(1) The following business information provided by the owner of a business to a governmental condemning authority as part of an offer of business damages under s. 73.015 is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution if the owner requests in writing that the business information be held confidential and exempt:

(a) Federal tax returns or tax information confidential under 26 U.S.C. s. 6103.

(b) State tax returns or tax information confidential under s. 213.053.

(c) Balance sheets, profit-and-loss statements, cash-flow statements, inventory records, or customer lists or number of customers for a business operating on the parcel to be acquired.

(d) A franchise, distributorship, or lease agreement of which the business operating on the parcel to be acquired is the subject.

(e) Materials that relate to methods of manufacture or production, potential trade secrets, patentable material, or actual trade secrets as defined in s. 688.002.

(f) Other proprietary confidential business information related to the business operating on the parcel to be acquired, if the owner attests in writing to the governmental condemning authority that:

1. The information is being relied upon to substantiate a claim for business damages under s. 73.015;

2. The information has not otherwise been publicly disclosed;

3. The information cannot be readily obtained by the public using alternative means;

4. The information is used by the business to protect or further a business advantage over those who do not know or use the information; and

5. The disclosure of the information would injure the business in the marketplace.

(2) An agency as defined in s. 119.011 may inspect and copy the confidential and exempt business information exclusively for the transaction of official business by, or on behalf of, an agency.

(3) This section does not prevent an agency from offering the confidential and exempt business information as evidence in a legal proceeding and does not prevent a court from determining whether to close a portion of a court record from subsequent public disclosure after trial in order to maintain the confidentiality of that information.

(4) Any employee or agent of an agency receiving such confidential and exempt business information who willfully and knowingly violates this section commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

History.—s. 1, ch. 99-224; s. 1, ch. 2004-46; s. 1, ch. 2009-234.