Florida Senate - 2009                             CS for SB 20-A
       
       
       
       By the Committee on General Government Appropriations and
       Senator Baker
       
       
       
       601-00097-09A                                          200920Ac1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the My Safe Florida Home Program;
    3         amending s. 215.5586, F.S.; deleting a requirement
    4         that the Department of Financial Services set aside a
    5         portion of program funds for the purpose of
    6         implementing certain hurricane mitigation measures;
    7         providing an effective date.
    8         
    9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   10         
   11         Section 1. Subsection (8) of section 215.5586, Florida
   12  Statutes, is amended to read:
   13         215.5586 My Safe Florida Home Program.—There is established
   14  within the Department of Financial Services the My Safe Florida
   15  Home Program. The department shall provide fiscal
   16  accountability, contract management, and strategic leadership
   17  for the program, consistent with this section. This section does
   18  not create an entitlement for property owners or obligate the
   19  state in any way to fund the inspection or retrofitting of
   20  residential property in this state. Implementation of this
   21  program is subject to annual legislative appropriations. It is
   22  the intent of the Legislature that the My Safe Florida Home
   23  Program provide inspections for at least 400,000 site-built,
   24  single-family, residential properties and provide grants to at
   25  least 35,000 applicants before June 30, 2009. The program shall
   26  develop and implement a comprehensive and coordinated approach
   27  for hurricane damage mitigation that shall include the
   28  following:
   29         (8) NO-INTEREST LOANS.—The department shall implement a no
   30  interest loan program by October 1, 2008, contingent upon the
   31  selection of a qualified vendor and execution of a contract
   32  acceptable to the department and the vendor. The department
   33  shall enter into partnerships with the private sector to provide
   34  loans to owners of site-built, single-family, residential
   35  property to pay for mitigation measures listed in subsection
   36  (2). A loan eligible for interest payments pursuant to this
   37  subsection may be for a term of up to 3 years and cover up to
   38  $5,000 in mitigation measures. The department shall pay the
   39  creditor the market rate of interest using funds appropriated
   40  for the My Safe Florida Home Program. In no case shall the
   41  department pay more than the interest rate set by s. 687.03. To
   42  be eligible for a loan, a loan applicant must first obtain a
   43  home inspection and report that specifies what improvements are
   44  needed to reduce the property's vulnerability to windstorm
   45  damage pursuant to this section and meet loan underwriting
   46  requirements set by the lender. The department shall set aside
   47  $10 million from funds appropriated for the My Safe Florida Home
   48  Program to implement this subsection. The department may adopt
   49  rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement this
   50  subsection which may include eligibility criteria.
   51         Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.