Florida Senate - 2020 CS for SB 1128
By the Committee on Commerce and Tourism; and Senator Diaz
577-03483-20 20201128c1
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;
6 prohibiting a local law, ordinance, or regulation from
7 allowing or requiring inspections or licensing of
8 public lodging establishments, including vacation
9 rentals, or public food service establishments;
10 authorizing a local law, ordinance, or regulation to
11 regulate certain activities under certain
12 circumstances; expanding an exemption to allow certain
13 ordinances adopted on or before June 1, 2011, to be
14 amended to be less restrictive; preempting the
15 regulation of advertising platforms to the state;
16 amending s. 509.241, F.S.; requiring licenses issued
17 by the Division of Hotels and Restaurants of the
18 Department of Business and Professional Regulation to
19 be displayed conspicuously to the public inside the
20 licensed establishment; requiring the operator of
21 certain vacation rentals to also display its vacation
22 rental license number and applicable tax account
23 numbers; creating s. 509.243, F.S.; requiring
24 advertising platforms to require that persons placing
25 advertisements for vacation rentals include certain
26 information in the advertisements; providing that the
27 advertising platform is required to verify such
28 information; requiring each advertising platform to
29 quarterly provide the division with certain
30 information regarding vacation rentals in this state
31 listed on the platform; requiring an advertising
32 platform to remove an advertisement or listing under
33 certain conditions and within a specified timeframe;
34 requiring an advertising platform to collect and remit
35 taxes imposed under chs. 125 and 212, F.S., for
36 certain transactions; authorizing the Department of
37 Revenue to adopt rules; authorizing the division to
38 issue and deliver a notice to cease and desist for
39 certain violations; providing that such notice does
40 not constitute agency action for which a certain
41 hearing may be sought; authorizing the division to
42 file certain proceedings; authorizing the collection
43 of attorney fees and costs under certain
44 circumstances; requiring an advertising platform to
45 adopt an antidiscrimination plan and to give notice to
46 users of its services; providing applicability;
47 providing effective dates.
48
49
50 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
51
52 Section 1. Subsection (17) is added to section 509.013,
53 Florida Statutes, to read:
54 509.013 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term:
55 (17) “Advertising platform” means a person who:
56 (a) Provides an online application, software, website, or
57 system through which a vacation rental located in this state is
58 advertised or held out to the public as available to rent for
59 transient occupancy;
60 (b) Provides or maintains a marketplace for the renting by
61 transient occupancy of a vacation rental; and
62 (c) Provides a reservation or payment system that
63 facilitates a transaction for the renting by transient occupancy
64 of a vacation rental and for which the person collects or
65 receives, directly or indirectly, a fee in connection with the
66 reservation or payment service provided for such transaction.
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) The regulation of public lodging establishments,
72 including vacation rentals, and public food service
73 establishments, including, but not limited to, sanitation
74 standards, licensing, inspections, training and testing of
75 personnel, and matters related to the nutritional content and
76 marketing of foods offered in such establishments, is expressly
77 preempted to the state. A local law, ordinance, or regulation,
78 may not allow or require the local inspection or licensing of
79 public lodging establishments, including vacation rentals, or
80 public food service establishments. This paragraph does not
81 preempt the authority of a local government or local enforcement
82 district to conduct inspections of public lodging and public
83 food service establishments for compliance with the Florida
84 Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code, pursuant to
85 ss. 553.80 and 633.206.
86 (b) A local law, ordinance, or regulation may regulate
87 activities that arise when a property is used as a vacation
88 rental if the law, ordinance, or regulation applies uniformly to
89 all residential properties without regard to whether the
90 property is used as a vacation rental as defined in s. 509.242,
91 the property is used as a long-term rental subject to chapter
92 83, or the property owner chooses not to rent the property.
93 However, a local law, ordinance, or regulation may not prohibit
94 vacation rentals or regulate the duration or frequency of rental
95 of vacation rentals. This paragraph does not apply to any local
96 law, ordinance, or regulation adopted on or before June 1, 2011,
97 including when such law, ordinance, or regulation is being
98 amended to be less restrictive with regard to a prohibition, or
99 duration, or frequency regulation.
100 (c) Paragraph (b) does not apply to any local law,
101 ordinance, or regulation exclusively relating to property
102 valuation as a criterion for vacation rental if the local law,
103 ordinance, or regulation is required to be approved by the state
104 land planning agency pursuant to an area of critical state
105 concern designation.
106 (d) The regulation of advertising platforms is preempted to
107 the state and shall be regulated under this chapter.
108 Section 3. Effective January 1, 2021, subsection (3) of
109 section 509.241, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
110 509.241 Licenses required; exceptions.—
111 (3) DISPLAY OF LICENSE.—Any license issued by the division
112 must shall be conspicuously displayed to the public inside in
113 the office or lobby of the licensed establishment. Public food
114 service establishments that which offer catering services must
115 shall display their license number on all advertising for
116 catering services. The owner or operator of a vacation rental
117 offered for transient occupancy through an advertising platform
118 must also display the vacation rental license number and the
119 applicable Florida sales tax registration and tourist
120 development tax account numbers under which such taxes must be
121 paid for each rental of the property as a vacation rental.
122 Section 4. Effective January 1, 2021, section 509.243,
123 Florida Statutes, is created to read:
124 509.243 Advertising platforms.—
125 (1)(a) An advertising platform must require that a person
126 who places an advertisement for the rental of a vacation rental:
127 1. Include in the advertisement the vacation rental license
128 number and the applicable Florida sales tax registration and
129 tourist development tax account numbers under which such taxes
130 must be paid before the advertisement may be listed; and
131 2. Attest to the best of their knowledge that the license
132 number for the vacation rental property and the applicable tax
133 numbers are current, valid, and accurately stated in the
134 advertisement.
135 (b) An advertising platform must display the vacation
136 rental license number and applicable Florida sales tax
137 registration and tourist development tax numbers. The
138 advertising platform must verify that the vacation rental
139 license number provided by the owner or operator is valid and
140 applies to the subject vacation rental before publishing the
141 advertisement on its platform and again at the end of each
142 calendar quarter that the advertisement remains on its platform.
143 (c) The division shall maintain vacation rental license
144 information in a readily accessible electronic format that is
145 sufficient to facilitate prompt compliance with the requirements
146 of this subsection by an advertising platform or a person
147 placing an advertisement on an advertising platform for
148 transient rental of a vacation rental.
149 (2) An advertising platform must provide to the division on
150 a quarterly basis, by file transfer protocol or electronic data
151 exchange file, a list of all vacation rentals located in this
152 state that are advertised on its platform, along with the
153 following information for each vacation rental:
154 (a) The uniform resource locator for the Internet address
155 of the vacation rental advertisement.
156 (b) Unless otherwise stated in the vacation rental
157 advertisement at the Internet address provided pursuant to
158 paragraph (a), the physical address of the vacation rental,
159 including any unit designation, the vacation rental license
160 number provided by the owner or operator, and the applicable
161 Florida sales tax registration and tourist development tax
162 account numbers under which taxes will be remitted for the
163 rentals commenced through the advertisement.
164 (3) An advertising platform must remove from public view an
165 advertisement or listing from its online application, software,
166 website, or system within 15 business days after being notified
167 by the division in writing that the subject advertisement or
168 listing for the rental of a vacation rental located in this
169 state fails to display a valid license number issued by the
170 division.
171 (4) If a guest uses a payment system on or through an
172 advertising platform to pay for the rental of a vacation rental
173 located in this state, the advertising platform shall collect
174 and remit all taxes imposed under chapters 125 and 212 resulting
175 from the rental. When calculating taxes imposed under chapters
176 125 and 212, an advertising platform may exclude the amount of
177 any fees directly attributable to the service provided by the
178 advertising platform. The Department of Revenue is authorized to
179 adopt rules to implement this subsection.
180 (5) If the division has probable cause to believe that a
181 person not licensed by the division has violated this chapter,
182 or any rule adopted pursuant thereto, the division may issue and
183 deliver to such person a notice to cease and desist from the
184 violation. The issuance of a notice to cease and desist does not
185 constitute agency action for which a hearing under ss. 120.569
186 and 120.57 may be sought. For the purpose of enforcing a cease
187 and desist notice, the division may file a proceeding in the
188 name of the state seeking the issuance of an injunction or a
189 writ of mandamus against any person who violates any provision
190 of the notice. If the department is required to seek enforcement
191 of the notice for a penalty pursuant to s. 120.569, it is
192 entitled to collect its attorney fees and costs, together with
193 any cost of collection.
194 (6) Advertising platforms must adopt an antidiscrimination
195 plan in order to help prevent discrimination among its users and
196 must inform all users of their services that it is illegal to
197 refuse accommodation to an individual based on race, creed,
198 color, sex, pregnancy, physical disability, or national origin,
199 pursuant to s. 509.092.
200 Section 5. The application of this act shall not supersede
201 any current or future declaration or declaration of condominium
202 adopted pursuant to chapter 718, Florida Statutes, cooperative
203 documents adopted pursuant to chapter 719, Florida Statutes, or
204 declaration of covenants or declaration adopted pursuant to
205 chapter 720, Florida Statutes.
206 Section 6. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
207 act, this act shall take effect upon becoming a law.