| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to building code hurricane preparedness; |
| 3 | providing a short title; amending s. 553.73, F.S.; |
| 4 | providing intent with respect to the effect of building |
| 5 | code modifications on wind protection; requiring uniform |
| 6 | application of certain standards relating to wind-borne |
| 7 | debris and structural guidelines; prohibiting code |
| 8 | modification that diminishes construction requirements; |
| 9 | prescribing a date by which counties and municipalities |
| 10 | must enforce certain windborne debris protections and |
| 11 | structural guidelines; requiring the Florida Building |
| 12 | Commission to develop voluntary guidelines for increasing |
| 13 | the hurricane resistance of buildings; requiring that the |
| 14 | guidelines be included in the commission's report to the |
| 15 | 2008 Legislature; providing an effective date. |
| 16 |
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| 17 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 18 |
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| 19 | Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Uniform Building |
| 20 | Code Act." |
| 21 | Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 553.73, Florida |
| 22 | Statutes, is amended, and subsection (12) is added to that |
| 23 | section, to read: |
| 24 | 553.73 Florida Building Code.-- |
| 25 | (3) The commission shall select from available national or |
| 26 | international model building codes, or other available building |
| 27 | codes and standards currently recognized by the laws of this |
| 28 | state, to form the foundation for the Florida Building Code. The |
| 29 | commission may modify the selected model codes and standards as |
| 30 | needed to accommodate the specific needs of this state, but only |
| 31 | to the extent that any such modifications strengthen, not |
| 32 | weaken, the structural integrity of buildings constructed in |
| 33 | compliance with the Florida Building Code as it relates to wind |
| 34 | protection. Standards or criteria referenced by the selected |
| 35 | model codes shall be similarly incorporated by reference. If a |
| 36 | referenced standard or criterion requires amplification or |
| 37 | modification to be appropriate for use in this state, only the |
| 38 | amplification or modification shall be specifically set forth in |
| 39 | the Florida Building Code. The Florida Building Commission may |
| 40 | approve technical amendments to the code after the amendments |
| 41 | have been subject to the following conditions: |
| 42 | (a) The proposed amendment has been published on the |
| 43 | commission's website for a minimum of 45 days and all the |
| 44 | associated documentation has been made available to any |
| 45 | interested party before any consideration by any Technical |
| 46 | Advisory Committee; |
| 47 | (b) In order for a Technical Advisory Committee to make a |
| 48 | favorable recommendation to the commission, the proposal must |
| 49 | receive a three-fourths vote of the members present at the |
| 50 | Technical Advisory Committee meeting and at least half of the |
| 51 | regular members must be present in order to conduct a meeting; |
| 52 | (c) After Technical Advisory Committee consideration and a |
| 53 | recommendation for approval of any proposed amendment, the |
| 54 | proposal must be published on the commission's website for not |
| 55 | less than 45 days before any consideration by the commission; |
| 56 | and |
| 57 | (d) Any proposal may be modified by the commission based |
| 58 | on public testimony and evidence from a public hearing held in |
| 59 | accordance with chapter 120. |
| 60 |
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| 61 | The commission shall incorporate within sections of the Florida |
| 62 | Building Code provisions which address regional and local |
| 63 | concerns and variations, but only to the extent that any such |
| 64 | provisions strengthen, not weaken, the structural integrity of |
| 65 | buildings constructed in compliance with the Florida Building |
| 66 | Code as it relates to wind protection. The commission shall make |
| 67 | every effort to minimize conflicts between the Florida Building |
| 68 | Code, the Florida Fire Prevention Code, and the Life Safety |
| 69 | Code. |
| 70 | (12) Upon the effective date of this act, each county and |
| 71 | municipality in this state shall, at a minimum, enforce the |
| 72 | wind-borne debris protections and structural guidelines adopted |
| 73 | by the American Society of Civil Engineers in the standard |
| 74 | commonly referred to as ASCE 7-02. Notwithstanding the |
| 75 | provisions of section 109 of chapter 2000-141, Laws of Florida, |
| 76 | the Florida Building Commission shall amend the Florida Building |
| 77 | Code to require application of ASCE 7-02 throughout the state |
| 78 | and to eliminate all exceptions providing less stringent |
| 79 | requirements. Provisions of the Florida Building Code, including |
| 80 | those contained in referenced standards and criteria, relating |
| 81 | to wind resistance shall not be amended pursuant to this |
| 82 | subsection to diminish construction requirements, although the |
| 83 | commission may amend the provisions to enhance those |
| 84 | construction requirements. |
| 85 | Section 3. The Florida Building Commission shall develop |
| 86 | voluntary "Code Plus" guidelines for increasing the hurricane |
| 87 | resistance of buildings. The guidelines must be modeled on the |
| 88 | requirements for the High Velocity Hurricane Zone and must |
| 89 | identify products, systems, and methods of construction that the |
| 90 | commission anticipates could result in stronger construction. |
| 91 | The commission shall include these guidelines in its report to |
| 92 | the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of |
| 93 | Representatives in the 2008 Regular Session of the Legislature. |
| 94 | Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |