(1) Any person employed by any executive, judicial, or quasi-judicial department of the state or community college or state university who seeks to encourage the passage, defeat, or modification of any legislation by personal appearance or attendance before the House of Representatives or the Senate, or any committee thereof, shall, prior thereto, register as a lobbyist with the joint legislative office on a form to be provided by the joint legislative office in the same manner as any other lobbyist is required to register, whether by rule of either house or otherwise. This shall not preclude any person from contacting her or his legislator regarding any matter during hours other than the established business hours of the person’s respective agency, state university, or community college.

(2)(a) Each state, state university, or community college employee registered pursuant to the provisions of this section shall:

1. Record with the chair of the committee any attendance before any committee during established business hours of the agency, state university, or community college employing the person.

2. Record with the joint legislative office any attendance in the legislative chambers, committee rooms, legislative offices, legislative hallways, and other areas in the immediate vicinity during the established business hours of the agency, state university, or community college employing the person.

(b) Any person who appears before a committee or subcommittee of the House of Representatives or the Senate at the request of the committee or subcommittee chair as a witness or for informational purposes shall be exempt from the provisions of this subsection.

(3) Any state, state university, or community college employee who violates any provision of this section by not registering with the joint legislative office as a lobbyist or by failing to record hours spent as a lobbyist in areas and activities as set forth in this section during the established business hours of the agency, state university, or community college employing the person shall have deducted from her or his salary an amount equivalent to her or his hourly wage times the number of hours that she or he was in violation of this section.

(4) Any person employed by any executive, judicial, or quasi-judicial department of the state or by any community college or state university whose position is designated in that department’s budget as being used during all, or a portion of, the fiscal year for lobbying shall comply with the provisions of subsection (1), but shall be exempt from the provisions of subsections (2) and (3).

History.—s. 1, ch. 74-161; s. 2, ch. 78-268; s. 1, ch. 85-69; s. 9, ch. 95-147; s. 878, ch. 2002-387.