Bill > H0695

Introduced Session

An act relating to private provider building inspection services; amending s. 468.605, F.S.; requiring that the Florida Building Code Administrators and Inspectors Board include a specified number of members who are private providers or who are employed by private provider firms; amending s. 553.74, F.S.; requiring that the Florida Building Commission include a specified number of members who are private providers or who are employed by private provider firms and a specified number of members who are licensed contractors that use private providers or private provider firms; encouraging the Private Provider Association of Florida to recommend a list of candidates for consideration; amending s. 553.791, F.S.; revising and defining terms; requiring that building code inspection services provided by a private provider be the subject of an agreement, rather than a written contract, between the provider or provider's firm and the fee owner or fee owner's contractor; requiring that a reduced permit fee not exceed certain costs incurred by the local jurisdiction; prohibiting a local jurisdiction from charging additional fees, including an administrative fee, for building inspections if the fee owner or hb695-00 contractor hires a private provider to perform such services; requiring a local jurisdiction to immediately provide certain persons equal access to all permitting and inspection documents and reports under certain circumstances; revising the information a fee owner or a fee owner's contractor must provide to a local building official; revising conditions under which a fee owner or fee owner's contractor is authorized to use a private provider to provide inspection services; revising the timeframe within which a fee owner or a fee owner's contractor must notify the local building official of the owner's or contractor's intention to use a private provider; prohibiting a local building official from performing specified reviews of plans, drawings, or other related documents determined by a private provider to be in compliance with applicable codes; removing a provision requiring a local building official to issue a requested permit or provide a specified notice within a certain timeframe; authorizing a local building official to review certain forms and documents only for completeness; requiring a local building official to send written notice of incomplete forms or documents within a specified timeframe; requiring the local building official to issue a permit by the next hb695-00 business day if the local building official fails to provide a specified notice within a specified timeframe; requiring that a duly authorized representative be managed, rather than employed, by a private provider to receive specified benefits; removing a requirement that a private provider performing required inspections provide notice to the local building official of the approximate date and time of specified inspections; removing a provision prohibiting a local building official from preventing a private provider from performing any inspection outside a certain timeframe; removing a provision authorizing a local building official to visit a building site as often as necessary to verify that a private provider is performing required inspections; removing a provision authorizing a building department to satisfy a requirement that a certain deficiency notice be posted; revising the reinspection fees that a local jurisdiction is prohibited from charging; prohibiting a local building official from visiting a job site without written approval from the private provider doing the work on the site; providing that a local building official is not responsible for the regulatory administration or supervision of building code inspection services performed by a private hb695-00 provider; providing that certain private providers or private provider firms are vested with the authority of, and must serve as, the local building official with respect to certain inspection services; prohibiting a local building official from interfering with the actions or activities of such private providers or private provider firms; providing that verification of certain licensure and insurance requirements is the responsibility of the private provider firm and that a local building official is not required to verify compliance or store information of such verification; removing a requirement that the local building official, under certain circumstances, issue a permit within a specified timeframe; revising a provision authorizing a private provider to perform emergency inspection services; requiring a private provider to record specified inspections on forms provided by the Florida Building Commission, rather than on forms acceptable to the local building official; revising timeframes within which a private provider must provide an inspection record to the local building official and when the local building official may waive such requirement; providing that a private provider is not required to upload notices or inspection results to a website or portal; requiring a hb695-00 private provider to prepare a certificate of compliance on a form provided by the commission, rather than on a form acceptable to the local building official; prohibiting a local building official from performing building inspections of construction that a private provider has determined to be compliant with applicable codes; authorizing a local building official to review specified forms and documents only for completeness; revising the timeframe within which a local building official must provide an applicant with a written certificate of occupancy or certificate of completion; authorizing a local building official to deny a permit or a request for specified certificates if required forms or documents are incomplete; providing that a system of registration is not required for certain duly authorized representatives; revising the authority of a local building official to issue a stop-work order; prohibiting a local building code enforcement agency to perform certain audits until such agency has created standard operating procedures; removing an exception to the limit on the number of times in a year that a private provider or private provider firm may be audited; requiring that a private provider or private provider firm be given notice within a hb695-00 specified timeframe before being audited; prohibiting local governments, officials, and personnel from prohibiting or discouraging the use of a private provider or a private provider firm; providing that local governments, officials, and personnel are not immune from certain liability; authorizing a civil cause of action for certain damages, relief, and remedies; authorizing certain private providers to serve as the local building official and issue building permits; requiring that all information from a private provider be provided to the property appraiser for the county or the jurisdiction; requiring that drawings be delivered in their original electronic format; requiring that permits be publicly available and that their status be available on the Private Provider Association of Florida website for specified purposes; authorizing the Private Provider Association of Florida, or a similar nonprofit association, to require a fee or subscription to upload such information to its website or to use an applications programming interface; requiring a private provider to update such information within a specified timeframe under certain circumstances; requiring that the format of private provider permits meet a specified standard and include specified hb695-00 information; providing legislative intent; requiring that the permitting process be universally adopted as a standard for this state; prohibiting the use of certain forms or the use of custom procedures or standards; authorizing the commission to implement such permitting processes and review them for consistency and relevance within a specified timeframe; reenacting s. 633.216(6), F.S., relating to inspection of buildings and equipment, orders, firesafety inspection training requirements, certification, and disciplinary action, to incorporate the amendment made to s. 468.605, F.S., in a reference thereto; reenacting ss. 177.073(1)(c), 468.603(9), 468.621(1)(i) and (j), 471.033(1)(l), 481.225(1)(l), 553.79(11), and 553.80(7)(a), F.S., relating to expedited approval of residential building permits before a final plat is recorded; definitions; disciplinary proceedings against building code administrators and inspectors; disciplinary proceedings against licensed engineers; disciplinary proceedings against registered architects; permits, applications, issuance, and inspections; and enforcement, respectively, to incorporate the amendment made to s. 553.791, F.S., in references thereto; providing an effective date. hb695-00

AI Summary

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Richard Gentry (R)*, 

Died in Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee (on 06/16/2025)

Official Document