees
• Florida Attorney General — 2025 Government-in-the-Sunshine Manual
• Florida Attorney General — no universal response deadline; reasonable retrieval-and-redaction time
• Florida Senate — 2026 H.B. 437 history (died in Rules)
• Florida Senate — 2026 S.B. 770 history (died in committee)