Florida Senate - 2009                                    SB 2552
       
       
       
       By Senator Altman
       
       
       
       
       24-01483A-09                                          20092552__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to housing for homeless or disabled
    3         veterans; amending s. 196.1978, F.S.; providing that
    4         the property exemption for affordable housing applies
    5         to property owned by an exempt entity that is
    6         preparing the property to house homeless or disabled
    7         veterans; requiring an exempt entity to annually file
    8         an application to claim the exemption; permitting an
    9         exemption on a particular property to be claimed for
   10         up to 5 years; providing an effective date.
   11  
   12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   13  
   14         Section 1. Section 196.1978, Florida Statutes, is amended
   15  to read:
   16         196.1978 Affordable housing property exemption.—
   17         (1) Property used to provide affordable housing serving
   18  eligible persons as defined by s. 159.603(7) and persons meeting
   19  income limits specified in s. 420.0004(8), (10), (11), and (15),
   20  which property is owned entirely by a nonprofit entity which is
   21  qualified as charitable under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal
   22  Revenue Code and which complies with Rev. Proc. 96-32, 1996-1
   23  C.B. 717, shall be considered property owned by an exempt entity
   24  and used for a charitable purpose, and those portions of the
   25  affordable housing property which provide housing to individuals
   26  with incomes as defined in s. 420.0004(10) and (15) shall be
   27  exempt from ad valorem taxation to the extent authorized in s.
   28  196.196. All property identified in this section shall comply
   29  with the criteria for determination of exempt status to be
   30  applied by property appraisers on an annual basis as defined in
   31  s. 196.195. The Legislature intends that any property owned by a
   32  limited liability company which is disregarded as an entity for
   33  federal income tax purposes pursuant to Treasury Regulation
   34  301.7701-3(b)(1)(ii) shall be treated as owned by its sole
   35  member.
   36         (2) The exemption provided in this section also applies to
   37  property owned by an exempt entity that has taken affirmative
   38  steps to prepare the property to provide housing to homeless or
   39  disabled veterans. For purposes of this subsection, the term
   40  “affirmative steps” means activities that demonstrate that the
   41  property will be used to provide housing for homeless or
   42  disabled veterans. Such activities include issuing proposals for
   43  property development, conducting preliminary environmental or
   44  land use permitting activities, creating site plans or
   45  architectural plans, performing site preparation, construction,
   46  or renovations, preparing financial plans, or conducting other
   47  activities to prepare the property to provide housing for
   48  homeless or disabled veterans. The exempt entity shall annually
   49  apply for the exemption pursuant to s. 196.011. An exempt entity
   50  may claim an exemption for a particular property for up to 5
   51  years.
   52         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.