Florida Senate - 2016                       CS for CS for SB 260
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Judiciary; and Banking and Insurance; and
       Senators Smith and Richter
       
       590-02336-16                                           2016260c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to financial transactions; amending s.
    3         501.0117, F.S.; providing that a convenience fee
    4         imposed upon a student or family paying certain fees
    5         by credit card to a private school is not considered a
    6         surcharge; amending s. 670.108, F.S.; revising
    7         applicability; providing that ch. 670, F.S., governs
    8         certain funds transfers that are remittance transfers;
    9         providing that the federal Electronic Fund Transfer
   10         Act governs any inconsistency between a funds transfer
   11         made under the federal act and a funds transfer made
   12         under ch. 670, F.S.; amending s. 701.03, F.S.;
   13         reducing the time limit for a mortgagee or an assignee
   14         to cancel a mortgage, except in cases where the loan
   15         is an open-end mortgage; authorizing an open-end
   16         mortgage to be canceled within a specified timeframe
   17         if the borrower provides written notice of his or her
   18         intent to close the open-end mortgage; providing
   19         applicability; amending s. 516.07, F.S.; revising the
   20         grounds for denial of an application for a license to
   21         make consumer finance loans; providing applicability;
   22         providing an effective date.
   23          
   24  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   25  
   26         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 501.0117, Florida
   27  Statutes, is amended to read:
   28         501.0117 Credit cards; transactions in which seller or
   29  lessor prohibited from imposing surcharge; penalty.—
   30         (1) A seller or lessor in a sales or lease transaction may
   31  not impose a surcharge on the buyer or lessee for electing to
   32  use a credit card in lieu of payment by cash, check, or similar
   33  means, if the seller or lessor accepts payment by credit card. A
   34  surcharge is any additional amount imposed at the time of a sale
   35  or lease transaction by the seller or lessor that increases the
   36  charge to the buyer or lessee for the privilege of using a
   37  credit card to make payment. Charges imposed pursuant to
   38  approved state or federal tariffs are not considered to be a
   39  surcharge, and charges made under such tariffs are exempt from
   40  this section. A convenience fee imposed upon a student or family
   41  paying tuition, fees, or other student account charges by credit
   42  card to a William L. Boyd, IV, Florida resident access grant
   43  eligible institution, as defined in s. 1009.89, or to a private
   44  school, as defined in s. 1002.01, is not considered to be a
   45  surcharge and is exempt from this section if the amount of the
   46  convenience fee does not exceed the total cost charged by the
   47  credit card company to the institution. The term “credit card”
   48  includes those cards for which unpaid balances are payable on
   49  demand. This section does not apply to the offering of a
   50  discount for the purpose of inducing payment by cash, check, or
   51  other means not involving the use of a credit card, if the
   52  discount is offered to all prospective customers.
   53         Section 2. Section 670.108, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   54  read:
   55         670.108 Relationship to Electronic Fund Transfer Act
   56  Exclusion of consumer transactions governed by federal law.—
   57         (1)Except as provided in subsection (2), this chapter does
   58  not apply to a funds transfer any part of which is governed by
   59  the Electronic Fund Transfer Act of 1978 (Title XX, Pub. L. No.
   60  95-630, 92 Stat. 3728, 15 U.S.C. ss. 1693 et seq.), as amended
   61  from time to time.
   62         (2)This chapter applies to a funds transfer that is a
   63  remittance transfer as defined in the Electronic Fund Transfer
   64  Act, 15 U.S.C. s. 1693o-1, as amended from time to time, unless
   65  the remittance transfer is an electronic fund transfer as
   66  defined in the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, 15 U.S.C. s. 1693a,
   67  as amended from time to time.
   68         (3)If there is an inconsistency between a funds transfer
   69  under this chapter and the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, the
   70  Electronic Fund Transfer Act governs the inconsistency.
   71         Section 3. Section 701.03, Florida Statutes is amended to
   72  read:
   73         701.03 Cancellation.—
   74         (1) Whenever the amount of money due under a promissory
   75  note secured by a on any mortgage is shall be fully paid, the
   76  mortgagee or assignee shall within 45 60 days after satisfaction
   77  of the mortgage thereafter cancel the mortgage same in the
   78  manner provided by law, unless the mortgage is an open-end
   79  mortgage.
   80         (2)A mortgage that is an open-end mortgage as provided in
   81  the loan agreement may be canceled upon written notice from the
   82  borrower of the intent to close the mortgage. The mortgagee or
   83  assignee shall cancel the open-end mortgage within 45 days after
   84  receiving the notice. This subsection does not apply to an open
   85  end mortgage existing before July 1, 2016, if the loan agreement
   86  contained procedures for canceling the mortgage.
   87         Section 4. Paragraph (k) of subsection (1) of section
   88  516.07, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   89         516.07 Grounds for denial of license or for disciplinary
   90  action.—
   91         (1) The following acts are violations of this chapter and
   92  constitute grounds for denial of an application for a license to
   93  make consumer finance loans and grounds for any of the
   94  disciplinary actions specified in subsection (2):
   95         (k) Paying money or anything else of value, directly or
   96  indirectly, to any person as compensation, inducement, or reward
   97  for referring loan applicants to a licensee, if such amount is
   98  charged directly or indirectly to the borrower.
   99         Section 5. This act applies to remittance transfers
  100  initiated on or after July 1, 2016.
  101         Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.