Notice is hereby given that the following correction has been made to the proposed rule in Vol. 35 No. 47, November 25, 2009 issue of the Florida Administrative Weekly.

The notice of proposed rule is being corrected to provide a summary of the statement of estimated regulatory costs.

SUMMARY OF STATEMENT OF ESTIMATED REGULATORY COSTS:

The rule currently requires applicants and licensees to file required forms and fees electronically through the Office's REAL system. There are no additional fees associated with filing electronically. In order to file electronically, an applicant/licensee needs a desk or lap-top computer, and internet access. If the applicant/licensee does not have these items, the applicant/licensee could file electronically using equipment at Florida's public libraries. Each of the 67 counties in Florida provides free access to the internet through its public libraries. According to the Florida Department of State, in fiscal year 2006-07 there were over 12,000 public terminals available throughout the state.

The current rule also provides that an applicant/licensee may apply for a hardship waiver from the electronic filing requirements. To request a hardship exemption, the person must file a petition with the Office's legal office in accordance with Rule 28-106.301, F.A.C., which is a uniform rule adopted under the Florida Administrative Procedures Act for initiating a proceeding. The proposed rule amendments simplify the process of requesting an exemption from electronic filing requirements by replacing the formal process discussed above with the submission of a written request to the Office's regulatory staff.

There will be no additional costs to the agency as the result of the proposed rule amendments. The implementation and enforcement of the rule is solely the responsibility of the Office of Financial Regulation. Accordingly, no other state or local agencies will be impacted by the proposed rule. There are no anticipated effects on state or local revenues.