FL Lawmakers Debate Online Estate Caretakers

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) _ A proposal moving through the Florida Legislature would allow people to designate a custodian to access and manage their social media, email and online financial accounts after they die or become incapacitated.

The Senate passed the bill Tuesday unanimously.

It has also passed committee reviews in the House.

A similar bill failed last year in part because of opposition from Internet service providers.

They feared it would force them to violate their guarantees of privacy to subscribers.

The bill has been revised to require that owners of online accounts explicitly agree in a will or an online agreement to approve handing over control of the accounts to a custodian.

Sen. Dorothy Hukill said the bill will guarantee privacy while allowing recovery of valuable digital assets after the owner’s death.