| 1 | Representative Hays offered the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Amendment (with title amendment) |
| 4 | Remove everything after the enacting clause and insert: |
| 5 | Section 1. Subsection (8) of section 215.5586, Florida |
| 6 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 7 | 215.5586 My Safe Florida Home Program.--There is |
| 8 | established within the Department of Financial Services the My |
| 9 | Safe Florida Home Program. The department shall provide fiscal |
| 10 | accountability, contract management, and strategic leadership |
| 11 | for the program, consistent with this section. This section does |
| 12 | not create an entitlement for property owners or obligate the |
| 13 | state in any way to fund the inspection or retrofitting of |
| 14 | residential property in this state. Implementation of this |
| 15 | program is subject to annual legislative appropriations. It is |
| 16 | the intent of the Legislature that the My Safe Florida Home |
| 17 | Program provide inspections for at least 400,000 site-built, |
| 18 | single-family, residential properties and provide grants to at |
| 19 | least 35,000 applicants before June 30, 2009. The program shall |
| 20 | develop and implement a comprehensive and coordinated approach |
| 21 | for hurricane damage mitigation that shall include the |
| 22 | following: |
| 23 | (8) NO-INTEREST LOANS.--The department shall implement a |
| 24 | no-interest loan program by October 1, 2008, contingent upon the |
| 25 | selection of a qualified vendor and execution of a contract |
| 26 | acceptable to the department and the vendor. The department |
| 27 | shall enter into partnerships with the private sector to provide |
| 28 | loans to owners of site-built, single-family, residential |
| 29 | property to pay for mitigation measures listed in subsection |
| 30 | (2). A loan eligible for interest payments pursuant to this |
| 31 | subsection may be for a term of up to 3 years and cover up to |
| 32 | $5,000 in mitigation measures. The department shall pay the |
| 33 | creditor the market rate of interest using funds appropriated |
| 34 | for the My Safe Florida Home Program. In no case shall the |
| 35 | department pay more than the interest rate set by s. 687.03. To |
| 36 | be eligible for a loan, a loan applicant must first obtain a |
| 37 | home inspection and report that specifies what improvements are |
| 38 | needed to reduce the property's vulnerability to windstorm |
| 39 | damage pursuant to this section and meet loan underwriting |
| 40 | requirements set by the lender. The department shall set aside |
| 41 | $10 million from funds appropriated for the My Safe Florida Home |
| 42 | Program to implement this subsection. The department may adopt |
| 43 | rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement this |
| 44 | subsection which may include eligibility criteria. |
| 45 | Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |
| 46 |
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| 47 |
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| 48 | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| 49 | T I T L E A M E N D M E N T |
| 50 | Remove the entire title and insert: |
| 51 | A bill to be entitled |
| 52 | An act relating to the My Safe Florida Home Program; |
| 53 | amending s. 215.5586, F.S.; deleting a requirement that |
| 54 | the Department of Financial Services set aside from |
| 55 | appropriated funds a specified amount of money to |
| 56 | implement the no-interest loan component of the program; |
| 57 | providing an effective date. |