Florida Senate - 2015 SB 926
By Senator Sobel
33-00576A-15 2015926__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to underwater pool lighting safety;
3 amending s. 514.0115, F.S.; providing that underwater
4 lighting inspections are not exempt from supervision
5 or regulation; amending s. 514.025, F.S.; requiring
6 county health departments to inspect underwater
7 lighting in public pools; amending ss. 515.21, 515.33,
8 and 515.35, F.S.; conforming provisions to changes
9 made by the act; creating s. 515.51, F.S.; providing a
10 short title; creating s. 515.52, F.S.; providing
11 legislative findings and intent; creating s. 515.53,
12 F.S.; requiring the seller to provide a disclosure
13 summary to a prospective purchaser upon sale of
14 certain residential property of the dangers associated
15 with underwater lighting in swimming pools; amending
16 s. 553.73, F.S.; requiring the Florida Building Code
17 to contain underwater lighting standards for
18 residential and public swimming pools; creating s.
19 553.881, F.S.; requiring the Florida Building Code to
20 prohibit the installation of or replacement with
21 underwater lights of greater than a specified voltage
22 in new or existing residential or public swimming
23 pools; providing an effective date.
24
25 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
26
27 Section 1. Subsections (1), (2), and (4) of section
28 514.0115, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
29 514.0115 Exemptions from supervision or regulation;
30 variances.—
31 (1) Private pools and water therapy facilities connected
32 with facilities connected with hospitals, medical doctors’
33 offices, and licensed physical therapy establishments are shall
34 be exempt from supervision under this chapter, except for
35 underwater electrical lighting inspections.
36 (2)(a) Pools serving no more than 32 condominium or
37 cooperative units which are not operated as a public lodging
38 establishment are shall be exempt from supervision under this
39 chapter, except for water quality and underwater electrical
40 lighting inspections.
41 (b) Pools serving condominium or cooperative associations
42 of more than 32 units and whose recorded documents prohibit the
43 rental or sublease of the units for periods of less than 60 days
44 are exempt from supervision under this chapter, except that the
45 condominium or cooperative owner or association must file
46 applications with the department and obtain construction plans
47 approval and receive an initial operating permit. The department
48 shall inspect the swimming pools at such places annually, at the
49 fee set forth in s. 514.033(3), or upon request by a unit owner,
50 to determine compliance with department rules relating to water
51 quality and lifesaving equipment. However, such pools are
52 subject to underwater electrical lighting inspections. The
53 department may not require compliance with rules relating to
54 swimming pool lifeguard standards.
55 (4) Any pool serving a residential child care agency
56 registered and exempt from licensure pursuant to s. 409.176 is
57 shall be exempt from supervision or regulation under this
58 chapter related to construction standards if the pool is used
59 exclusively by the facility’s residents and if admission may not
60 be gained by the public. However, such pool is subject to
61 underwater electrical lighting inspections.
62 Section 2. Present subsection (3) of section 514.025,
63 Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (4), and a new
64 subsection (3) is added to that section, to read:
65 514.025 Assignment of authority to county health
66 departments.—
67 (3) County health departments shall inspect each public
68 pool every 5 years to ensure the safety of electrical underwater
69 lighting, including voltage, grounding, and wiring.
70 Section 3. Section 515.21, Florida Statutes, is amended to
71 read:
72 515.21 Short title.—Sections 515.21-515.37 This chapter may
73 be cited as the “Preston de Ibern/McKenzie Merriam Residential
74 Swimming Pool Safety Act.”
75 Section 4. Section 515.33, Florida Statutes, is amended to
76 read:
77 515.33 Information required to be furnished to buyers.—A
78 licensed pool contractor, on entering into an agreement with a
79 buyer to build a residential swimming pool, or a licensed home
80 builder or developer, on entering into an agreement with a buyer
81 to build a house that includes a residential swimming pool, must
82 give the buyer a document containing the requirements of ss.
83 515.27-515.31 this chapter and a copy of the publication
84 produced by the department under s. 515.31 that provides
85 information on drowning prevention and the responsibilities of
86 pool ownership.
87 Section 5. Section 515.35, Florida Statutes, is amended to
88 read:
89 515.35 Rulemaking authority.—The department shall adopt
90 rules pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act establishing
91 the fees required to attend drowning prevention education
92 programs and setting forth the information required under ss.
93 515.27-515.33 this chapter to be provided by licensed pool
94 contractors and licensed home builders or developers.
95 Section 6. Section 515.51, Florida Statutes, is created to
96 read:
97 515.51 Short title.—Sections 515.51-515.53 may be cited as
98 the “Calder Sloan Swim in Safety Act.”
99 Section 7. Section 515.52, Florida Statutes, is created to
100 read:
101 515.52 Legislative findings and intent.—The Legislature
102 recognizes that this state has the second highest number of
103 residential swimming pools per capita in the United States. The
104 Legislature further recognizes that, according to the United
105 States Consumer Product Safety Commission, electrical incidents
106 involving underwater pool lighting are more numerous than those
107 involving any other consumer product used in or around pools.
108 The Legislature finds that serious bodily injury and death by
109 electrocution can occur when underwater lighting in residential
110 pools is faulty. Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature
111 that owners of residential swimming pools be adequately informed
112 about the potential dangers associated with underwater lighting.
113 Section 8. Section 515.53, Florida Statutes, is created to
114 read:
115 515.53 Notification on real estate documents.— Before a
116 prospective purchaser executes the contract for sale and
117 purchase of a residential property having a pool, the seller
118 must present him or her with a disclosure summary in
119 substantially the following form:
120 UNDERWATER POOL LIGHTING
121 Faulty underwater pool lighting has caused and can
122 cause grave bodily injury or death. In particular,
123 pools may have 120 volts of electricity going to their
124 lights, may not be sufficiently grounded, or may have
125 faulty wiring. Newer pools may need to be inspected to
126 ensure proper voltage, wiring, and grounding.
127 Additional information regarding underwater pool
128 lighting may be obtained from your county health
129 department or licensed electrician.
130 If the disclosure summary is not included in the contract for
131 sale and purchase, the seller must attach a separate disclosure
132 summary to the contract.
133 Section 9. Subsection (2) of section 553.73, Florida
134 Statutes, is amended to read:
135 553.73 Florida Building Code.—
136 (2) The Florida Building Code must shall contain provisions
137 or requirements for public and private buildings, structures,
138 and facilities relative to structural, mechanical, electrical,
139 plumbing, energy, and gas systems, existing buildings,
140 historical buildings, manufactured buildings, elevators, coastal
141 construction, lodging facilities, food sales and food service
142 facilities, health care facilities, including assisted living
143 facilities, adult day care facilities, hospice residential and
144 inpatient facilities and units, and facilities for the control
145 of radiation hazards, public or private educational facilities,
146 swimming pools, and correctional facilities and enforcement of
147 and compliance with such provisions or requirements. The Florida
148 Building Code must contain installation standards for underwater
149 electrical lighting in residential and public swimming pools as
150 defined in s. 515.25. Further, the Florida Building Code must
151 provide for uniform implementation of ss. 515.25, 515.27, and
152 515.29 by including standards and criteria for residential
153 swimming pool barriers, pool covers, latching devices, door and
154 window exit alarms, and other equipment required therein, which
155 are consistent with the intent of s. 515.23. Technical
156 provisions to be contained within the Florida Building Code are
157 restricted to requirements related to the types of materials
158 used and construction methods and standards employed in order to
159 meet criteria specified in the Florida Building Code. Provisions
160 relating to the personnel, supervision or training of personnel,
161 or any other professional qualification requirements relating to
162 contractors or their workforce may not be included within the
163 Florida Building Code, and subsections (4), (6), (7), (8), and
164 (9) are not to be construed to allow the inclusion of such
165 provisions within the Florida Building Code by amendment. This
166 restriction applies to both initial development and amendment of
167 the Florida Building Code.
168 Section 10. Section 553.881, Florida Statutes, is created
169 to read:
170 553.881 Underwater swimming pool lighting.—The Florida
171 Building Code must prohibit the installation of or replacement
172 with underwater electrical lights of greater than 15 volts in
173 new or existing residential or public swimming pools.
174 Section 11. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.