TALLAHASSEE -- A tug of war over rental rights to an Amelia Island condominium is days away from being resolved with the signing of a new Florida law revising and strengthening such rights. The extent, however, is still to be decided.

Condo industry officials and resident advocates are curious which law will emerge from a pair of bills passed by the Legislature last month and awaiting Gov. Jeb Bush's signature. While one bill would establish a state ombudsman to referee disputes between residents and condo associations, the other does not.

Both SB 1184 and SB 2984, however, provide what Steve and Judy Comley had long sought for their Amelia Island condominium -- the right to rent the unit for as long as they own it. The Comleys bought the 2,300-square-foot unit in June 1996 to live in seasonally and for its potential rental income, only to see the association's board of directors prohibit short-term rentals in 2000.

When the couple couldn't reverse the board's decision, they tried to revise state law. After several weeks in Tallahassee, 59-year-old Steve Comley finally saw the revisions pass the House and Senate. Although the change may not apply to his existing situation, Comley said it is an important step for current and future condo owners.

"Our driving force was to keep what has happened to us from occurring to someone else," he said. "This bill has accomplished just that. Our primary goal was to prove a Floridian outside the political beltway could bring their concerns to the capital and have them addressed and resolved."

Specifically, both bills would allow current unit owners to keep any rental rights that existed at the time of purchase, in case they are later removed or restricted by an association board. Such rights would be preserved only for as long as the owner owned the unit. Subsequent owners would be subject to the new rental rules.

An advisory council and ombudsman to oversee disputes between condo owners and associations would be established in the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation under SB 1184 -- but not SB 2984. Comley pushed for the ombudsman to ensure that condo owners are treated more fairly. Bush's office did not return calls for comment on which bill he plans to sign.

Travis Moore, a lobbyist who represents associations on behalf of the national Community Association Institute, said there are an estimated 1.1 million condominium units in Florida, housing about 2 million residents. He noted that condo associations need restrictions on rental rights to keep out transient residents and bring a sense of stability to a complex. But he said the bills should be satisfactory to most associations across the state.

"We had some problems with the ombudsman because it was originally only a one-way street for people who had a problem with an association," Moore said. "But language was passed to ensure that the position would work with both sides. We still feel it's duplicative and unnecessary, but it's night-and-day better than it was."

Jan Bergemann, president of St. Augustine-based Cyber Citizens For Justice Inc., a grass-roots consumer rights group, called the ombudsman provision "a very good start." He noted that a special House committee that traveled across the state last winter received hundreds of complaints about condo boards.

"An ombudsman, more or less, gives us a foundation to start working from," Bergemann said. "You can just say there's a few disgruntled owners out there, but you can't ignore the meetings that drew more than 400 people. And barely anybody had anything good to say about the existing situations."

Senate President Jim King, R-Jacksonville, said the bills provide a balanced way of meeting the needs of condo owners and associations.

"There's going to be a lot more of the Comleys of the world, people recognizing that Florida has a real estate boom and they are going to buy units to rent out now because they're cheaper than when they retire," King said. "But I also understand full-time condo residents who don't want in-and-out people near them. What was married in the bill was the assurance that you can rent until you move, but if someone buys it from you, then the new rules apply to him."