Donna DiMaggio Berger,
Founder & Executive Director

Dear CALL Members:

Our 2020 Legislative Guidebook is designed to help your volunteer board and management professionals understand and implement the new laws which impact community associations each year. Given the significant percentage of Florida’s population which resides in shared ownership communities, we are virtually guaranteed to have numerous association bills sponsored each year with some of those proposals becoming new laws.

Florida’s 2020 Legislative Session produced the long-awaited criminalization of fraudulent emotional support animal requests. As of July 1st, people who submit fraudulent documentation to support their request for a service animal or an emotional support animal (ESA) in a Florida community or who otherwise hold themselves out as being physically or mentally disabled when they are not, risk being imprisoned, fined and/or ordered to perform community service. Already we are seeing an encouraging trend that when associations use experienced counsel to engage in a meaningful dialogue with the requesting party, insufficient documentation becomes more apparent and dubious requests are often withdrawn.

There are also new legal protections for condominium, cooperative and HOA residents to park a law enforcement vehicle in their communities as well as new rights for HOA residents to use fireworks on the 4th of July, Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day regardless of any HOA restrictions to the contrary.

One of the newly passed laws declares void and unenforceable all “discriminatory restrictions” (e.g. those based on race, color, national origin, religion, gender, or physical disability) contained in any recorded title transaction. Some older association documents may contain pernicious, decades-old discriminatory use restrictions that can now easily be removed by an amendment approved by a majority vote of the board of directors. With our 6-month hurricane season in Florida, the new law which amends Section 631.57 of the Florida Statutes to increase the amount of coverage for property insurance claims by a condominium, cooperative or homeowners’ association under the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association (FIGA) from $100,000 to $200,000 multiplied by the number of units is a positive change.

Lastly, associations operating “55 and Over” communities will welcome the news that a new law deletes the prior registration requirements (a letter to the Florida Commission on Human Relations once every two years, with a fine of up to $500 if they failed to do so) for these communities and eliminates related forms, fees, and fines.

While many of the foregoing new laws are helpful, the community association legislation passed during Florida’s 2020 Legislative Session unfortunately could not address the unprecedented challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic as the Session ended right when the health crisis erupted. Volunteer boards who had never grappled with a pandemic before made impactful decisions to close certain amenities, restrict the flow of visitors into the community and marshaled the resources needed to heighten sanitization and implement other safety measures needed to protect their residents. All of this was done at times in the face of vocal resident opposition and a lack of clarity and support from government officials.

It is CALL’s mission, however, to ensure that the crop of 2021 association bills will incorporate some of the lessons we’ve learned from the COVID-19 crisis and provide new tools to assist volunteer boards in the coming years. In the interim, there are steps your community can take by amending your governing documents and implementing necessary policies and protocols to provide you with greater flexibility and a wider range of options when you are inevitably confronted with the next challenge life brings your way.

Wishing you all continued health and happiness.

Donna DiMaggio Berger, Founder & Executive Director
Community Association Leadership Lobby

Senate Bill 1084 – Emotional Support Animals

Sponsors:
Senator Manny Diaz, Jr. (R – Dist; 36 Miami-Dade); (CO-INTRODUCER) Senator Bill Montford (D – Dist. 3; Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Hamilton, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Taylor, Wakulla)
Law of Florida Cite:
2020-76, Laws of Florida
Effective Date:
July 1, 2020
Sections Amended:
413.08, F.S.; 419.001, F.S.; 456.072, F.S.; 760.22, F.S.; 760.23, F.S.; 760.24, F.S.; 760.25, F.S.; 760.27, F.S.; 760.29, F.S.; 760.31, F.S.; 817.265, F.S.

Extra Notation:
Applies to condominium, cooperatives and homeowners’ association. The new law allows a housing provider, such as a community association, to request certain written documentation prepared by a health care practitioner in a format prescribed in rule by the Department of Health. The practitioner or provider of the supporting information must have personal knowledge of the person’s disability and must be acting within the scope of his or her practice. If a person falsifies information or written documentation or knowingly provides fraudulent information to obtain an emotional support animal, they can be charged with a misdemeanor of the second degree.

As the saying goes, change is the only constant in life. This fact applies equally to boards of directors of community associations who are tasked with operating their communities consistently with existing governing documents, even if those documents no longer fit the needs of the community or no longer comply with existing laws.

You should occasionally review your documents to ensure that they are consistent with both the existing scheme and vision of the community and the laws which apply to the community.

DOWNLOAD AMENDMENT CHECKLIST NOW

The general question of whether Governing Documents should be amended has no correct answer. Instead the board’s investigation should consider many factors, including the following:

1. The age of the Governing Documents. For instance, how many laws have been amended since the documents were created?
2. The existing scheme of the community. For instance, do most owners now have small children; what is the existing mix between owner occupants and investor owners?
3. The operation of the association. For instance, should there be more or less board members, does the quorum requirement need to change?
4. Do your Governing Documents have so many amendments that owners are confused as to what is the correct text?

Now is a perfect time to review and make appropriate changes, if necessary, and to get in front of some of the proposed legislative changes which did not pass this year but will come up again in the near future.

Please use our “General Amendment Checklist” to assist you in this endeavor. We suggest that you consult with your association’s attorney to identify key provisions in your Declaration, Bylaws, Articles of Incorporation, and/or Rules and Regulations that should be removed or amended to reflect the current law and present needs of your association.

As always, Becker would be happy to work with your board to ensure that your governing documents are not only comprehensive and up-to-date but also ahead of the game on the issues that matter most to your community.