Bill > H0983

Introduced Session

An act relating to homeowners' associations; amending s. 720.301, F.S.; revising definitions; defining the term "financial statements"; amending s. 720.302, F.S.; revising the purpose and scope of ch. 720, F.S.; providing legislative findings; requiring the Office of the Condominium Ombudsman, upon petition, to appoint a specified employee or attorney to monitor the homeowners' association election of directors; requiring that all costs for such monitoring be borne by the association; requiring the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes to adopt rules and procedures; providing applicability; amending s. 720.303, F.S.; prohibiting the suspension of a parcel owner's or member's voting rights when voting on the recall of a board member; providing that any specified prior suspensions have no effect for any recall; requiring a recall agreement to be served on an association by registered mail, rather than by certified mail or by personal service; removing the requirement that a board perform certain actions to either certify or not certify the written ballots or written agreements to recall a director of a board; providing construction; requiring a board to duly notice and hold a meeting of the board within a hb983-02-c2 specified timeframe after receipt of a recall agreement; providing that board members are recalled effective immediately upon the conclusion of a board meeting, provided the recall is facially valid; specifying the timeframe in which a recalled board member must return to the board specified property belonging to the association; providing that the board may reject a parcel owner's recall agreement under certain circumstances; providing a rebuttable presumption that a parcel owner executing the recall agreement is the designated voter for the parcel; prohibiting an association from enforcing a voting certificate requirement under certain circumstances; removing the provision that board members may be recalled and removed by a vote taken at a meeting; removing the provision that a special meeting may be convened to recall a director or directors of the board if called by a specified percentage of the voting interests; removing the prohibition against electronic transmission being used as a method of giving notice of such a meeting; removing the requirement that a board file an action with a court or file with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation a petition for binding arbitration within a specified timeframe if the board hb983-02-c2 does not certify the written agreement or written ballots to recall a director; removing the provision that board members who voted at a meeting or who executed an agreement in writing constitute one party under the petition for arbitration or court action; removing the provision that a recall is effective upon the final order of the court or the mailing of the final order of arbitration to the association; requiring that recalled board members turn over specified property of the association to the board within a specified timeframe; revising the timeframe in which such petition or action must be filed; requiring that the association be named as the respondent in such petition or action; providing that a petition or action filed by a board member who has been recalled may challenge the facial validity of the recall agreement or the substantial compliance with the procedural requirements for a recall; requiring that a board member be reinstated and a recall be deemed null and void if an arbitrator or a court determines that a recall was invalid; providing that a prevailing party is entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees and costs if certain findings are made; amending s. 720.306, F.S.; removing the requirement that secret ballots cast by members who are not in hb983-02-c2 attendance at a meeting be mailed or delivered to the association in a specified manner; removing the requirement that a valid ballot be cast once confirmed valid; removing the requirement that a ballot for a lot that has more than one ballot submitted be disqualified; removing the provision that any ballot received after the closing of the balloting may not be considered; removing the provision that a member may nominate himself or herself as a candidate for the board at a meeting where the election is held, provided certain conditions are met; requiring that board members be elected by written ballot or voting machine; prohibiting the use of proxies in electing the board in general elections or in elections to fill vacancies; requiring the association to mail, deliver, or electronically transmit, by separate association mailing or included in another association mailing, delivery, or electronic transmission, to each member entitled to vote a first notice of the date of the election a specified timeframe before the election; requiring a member intending to be a candidate for the board to give written notice of his or her intent within a specified timeframe before the election; prohibiting the use of nominating committees by associations; authorizing associations to use search hb983-02-c2 committees for a specified purpose; providing that search committees do not have the authority to nominate candidates for the board; requiring the association to send a second notice of the election, with the written notice of the annual meeting and agenda, to all members entitled to vote, together with a ballot that lists all candidates; requiring that an information sheet be sent in the second notice at the request of a candidate; providing requirements for such information sheet; requiring that the candidate furnish the information sheet to the association within a specified timeframe; requiring the association to bear the costs of mailing, delivering, or electronically transmitting the information sheet; providing that the association is not liable for the content of the information sheet; authorizing the association to print the information sheet on both sides of the paper; requiring that elections be decided by a plurality of ballots cast; providing that there are no quorum requirements; providing an exception; prohibiting a member from authorizing any other person to cast his or her ballot; providing that any improperly cast ballots are invalid; providing penalties; authorizing a member who requires assistance to cast a ballot to seek such assistance; hb983-02-c2 requiring the election to occur on the date of the annual meeting; providing that an election is not required unless more candidates file notices of intent to run or are nominated than there are vacancies on the board; providing that such candidates become board members upon the adjournment of the annual meeting under certain circumstances; providing applicability; requiring that a candidate for board membership be eligible at the time of the mailing, delivery, or electronic transmission of the candidate's notice of intent to be a candidate; prohibiting co-owners of a parcel from serving together; providing exceptions; removing the prohibition against write-in nominations being permitted under certain circumstances and that qualified candidates seeking nomination must commence their service on the board of directors, regardless of whether a quorum is attained at the annual meeting; removing the requirement that boards of directors be elected by a plurality of votes unless otherwise provided by the governing documents; removing the provision that any challenge to the election process be commenced within a specified timeframe after the election results are announced; providing that a person who is delinquent in the payment of any assessments is not eligible to be a candidate; hb983-02-c2 providing that a director or an officer is delinquent if payment is not made by a specified due date identified in the declaration, bylaws, or articles of incorporation; providing that a payment is delinquent on the first day of the assessment period if no specified due date is in the declaration, bylaws, or articles of incorporation; removing the definition of the term "any fee, fine, or other monetary obligation"; providing that the terms of all board members expire at the annual meeting and that such board members may stand for reelection unless prohibited by the association's declaration, bylaws, or articles of incorporation, if certain conditions are met; amending s. 720.3086, F.S.; providing requirements for financial reporting by a private amenities owner; providing applicability; amending s. 720.311, F.S.; providing that a certain action filed be tried without a jury; providing that the parties are entitled to an immediate hearing; authorizing the court to limit the time for taking testimony; authorizing the party filing an action to request a temporary injunction for a certain purpose; authorizing a party to remove an action for arbitration and seek a trial de novo in circuit court; removing the requirement that the Department of hb983-02-c2 Business and Professional Regulation adopt rules; requiring that an association be ordered, by judgment or decree, to pay a prevailing parcel owner's reasonable attorney fees and costs; providing that compensation or fees of an attorney may be included in the judgment or decree rendered in such action or in a separate judgment or decree; prohibiting any other recovery of attorney fees or costs, with an exception; amending s. 720.401, F.S.; requiring prospective purchasers of a parcel subject to association membership to be provided with certain documents, in addition to the disclosure summary, before executing a contract; authorizing prospective purchasers to cancel their contract within a specified timeframe under certain circumstances; specifying that the 3-day cancellation period does not include Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays; reenacting ss. 720.3033(4)(b) and 720.405(6), F.S., relating to officers and directors and organizing committee parcel and parcel owner approval, respectively, to incorporate the amendment made to s. 720.306, F.S., in references thereto; creating part IV of ch. 720, F.S., entitled "Recreational Covenants"; creating s. 720.408, F.S.; providing definitions; creating s. 720.409, F.S.; providing legislative findings; hb983-02-c2 providing the scope and applicability of the part; creating s. 720.412, F.S.; providing requirements for recreational covenants recorded on or after a specified date; providing requirements for recreational covenants recorded before a specified date; providing the maximum annual increase of amenity expenses for certain recreational covenants; authorizing a private amenities owner to increase amenity expenses under certain conditions; providing that a homeowners' association is not responsible for collecting or remitting amenity dues; prohibiting certain expenses and costs from being included as amenity expenses; providing that a parcel owner or the tenant of a parcel owner retains certain rights even if a recreational covenant is terminated or the private amenities owner suspends the use of the privately-owned recreational amenities; specifying that a recreational covenant is not a governing document of a homeowners' association; providing legislative intent; providing construction; creating s. 720.413, F.S.; requiring each contract entered into on or after a date certain for the sale of a residential parcel governed by a homeowners' association to include a specified disclosure summary; requiring a developer or parcel owner selling the hb983-02-c2 parcel to provide such disclosure summary to a prospective purchaser; providing that a contract or agreement for sale of a parcel is voidable under certain circumstances; providing the method in which such contract or agreement is voidable; amending ss. 336.125, 558.002, 617.0725, 718.116, and 720.3085, F.S.; conforming cross-references; providing an effective date.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Juan Porras (R)*,  Joe Casello (D),  Peggy Gossett-Seidman (R),  Mike Redondo (R),  Paula Stark (R),  Meg Weinberger (R), 

Other Sponsors (2)

Died in Judiciary Committee (on 06/16/2025)

Official Document