Article
Courtesy of The Center Square
By
Bethany Blankley
Published June 1, 2022
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A bill to ensure condominium safety passed both chambers
of the legislature and was signed Thursday by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Within days of the special legislative session starting this week, both
chambers passed bills to reform property insurance and increase safety
measures for condominiums. Both bills, Senate Bill 2D, Property Insurance,
and Senate Bill 4D, Building Safety, were sponsored by state Sen. Jim Boyd,
R-Bradenton, who chairs the Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance.
The new law will “keep
Florida’s condominium residents safe in the aftermath of
Surfside,” Florida House Speaker Chris Sprowls, R-Palm
Harbor, said. It includes a “House-championed measure that
requires condo associations to fully fund a reserve so that
repairs and maintenance are covered and completed in a
timely manner.”
Last June, Champlain Towers South, a 12-story beachfront
condominium in the Miami suburb of Surfside, partially
collapsed, killing 98 people. Injured survivors were rescued
from the rubble. Upon investigation, the primary factor
causing its collapse was long-term degradation of the
concrete structural support under the dwelling units in the
basement level parking garage. Water had penetrated the area
and corroded the reinforced steel. Although problems had
been reported in 2018, repairs still hadn’t been made.
After the Surfside collapse, legislators passed reforms,
which SB 4D builds upon.
House Pandemics & Public Emergencies Committee Chair Daniel
Perez, R-Miami, who sponsored the House version of the bill,
said, “Since the tragedy that took place in Surfside nearly
a year ago, the hurt of my community has pushed me to pursue
meaningful reform to help ensure that this kind of
preventable, horrific event never happens again. In order to
honor the 98 lives lost and hundreds affected, I have been
unwavering in my belief that there must be association
reserve funding to fix the safety problems discovered during
inspections.” |
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People look out from a balcony onto the collapsed and
subsequently demolished Champlain Towers South condominium building,
Tuesday, July 6, 2021, in Surfside, Fla.
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SB 4D requires condominium associations to fully fund a
non-waivable reserve so that structural integrity repairs and maintenance
can be covered. It also creates a statewide structural inspection program to
conduct inspections within certain time frames of condominium and
cooperative buildings that are three stories or taller located within three
miles of the coast. Inspection report results must be provided to local
building officials, associations, and unit owners, according to the bill
summary.
The bill also requires condominium and cooperative associations to conduct a
“structural integrity reserve study” every 10 years for each building that
is three stories or more. The study must include the roof, load bearing
walls, floor, foundation, fireproofing and fire protection systems,
plumbing, and any item with a deferred maintenance or replacement cost that
exceeds $10,000.
Effective July 1, 2024, condominium and cooperative associations are
prohibited from using reserves outside of their purposes, waiving the
reserves, or reducing the funding of reserves for certain structural
components of the property, according to the bill.
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