Florida Senate - 2020                                    SB 1128
       
       
        
       By Senator Diaz
       
       
       
       
       
       36-01819-20                                           20201128__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to vacation rentals; amending s.
    3         509.013, F.S.; defining the term “advertising
    4         platform”; amending s. 509.032, F.S.; preempting the
    5         regulation of vacation rentals to the state; providing
    6         legislative findings; authorizing a local law,
    7         ordinance, or regulation to regulate certain
    8         activities under certain circumstances; prohibiting a
    9         local law, ordinance, or regulation from allowing or
   10         requiring inspections or licensing of vacation
   11         rentals; preempting the regulation of advertising
   12         platforms to the state; amending s. 509.241, F.S.;
   13         requiring licenses issued by the Division of Hotels
   14         and Restaurants of the Department of Business and
   15         Professional Regulation to be displayed conspicuously
   16         to the public inside the licensed establishment;
   17         requiring the operator of certain vacation rentals to
   18         also display its vacation rental license number and
   19         applicable tax account numbers; amending s. 509.242,
   20         F.S.; revising the criteria for a public lodging
   21         establishment to be classified as a vacation rental;
   22         creating s. 509.243, F.S.; requiring advertising
   23         platforms to require that persons placing
   24         advertisements for vacation rentals include certain
   25         information in the advertisements; providing that the
   26         advertising platform is not required to verify such
   27         information; requiring each advertising platform to
   28         quarterly provide the division with certain
   29         information regarding vacation rentals in this state
   30         listed on the platform; requiring an advertising
   31         platform to remove an advertisement or listing under
   32         certain conditions and within a specified timeframe;
   33         authorizing the division to issue and deliver a notice
   34         to cease and desist for certain violations; providing
   35         that such notice does not constitute agency action for
   36         which a certain hearing may be sought; authorizing the
   37         division to file certain proceedings; authorizing the
   38         collection of attorney fees and costs under certain
   39         circumstances; providing applicability; providing
   40         effective dates.
   41          
   42  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   43  
   44         Section 1. Subsection (17) is added to section 509.013,
   45  Florida Statutes, to read:
   46         509.013 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term:
   47         (17)“Advertising platform” means a person who:
   48         (a)Provides an online application, software, website,
   49  system, or print advertisement through which a transient public
   50  lodging establishment located in this state is advertised or
   51  held out to the public as available to rent for transient
   52  occupancy;
   53         (b)Provides or maintains a marketplace for the renting by
   54  transient occupancy of a vacation rental; or
   55         (c)Provides a reservation or payment system that
   56  facilitates a transaction for the renting by transient occupancy
   57  of a vacation rental and for which the person collects or
   58  receives, directly or indirectly, a fee in connection with the
   59  reservation or payment service provided for such transaction.
   60  
   61  The term does not include the multiple listing service or an
   62  online or print advertisement of a transient public lodging
   63  establishment by a real estate broker or sales associate
   64  licensed under chapter 475; however, a real estate broker or
   65  sales associate licensed under chapter 475 must comply with s.
   66  509.243(3).
   67         Section 2. Subsection (7) of section 509.032, Florida
   68  Statutes, is amended to read:
   69         509.032 Duties.—
   70         (7) PREEMPTION AUTHORITY.—
   71         (a) Public lodging establishments and public food service
   72  establishments.
   73         1.Preemption.—The regulation of public lodging
   74  establishments, including vacation rentals, and public food
   75  service establishments, including, but not limited to,
   76  sanitation standards, inspections, training and testing of
   77  personnel, and matters related to the nutritional content and
   78  marketing of foods offered in such establishments, is preempted
   79  to the state. This subparagraph paragraph does not preempt the
   80  authority of a local government or local enforcement district to
   81  conduct inspections of public lodging and public food service
   82  establishments for compliance with the Florida Building Code and
   83  the Florida Fire Prevention Code, pursuant to ss. 553.80 and
   84  633.206.
   85         2.(b)Vacation rentals.
   86         a.The Legislature finds that:
   87         (I)Property owners who choose to use their property as a
   88  vacation rental have constitutionally protected property rights
   89  and other rights that must be protected, including the right to
   90  use their residential property as a vacation rental;
   91         (II)Vacation rentals play a significant, unique, and
   92  critical role in this state’s tourism industry, and that role is
   93  different from other types of public lodging establishments;
   94         (III)There are factors unique to the ownership and
   95  operation of a vacation rental; and
   96         (IV)Vacation rentals are residential in nature, a
   97  residential use, and thus permitted in residential
   98  neighborhoods.
   99         b.Except as provided under this subparagraph, the
  100  regulation of vacation rentals, including inspection and
  101  licensing, is expressly preempted to the state.
  102         c. A local law, ordinance, or regulation may regulate
  103  activities that arise when a property is used as a vacation
  104  rental if the law, ordinance, or regulation applies uniformly to
  105  all residential properties without regard to whether the
  106  property is used as a vacation rental as defined in s. 509.242,
  107  the property is used as a long-term rental subject to chapter
  108  83, or the property owner chooses not to rent the property.
  109  However, a local law, ordinance, or regulation may not prohibit
  110  vacation rentals or regulate the duration or frequency of rental
  111  of vacation rentals. This sub-subparagraph paragraph does not
  112  apply to any local law, ordinance, or regulation adopted on or
  113  before June 1, 2011.
  114         d.A local law, ordinance, or regulation may not allow or
  115  require the inspection or licensing of vacation rentals.
  116         e.(c)This subparagraph paragraph (b) does not apply to any
  117  local law, ordinance, or regulation exclusively relating to
  118  property valuation as a criterion for vacation rental if the
  119  local law, ordinance, or regulation is required to be approved
  120  by the state land planning agency pursuant to an area of
  121  critical state concern designation.
  122         (b)Advertising platforms.—The regulation of advertising
  123  platforms is preempted to the state and shall be regulated under
  124  this chapter.
  125         Section 3. Effective January 1, 2021, subsection (3) of
  126  section 509.241, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  127         509.241 Licenses required; exceptions.—
  128         (3) DISPLAY OF LICENSE.—Any license issued by the division
  129  must shall be conspicuously displayed to the public inside in
  130  the office or lobby of the licensed establishment. Public food
  131  service establishments that which offer catering services must
  132  shall display their license number on all advertising for
  133  catering services. The operator of a vacation rental offered for
  134  transient occupancy through an advertising platform must also
  135  display the vacation rental license number and the applicable
  136  Florida sales tax registration and tourist development tax
  137  account numbers under which such taxes must be paid for each
  138  rental of the property as a vacation rental.
  139         Section 4. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section
  140  509.242, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  141         509.242 Public lodging establishments; classifications.—
  142         (1) A public lodging establishment shall be classified as a
  143  hotel, motel, nontransient apartment, transient apartment, bed
  144  and breakfast inn, timeshare project, or vacation rental if the
  145  establishment satisfies the following criteria:
  146         (c) Vacation rental.—A vacation rental is a any unit or
  147  group of units in a condominium or cooperative or in an any
  148  individually or collectively owned single-family, two-family,
  149  three-family, or four-family house or dwelling unit that is also
  150  a transient public lodging establishment but that is not a
  151  timeshare project.
  152         Section 5. Effective January 1, 2021, section 509.243,
  153  Florida Statutes, is created to read:
  154         509.243 Advertising platforms.—
  155         (1)(a)An advertising platform must require that a person
  156  who places an advertisement for the rental of a vacation rental:
  157         1.Include in the advertisement the vacation rental license
  158  number and the applicable Florida sales tax registration and
  159  tourist development tax account numbers under which such taxes
  160  must be paid before the advertisement may be listed; and
  161         2.Attest to the best of their knowledge that the license
  162  number for the vacation rental property and the applicable tax
  163  numbers are current, valid, and accurately stated in the
  164  advertisement.
  165         (b)An advertising platform must display the license number
  166  and applicable Florida sales tax registration and tourist
  167  development tax numbers, but the advertising platform is not
  168  required to verify such information.
  169         (2)An advertising platform must provide to the division on
  170  a quarterly basis, by file transfer protocol or electronic data
  171  exchange file, a list of all vacation rental listings in this
  172  state on its platform and all of the following information for
  173  each listing:
  174         (a)The uniform resource locator for the Internet address
  175  of the listing.
  176         (b)The vacation rental license number provided by the
  177  owner or operator.
  178         (c)The applicable Florida sales tax registration and
  179  tourist development tax numbers under which taxes will be
  180  remitted for rentals commenced through the advertisement.
  181         (3)An advertising platform must remove from public view an
  182  advertisement or listing from its online application, software,
  183  website, or system within 15 business days after being notified
  184  by the division in writing that the subject advertisement or
  185  listing for the rental of a vacation rental located in this
  186  state fails to display a valid license number issued by the
  187  division.
  188         (4)If the division has probable cause to believe that a
  189  person not licensed by the division has violated this chapter,
  190  or any rule adopted pursuant thereto, the division may issue and
  191  deliver to such person a notice to cease and desist from the
  192  violation. The issuance of a notice to cease and desist does not
  193  constitute agency action for which a hearing under ss. 120.569
  194  and 120.57 may be sought. For the purpose of enforcing a cease
  195  and desist notice, the division may file a proceeding in the
  196  name of the state seeking the issuance of an injunction or a
  197  writ of mandamus against any person who violates any provision
  198  of the notice. If the department is required to seek enforcement
  199  of the notice for a penalty pursuant to s. 120.569, it is
  200  entitled to collect its attorney fees and costs, together with
  201  any cost of collection.
  202         Section 6. The Legislature does not intend for the
  203  application of this act to supersede any current or future
  204  declaration or declaration of condominium adopted pursuant to
  205  chapter 718, Florida Statutes, cooperative documents adopted
  206  pursuant to chapter 719, Florida Statutes, or declaration of
  207  covenants or declaration adopted pursuant to chapter 720,
  208  Florida Statutes.
  209         Section 7. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
  210  act, this act shall take effect upon becoming a law.