There are several community association law bills that have been filed in either The Florida House of Representatives or The Florida Senate to keep an eye out for and that may merit the input of community associations across the state – to help get them passed or voted down.

Here is a summary of the bills to keep an eye on and the corresponding Florida Congressperson or Senator that has sponsored it:

• HB 0137 (REPRESENTATIVE CORTES): This bill proposes changes to the HOA recall statute to allow directors to be recalled if 60% of the people who are living in the HOA vote to remove the current board or board member, rather than a majority vote of all of the owners.

• HB 0233 (REPRESENTATIVE CORTES): This bill would require the parties to attend arbitration, should pre-suit mediation fail. This bill would require the parties to first mediate and then arbitrate before taking your case before a judge. Under this bill, it would take the association up to 90 days to get to a mediator, then several months or more in arbitration.

• CS/HB 476: 718.129 Law enforcement vehicles: This bill for condominiums, HOAs and co-ops, provides that an association may not prohibit a law enforcement officer, as defined in s. 943.10(1), who is a unit owner, or who is a tenant, guest, or invitee of a unit owner, from parking his or her assigned law enforcement vehicle in an area where the unit owner, or the tenant, guest, or invitee of the unit owner, otherwise has a right to park. This bill would resolve the issue about whether or not a law enforcement vehicle is a “commercial vehicle” that is typically prohibited.

• CS/HB 0623: This Bill has several parts:

  1. Provides 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 located in the association may not provide rights of subrogation against the condominium association.

     Here is an example of what this means: Let’s say a condo is forced to put in a claim because a unit owner’s negligence caused a flood. If the condo’s policy has rights of subrogation against that negligent owner, the insurance company can sue that negligent owner to get its money back. But if there are no subrogation rights in the insurance policy, the insurance company cannot get its money back.

     On the flip side, let’s say the condo’s negligence causes damage to a unit and the unit owner’s insurance company pays a claim. This new law basically says that’s it’s not fair for only one party to have subrogation rights. If the owner’s policy has rights of subrogation against the association, the insurance company can sue the association to get its money back. But if there are no subrogation rights in the insurance policy, the insurance company cannot get its money back. This new law attempts to say, if one party does not have subrogation rights – neither does the other.

  2. Clarifies that an association may not inquire as to why an owner wants access to the official records.

  3. Allows condo associations to maintain either an official website or an app.

  4. Clarifies that only board service that occurs on or after July 1, 2018, may be used when calculating a board member’s term limit.

  5. In terms of transfer fees – it would clarify that an association can charge an applicant $100.00 plus the actual costs of the background check or screening.

  6. Completely removes the section on service provider conflicts.

  7. An owner would be allowed to install an “alternative fuel station” in their limited common element parking space.

  8. Provides for fines against a tenant of a unit.

  9. Would allow the Ombudsman’s office to be located outside of Leon County.