HB 1151 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to financing improvements to real 2
property; amending s. 163.08, F.S.; revising 3
legislative intent; defining and revising terms; 4
authorizing a residential or commercial property owner 5
to apply to a local government for funding to finance 6
an improvement and to enter into a financing agreement 7
with the local government; providing that a non -ad 8
valorem assessment on certain commercial property is 9
subject to a certain fee; requiring a delinquent 10
assessment with a nongovernmental lessee to be 11
enforced in the manner provided by law; specifying 12
requirements of the financing agreement for government 13
commercial property; specifying the determinations a 14
local government must make before entering into a 15
financing agreement for commercial and residential 16
properties; authorizing a financing agreement to be 17
executed for commercial property under certain 18
circumstances; restricting what improvements may be 19
covered in certain agreements between local 20
governments and residential property owners; limiting 21
the amount of non-ad valorem assessment for certain 22
residential property; providing an exception relating 23
to non-ad valorem assessment for residential property 24
that is supported by an energy audit; specifying 25
HB 1151 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
requirements for a local government before entering 26
into a financing agreement; revising notice 27
requirements regarding an owner's intent to enter into 28
a financing agreement; revising the seller's 29
disclosure statement for certain properties offered 30
for sale; providing construction; providing an 31
effective date. 32
33
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 34
35
Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) and subsections 36
(2), (4), (8), (9), (10), (12), (13), and (14) of section 37
163.08, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (17) is 38
added to that section, to read: 39
163.08 Supplemental authority for improvements to real 40
property.— 41
(1) 42
(b) The Legislature finds that all energy -consuming-43
improved properties that are not using energy conservation 44
strategies contribute to the burden affectin g all improved 45
property resulting from fossil fuel energy production. Improved 46
property that has been retrofitted with energy -related 47
qualifying improvements receives the special benefit of 48
alleviating the property's burden from energy consumption. All 49
improved properties not protected from wind damage by wind 50
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
resistance qualifying improvements contribute to the burden 51
affecting all improved property resulting from potential wind 52
damage. Improved property that has been retrofitted with 53
resiliency wind resistance qualifying improvements receives the 54
special benefit of reducing the property's burden from potential 55
wind damage. Further, the installation and operation of 56
qualifying improvements not only benefit the affected properties 57
for which the improvements are made, but also assist in 58
fulfilling the goals of the state's energy and hurricane 59
mitigation policies. In order to make qualifying improvements 60
more affordable and assist property owners who wish to undertake 61
such improvements, the Legislature finds th at there is a 62
compelling state interest in enabling property owners to 63
voluntarily finance such improvements with local government 64
assistance. 65
(2) As used in this section, the term: 66
(a) "Commercial property" means real property not defined 67
as residential property which will be or has been improved by a 68
qualifying improvement, including, but not limited to, the 69
following: 70
1. A multifamily residential property composed of five or 71
more dwelling units; 72
2. A commercial real property; 73
3. An industrial building or property; 74
4. An agricultural property; 75
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5. A nonprofit-owned property; 76
6. A long-term care facility, including nursing homes and 77
assisted living facilities; or 78
7. A government commercial property. 79
(b) "Government commercial property" means real property 80
owned by a local government and leased to a nongovernmental 81
lessee where the usage by the lessee meets the definition of 82
commercial property. 83
(c) "Local government" means a county, a municipality, a 84
dependent special district as defin ed in s. 189.012, or a 85
separate legal entity created pursuant to s. 163.01(7). 86
(d) "Nongovernmental lessee" means a person or an entity 87
other than a local government which leases government commercial 88
property. 89
(e)(b) "Qualifying improvement" includes any: 90
1. Energy conservation and efficiency improvement, which 91
is a measure to reduce consumption through conservation or a 92
more efficient use of electricity, natural gas, propane, or 93
other forms of energy on the property, including, but not 94
limited to, air sealing; installation of insulation; 95
installation of energy -efficient heating, cooling, or 96
ventilation systems; building modifications to increase the use 97
of daylight; replacement of windows; installation of energy 98
controls or energy recovery systems; i nstallation of electric 99
vehicle charging equipment; and installation of efficient 100
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lighting equipment; or any other improvements necessary to 101
achieve a sustainable building rating or compliance with a 102
national model green building code . 103
2. Renewable energy improvement, which is the installation 104
of any system in which the electrical, mechanical, or thermal 105
energy is produced from a method that uses one or more of the 106
following fuels or energy sources: hydrogen, solar energy, 107
geothermal energy, bioenergy, an d wind energy. 108
3. Resiliency Wind resistance improvement, which includes, 109
but is not limited to: 110
a. Improving the strength of the roof deck attachment; 111
b. Creating a secondary water barrier , including sea 112
walls, to prevent water intrusion; 113
c. Installing wind-resistant shingles; 114
d. Installing gable -end bracing; 115
e. Reinforcing roof -to-wall connections; 116
f. Installing storm shutters; or 117
g. Installing opening protections ; 118
h. Creating or improving stormwater, flood, and wastewater 119
management; or 120
i. Making any other improvements necessary to achieve a 121
sustainable building rating or compliance with a national model 122
resiliency standard. 123
(f) "Residential property" means a residential real 124
property of four or fewer dwelling units which will be or has 125
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been improved by a qualifying improvement. 126
(4) Subject to local government ordinance or resolution, a 127
residential or commercial property owner may apply to the local 128
government for funding to finance a qualifying improvement and 129
enter into a financin g agreement with the local government. 130
Costs incurred by the local government for such purpose may be 131
collected as a non-ad valorem assessment. A non -ad valorem 132
assessment must shall be collected pursuant to s. 197.3632 and, 133
notwithstanding s. 197.3632(8)( a), is shall not be subject to 134
discount for early payment. However, the notice and adoption 135
requirements of s. 197.3632(4) do not apply if this section is 136
used and complied with, and the intent resolution, publication 137
of notice, and mailed notices to the p roperty appraiser, tax 138
collector, and Department of Revenue required by s. 139
197.3632(3)(a) may be provided on or before August 15 in 140
conjunction with any non -ad valorem assessment authorized by 141
this section, if the property appraiser, tax collector, and 142
local government agree. A non-ad valorem assessment on a 143
commercial property securing financing for a qualifying 144
improvement, notwithstanding ss. 192.091(2)(b) and 145
197.3632(8)(c), is subject to a maximum annual fee of 1 percent 146
of the annual non-ad valorem assessment collected or $5,000, 147
whichever is less. Notwithstanding this subsection, a delinquent 148
assessment pursuant to a financing agreement with a 149
nongovernmental lessee must be enforced in the manner provided 150
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by law for taxes and assessments on property o wned by 151
nongovernmental lessees of government commercial property. 152
(8) A local government may enter into a financing 153
agreement to finance or refinance a qualifying improvement only 154
with the record owner of the affected property. For government 155
commercial property, the financing agreement must be executed by 156
the nongovernmental lessee with the written consent of the 157
governmental lessor. Evidence of such consent must be provided 158
to the local government. The financing agreement with a 159
nongovernmental lessee must provide that the nongovernmental 160
lessee is the only party obligated to pay the assessment. Any 161
financing agreement entered into pursuant to this section or a 162
summary memorandum of such agreement must shall be recorded in 163
the public records of the coun ty within which the property is 164
located by the sponsoring unit of local government within 5 days 165
after execution of the agreement. The recorded agreement 166
provides shall provide constructive notice that the assessment 167
to be levied on the property constitutes a lien of equal dignity 168
to county taxes and assessments from the date of recordation. 169
(9)(a) Before entering into a financing agreement for a 170
commercial property, the local government shall reasonably 171
determine that all of the following conditions have been met: 172
1. that All property taxes and any other assessments 173
levied on the same bill as property taxes are current. paid and 174
have not been delinquent for the preceding 3 y ears or the 175
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property owner's period of ownership, whichever is less; 176
2. that There are no involuntary liens greater than 177
$10,000, including, but not limited to, construction liens on 178
the property.; 179
3. that No notices of default or other evidence of 180
property-based debt delinquency have been recorded and not 181
released during the preceding 3 years or the property owner's 182
period of ownership, whichever is less .; 183
4. and that The property owner is current on all mortgage 184
debt on the property. 185
(b) Before entering into a financing agreement for a 186
residential property, the local government shall reasonably 187
determine that all of the following conditions have been met: 188
1. All property taxes and any other assessments levied on 189
the same bill as property taxes ar e paid and have not been 190
delinquent for the preceding 3 years or the property owner's 191
period of ownership, whichever is less. 192
2. There are no involuntary liens, including, but not 193
limited to, construction liens on the property. 194
3. No notices of default or other evidence of property -195
based debt delinquency have been recorded during the preceding 3 196
years or the property owner's period of ownership, whichever is 197
less. 198
4. The property owner is current on all mortgage debt on 199
the property. 200
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(10) To constitute an improvement to the building or 201
facility, a qualifying improvement must be shall be affixed to a 202
building or facility that is part of the property and shall 203
constitute an improvement to the building or facility or a 204
fixture attached to the bui lding or facility. A financing 205
agreement may be executed for qualifying improvements in the 206
construction of a commercial property before a certificate of 207
occupancy or similar evidence of substantial completion of new 208
construction or improvement is issued. Progress payments, or 209
payments made before completion, are allowed for commercial 210
properties, provided that the property owner subsequently 211
provides, upon request for a final progress payment 212
disbursement, written verification to the local government 213
confirming that the qualifying improvements are completed and 214
operating as intended. An agreement between a local government 215
and a qualifying residential property owner may not cover wind-216
resistant wind-resistance improvements in buildings or 217
facilities under new construction or construction for which a 218
certificate of occupancy or similar evidence of substantial 219
completion of new construction or improvement has not been 220
issued. 221
(12)(a) Without the consent of the holders or loan 222
servicers of any mortgage encumb ering or otherwise secured by 223
the residential property, the total amount of any non -ad valorem 224
assessment for a property under this section may not exceed 20 225
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percent of the just value of the property as determined by the 226
county property appraiser. 227
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), a non -ad valorem 228
assessment for a qualifying improvement defined in subparagraph 229
(2)(e)1. or subparagraph (2)(e)2. on a residential property 230
subparagraph (2)(b)1. or subparagraph (2)(b)2. that is supported 231
by an energy audit is not subject to the limits in this 232
subsection if the audit demonstrates that the annual energy 233
savings from the qualified improvement equals or exceeds the 234
annual repayment amount of the non -ad valorem assessment. 235
(c) Before entering into a financing agr eement with a 236
commercial property owner, the local government must be in 237
receipt of the written consent of the current holders or loan 238
servicers of any mortgage that encumbers or is otherwise secured 239
by the commercial property or that will otherwise be sec ured by 240
the property at the time the financing agreement is executed by 241
the local government. 242
(13) At least 30 days before entering into a financing 243
agreement, the property owner shall provide to the holders or 244
loan servicers of any existing mortgages that encumber the 245
property, encumbering or that will otherwise be otherwise 246
secured by the property at the time the financing agreement is 247
executed by the local government, a notice of the owner's intent 248
to enter into a financing agreement together with the maximum 249
principal amount to be financed and the maximum annual 250
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assessment necessary to repay that amount. A verified copy or 251
other proof of such notice must shall be provided to the local 252
government. A provision in any agreement between a mortgagee or 253
other lienholder and a property owner, or otherwise now or 254
hereafter binding upon a property owner, which allows for 255
acceleration of payment of the mortgage, note, or lien or other 256
unilateral modification solely as a result of entering into a 257
financing agreement as provided for in this section is not 258
enforceable. This subsection does not limit the authority of the 259
holder or loan servicer to increase the required monthly escrow 260
by an amount necessary to annually pay the annual qualifying 261
improvement assessment. 262
(14) At or before the time a purchaser executes a contract 263
for the sale and purchase of any property for which a non -ad 264
valorem assessment has been levied under this section and has an 265
unpaid balance due, the seller shall give the prospective 266
purchaser a written disclosure statement in either of the 267
following forms form, which must shall be set forth in the 268
contract or in a separate writing . 269
(a) For a commercial property : 270
271
QUALIFYING IMPROVEMENTS FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY, 272
RENEWABLE ENERGY, OR RESILIENCY WIND RESISTANCE.—The 273
property being purchased is located within the 274
jurisdiction of a local government that has placed an 275
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assessment on the property pursuant to s. 163.08, 276
Florida Statutes. The assessment is for a qualifying 277
improvement to the property rel ating to energy 278
efficiency, renewable energy, or resiliency wind 279
resistance, and is not based on the value of property. 280
You are encouraged to contact the county property 281
appraiser's office to learn more about this and other 282
assessments that may be provided by law. 283
284
(b) For a residential property: 285
286
QUALIFYING IMPROVEMENTS FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY, 287
RENEWABLE ENERGY, OR RESILIENCY. —The property being 288
purchased is located within the jurisdiction of a 289
local government that has placed an assessment on the 290
property pursuant to s. 163.08, Florida Statutes. The 291
assessment is for a qualifying improvement to the 292
property relating to energy efficiency, renewable 293
energy, or resiliency, and is not based on the value 294
of property. You are encouraged to contact the county 295
property appraiser's office to learn more about this 296
and other assessments that may be provided by law. 297
298
(17) This section is prospective only and does not affect 299
or amend any existing non -ad valorem assessment or any existing 300
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interlocal agreement between l ocal governments. 301
Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 302