community association legislation Tag Archives

March 20, 2023

Florida Legislature Considering Bills Proposing Changes to Condo Safety Reforms, Construction Defect Lawsuits

by Roberto C. Blanch

Roberto C. Blanch

As the 2023 Florida legislative session gets underway, there are several bills impacting associations and real estate that our firm’s South Florida community association attorneys will be keeping a close eye on and discussing in our blog.

Senate Bill 154 and House Bill 1395

Perhaps the most important of these are Senate Bill 154 and House Bill 1395, which deal with issues such as inspections and condominium association financial reserves that were addressed in the condo safety reform law that was passed last May with the adoption of Senate Bill 4D during a special legislative session. Under the new law, inspections are required for buildings that have been occupied for 30 years — or 25 years if they are within three miles of a coastline. After these initial inspections, the buildings will have to go through the process again every 10 years.

If adopted, the new bills could result in changes to the time by which buildings, including those within three miles of a coastline, will have to be inspected. The two bills include different timeframes by which the initial milestone inspection may have to be performed (e.g., SB 154 triggering all such inspections at 30 years with discretion for local officials and authorities having jurisdiction to compel some at 25 years depending on “local circumstances, including environmental conditions such proximity to salt water”; or HB 1395 requiring the initial inspections at 25 years for all buildings regardless of proximity to salt water).

January 1, 2023

Miami Herald Real Estate Column by Gary Mars: “Industry Association Offers Lawmakers, Advocates Legislative Priorities for 2023”

by Siegfried Rivera

Siegfried Rivera

The firm’s latest Miami Herald “Real Estate Counselor” column was authored by partner Gary M. Mars and appears in today’s edition of the newspaper. The article, which is titled “Industry Association Offers Lawmakers, Advocates Legislative Priorities for 2023,” focuses on the 2023 legislative priorities from the Community Associations Institute, which serves as the leading voice for the associations industry. His article reads:

. . . To determine CAI’s priority issues for 2023, its Government & Public Affairs team surveyed nearly 1,000 members including the federal legislative action committee (LAC), Government & Public Affairs Committee, and state LAC representatives. Fifty percent of respondents said they anticipate condominium safety issues in 2023, including those covering reserve studies and funding; as well as building inspections, maintenance and structural integrity.

The organization recommends statutorily mandating reserve studies and funding for all community associations, and it also supports additional requirements by developers during the development process and prior to the transition of association control to homeowners. It addresses structural integrity through statutorily mandated building inspections at 10 years, 20 years, and every five years thereafter, as recommended by the American Society of Civil Engineers’ published protocol for building inspections.

Bauman also wrote that CAI encourages policymakers to engage industry stakeholders, including community associations, in an open forum over legislative initiatives and regulations involving short- and long-term rentals. The group’s position is that association boards of directors, with homeowner input, are the appropriate governing body to craft policies regarding whether short- and long-term rentals make sense for their community.

July 19, 2021

2021-2022 Legislative Update: What Passed?

by Siegfried Rivera

Siegfried Rivera

Several bills that will impact community associations throughout the state were enacted into law this year. The following are summaries of community association-related bills that the Governor approved:

Senate Bill 72: Civil Liability for Damages Relating to COVID-19

The Florida Legislature made Covid-19 civil liability protections for businesses, healthcare providers, non-profits, and other organizations a major priority for the 2021 session, and on March 29th it became the year’s first bill signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis. With the enactment of Senate Bill 72, creating Section 768.38, Florida Statutes, businesses are now afforded protection from civil liability claims stemming from the Covid-19 virus as long as the business made a good faith effort to substantially comply with government-issued health standards or guidance at the time the cause of action would have accrued.

Individuals seeking to file claims for coronavirus-related injuries or death against covered entities will need to provide an affidavit from a medical professional asserting that they contracted the virus at the corresponding property. The claims must also demonstrate “clear and convincing evidence” of “gross negligence” in order to establish its validity. In order to prevail, plaintiffs will also be required to demonstrate in court that a defendant did not make a good faith effort to comply with public health guidelines.

The law also sets a one-year statute of limitations for the filing of lawsuits from either the date of death, hospitalization or the Covid-19 diagnosis involved in the claim, whichever is latest. The new law applies to claims that accrued before the enactment of the law and within one year following the Governor’s March 29 signing, but it does not apply to lawsuits that have already been filed.

Senate Bill 630: Community Associations

Section 627.714, Fla. Stat., has been revised to provide that if a condominium association’s insurance policy does not provide rights for subrogation against the unit owners in the association, an insurance policy issued to an individual unit owner in the association may not provide rights of subrogation against the condominium association.

March 15, 2019

Association Bills Abound at Start of 2019 Florida Legislative Session

by Laura Manning-Hudson

Laura Manning-Hudson

As the 2019 Florida legislative session gets underway, all indications are that this will be a very busy year for new legislation affecting the more than 48,000 community associations in the state. Here are some of the bills that my fellow community association attorneys at our firm and I will be monitoring very closely:

HB 153 – Requires landlord to provide physical copy of any restrictive covenants that govern premises to tenant at specified time; requires written notice be provided to tenant of any changes to covenants within specified time.

HB 155, known as the Community Recall Act – Amend Section 720.303, F.S. to require owners living in an HOA to physically reside in the community in order to vote to recall a member of the board of directors.

HB 565 – Removes housing discrimination as cause of action for relief & damages stemming from violations of Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992; revises timeframe & conditions under which aggrieved person may commence civil action to enforce specified rights; authorizes, rather than requires, civil action after alleged discriminatory housing practice; authorizes civil action regardless of whether aggrieved person filed complaint with commission; prohibits aggrieved person from filing specified action in certain circumstances; provides exception.

HB 647 – Requires certain associations to post certain signs or symbols on buildings; requires State Fire Marshal to adopt rules governing such signs & symbols; provides for enforcement; revises provisions relating to evidence of association compliance with fire & life safety code; revises provisions related to retrofitting.

Continue reading

April 2, 2018

New Legislative Updates Effective July 1, 2018

by Siegfried Rivera

Siegfried Rivera

This year’s legislative session has come to an end, establishing new laws and amendments to a number of statutes regulating community associations in Florida. On March 23, 2018, Governor Rick Scott signed the following laws into effect:

Official Records of Condominiums and Cooperatives – § 718.111, § 719.104

The deadline for condominium and cooperative associations to fulfill official record requests has been extended from 5 working days to 10 working days. §718.111(12)(b), § 719.104(2)(b), Fla. Stat.
Electronic records relating to voting have been included in the list of official records that must be kept by condominium and cooperative associations. §718.111(12)(a)12., § 719.104(2)(a)10., Fla. Stat.
Condominium associations must now permanently maintain specific documents from the inception of the association, unlike the previous 7-year limitation. The following is a list of those documents: §718.111(12), Fla. Stat., §719.104(2), Fla. Stat.
A copy of the articles of incorporation, declaration, bylaws and rules of the association;
The minutes of all meetings;
A copy of the plans, permits, warranties, and other items provided by the developer;
Accounting records for the association.

January 28, 2016

New Florida Bill Seeks to Bring Regulations to HOAs that Have Previously Only Applied to Condo Associations

by Siegfried Rivera

Siegfried Rivera

Community association attorneys are often asked about the lack of uniformity in the Florida laws and regulations for condominium associations and those for homeowners associations. There are many differences between the statutes governing condominium associations and those for HOAs, and condominiums are much more heavily regulated.

In fact, all condominium associations in the state must pay an annual fee to fund the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s Division of Condominiums, which serves to provide regulatory oversight over condominium association elections and disputes stemming from the actions of their members and boards of directors.

Homeowners associations have been excluded from the purview of this state agency since its inception, which, among other things, has created significant discrepancies in the laws governing these different types of community associations involving their elections, meetings, board recalls, vendor contracts, and other areas. However, a bill that was introduced by Rep. John Cortes of Osceola County seeks to change that and bring HOAs under the regulatory oversight of the state agency.

HB 653 represents potentially sweeping changes for HOAs in Florida. It seeks to rename the state agency in order to add homeowners associations to its name; authorize the agency to investigate certain complaints involving HOAs, conduct related investigations and adopt penalty guidelines; have HOAs pay an annual fee to fund the agency, provide notices for certain meetings, impose certain fines, and revise annual meeting requirements; and it provides for changes to the provisions relating to the transition of association control, and the requirements for voting by general and limited proxy and for board elections and vacancies.

The bill calls for the state agency to oversee the mediation of HOA disputes and maintain a list of certified mediators who the associations must use for these proceedings. HOA elections, which have historically been left to the protocols and procedures established under their respective declarations, would be required to adhere to the process that has been in place for condominium associations.

The changes involving elections are very significant, as are the measures pertaining to meeting notice procedures. If the bill is passed and these new provisions go into effect on July 1, 2016, HOAs across the state will need to be prepared to make dramatic changes to many of their policies and procedures. This will undoubtedly present some serious difficulties and challenges for many associations that have grown accustomed to their previous protocols over the years and decades, but the introduction of this bill appears to send the message that the time for uniformity in the state’s laws governing condominium and homeowners associations may now be upon us.