June 14, 2012 Jonathan James Damonte, Esq.

Jonathan James Damonte, Chartered 12110 Seminole Blvd.

Largo, FL 33778 (727)586-2889 [email protected]

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2,052 bills were filed in the Legislature this year.

292 were passed by both the House and Senate.

266 were signed by the Governor and are law.

12 were vetoed, 1 line-item veto.

2 became law without his signature.

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 Governor’s website: www.flgov.com

Click on “Media Center” located on the right panel, then select “Bill Actions” from the drop-down list, which downloads a .pdf file with status of bills sent to Governor so far.

Legislature: www.leg.state.fl.us

Click on “Senate” or “House” and search by bill number, or by text. For example, type in “condominium” to see all bills that have the word “condominium” in them.

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  HB 319/SB 680 was the main the Community Associations bill this year, supported by CAI.

The bill passed the House, but died on the Senate floor on the last day of the session.

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HB 1013 entitled Residential Construction Warranties, was signed into law by the Governor on April 27, 2012, as Ch. 2012-161 effective July 1, 2012.

It says that there is no cause of action based upon the Doctrine of Implied Warranty of Fitness and Merchantability utilities.

for damages to offsite improvements that do not immediately support a structure of a home, such as roads and drainage It effectively negates the Court’s ruling in Lakeview Reserve HOA v. Maronda Homes, Inc., 48 So.3d 902 (Fla. 5 th DCA 2010).

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HB 517 Reducing and Streamlining Regulations was signed by the Governor and goes into effect on July 1, 2012 as Ch. 2012-061.

It extends the “bulk-buyer” law to July 1, 2015.

Also, sec. 468.4338 was amended to reduce the amount of continuing education (CEUs) for renewal of inactive CAM licenses.

All other community associations bills died in the Legislature this year. 6

The Governor signed HB13, the Sovereignty Submerged Land, bill into law as Ch. 2012 202, effective July 1, 2012.

It creates s. 253.0347 to extend submerged land leases for private residential docks or piers for up to 10 years.

It allows 1 wet slip per upland residential unit.

It reduces or eliminates fees on private residential docks and piers.

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HB 357 was signed into law as Ch. 2012-057 as the Homestead for Seniors Act. It is a proposed Constitutional Amendment that would grant an additional homestead exemption to seniors 65 years of age or older if: household income does not exceed $20,000; and the home has an assessed value of less than $250,000; and They have lived there at least 25 years.

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HB 357 will go into effect IF constitutional amendment HJR 169, amending Article VII of the Florida Constitution, is passed by the voters in the November general election.

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HB 95 Homestead Property Tax Exemption for Surviving Spouse of Military Veteran or First Responder was signed into law as Ch. 2012-54. It would grant an additional homestead tax exemption to the surviving spouses of veterans who die of service connected causes while on active duty and to surviving spouses of first responders who die in the line of duty. It is also a proposed Constitutional Amendment. 10

HB 95 will go into effect IF constitutional amendment HJR 93, amending Article VII of the Florida Constitution, is passed by the voters in the November general election.

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HB 5403 - Courts, was signed into law by the Governor as Ch. 2012-138, effective June 1, 2012. It amends s. 28.241, Fla. Stat., to re-direct portions of the Clerks of Courts’ filing fees to the State General Revenue Fund. The higher and additional fees for mortgage foreclosures the Legislature passed last year that were supposed to compensate the Clerks of Court for reductions in funding by the State and help pay for the onslaught of foreclosure cases have been re directed to the general revenue fund, leaving the Court Clerks more cash-strapped than ever.

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As a result, the Pinellas County Clerk of Court will reduce its staff and reduce its public hours from 8 – 5 to 9 – 4. Expect further delays in processing liens, foreclosures, and other court cases.

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Citizens Property Insurance now handles 1.45 million Florida policies. Citizens wants to “depopulate” and reduce the number of policies it holds by: raising rates; and reducing or eliminating some coverages on certain lines; and increase rates above the 10 percent cap put in place by the Legislature in 2009. Citizens is holding meetings around the State to discuss how to do this.

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Florida will receive $334 million in cash payments from the nationwide $2.5 billion settlement with banks. $33 million – 10%, representing the portion of the settlement that is a civil penalty, will go into the State’s general revenue fund to help balance the State budget. The rest of the money is supposed to be used to help homeowners, but has not yet been allocated. The Attorney General is asking the public for suggestions on how to use the money to provide relief to struggling homeowners. Housing groups are asking that the money be used for legal aid and for low-income housing projects.

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