Florida Senate - 2025 CS for CS for SB 592 By the Committees on Regulated Industries; and Banking and Insurance; and Senators Leek and Pizzo 580-02871-25 2025592c2 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to the My Safe Florida Condominium 3 Pilot Program; amending s. 215.55871, F.S.; limiting 4 participation in the My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot 5 Program to certain structures or buildings; revising 6 the approval requirements to receive a mitigation 7 grant; deleting the amount of grant funding designated 8 for certain projects; revising the improvements for 9 which a grant may be used; requiring that improvements 10 be verified during the final hurricane mitigation 11 inspection to qualify for grant funds; specifying that 12 mitigation grants may be awarded only for mitigation 13 improvements that will result in a mitigation credit, 14 discount, or other rate differential; requiring the 15 Department of Financial Services to require that 16 certain improvements be made under certain 17 circumstances; providing an effective date. 18 19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 20 21 Section 1.Present paragraphs (a) through (d) of subsection 22 (2) of section 215.55871, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as 23 paragraphs (b) through (e), respectively, a new paragraph (a) is 24 added to that subsection, and present paragraph (b) of 25 subsection (2) and subsection (5) of that section are amended, 26 to read: 27 215.55871My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program.There 28 is established within the Department of Financial Services the 29 My Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program to be implemented 30 pursuant to appropriations. The department shall provide fiscal 31 accountability, contract management, and strategic leadership 32 for the pilot program, consistent with this section. This 33 section does not create an entitlement for associations or unit 34 owners or obligate the state in any way to fund the inspection 35 or retrofitting of condominiums in the state. Implementation of 36 this pilot program is subject to annual legislative 37 appropriations. It is the intent of the Legislature that the My 38 Safe Florida Condominium Pilot Program provide licensed 39 inspectors to perform inspections for and grants to eligible 40 associations as funding allows. 41 (2)PARTICIPATION. 42 (a)Participation in the pilot program is limited to 43 structures or buildings on the condominium property which are 44 three or more stories in height, provided that each structure or 45 building that is the subject of the mitigation grant contains 46 two or more single-family dwellings. 47 (c)(b)In order to apply for a grant under subsection (5) 48 which improves one or more units within a condominium, an 49 association must receive both of the following: 50 1.Approval by a majority vote of the board of 51 administration or a majority vote of the total voting interests 52 of the association to participate in a mitigation inspection. 53 2.Approval by at least 75 percent A unanimous vote of all 54 persons with voting interests who reside unit owners within the 55 structure or building that is the subject of the mitigation 56 grant. 57 (5)MITIGATION GRANTS.Financial grants may be used by 58 associations to make improvements recommended in a hurricane 59 mitigation inspection report which increase the condominiums 60 resistance to hurricane damage. 61 (a)An application for a mitigation grant must: 62 1.Contain a signed or electronically verified statement 63 made under penalty of perjury by the president of the board of 64 administration that the association has submitted only a single 65 application for each property that the association operates or 66 maintains. 67 2.Include a notarized statement from the president of the 68 board of administration containing the name and license number 69 of each contractor the association intends to use for the 70 mitigation project. 71 3.Include a notarized statement from the president of the 72 board of administration which commits to the department that the 73 association will complete the mitigation improvements. If the 74 grant will be used to improve units, the application must also 75 include an acknowledged statement from each unit owner who is 76 required to provide approval for a grant under paragraph (2)(c) 77 (2)(b). 78 (b)An association may select its own contractors for the 79 mitigation project as long as each contractor meets all 80 qualification, certification, or licensing requirements in 81 general law. A mitigation project must be performed by a 82 properly licensed contractor who has secured all required local 83 permits necessary for the project. The department must 84 electronically verify that the contractors state license number 85 is accurate and up to date before approving a grant application. 86 (c)An association awarded a grant must complete the entire 87 mitigation project in order to receive the final grant award and 88 must agree to make the property available for a final inspection 89 once the mitigation project is finished to ensure the mitigation 90 improvements are completed in a manner consistent with the 91 intent of the pilot program and meet or exceed the applicable 92 Florida Building Code requirements. Construction must be 93 completed and the association must submit a request to the 94 department for a final inspection, or request an extension of 95 time, within 1 year after receiving grant approval. If the 96 association fails to comply with this paragraph, the application 97 is deemed abandoned and the grant money reverts back to the 98 department. 99 (d)Grant projects shall be funded as follows: 100 1.All grants must be matched on the basis of $1 provided 101 by the association for $2 provided by the state toward the 102 actual cost of the project. 103 2.For roof-related projects, the grant contribution is $11 104 per square foot multiplied by the square footage of the 105 replacement roof, not to exceed $1,000 per unit, with a maximum 106 grant award of 50 percent of the cost of the project. 107 3.For opening protection-related projects, the grant 108 contribution is a maximum of $750 per replacement window or 109 door, not to exceed $1,500 per unit, with a maximum grant award 110 of 50 percent of the cost of the project. 111 2.4.An association may receive grant funds for both roof 112 related and opening protection-related projects, but the maximum 113 total grant award may not exceed $175,000 per association. 114 3.5.The department may not accept grant applications or 115 maintain a waiting list for grants after the cumulative value of 116 the grants awarded have fully obligated the appropriation, 117 unless otherwise expressly authorized by the Legislature. 118 (e)When recommended by a hurricane mitigation inspection 119 report, grants for eligible associations may be used for the 120 following improvements: 121 1.Opening protection improvements, including all of the 122 following: 123 a.Exterior doors., 124 b.Garage doors., 125 c.Windows., and 126 d.Skylights. 127 e.Wind-driven rain mitigation devices for sliding glass 128 doors. 129 2.Roof-related improvements, including all of the 130 following: 131 a.2.Reinforcing roof-to-wall connections. 132 b.3.Improving the strength of roof-deck attachments. 133 c.4.Installing secondary water resistance for roof. 134 d.Replacing the roof covering. 135 (f)Improvements must be verified during the final 136 hurricane mitigation inspection to qualify for grant funds 137 Grants may be used for a previously inspected existing structure 138 on the property. 139 (g)1.If improvements to protect the property which 140 complied with the current applicable building code at the time 141 have been previously installed, the association must use a 142 mitigation grant to install improvements that do both of the 143 following: 144 1.a.Comply with or exceed the applicable building code in 145 effect at the time the association applied for the grant. 146 2.b.Provide more hurricane protection than the 147 improvements that the association previously installed. 148 (h)2.The association may not use a mitigation grant to: 149 1.a.Install the same type of improvements that were 150 previously installed; or 151 2.b.Pay a deductible for a pending insurance claim for 152 damage that is part of the property for which grant funds are 153 being received. 154 (i)(h)The department shall develop a process that ensures 155 the most efficient means to collect and verify inspection and 156 grant applications to determine eligibility. The department may 157 direct hurricane mitigation inspectors to collect and verify 158 inspection and grant application information or use the Internet 159 or other electronic means to collect information and determine 160 eligibility. 161 (j)Grant funds may be awarded only for each mitigation 162 improvement that, when applied to the structure or building, 163 will result in a mitigation credit, discount, or other rate 164 differential. If necessary for the building or structure to 165 qualify for a mitigation credit, discount, or other rate 166 differential, the department must require that improvements be 167 made to all openings, including exterior doors, garage doors, 168 windows, and skylights, as a condition of reimbursing a 169 condominium association approved for a grant. 170 Section 2.This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.