CS for CS for CS for SB 184 First Engrossed
2025184e1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to housing; creating s. 83.471, F.S.;
3 defining terms; authorizing a landlord to accept
4 reusable tenant screening reports and require a
5 specified statement; prohibiting a landlord from
6 charging certain fees to an applicant using a reusable
7 tenant screening report; providing construction;
8 amending s. 163.31771, F.S.; defining the term
9 “primary dwelling unit”; requiring, rather than
10 authorizing, local governments to adopt, by a
11 specified date, an ordinance to allow accessory
12 dwelling units in certain areas; requiring such
13 ordinances to apply prospectively; prohibiting such
14 ordinances from including certain requirements or
15 prohibitions; deleting a requirement that an
16 application for a building permit to construct an
17 accessory dwelling unit include a certain affidavit;
18 revising the accessory dwelling units that apply
19 toward satisfying a certain component of a local
20 government’s comprehensive plan; prohibiting the
21 denial of a homestead exemption for certain portions
22 of property on a specified basis; requiring that a
23 rented accessory dwelling unit be assessed separately
24 from the homestead property and taxed according to its
25 use; amending s. 420.615, F.S.; authorizing a local
26 government to provide a density bonus incentive to
27 landowners who make certain real property donations to
28 assist in the provision of affordable housing for
29 military families; requiring the Office of Program
30 Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to
31 evaluate the efficacy of using mezzanine finance and
32 the potential of tiny homes for specified purposes;
33 requiring the office to consult with certain entities;
34 requiring the office to submit a certain report to the
35 Legislature by a specified date; providing an
36 effective date.
37
38 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
39
40 Section 1. Section 83.471, Florida Statutes, is created to
41 read:
42 83.471 Reusable tenant screening reports.—
43 (1) As used in this section, the term:
44 (a)1. “Consumer report” means any written, oral, or other
45 communication of information by a consumer reporting agency
46 bearing on a consumer’s credit worthiness, credit standing,
47 credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal
48 characteristics, or mode of living which is used or expected to
49 be used or collected in whole or in part for the purpose of
50 serving as a factor in establishing the consumer’s eligibility
51 for credit or insurance to be used primarily for personal,
52 family, or household purposes; employment purposes; or any other
53 purpose authorized under 15 U.S.C. s. 1681b.
54 2. Except for the restrictions provided in 15 U.S.C. s.
55 1681a(d)(3), the term “consumer report” does not include:
56 a. Subject to 15 U.S.C. s. 1681s-3, any report containing
57 information solely as to transactions or experiences between the
58 consumer and the person making the report; communication of such
59 information among persons related by common ownership or
60 affiliated by corporate control; or communication of other
61 information among persons related by common ownership or
62 affiliated by corporate control, if it is clearly and
63 conspicuously disclosed to the consumer that the information may
64 be communicated among such persons and the consumer is given the
65 opportunity, before the time that the information is initially
66 communicated, to direct that such information not be
67 communicated among such persons;
68 b. Any authorization or approval of a specific extension of
69 credit directly or indirectly by the issuer of a credit card or
70 similar device;
71 c. Any report in which a person who has been requested by a
72 third party to make a specific extension of credit directly or
73 indirectly to a consumer conveys his or her decision with
74 respect to such request if the third party advises the consumer
75 of the name and address of the person to whom the request was
76 made, and such person makes the disclosures to the consumer
77 required under 15 U.S.C. s. 1681m; or
78 d. A communication described in 15 U.S.C. s. 1681a(o) or 15
79 U.S.C. s. 1681a(x).
80 (b) “Consumer reporting agency” means any person who, for
81 monetary fees, dues, or on a cooperative nonprofit basis,
82 regularly engages in whole or in part in the practice of
83 assembling or evaluating consumer credit information or other
84 information on consumers for the purpose of furnishing consumer
85 reports to third parties, and who uses any means or facility of
86 interstate commerce for the purpose of preparing or furnishing
87 consumer reports.
88 (c) “Reusable tenant screening report” means a report that:
89 1. Includes all of the following:
90 a. The applicant’s full name.
91 b. The applicant’s contact information, including mailing
92 address, e-mail address, and telephone number.
93 c. Verification of the applicant’s employment.
94 d. The applicant’s last known address.
95 e. The results of an eviction history check in a manner and
96 for a period of time consistent with applicable law related to
97 the consideration of eviction history in housing.
98 f. The date through which the information contained in the
99 report is current.
100 g. The applicant’s consumer report.
101 2.a. Is prepared within the previous 30 days by a consumer
102 reporting agency at the request and expense of an applicant.
103 b. Is made directly available to a landlord for use in the
104 rental application process or is provided through a third-party
105 website that regularly engages in the business of providing a
106 reusable tenant screening report and complies with all state and
107 federal laws pertaining to use and disclosure of information
108 contained in a consumer report by a consumer reporting agency.
109 c. Is available to the landlord at no cost to access or
110 use.
111 (2) A landlord may accept reusable tenant screening reports
112 and may require an applicant to state that there has not been a
113 material change to the information in the reusable tenant
114 screening report.
115 (3) If an applicant provides a reusable tenant screening
116 report to a landlord who accepts such reports, the landlord may
117 not charge the applicant a fee to access the report or an
118 application screening fee.
119 (4) This section does not:
120 (a) Affect any other applicable law related to the
121 consideration of criminal history information in housing,
122 including, but not limited to, local ordinances governing the
123 information that landlords may review and consider when
124 determining to whom they will rent; or
125 (b) Require a landlord to accept reusable tenant screening
126 reports.
127 Section 2. Subsections (3) and (4) and present subsection
128 (5) of section 163.31771, Florida Statutes, are amended,
129 paragraph (h) is added to subsection (2) of that section, and a
130 new subsection (5) is added to that section, to read:
131 163.31771 Accessory dwelling units.—
132 (2) As used in this section, the term:
133 (h) “Primary dwelling unit” means the existing or proposed
134 single-family dwelling on the property where a proposed
135 accessory dwelling unit would be located.
136 (3) By December 1, 2025, a local government shall may adopt
137 an ordinance to allow accessory dwelling units in any area zoned
138 for single-family residential use. Such ordinance must apply
139 prospectively to accessory dwelling units approved after the
140 date the ordinance is adopted. Such ordinance may regulate the
141 permitting, construction, and use of an accessory dwelling unit,
142 but may not do any of the following:
143 (a) Prohibit the renting or leasing of an accessory
144 dwelling unit, except to prohibit the renting or leasing of an
145 accessory dwelling unit approved after the effective date of the
146 ordinance for a term of less than 1 month, notwithstanding s.
147 509.032(7)(b).
148 (b) Require that the owner of a parcel on which an
149 accessory dwelling unit is constructed reside in the primary
150 dwelling unit.
151 (c) Increase parking requirements on any parcel that can
152 accommodate an additional motor vehicle on a driveway without
153 impeding access to the primary dwelling unit.
154 (d) Require replacement parking if a garage, carport, or
155 covered parking structure is converted to create an accessory
156 dwelling unit.
157 (4) An application for a building permit to construct an
158 accessory dwelling unit must include an affidavit from the
159 applicant which attests that the unit will be rented at an
160 affordable rate to an extremely-low-income, very-low-income,
161 low-income, or moderate-income person or persons.
162 (5) Each accessory dwelling unit allowed by an ordinance
163 adopted under this section which provides affordable rental
164 housing shall apply toward satisfying the affordable housing
165 component of the housing element in the local government’s
166 comprehensive plan under s. 163.3177(6)(f).
167 (5) The owner of a property with an accessory dwelling unit
168 may not be denied a homestead exemption for those portions of
169 property on which the owner maintains a permanent residence
170 solely on the basis of the property containing an accessory
171 dwelling unit that is or may be rented to another person.
172 However, if the accessory dwelling unit is rented to another
173 person, the accessory dwelling unit must be assessed separately
174 from the homestead property and taxed according to its use.
175 Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 420.615, Florida
176 Statutes, is amended to read:
177 420.615 Affordable housing land donation density bonus
178 incentives.—
179 (1) A local government may provide density bonus incentives
180 pursuant to the provisions of this section to any landowner who
181 voluntarily donates fee simple interest in real property to the
182 local government for the purpose of assisting the local
183 government in providing affordable housing, including housing
184 that is affordable for military families receiving the basic
185 allowance for housing. Donated real property must be determined
186 by the local government to be appropriate for use as affordable
187 housing and must be subject to deed restrictions to ensure that
188 the property will be used for affordable housing.
189 Section 4. The Office of Program Policy Analysis and
190 Government Accountability (OPPAGA) shall evaluate the efficacy
191 of using mezzanine finance, or second-position short-term debt,
192 to stimulate the construction of owner-occupied housing that is
193 affordable as defined in s. 420.0004(3), Florida Statutes, in
194 this state. OPPAGA shall also evaluate the potential of tiny
195 homes in meeting the need for affordable housing in this state.
196 OPPAGA shall consult with the Florida Housing Finance
197 Corporation and the Shimberg Center for Housing Studies at the
198 University of Florida in conducting its evaluation. By December
199 31, 2026, OPPAGA shall submit a report of its findings to the
200 President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
201 Representatives. Such report must include recommendations for
202 the structuring of a model mezzanine finance program.
203 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.