(1) The department may develop, implement, maintain, and manage innovative, progressive, and effective methods of serving the information-management needs of criminal justice agencies, and may take necessary steps to promote the efficient and cost-effective use of such information.

(2) The department may develop, implement, maintain, manage, and operate the Criminal Justice Network, which shall be an intrastate network for agency information and data sharing for use by the state’s criminal justice agencies. The department, in consultation with the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Information Systems Council, shall determine and regulate access to the Criminal Justice Network by the state’s criminal justice agencies.

(3) In addition, the department may authorize entities that offer or provide a product, program, or service determined by the department to be of substantial value to the criminal justice information needs of the state’s criminal justice agencies a special limited presence on the network under terms, conditions, and limitations established by the department after consultation with the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Information Systems Council.

(4) In carrying out its duties under this section, the department may enter into contracts; conduct pilot studies and projects; and assess and collect fees, commissions, royalties, or other charges from entities approved for special presence on the Criminal Justice Network in consideration for such presence. The department may enter into agreements by which products, programs, or services of value to the department or the information needs of criminal justice agencies are provided in lieu of all or a part of a fee, commission, royalty, or charge that might otherwise be assessed by the department upon an entity granted special limited presence as provided in this subsection.

(5) The department may enter into an agreement with any entity to facilitate the department’s responsibilities for receiving, maintaining, managing, processing, allowing access to, and disseminating criminal justice information, intelligence, data, or criminal history records and information, or to otherwise accomplish the duties and responsibilities related to information and records as defined in this chapter. The department may enter into agreements by which products, programs, or services of value to the department or the information needs of criminal justice agencies are provided in lieu of all or part of a fee, commission, royalty, or charge that might be otherwise assessed by the department upon an entity entering into an agreement with the department. Any entity under contract with the department to perform all or part of the department’s information functions or duties shall, as specified in the contract, be performing such functions or duties as a criminal justice agency for purposes of handling, collecting, managing, or disseminating criminal justice information, intelligence, data, histories, and other records. Disclosure of such information to an entity under such a contract does not waive any confidentiality or exemption from disclosure under s. 119.07 or any other applicable law.

(6) Except as otherwise specified in this section, this section does not alter or limit the powers and duties of the department established under this chapter.

History.—s. 3, ch. 99-300; s. 13, ch. 2000-155; s. 112, ch. 2013-18; s. 21, ch. 2013-116.