The Florida Senate

517.051  Exempt securities.--The exemptions provided herein from the registration requirements of s. 517.07 are self-executing and do not require any filing with the office prior to claiming such exemption. Any person who claims entitlement to any of these exemptions bears the burden of proving such entitlement in any proceeding brought under this chapter. The registration provisions of s. 517.07 do not apply to any of the following securities:

(1)  A security issued or guaranteed by the United States or any territory or insular possession of the United States, by the District of Columbia, or by any state of the United States or by any political subdivision or agency or other instrumentality thereof; provided that no person shall directly or indirectly offer or sell securities, other than general obligation bonds, under this subsection if the issuer or guarantor is in default or has been in default any time after December 31, 1975, as to principal or interest:

(a)  With respect to an obligation issued by the issuer or successor of the issuer; or

(b)  With respect to an obligation guaranteed by the guarantor or successor of the guarantor,

except by an offering circular containing a full and fair disclosure as prescribed by rule of the commission.

(2)  A security issued or guaranteed by any foreign government with which the United States is maintaining diplomatic relations at the time of the sale or offer of sale of the security, or by any state, province, or political subdivision thereof having the power of taxation or assessment, which security is recognized at the time it is offered for sale in this state as a valid obligation by such foreign government or by such state, province, or political subdivision thereof issuing the security.

(3)  A security issued or guaranteed by:

(a)  A national bank, a federally chartered savings and loan association, or a federally chartered savings bank, or the initial subscription for equity securities in such national bank, federally chartered savings and loan association, or federally chartered savings bank;

(b)  Any federal land bank, joint-stock land bank, or national farm loan association under the provisions of the Federal Farm Loan Act of July 17, 1916;

(c)  An international bank of which the United States is a member; or

(d)  A corporation created and acting as an instrumentality of the government of the United States.

(4)  A security issued or guaranteed, as to principal, interest, or dividend, by a corporation owning or operating a railroad or any other public service utility; provided that such corporation is subject to regulation or supervision whether as to its rates and charges or as to the issue of its own securities by a public commission, board, or officer of the government of the United States, of any state, territory, or insular possession of the United States, of any municipality located therein, of the District of Columbia, or of the Dominion of Canada or of any province thereof; also equipment securities based on chattel mortgages, leases, or agreements for conditional sale of cars, motive power, or other rolling stock mortgaged, leased, or sold to or furnished for the use of or upon such railroad or other public service utility corporation or where the ownership or title of such equipment is pledged or retained in accordance with the provisions of the laws of the United States or of any state or of the Dominion of Canada to secure the payment of such equipment securities; and also bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness issued by a holding corporation and secured by collateral consisting of any securities hereinabove described; provided, further, that the collateral securities equal in fair value at least 125 percent of the par value of the bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness so secured.

(5)  A security issued or guaranteed by any of the following which are subject to the examination, supervision, or control of this state or of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or the National Credit Union Association:

(a)  A bank,

(b)  A trust company,

(c)  A savings institution,

(d)  A building or savings and loan association,

(e)  An international development bank, or

(f)  A credit union;

or the initial subscription for equity securities of any institution listed in paragraphs (a)-(f), provided such institution is subject to the examination, supervision, or control of this state.

(6)  A security, other than common stock, providing for a fixed return, which security has been outstanding in the hands of the public for a period of not less than 5 years, and upon which security no default in payment of principal or failure to pay the fixed return has occurred for an immediately preceding period of 5 years.

(7)  Securities of nonprofit agricultural cooperatives organized under the laws of this state when the securities are sold or offered for sale to persons principally engaged in agricultural production or selling agricultural products.

(8)  A note, draft, bill of exchange, or banker's acceptance having a unit amount of $25,000 or more which arises out of a current transaction, or the proceeds of which have been or are to be used for current transactions, and which has a maturity period at the time of issuance not exceeding 9 months exclusive of days of grace, or any renewal thereof which has a maturity period likewise limited. This subsection applies only to prime quality negotiable commercial paper of a type not ordinarily purchased by the general public; that is, paper issued to facilitate well-recognized types of current operational business requirements and of a type eligible for discounting by Federal Reserve banks.

(9)  A security issued by a corporation organized and operated exclusively for religious, educational, benevolent, fraternal, charitable, or reformatory purposes and not for pecuniary profit, no part of the net earnings of which corporation inures to the benefit of any private stockholder or individual, or any security of a fund that is excluded from the definition of an investment company under s. 3(c)(10)(B) of the Investment Company Act of 1940; provided that no person shall directly or indirectly offer or sell securities under this subsection except by an offering circular containing full and fair disclosure, as prescribed by the rules of the commission, of all material information, including, but not limited to, a description of the securities offered and terms of the offering, a description of the nature of the issuer's business, a statement of the purpose of the offering and the intended application by the issuer of the proceeds thereof, and financial statements of the issuer prepared in conformance with generally accepted accounting principles. Section 6(c) of the Philanthropy Protection Act of 1995, Pub. L. No. 104-62, shall not preempt any provision of this chapter.

(10)  Any insurance or endowment policy or annuity contract or optional annuity contract or self-insurance agreement issued by a corporation, insurance company, reciprocal insurer, or risk retention group subject to the supervision of the insurance regulator or bank regulator, or any agency or officer performing like functions, of any state or territory of the United States or the District of Columbia.

History.--s. 1, ch. 78-435; ss. 3, 15, ch. 79-381; s. 5, ch. 80-254; ss. 2, 6, ch. 81-115; ss. 2, 3, ch. 81-318; s. 3, ch. 83-265; s. 2, ch. 84-159; s. 3, ch. 85-165; s. 2, ch. 86-82; s. 4, ch. 86-85; s. 41, ch. 86-160; s. 4, ch. 87-237; s. 3, ch. 87-316; s. 1, ch. 88-187; ss. 2, 14, 15, ch. 90-362; s. 4, ch. 91-429; s. 1, ch. 92-45; s. 1, ch. 96-338; s. 3, ch. 97-224; s. 2, ch. 98-221; s. 585, ch. 2003-261.