Senate Bill sb0648c1

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    Florida Senate - 2006                            CS for SB 648

    By the Committee on Judiciary; and Senator Campbell





    590-1829-06

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to nonjudicial sale of vessels;

  3         amending s. 328.17, F.S.; revising notice

  4         requirements of a marina having a possessory

  5         lien on a vessel for unpaid costs, charges, or

  6         fees prior to nonjudicial sale of the vessel;

  7         reducing the time allowed to pay the fees,

  8         charges, and costs giving rise to the lien

  9         prior to sale of the vessel; revising

10         requirements with respect to perfection of and

11         priority over prior or other liens; providing

12         an effective date.

13  

14  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

15  

16         Section 1.  Subsections (4), (5), (7), (10), (11), and

17  (12) of section 328.17, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:

18         328.17  Nonjudicial sale of vessels.--

19         (4)  A marina, as defined in s. 327.02(19), shall have:

20         (a)  A possessory lien upon any vessel for storage

21  fees, dockage fees, repairs, improvements, or other

22  work-related storage charges, and for expenses necessary for

23  preservation of the vessel or expenses reasonably incurred in

24  the sale or other disposition of the vessel. The possessory

25  lien shall attach as of the date the vessel is brought to the

26  marina, or as of the date the vessel first occupies rental

27  space at the marina facility. However, in the event of

28  default, the marina must give notice to persons who hold

29  perfected security interests against the vessel under the

30  Uniform Commercial Code in which the owner is named as the

31  debtor.

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    Florida Senate - 2006                            CS for SB 648
    590-1829-06




 1         (b)  A possessory lien upon any vessel in a wrecked,

 2  junked, or substantially dismantled condition, which has been

 3  left abandoned at the marina, for expenses reasonably incurred

 4  in the removal and disposal of the vessel. The possessory lien

 5  shall attach as of the date the vessel arrives at the marina

 6  or as of the date the vessel first occupies rental space at

 7  the marina facility. If the funds recovered from the sale of

 8  the vessel, or from the scrap or salvage value of the vessel,

 9  are insufficient to cover the expenses reasonably incurred by

10  the marina in removing and disposing of the vessel, all costs

11  in excess of recovery shall be recoverable against the owner

12  of the vessel. For a vessel damaged as a result of a named

13  storm, the provisions of this paragraph shall be suspended for

14  60 days following the date the vessel is damaged in the named

15  storm. The operation of the provisions specified in this

16  paragraph run concurrently with, and do not extend, the 60-day

17  notice periods provided in subsections (5) and (7).

18         (5)  A marina's possessory lien may be satisfied as

19  follows:

20         (a)1.  The marina shall provide written notice to the

21  vessel's owner, delivered in person or by certified mail to

22  the owner's last known address. The notice shall also be and

23  conspicuously posted at the marina and on the vessel.

24         2.  In addition to notice provided to the vessel owner

25  under subparagraph 1., the marina shall provide written notice

26  to each person or entity that:

27         a.  Holds a security interest on the vessel as shown in

28  the records of the Department of Highway Safety and Motor

29  Vehicles with respect to state-titled vessels.

30  

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2006                            CS for SB 648
    590-1829-06




 1         b.  Holds a preferred ship mortgage or has filed a

 2  claim of lien with the United States Coast Guard Vessel

 3  Documentation Center.

 4         c.  Holds a security interest against the vessel under

 5  the Uniform Commercial Code.

 6         d.  Has perfected a lien against the subject vessel by

 7  filing a judgment lien certificate pursuant to ss.

 8  55.201-55.209.

 9         3.  When a vessel displays a foreign country

10  identification or displays registration numbers from a state

11  other than Florida, the marina shall conduct a reasonable lien

12  search of the vessel registration records in the jurisdiction

13  of registry to determine if there is a lienholder who is

14  entitled to notice pursuant to subparagraph 2. The failure to

15  discover a foreign national or non-Florida United States

16  lienholder after a good faith effort to conduct such a lien

17  search does not prevent the sale or removal of a vessel from

18  the marina to satisfy the marina's possessory lien or a

19  purchaser, in good faith, from taking title of the vessel,

20  pursuant to subsections (7) and (11).

21         4.  The requirements of subparagraph 2. are satisfied

22  if the marina:

23         a.  Obtains ownership documentation for the vessel and

24  trailer, if applicable, from the Department of Highway Safety

25  and Motor Vehicles or other agency where the vessel is

26  registered;

27         b.  Obtains an abstract from the United States Coast

28  Guard for a vessel that is documented as defined in 46 U.S.C.

29  s. 30101;

30         c.  Performs a current Uniform Commercial Code lien

31  search;

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    Florida Senate - 2006                            CS for SB 648
    590-1829-06




 1         d.  Performs a current Florida judgment lien

 2  certificate search; and

 3         e.  Complies with subparagraph 3. with regard to

 4  vessels registered in a foreign country or in a state other

 5  than Florida.

 6         5.  The written notice to the vessel owner and

 7  lienholders required by this paragraph must be made at least

 8  60 days before any sale of the vessel under this section

 9  recorded lienholder of such vessel registered with this state

10  as shown by the records of the Department of Highway Safety

11  and Motor Vehicles, at least 30 days prior to the proposed

12  sale.

13         (b)  The notice shall include:

14         1.  An itemized statement of the marina's claim,

15  showing the sum due at the time of the notice and the date

16  upon which the sum became due.

17         2.  A description of the vessel.

18         3.  A demand for payment.

19         4.  A conspicuous statement that, unless the claim is

20  paid within the time stated in the notice, the vessel will be

21  advertised for sale or other disposition and will be sold or

22  otherwise disposed of at a specified time and place.

23         5.  The name, street address, and telephone number of

24  the marina that the owner or lienholder may contact to respond

25  to the notice.

26         (7)  If the fees, and costs, and late payment interest

27  that give rise to such a lien are due and unpaid 60 120 days

28  after the vessel owner and lienholder are is given written

29  notice, the marina may sell the vessel, including its

30  machinery, rigging, and accessories as provided for in

31  subsection (8) or the marina may remove the vessel from the

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    Florida Senate - 2006                            CS for SB 648
    590-1829-06




 1  marina or from the waters of the state at the owner's expense

 2  pursuant to paragraph (4)(b).

 3         (10)  Before any sale or other disposition of the

 4  vessel pursuant to this section, the owner or the lienholder

 5  may pay the amount necessary to satisfy the lien and the

 6  reasonable expenses and late payment interest incurred under

 7  this section and thereby redeem and take possession of the

 8  vessel. Upon receipt of such payment, the marina shall return

 9  the property to the owner or lienholder making such payment

10  and thereafter shall have no liability to any person with

11  respect to such vessel.

12         (11)  Unless otherwise provided by law, a purchaser in

13  good faith of a vessel sold to satisfy a lien provided for in

14  this section takes the property free of any claims other than

15  a prior lien perfected under state or federal law the Uniform

16  Commercial Code, despite noncompliance by the marina with the

17  requirements of this section.

18         (12)  In the event of a sale under this section, the

19  marina may satisfy its lien from the proceeds of the sale,

20  provided the marina's lien has priority over all other liens

21  on the vessel other than a prior lien perfected under the

22  Uniform Commercial Code. The lien rights of secured

23  lienholders are automatically also attach transferred to the

24  remaining proceeds of the sale. The balance, if any, shall be

25  held by the marina for delivery on demand to the owner. A

26  notice of any balance shall be delivered by the marina to the

27  owner in person or by certified mail to the last known address

28  of the owner. If the owner does not claim the balance of the

29  proceeds within 1 year after the date of sale, the proceeds

30  shall be deemed abandoned, and the marina shall have no

31  further obligation with regard to the payment of the balance.

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    Florida Senate - 2006                            CS for SB 648
    590-1829-06




 1  In the event that the marina's lien does not have priority

 2  over all other liens, the sale proceeds shall be held for the

 3  benefit of the holders of those liens having priority. A

 4  notice of the amount of the sale proceeds shall be delivered

 5  by the marina to the owner or secured lienholder in person or

 6  by certified mail to the owner's or the secured lienholder's

 7  last known address. If the owner or the secured lienholder

 8  does not claim the sale proceeds within 1 year after the date

 9  of sale, the proceeds shall be deemed abandoned, and the owner

10  or the secured lienholder shall have no further obligation

11  with regard to the payment of the proceeds.

12         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2006.

13  

14          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
15                         Senate Bill 648

16                                 

17  The committee substitute changes the underlying bill by:

18  --   Revising the proposed possessory lien for wrecked vessels
         that are abandoned at a marina, to provide that the lien
19       provisions are suspended for 60 days following the date a
         vessel is damaged in a named storm.
20  
    --   Making technical and conforming changes.
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