HB 1009

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to prohibited landlord practices; amending
3s. 83.67, F.S.; prohibiting landlords from prohibiting
4tenants from displaying certain United States flags
5regardless of certain rental agreement provisions;
6relieving landlords of liability for any damages caused by
7displaying flags; prohibiting tenants from displaying
8flags in a manner that infringes upon other tenants'
9property; providing an effective date.
10
11Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
12
13     Section 1.  Section 83.67, Florida Statutes, is amended to
14read:
15     83.67  Prohibited practices.--
16     (1)  A No landlord of any dwelling unit governed by this
17part shall not cause, directly or indirectly, the termination or
18interruption of any utility service furnished the tenant,
19including, but not limited to, water, heat, light, electricity,
20gas, elevator, garbage collection, or refrigeration, whether or
21not the utility service is under the control of, or payment is
22made by, the landlord.
23     (2)  A No landlord of any dwelling unit governed by this
24part shall not prevent the tenant from gaining reasonable access
25to the dwelling unit by any means, including, but not limited
26to, changing the locks or using any bootlock or similar device.
27     (3)  A No landlord of any dwelling unit governed by this
28part shall not discriminate against a servicemember in offering
29a dwelling unit for rent or in any of the terms of the rental
30agreement.
31     (4)  A landlord shall not prohibit a tenant from displaying
32one portable, removable, cloth or plastic United States flag,
33not larger than 4 and one-half feet by 6 feet, in a respectful
34manner in or on the dwelling unit regardless of any declaration
35rules or requirements dealing with flags or decorations. The
36United States flag shall be displayed in accordance with s.
3783.52(6). The landlord shall not be liable for damages caused by
38a United States flag displayed by a tenant. Any United States
39flag may not infringe upon the space rented by any other tenant.
40     (5)(4)  A No landlord of any dwelling unit governed by this
41part shall not remove the outside doors, locks, roof, walls, or
42windows of the unit except for purposes of maintenance, repair,
43or replacement; and nor shall the landlord shall not remove the
44tenant's personal property from the dwelling unit unless such
45said action is taken after surrender, abandonment, or a lawful
46eviction. If provided in the rental agreement or a written
47agreement separate from the rental agreement, upon surrender or
48abandonment by the tenant, the landlord is not required to
49comply with s. 715.104 and is not liable or responsible for
50storage or disposition of the tenant's personal property; if
51provided in the rental agreement, there must be printed or
52clearly stamped on such rental agreement a legend in
53substantially the following form:
54
55BY SIGNING THIS RENTAL AGREEMENT, THE TENANT AGREES THAT UPON
56SURRENDER OR ABANDONMENT, AS DEFINED BY CHAPTER 83, FLORIDA
57STATUTES, THE LANDLORD SHALL NOT BE LIABLE OR RESPONSIBLE FOR
58STORAGE OR DISPOSITION OF THE TENANT'S PERSONAL PROPERTY.
59
60For the purposes of this section, abandonment shall be as set
61forth in s. 83.59(3)(c).
62     (6)(5)  A landlord who violates any provision the
63provisions of this section shall be liable to the tenant for
64actual and consequential damages or 3 months' rent, whichever is
65greater, and costs, including attorney's fees. Subsequent or
66repeated violations that which are not contemporaneous with the
67initial violation shall be subject to separate awards of
68damages.
69     (7)(6)  A violation of this section constitutes shall
70constitute irreparable harm for the purposes of injunctive
71relief.
72     (8)(7)  The remedies provided by this section are not
73exclusive and do shall not preclude the tenant from pursuing any
74other remedy at law or equity that which the tenant may have.
75The remedies provided by this section shall also apply to a
76servicemember who is a prospective tenant who has been
77discriminated against under subsection (3).
78     Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.