Florida Senate - 2023                             CS for SB 1476
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources; and
       Senator Simon
       
       
       
       
       592-02769-23                                          20231476c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to state acquisition of lands;
    3         amending ss. 253.025 and 570.715, F.S.; requiring,
    4         rather than authorizing, the Department of
    5         Environmental Protection and the Department of
    6         Agriculture and Consumer Services to disclose
    7         appraisal reports to private landowners or their
    8         representatives during acquisition negotiations;
    9         requiring private landowners and their representatives
   10         to maintain the confidentiality of such reports or
   11         information disclosed by the Department of Agriculture
   12         and Consumer Services; requiring the final purchase
   13         price in certain option contracts for state land
   14         acquisitions and less than fee simple conservation
   15         easement acquisitions to be the fair market value as
   16         determined by the highest appraisal; conforming a
   17         provision to changes made by the act; providing an
   18         effective date.
   19          
   20  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   21  
   22         Section 1. Subsection (8) of section 253.025, Florida
   23  Statutes, is amended to read:
   24         253.025 Acquisition of state lands.—
   25         (8) Before approval by the board of trustees, or, when
   26  applicable, the Department of Environmental Protection, of any
   27  agreement to purchase land pursuant to this chapter, chapter
   28  259, chapter 260, or chapter 375, and before negotiations with
   29  the parcel owner to purchase any other land, title to which will
   30  vest in the board of trustees, an appraisal of the parcel shall
   31  be required as follows:
   32         (a) The board of trustees shall adopt by rule the method
   33  for determining the value of parcels sought to be acquired by
   34  state agencies pursuant to this section.
   35         (b) Each parcel to be acquired shall have at least one
   36  appraisal. Two appraisals are required when the estimated value
   37  of the parcel exceeds $1 million. However, if both appraisals
   38  exceed $1 million and differ significantly, a third appraisal
   39  may be obtained. If a parcel is estimated to be worth $100,000
   40  or less and the director of the Division of State Lands finds
   41  that the cost of an outside appraisal is not justified, a
   42  comparable sales analysis, an appraisal prepared by the
   43  division, or other reasonably prudent procedures may be used by
   44  the division to estimate the value of the parcel, provided the
   45  public’s interest is reasonably protected. The state is not
   46  required to appraise the value of lands and appurtenances that
   47  are being donated to the state.
   48         (c) Appraisal fees and associated costs shall be paid by
   49  the agency proposing the acquisition. All appraisals used for
   50  the acquisition of lands pursuant to this section shall be
   51  prepared by a state-certified appraiser. The board of trustees
   52  shall adopt rules for selecting individuals to perform
   53  appraisals pursuant to this section. Each fee appraiser selected
   54  to appraise a particular parcel shall, before contracting with
   55  the agency or a participant in a multiparty agreement, submit to
   56  the agency an affidavit substantiating that he or she has no
   57  vested or fiduciary interest in such parcel.
   58         (d) The fee appraiser and the review appraiser for the
   59  agency may not act in any manner that may be construed as
   60  negotiating with the owner of a parcel proposed for acquisition.
   61         (e) The board of trustees shall adopt by rule the minimum
   62  criteria, techniques, and methods to be used in the preparation
   63  of appraisal reports. Such rules shall incorporate, to the
   64  extent practicable, generally accepted appraisal standards. Any
   65  appraisal issued for acquisition of lands pursuant to this
   66  section must comply with the rules adopted by the board of
   67  trustees. A certified survey must be made which meets the
   68  minimum requirements for upland parcels established in the
   69  Standards of Practice for Land Surveying in Florida published by
   70  the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and which
   71  accurately portrays, to the greatest extent practicable, the
   72  condition of the parcel as it currently exists. The requirement
   73  for a certified survey may, in part or in whole, be waived by
   74  the board of trustees any time before submitting the agreement
   75  for purchase to the Division of State Lands. When an existing
   76  boundary map and description of a parcel are determined by the
   77  division to be sufficient for appraisal purposes, the division
   78  director may temporarily waive the requirement for a survey
   79  until any time before conveyance of title to the parcel.
   80         (f) Appraisal reports are confidential and exempt from s.
   81  119.07(1), for use by the agency and the board of trustees,
   82  until an option contract is executed or, if no option contract
   83  is executed, until 2 weeks before a contract or agreement for
   84  purchase is considered for approval by the board of trustees.
   85  The Department of Environmental Protection shall may disclose
   86  appraisal reports to private landowners or their representatives
   87  during negotiations for acquisitions using alternatives to fee
   88  simple techniques, if the department determines that disclosure
   89  of such reports will bring the proposed acquisition to closure.
   90  However, the private landowner or their representative must
   91  agree to maintain the confidentiality of the reports or
   92  information. The department may also disclose appraisal
   93  information to public agencies or nonprofit organizations that
   94  agree to maintain the confidentiality of the reports or
   95  information when joint acquisition of property is contemplated,
   96  or when a public agency or nonprofit organization enters into a
   97  written agreement with the department to purchase and hold
   98  property for subsequent resale to the board of trustees. In
   99  addition, the department may use, as its own, appraisals
  100  obtained by a public agency or nonprofit organization, if the
  101  appraiser is selected from the department’s list of appraisers
  102  and the appraisal is reviewed and approved by the department.
  103  For purposes of this paragraph, the term “nonprofit
  104  organization” means an organization that is exempt from federal
  105  income tax under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and,
  106  for purposes of the acquisition of conservation lands, an
  107  organization whose purpose must include the preservation of
  108  natural resources. The agency may release an appraisal report
  109  when the passage of time has rendered the conclusions of value
  110  in the report invalid or when the acquiring agency has
  111  terminated negotiations.
  112         (g) Before acceptance of an appraisal, the agency shall
  113  submit a copy of such report to the division. The division shall
  114  review such report for compliance with the rules of the board.
  115  Any questions of applicability of laws affecting an appraisal
  116  shall be addressed by the legal office of the agency.
  117         (h) The appraisal report shall be accompanied by the sales
  118  history of the parcel for at least the previous 5 years. Such
  119  sales history shall include all parties and considerations with
  120  the amount of consideration verified, if possible. If a sales
  121  history would not be useful, or it is cost prohibitive compared
  122  to the value of a parcel, the sales history may be waived by the
  123  board of trustees. The board of trustees shall adopt a rule
  124  specifying guidelines for waiver of a sales history.
  125         (i) The board of trustees may consider an appraisal
  126  acquired by a seller, or any part thereof, in negotiating to
  127  purchase a parcel, but such appraisal may not be used in lieu of
  128  an appraisal required by this subsection or to determine the
  129  maximum offer allowed by law.
  130         (j)1. The board of trustees shall adopt by rule the method
  131  for determining the value of parcels sought to be acquired by
  132  state agencies pursuant to this section. An offer by a state
  133  agency may not exceed the value for that parcel as determined
  134  pursuant to the highest approved appraisal or the value
  135  determined pursuant to the rules of the board of trustees,
  136  whichever value is less.
  137         2. For a joint acquisition by a state agency and a local
  138  government or other entity apart from the state, the joint
  139  purchase price may not exceed 150 percent of the value for a
  140  parcel as determined in accordance with the limits in
  141  subparagraph 1. The state agency share of a joint purchase offer
  142  may not exceed what the agency may offer singly pursuant to
  143  subparagraph 1.
  144         3. This paragraph does not apply to the acquisition of
  145  historically unique or significant property as determined by the
  146  Division of Historical Resources of the Department of State.
  147  
  148  Notwithstanding this subsection, on behalf of the board of
  149  trustees and before the appraisal of parcels approved for
  150  purchase under this chapter or chapter 259, the Secretary of
  151  Environmental Protection or the director of the Division of
  152  State Lands may enter into option contracts to buy such parcels.
  153  Except as otherwise authorized under this subsection, any such
  154  option contract shall state that the final purchase price is
  155  subject to approval by the board of trustees or, if applicable,
  156  the Secretary of Environmental Protection, and shall be the fair
  157  market value as determined by the highest appraisal and that the
  158  final purchase price may not exceed the maximum offer allowed by
  159  law. Any such option contract presented to the board of trustees
  160  for final purchase price approval shall explicitly state that
  161  payment of the final purchase price is subject to an
  162  appropriation from the Legislature. The consideration for such
  163  an option may not exceed $1,000 or 0.01 percent of the estimate
  164  by the department of the value of the parcel, whichever amount
  165  is greater.
  166         Section 2. Paragraph (d) of subsection (1) and subsection
  167  (5) of section 570.715, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  168         570.715 Conservation easement acquisition procedures.—
  169         (1) For less than fee simple acquisitions pursuant to s.
  170  570.71, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
  171  shall comply with the following acquisition procedures:
  172         (d) On behalf of the board of trustees and before the
  173  appraisal of parcels approved for purchase under ss.
  174  259.105(3)(i) and 570.71, the department may enter into option
  175  contracts to buy less than fee simple interest in such parcels.
  176  Any such option contract shall state that the final purchase
  177  price is subject to approval by the board of trustees and that
  178  the final purchase price shall be the fair market value as
  179  determined by the highest approved appraisal and may not exceed
  180  the maximum offer authorized by law. Any such option contract
  181  presented to the board of trustees for final purchase price
  182  approval shall explicitly state that payment of the final
  183  purchase price is subject to an appropriation by the
  184  Legislature. The consideration for any such option contract may
  185  not exceed $1,000 or 0.01 percent of the estimate by the
  186  department of the value of the parcel, whichever amount is
  187  greater.
  188         (5) Appraisal reports are confidential and exempt from s.
  189  119.07(1), for use by the department and the board of trustees,
  190  until an option contract is executed or, if an option contract
  191  is not executed, until 2 weeks before a contract or agreement
  192  for purchase is considered for approval by the board of
  193  trustees. However, The department shall has the authority, at
  194  its discretion, to disclose appraisal reports to private
  195  landowners or their representatives during negotiations for
  196  acquisitions. However, the private landowner or their
  197  representative must agree to maintain the confidentiality of the
  198  reports or information using alternatives to fee simple
  199  techniques, if the department determines that disclosure of such
  200  reports will bring the proposed acquisition to closure. The
  201  department may also disclose appraisal information to public
  202  agencies or nonprofit organizations that agree to maintain the
  203  confidentiality of the reports or information when joint
  204  acquisition of property is contemplated, or when a public agency
  205  or nonprofit organization enters into a written multiparty
  206  agreement with the department. For purposes of this subsection,
  207  the term “nonprofit organization” means an organization whose
  208  purposes include the preservation of natural resources, and
  209  which is exempt from federal income tax under s. 501(c)(3) of
  210  the Internal Revenue Code. The department may release an
  211  appraisal report when the passage of time has rendered the
  212  conclusions of value in the report invalid or when the
  213  department has terminated negotiations.
  214         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023.