Florida Senate - 2020 SENATOR AMENDMENT
Bill No. CS/HB 7097, 1st Eng.
Ì180114nÎ180114
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
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Floor: WD/2R .
03/12/2020 06:30 PM .
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Senator Gruters moved the following:
1 Senate Amendment to Substitute Amendment (271678) (with
2 title amendment)
3
4 Between lines 161 and 162
5 insert:
6 Section 6. Paragraph (e) of subsection (3) of section
7 194.011, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
8 194.011 Assessment notice; objections to assessments.—
9 (3) A petition to the value adjustment board must be in
10 substantially the form prescribed by the department.
11 Notwithstanding s. 195.022, a county officer may not refuse to
12 accept a form provided by the department for this purpose if the
13 taxpayer chooses to use it. A petition to the value adjustment
14 board must be signed by the taxpayer or be accompanied at the
15 time of filing by the taxpayer’s written authorization or power
16 of attorney, unless the person filing the petition is listed in
17 s. 194.034(1)(a). A person listed in s. 194.034(1)(a) may file a
18 petition with a value adjustment board without the taxpayer’s
19 signature or written authorization by certifying under penalty
20 of perjury that he or she has authorization to file the petition
21 on behalf of the taxpayer. If a taxpayer notifies the value
22 adjustment board that a petition has been filed for the
23 taxpayer’s property without his or her consent, the value
24 adjustment board may require the person filing the petition to
25 provide written authorization from the taxpayer authorizing the
26 person to proceed with the appeal before a hearing is held. If
27 the value adjustment board finds that a person listed in s.
28 194.034(1)(a) willfully and knowingly filed a petition that was
29 not authorized by the taxpayer, the value adjustment board shall
30 require such person to provide the taxpayer’s written
31 authorization for representation to the value adjustment board
32 clerk before any petition filed by that person is heard, for 1
33 year after imposition of such requirement by the value
34 adjustment board. A power of attorney or written authorization
35 is valid for 1 assessment year, and a new power of attorney or
36 written authorization by the taxpayer is required for each
37 subsequent assessment year. A petition shall also describe the
38 property by parcel number and shall be filed as follows:
39 (e)1. A condominium association as described in chapter
40 718, a cooperative association as described in chapter 719, or a
41 any homeowners’ association as defined in s. 723.075, with
42 approval of its board of administration or directors, may file
43 with the value adjustment board a single joint petition on
44 behalf of any association members who own units or parcels of
45 property which the property appraiser determines are
46 substantially similar with respect to location, proximity to
47 amenities, number of rooms, living area, and condition. The
48 condominium association, cooperative association, or homeowners’
49 association as defined in s. 723.075 shall provide the unit or
50 parcel owners with notice of its intent to petition the value
51 adjustment board by hand delivery or certified mail, return
52 receipt requested, except that such notice may be electronically
53 transmitted to a unit or parcel owner who has expressly
54 consented in writing to receiving notices by electronic
55 transmission. If the association is a condominium or cooperative
56 association, the notice must also be posted conspicuously on the
57 condominium or cooperative property in the same manner as a
58 notice of board meeting under ss. 718.112(2) and 719.106(1),
59 respectively. Such notice must and shall provide at least 20
60 days for a unit or parcel owner to elect, in writing, that his
61 or her unit or parcel not be included in the petition.
62 2. A condominium association as described in chapter 718,
63 or a cooperative association as described in chapter 719, which
64 has filed a single joint petition under this subsection may
65 continue to represent, prosecute, or defend the unit owners
66 through any related subsequent proceeding in any tribunal,
67 including judicial review under part II of this chapter and any
68 appeals. This subparagraph is intended to clarify existing law
69 and applies to cases pending on July 1, 2020.
70 Section 7. Subsection (2) of section 194.181, Florida
71 Statutes, is amended to read:
72 194.181 Parties to a tax suit.—
73 (2)(a) In any case brought by a the taxpayer or a
74 condominium or cooperative association, as described in chapters
75 718 and 719, respectively, on behalf of some or all unit owners
76 to contest contesting the assessment of any property, the county
77 property appraiser is the shall be party defendant.
78 (b) Except as provided in paragraph (c), in any case
79 brought by the property appraiser under pursuant to s.
80 194.036(1)(a) or (b), the taxpayer is the shall be party
81 defendant.
82 (c) In any case brought by the property appraiser under s.
83 194.036(1)(a) or (b) concerning a value adjustment board
84 decision on a single joint petition filed by a condominium or
85 cooperative association under s. 194.011(3), the association and
86 all unit owners included in the single joint petition are the
87 party defendants.
88 1. The condominium or cooperative association must provide
89 unit owners with notice of its intent to respond to or answer
90 the property appraiser’s complaint and advise the unit owners
91 that they may elect to:
92 a. Retain their own counsel to defend the appeal;
93 b. Choose not to defend the appeal; or
94 c. Be represented together with other unit owners in the
95 response or answer filed by the association.
96 2. The notice required in subparagraph 1. must be hand
97 delivered or sent by certified mail, return receipt requested,
98 to the unit owners, except that such notice may be
99 electronically transmitted to a unit owner who has expressly
100 consented in writing to receiving notices through electronic
101 transmission. Additionally, the notice must be posted
102 conspicuously on the condominium or cooperative property in the
103 same manner as is required for notice of board meetings under
104 ss. 718.112(2) and 719.106(1), respectively. The association
105 must provide at least 14 days for the unit owners to respond to
106 the notice. Any unit owner who does not respond to the
107 association’s notice will be represented by the association.
108 (d) In any case brought by the property appraiser under
109 pursuant to s. 194.036(1)(c), the value adjustment board is the
110 shall be party defendant.
111 Section 8. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) and subsection
112 (3) of section 718.111, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
113 718.111 The association.—
114 (1) CORPORATE ENTITY.—
115 (a) The operation of the condominium shall be by the
116 association, which must be a Florida corporation for profit or a
117 Florida corporation not for profit. However, any association
118 which was in existence on January 1, 1977, need not be
119 incorporated. The owners of units shall be shareholders or
120 members of the association. The officers and directors of the
121 association have a fiduciary relationship to the unit owners. It
122 is the intent of the Legislature that nothing in this paragraph
123 shall be construed as providing for or removing a requirement of
124 a fiduciary relationship between any manager employed by the
125 association and the unit owners. An officer, director, or
126 manager may not solicit, offer to accept, or accept any thing or
127 service of value or kickback for which consideration has not
128 been provided for his or her own benefit or that of his or her
129 immediate family, from any person providing or proposing to
130 provide goods or services to the association. Any such officer,
131 director, or manager who knowingly so solicits, offers to
132 accept, or accepts any thing or service of value or kickback is
133 subject to a civil penalty under 718.501(2)(d) pursuant to s.
134 718.501(1)(d) and, if applicable, a criminal penalty as provided
135 in paragraph (d). However, this paragraph does not prohibit an
136 officer, director, or manager from accepting services or items
137 received in connection with trade fairs or education programs.
138 An association may operate more than one condominium.
139 (3) POWER TO MANAGE CONDOMINIUM PROPERTY AND TO CONTRACT,
140 SUE, AND BE SUED; CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—
141 (a) The association may contract, sue, or be sued with
142 respect to the exercise or nonexercise of its powers. For these
143 purposes, the powers of the association include, but are not
144 limited to, the maintenance, management, and operation of the
145 condominium property.
146 (b) After control of the association is obtained by unit
147 owners other than the developer, the association may:
148 1. Institute, maintain, settle, or appeal actions or
149 hearings in its name on behalf of all unit owners concerning
150 matters of common interest to most or all unit owners,
151 including, but not limited to, the common elements; the roof and
152 structural components of a building or other improvements;
153 mechanical, electrical, and plumbing elements serving an
154 improvement or a building; representations of the developer
155 pertaining to any existing or proposed commonly used facilities;
156 2. Protest and protesting ad valorem taxes on commonly used
157 facilities and on units; and may
158 3. Defend actions pertaining to ad valorem taxation of
159 commonly used facilities or units or related to in eminent
160 domain; or
161 4. Bring inverse condemnation actions.
162 (c) If the association has the authority to maintain a
163 class action, the association may be joined in an action as
164 representative of that class with reference to litigation and
165 disputes involving the matters for which the association could
166 bring a class action.
167 (d) The association, in its own name or on behalf of some
168 or all unit owners, may institute, file, protest, maintain, or
169 defend any administrative challenge, lawsuit, appeal, or other
170 challenge to ad valorem taxes assessed on units, commonly used
171 facilities, or common elements. Except as provided in s.
172 194.181(2)(c)1., the affected association members are not
173 necessary or indispensable parties to such actions. This
174 paragraph is intended to clarify existing law and applies to
175 cases pending on July 1, 2020, and to cases beginning
176 thereafter.
177 (e) Nothing herein limits any statutory or common-law right
178 of any individual unit owner or class of unit owners to bring
179 any action without participation by the association which may
180 otherwise be available.
181 (f) An association may not hire an attorney who represents
182 the management company of the association.
183
184
185 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
186 And the title is amended as follows:
187 Between lines 1828 and 1829
188 insert:
189 amending s. 194.011, F.S.; revising certain notice
190 requiremetns; providing that certain associations may
191 continue to represent, prosecute, or defend unit
192 owners in certain proceedings; providing
193 applicability; amending s. 194.181, F.S.; revising the
194 parties considered to be the defendant in a tax suit;
195 requiring condominium and cooperative associations to
196 provide unit owners with certain notice and
197 information under certain circumstances; providing
198 requirements for such notice; specifying that a unit
199 owner who does not respond to the notice will be
200 represented by the association; amending s. 718.111,
201 F.S.; amending s. 718.111, F.S.; revising a
202 condominium association’s authority as a party in
203 certain tax suits; providing construction and
204 applicability;