Florida Senate - 2025 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. CS for CS for SB 712
Ì387298bÎ387298
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
04/22/2025 .
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The Committee on Rules (Grall) recommended the following:
1 Senate Amendment to Amendment (564952) (with title
2 amendment)
3
4 Delete lines 76 - 369
5 and insert:
6 Section 6. Subsection (10) of section 553.73, Florida
7 Statutes, is amended to read:
8 553.73 Florida Building Code.—
9 (10) The following buildings, structures, and facilities
10 are exempt from the Florida Building Code as provided by law,
11 and any further exemptions shall be as determined by the
12 Legislature and provided by law:
13 (a) Buildings and structures specifically regulated and
14 preempted by the Federal Government.
15 (b) Railroads and ancillary facilities associated with the
16 railroad.
17 (c) Nonresidential farm buildings on farms.
18 (d) Temporary buildings or sheds used exclusively for
19 construction purposes.
20 (e) Mobile or modular structures used as temporary offices,
21 except that the provisions of part II relating to accessibility
22 by persons with disabilities apply to such mobile or modular
23 structures.
24 (f) Those structures or facilities of electric utilities,
25 as defined in s. 366.02, which are directly involved in the
26 generation, transmission, or distribution of electricity.
27 (g) Temporary sets, assemblies, or structures used in
28 commercial motion picture or television production, or any
29 sound-recording equipment used in such production, on or off the
30 premises.
31 (h) Storage sheds that are not designed for human
32 habitation and that have a floor area of 720 square feet or less
33 are not required to comply with the mandatory wind-borne-debris
34 impact standards of the Florida Building Code. In addition, such
35 buildings that are 400 square feet or less and that are intended
36 for use in conjunction with one- and two-family residences are
37 not subject to the door height and width requirements of the
38 Florida Building Code.
39 (i) Chickees constructed by the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians
40 of Florida or the Seminole Tribe of Florida. As used in this
41 paragraph, the term “chickee” means an open-sided wooden hut
42 that has a thatched roof of palm or palmetto or other
43 traditional materials, and that does not incorporate any
44 electrical, plumbing, or other nonwood features.
45 (j) Family mausoleums not exceeding 250 square feet in area
46 which are prefabricated and assembled on site or preassembled
47 and delivered on site and have walls, roofs, and a floor
48 constructed of granite, marble, or reinforced concrete.
49 (k) A building or structure having less than 1,000 square
50 feet which is constructed and owned by a natural person for
51 hunting and which is repaired or reconstructed to the same
52 dimension and condition as existed on January 1, 2011, if the
53 building or structure:
54 1. Is not rented or leased or used as a principal
55 residence;
56 2. Is not located within the 100-year floodplain according
57 to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s current Flood
58 Insurance Rate Map; and
59 3. Is not connected to an offsite electric power or water
60 supply.
61 (l) A drone port as defined in s. 330.41(2).
62 (m) Any system or equipment, whether affixed or movable,
63 which is located on property within a spaceport territory
64 pursuant to s. 331.304 and which is used for the production,
65 erection, alteration, modification, repair, launch, processing,
66 recovery, transport, integration, fueling, conditioning, or
67 equipping of a space launch vehicle, payload, or spacecraft.
68
69 With the exception of paragraphs (a), (b), (c), and (f), in
70 order to preserve the health, safety, and welfare of the public,
71 the Florida Building Commission may, by rule adopted pursuant to
72 chapter 120, provide for exceptions to the broad categories of
73 buildings exempted in this section, including exceptions for
74 application of specific sections of the code or standards
75 adopted therein. The Department of Agriculture and Consumer
76 Services shall have exclusive authority to adopt by rule,
77 pursuant to chapter 120, exceptions to nonresidential farm
78 buildings exempted in paragraph (c) when reasonably necessary to
79 preserve public health, safety, and welfare. The exceptions must
80 be based upon specific criteria, such as under-roof floor area,
81 aggregate electrical service capacity, HVAC system capacity, or
82 other building requirements. Further, the commission may
83 recommend to the Legislature additional categories of buildings,
84 structures, or facilities which should be exempted from the
85 Florida Building Code, to be provided by law. The Florida
86 Building Code does not apply to temporary housing provided by
87 the Department of Corrections to any prisoner in the state
88 correctional system.
89 Section 7. Paragraph (f) of subsection (1) of section
90 553.79, Florida Statutes, is amended, and subsection (11) of
91 that section is reenacted, to read:
92 553.79 Permits; applications; issuance; inspections.—
93 (1)
94 (f) A local government may not require a contract between a
95 builder and an owner, any copies of such contract, or any
96 associated document, including, but not limited to, letters of
97 intent, material costs lists, labor costs, or overhead or profit
98 statements, for the issuance of a building permit or as a
99 requirement for the submission of a building permit application.
100 (11) Any state agency whose enabling legislation authorizes
101 it to enforce provisions of the Florida Building Code may enter
102 into an agreement with any other unit of government to delegate
103 its responsibility to enforce those provisions and may expend
104 public funds for permit and inspection fees, which fees may be
105 no greater than the fees charged others. Inspection services
106 that are not required to be performed by a state agency under a
107 federal delegation of responsibility or by a state agency under
108 the Florida Building Code must be performed under the
109 alternative plans review and inspection process created in s.
110 553.791 or by a local governmental entity having authority to
111 enforce the Florida Building Code.
112 Section 8. Paragraphs (l) and (q) of subsection (1) and
113 subsections (5) through (8) of section 553.791, Florida
114 Statutes, are amended to read:
115 553.791 Alternative plans review and inspection.—
116 (1) As used in this section, the term:
117 (l) “Permit application” means a properly completed and
118 submitted application for the requested building or construction
119 permit, including:
120 1. The plans reviewed by the private provider, or in the
121 case of a single-trade plans review where a private provider
122 uses an automated or software-based plans review system pursuant
123 to subsection (6), the information reviewed by the automated or
124 software-based plans review system to determine compliance with
125 one or more applicable codes.
126 2. The affidavit from the private provider required under
127 subsection (6).
128 3. Any applicable fees.
129 4. Any documents required by the local building official to
130 determine that the fee owner has secured all other government
131 approvals required by law.
132 (q) “Single-trade inspection” or “single-trade plans
133 review” means any inspection or plans review focused on a single
134 construction trade, such as plumbing, mechanical, or electrical.
135 The term includes, but is not limited to, inspections or plans
136 reviews of door or window replacements; fences and block walls
137 more than 6 feet high from the top of the wall to the bottom of
138 the footing; stucco or plastering; reroofing with no structural
139 alteration; solar energy and energy storage installations or
140 alterations; HVAC replacements; ductwork or fan replacements;
141 alteration or installation of wiring, lighting, and service
142 panels; water heater changeouts; sink replacements; and
143 repiping.
144 (5) After construction has commenced and if either the
145 local building official is unable to provide inspection services
146 in a timely manner or the work subject to inspection is related
147 to a single-trade inspection for a single-family or two-family
148 dwelling, the fee owner or the fee owner’s contractor may elect
149 to use a private provider to provide inspection services by
150 notifying the local building official of the owner’s or
151 contractor’s intention to do so by 2 p.m. local time, 2 business
152 days before the next scheduled inspection using the notice
153 provided for in paragraphs (4)(a)-(c).
154 (6) A private provider performing plans review under this
155 section shall review the plans to determine compliance with the
156 applicable codes. For single-trade plans reviews, a private
157 provider may use an automated or software-based plans review
158 system designed to determine compliance with one or more
159 applicable codes, including, but not limited to, the National
160 Electrical Code and the Florida Building Code. Upon determining
161 that the plans reviewed comply with the applicable codes, the
162 private provider shall prepare an affidavit or affidavits
163 certifying, under oath, that the following is true and correct
164 to the best of the private provider’s knowledge and belief:
165 (a) The plans were reviewed by the affiant, who is duly
166 authorized to perform plans review pursuant to this section and
167 holds the appropriate license or certificate.
168 (b) The plans comply with the applicable codes.
169
170 Such affidavit may bear a written or electronic signature and
171 may be submitted electronically to the local building official.
172 (7)(a) No more than 20 business days, or if the permit
173 application is related to a single-trade plans review for a
174 single-family or two-family dwelling, no more than 5 business
175 days, after receipt of a permit application and the affidavit
176 from the private provider required pursuant to subsection (6),
177 the local building official shall issue the requested permit or
178 provide a written notice to the permit applicant identifying the
179 specific plan features that do not comply with the applicable
180 codes, as well as the specific code chapters and sections. If
181 the local building official does not provide a written notice of
182 the plan deficiencies within the prescribed time 20-day period,
183 the permit application must shall be deemed approved as a matter
184 of law, and the permit must shall be issued by the local
185 building official on the next business day.
186 (b) If the local building official provides a written
187 notice of plan deficiencies to the permit applicant within the
188 prescribed time 20-day period, the time 20-day period is shall
189 be tolled pending resolution of the matter. To resolve the plan
190 deficiencies, the permit applicant may elect to dispute the
191 deficiencies pursuant to subsection (15) or to submit revisions
192 to correct the deficiencies.
193 (c) If the permit applicant submits revisions, the local
194 building official has the remainder of the tolled time 20-day
195 period plus 5 business days after from the date of resubmittal
196 to issue the requested permit or to provide a second written
197 notice to the permit applicant stating which of the previously
198 identified plan features remain in noncompliance with the
199 applicable codes, with specific reference to the relevant code
200 chapters and sections. Any subsequent review by the local
201 building official is limited to the deficiencies cited in the
202 written notice. If the local building official does not provide
203 the second written notice within the prescribed time period, the
204 permit must shall be deemed approved as a matter of law, and the
205 local building official must issue the permit on the next
206 business day.
207 (d) If the local building official provides a second
208 written notice of plan deficiencies to the permit applicant
209 within the prescribed time period, the permit applicant may
210 elect to dispute the deficiencies pursuant to subsection (15) or
211 to submit additional revisions to correct the deficiencies. For
212 all revisions submitted after the first revision, the local
213 building official has an additional 5 business days after from
214 the date of resubmittal to issue the requested permit or to
215 provide a written notice to the permit applicant stating which
216 of the previously identified plan features remain in
217 noncompliance with the applicable codes, with specific reference
218 to the relevant code chapters and sections.
219 (8) A private provider performing required inspections
220 under this section shall inspect each phase of construction as
221 required by the applicable codes. Such inspection, including a
222 single-trade inspection, may be performed in person in-person or
223 virtually. The private provider may have a duly authorized
224 representative perform the required inspections, provided all
225 required reports are prepared by and bear the written or
226 electronic signature of the private provider or the private
227 provider’s duly authorized representative. The duly authorized
228 representative must be an employee of the private provider
229 entitled to receive reemployment assistance benefits under
230 chapter 443. The contractor’s contractual or legal obligations
231 are not relieved by any action of the private provider.
232
233 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
234 And the title is amended as follows:
235 Delete lines 399 - 422
236 and insert:
237 providing an exemption from the Florida Building Code
238 to systems or equipment located within a spaceport
239 territory which is used for specified purposes;
240 reenacting and amending s. 553.79, F.S.; prohibiting
241 local governments from requiring copies of contracts
242 and certain associated documents for the issuance of
243 building permits or as a requirement for submitting
244 building permit applications; amending s. 553.791,
245 F.S.; revising definitions; revising the conditions
246 under which specified contractors may elect to use a
247 private provider to provide inspection services;
248 authorizing private providers to use automated or
249 software-based plans review systems designed to make
250 certain determinations; requiring local building
251 officials to issue permits within a specified
252 timeframe if the permit application is related to
253 certain single-trade plans reviews; authorizing
254 certain inspections to be performed in person or
255 virtually; reenacting s. 201.21(2), F.S.,
256