Florida Senate - 2019 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. CS for CS for SB 908
Ì427046*Î427046
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
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The Committee on Rules (Hooper) recommended the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete everything after the enacting clause
4 and insert:
5 Section 1. Section 553.792, Florida Statutes, is amended to
6 read:
7 553.792 Building permit application to local government;
8 fire alarm permit applications.—
9 (1) Within 10 days of an applicant submitting an
10 application to the local government, the local government shall
11 advise the applicant what information, if any, is needed to deem
12 the application properly completed in compliance with the filing
13 requirements published by the local government. If the local
14 government does not provide written notice that the applicant
15 has not submitted the properly completed application, the
16 application shall be automatically deemed properly completed and
17 accepted. Within 45 days after receiving a completed
18 application, a local government must notify an applicant if
19 additional information is required for the local government to
20 determine the sufficiency of the application, and shall specify
21 the additional information that is required. The applicant must
22 submit the additional information to the local government or
23 request that the local government act without the additional
24 information. While the applicant responds to the request for
25 additional information, the 120-day period described in this
26 subsection is tolled. Both parties may agree to a reasonable
27 request for an extension of time, particularly in the event of a
28 force major or other extraordinary circumstance. The local
29 government must approve, approve with conditions, or deny the
30 application within 120 days following receipt of a completed
31 application.
32 (2) The procedures set forth in subsection (1) apply to the
33 following building permit applications: accessory structure;
34 alarm permit; nonresidential buildings less than 25,000 square
35 feet; electric; irrigation permit; landscaping; mechanical;
36 plumbing; residential units other than a single family unit;
37 multifamily residential not exceeding 50 units; roofing; signs;
38 site-plan approvals and subdivision plats not requiring public
39 hearings or public notice; and lot grading and site alteration
40 associated with the permit application set forth in this
41 subsection. The procedures set forth in subsection (1) do not
42 apply to permits for any wireless communications facilities or
43 when a law, agency rule, or local ordinance specify different
44 timeframes for review of local building permit applications.
45 (3) For any project requiring a fire alarm permit, a
46 uniform fire alarm permit application must be used and submitted
47 to the local enforcement agency along with any required
48 drawings, plans, and supporting documentation. The uniform fire
49 alarm permit application may be submitted electronically or by
50 facsimile and must be signed by the owner, contractor, or
51 authorized representative of either such person. The uniform
52 fire alarm permit application must contain the following
53 information in substantially the following form:
54
55 UNIFORM FIRE ALARM PERMIT APPLICATION
56
57 Tax Folio No.: ....
58 Application No.: ....
59 Owner or Representative Name: ....
60 Property Address: ....
61 City: .... State: .... Zip: ....
62 Phone: ....
63 Fee Simple Titleholder’s Name (if other than owner): ....
64 Fee Simple Titleholder’s Address (if other than owner):
65 ....
66 Description of Work: .... New Install .... Replacement ....
67 Addition .... Other ....
68 Construction Type: ....
69 Proposed Use: ....
70 Alarm Contractor’s Name: ....
71 Alarm Contractor’s Address: ....
72 City: .... State: .... Zip: ....
73 Phone: ....
74 Alarm Contractor’s License No: ....
75
76 Application is hereby made to obtain a permit to do the
77 work and installation as indicated. I certify that no work or
78 installation has commenced before the filing of this permit
79 application. I certify that all of the foregoing information is
80 true and accurate.
81
82 ...(Signature of Owner, Contractor, or Agent)...
83 Printed Name: ....
84
85 (4) The procedures set forth in subsection (1) do not apply
86 to the installation or replacement of a fire alarm system if a
87 plans review is not required by the local enforcement agency.
88 (5) For repairs to an existing fire alarm system that was
89 previously permitted by the local enforcement agency, the
90 contractor may begin the repair upon filing the uniform fire
91 alarm permit application with the local enforcement agency if
92 the local enforcement agency requires fire alarm permits for
93 repairs.
94 Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 633.216, Florida
95 Statutes, is amended to read:
96 633.216 Inspection of buildings and equipment; orders;
97 firesafety inspection training requirements; certification;
98 disciplinary action.—The State Fire Marshal and her or his
99 agents or persons authorized to enforce laws and rules of the
100 State Fire Marshal shall, at any reasonable hour, when the State
101 Fire Marshal has reasonable cause to believe that a violation of
102 this chapter or s. 509.215, or a rule adopted thereunder, or a
103 minimum firesafety code adopted by the State Fire Marshal or a
104 local authority, may exist, inspect any and all buildings and
105 structures which are subject to the requirements of this chapter
106 or s. 509.215 and rules adopted thereunder. The authority to
107 inspect shall extend to all equipment, vehicles, and chemicals
108 which are located on or within the premises of any such building
109 or structure.
110 (1) Each county, municipality, and special district that
111 has firesafety enforcement responsibilities shall employ or
112 contract with a firesafety inspector. Except as provided in s.
113 633.312(2), and (3), and (4), the firesafety inspector must
114 conduct all firesafety inspections that are required by law. The
115 governing body of a county, municipality, or special district
116 that has firesafety enforcement responsibilities may provide a
117 schedule of fees to pay only the costs of inspections conducted
118 pursuant to this subsection and related administrative expenses.
119 Two or more counties, municipalities, or special districts that
120 have firesafety enforcement responsibilities may jointly employ
121 or contract with a firesafety inspector.
122 Section 3. Present subsections (4) and (5) of section
123 633.312, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (5)
124 and (6), respectively, and subsection (3) of that section is
125 amended, to read:
126 633.312 Inspection of fire control systems, fire hydrants,
127 and fire protection systems.—
128 (3)(a) The inspecting contractor shall provide to the
129 building owner or hydrant owner and the local authority having
130 jurisdiction a copy of the applicable uniform summary inspection
131 report established under this chapter. The local authority
132 having jurisdiction may accept uniform summary inspection
133 reports by United States mail, by hand delivery, by electronic
134 submission, or through a third-party vendor that collects the
135 reports on behalf of the local authority having jurisdiction.
136 (b) The State Fire Marshal shall adopt rules to implement a
137 uniform summary inspection report and submission procedures to
138 be used by all third-party vendors and local authorities having
139 jurisdiction. For purposes of this section, a uniform summary
140 inspection report must record the address where the fire
141 protection system or hydrant is located, the company and person
142 conducting the inspection and their license number, the date of
143 the inspection, and the fire protection system or hydrant
144 inspection status, including a brief summary of each deficiency,
145 critical deficiency, noncritical deficiency, or impairment
146 found. A contractor’s detailed inspection report is not required
147 to follow the uniform summary inspection report format. The
148 State Fire Marshal shall establish by rule a submission
149 procedure for each means provided under paragraph (a) by which a
150 local authority having jurisdiction may accept uniform summary
151 inspection reports. Each of the submission procedures must allow
152 a contractor to attach additional documents with the submission
153 of a uniform summary inspection report, including a physical
154 copy of the contractor’s detailed inspection report. A
155 submission procedure may not require a contractor to submit
156 information contained within the detailed inspection report
157 unless the information is required to be included in the uniform
158 summary inspection report.
159 (4) The maintenance of fire hydrant and fire protection
160 systems as well as corrective actions on deficient systems is
161 the responsibility of the owner of the system or hydrant.
162 Equipment requiring periodic testing or operation to ensure its
163 maintenance shall be tested or operated as specified in the Fire
164 Prevention Code, Life Safety Code, National Fire Protection
165 Association standards, or as directed by the appropriate
166 authority, provided that such appropriate authority may not
167 require a sprinkler system not required by the Fire Prevention
168 Code, Life Safety Code, or National Fire Protection Association
169 standards to be removed regardless of its condition. This
170 section does not prohibit governmental entities from inspecting
171 and enforcing firesafety codes.
172 Section 4. Paragraph (l) of subsection (2) of section
173 718.112, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
174 718.112 Bylaws.—
175 (2) REQUIRED PROVISIONS.—The bylaws shall provide for the
176 following and, if they do not do so, shall be deemed to include
177 the following:
178 (l) Firesafety.—An association must ensure reasonable
179 compliance with the Florida Fire Prevention Code. For purposes
180 of this paragraph, the term “reasonable compliance” means the
181 ability to select alternative solutions to ensure that the
182 property meets the level of firesafety required by the Florida
183 Fire Prevention Code. As to a residential condominium building
184 that is a high-rise building as defined under the Florida Fire
185 Prevention Code, the association may either retrofit a fire
186 sprinkler system or install an engineered life safety system as
187 specified in the Florida Fire Prevention Code Certificate of
188 compliance.— A provision that a certificate of compliance from a
189 licensed electrical contractor or electrician may be accepted by
190 the association’s board as evidence of compliance of the
191 condominium units with the applicable fire and life safety code
192 must be included. Notwithstanding chapter 633 or of any other
193 code, statute, ordinance, administrative rule, or regulation, or
194 any interpretation of the foregoing, an association, residential
195 condominium, or unit owner is not obligated to retrofit the
196 common elements, association property, or units of a residential
197 condominium with a fire sprinkler system in a building that has
198 been certified for occupancy by the applicable governmental
199 entity if the unit owners have voted to forego such retrofitting
200 by the affirmative vote of a majority of all voting interests in
201 the affected condominium.
202 1. The local authority having jurisdiction may not require
203 completion of retrofitting with a fire sprinkler system or
204 completion of installation of an engineered life safety system
205 before January 1, 2024 2020. By December 31, 2016, a residential
206 condominium association that is not in compliance with the
207 requirements for a fire sprinkler system and has not voted to
208 forego retrofitting of such a system must initiate an
209 application for a building permit for the required installation
210 with the local government having jurisdiction demonstrating that
211 the association will become compliant by December 31, 2019.
212 1. A vote to forego retrofitting may be obtained by limited
213 proxy or by a ballot personally cast at a duly called membership
214 meeting, or by execution of a written consent by the member, and
215 is effective upon recording a certificate attesting to such vote
216 in the public records of the county where the condominium is
217 located. The association shall mail or hand deliver to each unit
218 owner written notice at least 14 days before the membership
219 meeting in which the vote to forego retrofitting of the required
220 fire sprinkler system is to take place. Within 30 days after the
221 association’s opt-out vote, notice of the results of the opt-out
222 vote must be mailed or hand delivered to all unit owners.
223 Evidence of compliance with this notice requirement must be made
224 by affidavit executed by the person providing the notice and
225 filed among the official records of the association. After
226 notice is provided to each owner, a copy must be provided by the
227 current owner to a new owner before closing and by a unit owner
228 to a renter before signing a lease.
229 2. If there has been a previous vote to forego
230 retrofitting, a vote to require retrofitting may be obtained at
231 a special meeting of the unit owners called by a petition of at
232 least 10 percent of the voting interests. Such a vote may only
233 be called once every 3 years. Notice shall be provided as
234 required for any regularly called meeting of the unit owners,
235 and must state the purpose of the meeting. Electronic
236 transmission may not be used to provide notice of a meeting
237 called in whole or in part for this purpose.
238 3. As part of the information collected annually from
239 condominiums, the division shall require condominium
240 associations to report the membership vote and recording of a
241 certificate under this subsection and, if retrofitting has been
242 undertaken, the per-unit cost of such work. The division shall
243 annually report to the Division of State Fire Marshal of the
244 Department of Financial Services the number of condominiums that
245 have elected to forego retrofitting.
246 2.4. Notwithstanding s. 553.509, a residential association
247 may not be obligated to, and may forego the retrofitting of, any
248 improvements required by s. 553.509(2) upon an affirmative vote
249 of a majority of the voting interests in the affected
250 condominium.
251 Section 5. By July 1, 2019, the State Fire Marshal shall
252 issue a data call to all local fire officials to collect data
253 regarding high-rise condominiums greater than 75 feet in height
254 which have not retrofitted with a fire sprinkler system or an
255 engineered life safety system in accordance with ss. 633.208(5)
256 and 718.112(2)(l), Florida Statutes. Local fire officials shall
257 submit such data to the State Fire Marshal and shall include,
258 for each individual building, the address, the number of units,
259 and the number of stories. By July 1, 2020, all data must be
260 received and compiled into a report by city and county. By
261 September 1, 2020, the report must be sent to the Governor, the
262 President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of
263 Representatives.
264 Section 6. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.
265
266 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
267 And the title is amended as follows:
268 Delete everything before the enacting clause
269 and insert:
270 A bill to be entitled
271 An act relating to firesafety systems; amending s.
272 553.792, F.S.; requiring that a uniform fire alarm
273 permit application, along with certain other
274 information, be used and submitted to the local
275 enforcement agency for any project requiring a fire
276 alarm permit; providing that such application may be
277 submitted by certain means; providing a signature
278 requirement; specifying information required in, and a
279 form for, such applications; providing applicability
280 of certain building permit application procedures;
281 authorizing contractors, under certain circumstances,
282 to begin fire alarm system repairs upon filing the
283 uniform fire alarm permit application; amending s.
284 633.216, F.S.; conforming a cross-reference; amending
285 s. 633.312, F.S.; authorizing local authorities having
286 jurisdiction to accept uniform summary inspection
287 reports of certain fire hydrants and fire protection
288 systems by certain means; requiring the State Fire
289 Marshal to adopt rules implementing a uniform summary
290 inspection report and certain submission procedures;
291 providing requirements for such uniform report and
292 procedures; providing that such procedures may not
293 require a contractor to submit certain information;
294 amending s. 718.112, F.S.; requiring that condominium
295 association bylaws provide requirements for the
296 association’s reasonable compliance with the Florida
297 Fire Prevention Code; defining the term “reasonable
298 compliance”; specifying authorized means of compliance
299 for certain residential condominiums; deleting a
300 requirement for association bylaws to contain a
301 certain certificate of compliance provision; deleting
302 an exemption from a requirement to retrofit certain
303 condominium property with a fire sprinkler system;
304 deleting obsolete provisions; extending the date
305 before which a local authority having jurisdiction may
306 not require completion of a condominium’s retrofitting
307 with a fire sprinkler system; specifying the date
308 before which such local authority having jurisdiction
309 may not require completion of installation of an
310 engineered life safety system; requiring the State
311 Fire Marshal, by a certain date, to issue a data call
312 to all local fire officials to collect data on certain
313 high-rise condominiums; specifying data that local
314 fire officials must submit; requiring that all data be
315 received and compiled into a certain report by a
316 certain date; requiring that the report be sent to the
317 Governor and the Legislature by a certain date;
318 providing an effective date.