(1) Each officer, director, trustee, or owner of a professional solicitor and any employee of a professional solicitor conducting telephonic solicitations during which a donor’s or potential donor’s personal financial information is requested or provided must, before engaging in solicitation activities, obtain a solicitor license from the department. As used in this subsection, the term “personal financial information” includes, but is not limited to, social security numbers, credit card numbers, banking information, and credit reports.
(2) Persons required to obtain a solicitor license under subsection (1) shall submit to the department, in such form as the department prescribes, an application for a solicitor license. The application must include the following information:
(a) The true name, date of birth, unique identification number of a driver license or other valid form of identification, and home address of the applicant.
(b) Whether the applicant, in any state, regardless of adjudication, has previously been convicted of, been found guilty of, or pled guilty or nolo contendere to, or has been incarcerated within the last 10 years as a result of having previously been convicted of, been found guilty of, or pled guilty or nolo contendere to, a crime within the last 10 years involving fraud, theft, larceny, embezzlement, fraudulent conversion, or misappropriation of property, or a crime arising from the conduct of a solicitation for a charitable organization or sponsor, or has been enjoined in any state from violating a law relating to a charitable solicitation.
(c) Whether the applicant, in any state, is involved in pending litigation or has had entered against her or him an injunction, a temporary restraining order, or a final judgment or order, including a stipulated judgment or order, an assurance of voluntary compliance, a cease and desist order, or any similar document, in any civil or administrative action involving fraud, theft, larceny, embezzlement, fraudulent conversion, or misappropriation of property, or has been enjoined from violating any law relating to a charitable solicitation.
(3)(a) An applicant shall submit a complete set of his or her fingerprints to an agency, entity, or vendor authorized by s. 943.053(13). The fingerprints shall be forwarded to the Department of Law Enforcement for state processing, and the Department of Law Enforcement shall forward them to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for national processing.
(b) Fees for state and federal fingerprint processing and fingerprint retention fees shall be borne by the applicant. The state cost for fingerprint processing is that authorized in s. 943.053(3)(e) for records provided to persons or entities other than those specified as exceptions therein.
(c) All fingerprints submitted to the Department of Law Enforcement as required under this subsection shall be retained by the Department of Law Enforcement as provided under s. 943.05(2)(g) and (h) and enrolled in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s national retained print arrest notification program. Fingerprints shall not be enrolled in the national retained print arrest notification program until the Department of Law Enforcement begins participation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Arrest fingerprints will be searched against the retained prints by the Department of Law Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(d) For any renewal of the applicant’s license, the department shall request the Department of Law Enforcement to forward the retained fingerprints of the applicant to the Federal Bureau of Investigation unless the applicant is enrolled in the national retained print arrest notification program described in paragraph (c). The fee for the national criminal history check shall be paid as part of the renewal process to the department and forwarded by the department to the Department of Law Enforcement. If the applicant’s fingerprints are retained in the national retained print arrest notification program, the applicant shall pay the state and national retention fee to the department, which shall forward the fee to the Department of Law Enforcement.
(e) The department shall notify the Department of Law Enforcement regarding any person whose fingerprints have been retained but who is no longer licensed under this chapter.
(f) The department shall screen background results to determine whether an applicant meets licensure requirements.
(4) A solicitor license must be renewed annually by the submission of a renewal application. A solicitor license that is not renewed expires without further action by the department.
(5) Any material change to the information submitted to the department in the initial application or renewal application for a solicitor license shall be reported to the department by the applicant or licensee within 10 days after the change occurs.
(6) It is a violation of this chapter:
(a) For an applicant to provide inaccurate or incomplete information to the department in the initial or renewal application for a solicitor license.
(b) For a person specified in subsection (1) to fail to maintain a solicitor license as required by this section.
(c) For a professional solicitor to allow, require, permit, or authorize an employee without an active solicitor license issued under this section to conduct telephonic solicitations.
(7) The department shall adopt rules that allow applicants to engage in solicitation activities on a temporary basis until such time as a solicitor license is granted or denied.
(8) The department may deny or revoke a solicitor license if the applicant or licensee has had the right to solicit contributions revoked in any state, has been ordered by a court or governmental agency to cease soliciting contributions within any state, or is subject to any disqualification specified in s. 496.410(14).
(9) Any administrative proceeding that could result in entry of an order under this section shall be conducted in accordance with chapter 120.
History.—s. 13, ch. 2014-122; s. 3, ch. 2016-78; s. 4, ch. 2016-162.
Structure Florida Statutes
Title XXXIII - Regulation of Trade, Commerce, Investments, and Solicitations
Chapter 496 - Solicitation of Funds
496.405 - Registration Statements by Charitable Organizations and Sponsors.
496.4055 - Charitable Organization or Sponsor Board Duties.
496.406 - Exemption From Registration.
496.407 - Financial Statement.
496.4071 - Supplemental Financial Disclosure.
496.4072 - Financial Statements for Specific Disaster Relief Solicitations.
496.409 - Registration and Duties of Professional Fundraising Consultant.
496.410 - Registration and Duties of Professional Solicitors.
496.4101 - Licensure of Professional Solicitors and Certain Employees Thereof.
496.411 - Disclosure Requirements and Duties of Charitable Organizations and Sponsors.
496.412 - Disclosure Requirements and Duties of Professional Solicitors.
496.4121 - Collection Receptacles Used for Donations.
496.413 - Contributions Solicited for or Accepted on Behalf of a Named Individual.
496.414 - Duties of Commercial Co-Venturers.
496.416 - Violation as Deceptive or Unfair Trade Practice.
496.418 - Recordkeeping and Accounting.
496.419 - Powers of the Department.
496.4191 - Additional Penalty; Immediate Suspension.
496.420 - Civil Remedies and Enforcement.
496.421 - More Stringent Local Provisions Not Preempted by Ss. 496.401-496.424.
496.422 - Duties of the Department of State.
496.423 - Public Information; Annual Report.
496.424 - Rulemaking Authority.
496.425 - Solicitation of Funds Within Public Transportation Facilities.
496.4255 - Public Airport Not Required to Grant Permit or Access.