| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to residential building permits; amending |
| 3 | s. 553.79, F.S.; prohibiting local enforcing agencies and |
| 4 | building code officials or entities from requiring certain |
| 5 | inspections of buildings, structures, or real property as |
| 6 | a condition of issuance of certain residential building |
| 7 | permits; providing for application; providing for |
| 8 | conditional repeal; providing an effective date. |
| 9 |
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| 10 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 11 |
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| 12 | Section 1. Subsection (17) is added to section 553.79, |
| 13 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 14 | 553.79 Permits; applications; issuance; inspections.- |
| 15 | (17)(a) A local enforcing agency, and any local building |
| 16 | code administrator, inspector, or other official or entity, may |
| 17 | not require as a condition of issuance of a one- or two-family |
| 18 | residential building permit the inspection of any portion of a |
| 19 | building, structure, or real property that is not directly |
| 20 | impacted by the construction, erection, alteration, |
| 21 | modification, repair, or demolition of the building, structure, |
| 22 | or real property for which the permit is sought. |
| 23 | (b) This subsection does not apply to a building permit |
| 24 | sought for: |
| 25 | 1. A substantial improvement as defined in s. 161.54 or as |
| 26 | defined in the Florida Building Code. |
| 27 | 2. A change of occupancy as defined in the Florida |
| 28 | Building Code. |
| 29 | 3. A conversion from residential to nonresidential or |
| 30 | mixed use pursuant to s. 553.507(2)(a) or as defined in the |
| 31 | Florida Building Code. |
| 32 | 4. An historic building as defined in the Florida Building |
| 33 | Code. |
| 34 | (c) This subsection does not prohibit a local enforcing |
| 35 | agency, or any local building code administrator, inspector, or |
| 36 | other official or entity, from: |
| 37 | 1. Citing any violation inadvertently observed in plain |
| 38 | view during the ordinary course of an inspection conducted in |
| 39 | accordance with the prohibition in paragraph (a). |
| 40 | 2. Inspecting a physically nonadjacent portion of a |
| 41 | building, structure, or real property that is directly impacted |
| 42 | by the construction, erection, alteration, modification, repair, |
| 43 | or demolition of the building, structure, or real property for |
| 44 | which the permit is sought in accordance with the prohibition in |
| 45 | paragraph (a). |
| 46 | 3. Inspecting any portion of a building, structure, or |
| 47 | real property for which the owner or other person having control |
| 48 | of the building, structure, or real property has voluntarily |
| 49 | consented to the inspection of that portion of the building, |
| 50 | structure, or real property in accordance with the prohibition |
| 51 | in paragraph (a). |
| 52 | 4. Inspecting any portion of a building, structure, or |
| 53 | real property pursuant to an inspection warrant issued in |
| 54 | accordance with ss. 933.20-933.30. |
| 55 | (d) This subsection is repealed upon receipt by the |
| 56 | Secretary of State of the written certification by the chair of |
| 57 | the Florida Building Commission that the commission has adopted |
| 58 | an amendment to the Florida Building Code which substantially |
| 59 | incorporates this subsection, including the prohibition in |
| 60 | paragraph (a), as part of the code and such amendment has taken |
| 61 | effect. |
| 62 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012. |