Bill Text: FL S0476 | 2011 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Public Lodging Establishments
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (? 2-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-05-05 - Read 2nd time -SJ 968 [S0476 Detail]
Download: Florida-2011-S0476-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2011 CS for CS for SB 476 By the Committees on Judiciary; and Regulated Industries; and Senator Evers 590-04946-11 2011476c2 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to public lodging establishments; 3 amending s. 509.032, F.S.; conforming provisions to 4 changes made by the act; prohibiting local governments 5 from regulating vacation rentals based solely on their 6 classification or use; providing an exception; 7 amending ss. 509.221 and 509.241, F.S.; conforming 8 provisions to changes made by the act; amending s. 9 509.242, F.S.; providing that public lodging 10 establishments formerly classified as resort 11 condominiums and resort dwellings are classified as 12 vacation rentals; defining the term “vacation rental”; 13 amending s. 509.251, F.S.; conforming provisions to 14 changes made by the act; amending s. 509.261, F.S.; 15 revising mandatory education requirements for certain 16 violations; amending s. 509.291, F.S.; revising 17 membership of the advisory council of the Division of 18 Hotels and Restaurants of the Department of Business 19 and Professional Regulation; requiring the Florida 20 Vacation Rental Managers Association to designate a 21 member to serve on the advisory council; amending ss. 22 381.008 and 386.203, F.S.; conforming provisions to 23 changes made by the act; providing a short title; 24 amending s. 509.144, F.S.; revising the definition of 25 the term “handbill”; providing additional penalties 26 for the offense of unlawfully distributing handbills 27 in a public lodging establishment; specifying that 28 certain items used in committing such offense are 29 subject to seizure and forfeiture under the Florida 30 Contraband Forfeiture Act; creating s. 901.1503, F.S.; 31 authorizing a law enforcement officer to give a notice 32 to appear to a person without a warrant when there is 33 probable cause to believe the person violated s. 34 509.144, F.S., and the owner or manager of the public 35 lodging establishment, and one additional affiant, 36 signs an affidavit containing information supporting 37 the determination of probable cause; amending s. 38 932.701, F.S.; revising the definition of the term 39 “contraband article”; providing that specified 40 portions of the act do not affect or impede specified 41 statutory provisions or any protection or right 42 guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the United 43 States Constitution; providing an effective date. 44 45 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 46 47 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) and subsection 48 (7) of section 509.032, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 49 509.032 Duties.— 50 (2) INSPECTION OF PREMISES.— 51 (a) The division has responsibility and jurisdiction for 52 all inspections required by this chapter. The division has 53 responsibility for quality assurance. Each licensed 54 establishment shall be inspected at least biannually, except for 55 transient and nontransient apartments, which shall be inspected 56 at least annually, and shall be inspected at such other times as 57 the division determines is necessary to ensure the public’s 58 health, safety, and welfare. The division shall establish a 59 system to determine inspection frequency. Public lodging units 60 classified as vacation rentalsresort condominiums or resort61dwellingsare not subject to this requirement,but shall be made 62 available to the division upon request. If, during the 63 inspection of a public lodging establishment classified for 64 renting to transient or nontransient tenants, an inspector 65 identifies vulnerable adults who appear to be victims of 66 neglect, as defined in s. 415.102, or, in the case of a building 67 that is not equipped with automatic sprinkler systems, tenants 68 or clients who may be unable to self-preserve in an emergency, 69 the division shall convene meetings with the following agencies 70 as appropriate to the individual situation: the Department of 71 Health, the Department of Elderly Affairs, the area agency on 72 aging, the local fire marshal, the landlord and affected tenants 73 and clients, and other relevant organizations, to develop a plan 74 which improves the prospects for safety of affected residents 75 and, if necessary, identifies alternative living arrangements 76 such as facilities licensed under part II of chapter 400 or 77 under chapter 429. 78 (7) PREEMPTION AUTHORITY.— 79 (a) The regulation of public lodging establishments and 80 public food service establishments, including, but not limited 81 to,the inspection of public lodging establishments and public82food service establishments for compliance with thesanitation 83 standards, inspections,adopted under this section, and the84regulation of food safety protection standards for required85 training and testing offood service establishmentpersonnel, 86 and matters related to the nutritional content and marketing of 87 foods offered in such establishments, are preempted to the 88 state. This paragraphsubsectiondoes not preempt the authority 89 of a local government or local enforcement district to conduct 90 inspections of public lodging and public food service 91 establishments for compliance with the Florida Building Code and 92 the Florida Fire Prevention Code, pursuant to ss. 553.80 and 93 633.022. 94 (b) A local law, ordinance, or regulation may not restrict 95 the use of vacation rentals, prohibit vacation rentals, or 96 regulate vacation rentals based solely on their classification, 97 use, or occupancy. This paragraph does not apply to any local 98 law, ordinance, or rule adopted on or before June 1, 2011. 99 Section 2. Subsection (9) of section 509.221, Florida 100 Statutes, is amended to read: 101 509.221 Sanitary regulations.— 102 (9) Subsections (2), (5), and (6) do not apply to any 103 facility or unit classified as a vacation rental orresort104condominium,nontransient apartment, or resort dwellingas 105 described in s. 509.242(1)(c) and,(d), and (g). 106 Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 509.241, Florida 107 Statutes, is amended to read: 108 509.241 Licenses required; exceptions.— 109 (2) APPLICATION FOR LICENSE.—Each person who plans to open 110 a public lodging establishment or a public food service 111 establishment shall apply for and receive a license from the 112 division prior to the commencement of operation. A condominium 113 association, as defined in s. 718.103, which does not own any 114 units classified as vacation rentalsresort condominiumsunder 115 s. 509.242(1)(c) isshallnotberequired to apply for or 116 receive a public lodging establishment license. 117 Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 509.242, Florida 118 Statutes, is amended to read: 119 509.242 Public lodging establishments; classifications.— 120 (1) A public lodging establishment shall be classified as a 121 hotel, motel,resort condominium,nontransient apartment, 122 transient apartment, roominghouse, bed and breakfast inn, or 123 vacation rentalresort dwellingif the establishment satisfies 124 the following criteria: 125 (a) Hotel.—A hotel is any public lodging establishment 126 containing sleeping room accommodations for 25 or more guests 127 and providing the services generally provided by a hotel and 128 recognized as a hotel in the community in which it is situated 129 or by the industry. 130 (b) Motel.—A motel is any public lodging establishment 131 which offers rental units with an exit to the outside of each 132 rental unit, daily or weekly rates, offstreet parking for each 133 unit, a central office on the property with specified hours of 134 operation, a bathroom or connecting bathroom for each rental 135 unit, and at least six rental units, and which is recognized as 136 a motel in the community in which it is situated or by the 137 industry. 138 (c) Vacation rentalResort condominium.—A vacation rental 139resort condominiumis any unit or group of units in a 140 condominium, cooperative, or timeshare plan or any individually 141 or collectively owned single-family, two-family, or four-family 142 house or dwelling unit that is also a transient public lodging 143 establishmentwhich is rented more than three times in a144calendar year for periods of less than 30 days or 1 calendar145month, whichever is less, or which is advertised or held out to146the public as a place regularly rented for periods of less than14730 days or 1 calendar month, whichever is less. 148 (d) Nontransient apartment or roominghouse.—A nontransient 149 apartment or roominghouse is a building or complex of buildings 150 in which 75 percent or more of the units are available for rent 151 to nontransient tenants. 152 (e) Transient apartment or roominghouse.—A transient 153 apartment or roominghouse is a building or complex of buildings 154 in which more than 25 percent of the units are advertised or 155 held out to the public as available for transient occupancy. 156 (f) Roominghouse.—A roominghouse is any public lodging 157 establishment that may not be classified as a hotel, motel, 158resort condominium,nontransient apartment, bed and breakfast 159 inn, vacation rental, or transient apartment under this section. 160 A roominghouse includes, but is not limited to, a boardinghouse. 161(g)Resort dwelling.—A resort dwelling is any individually162or collectively owned one-family, two-family, three-family, or163four-family dwelling house or dwelling unit which is rented more164than three times in a calendar year for periods of less than 30165days or 1 calendar month, whichever is less, or which is166advertised or held out to the public as a place regularly rented167for periods of less than 30 days or 1 calendar month, whichever168is less.169 (g)(h)Bed and breakfast inn.—A bed and breakfast inn is a 170 family home structure, with no more than 15 sleeping rooms, 171 which has been modified to serve as a transient public lodging 172 establishment, which provides the accommodation and meal 173 services generally offered by a bed and breakfast inn, and which 174 is recognized as a bed and breakfast inn in the community in 175 which it is situated or by the hospitality industry. 176 Section 5. Subsection (1) of section 509.251, Florida 177 Statutes, is amended to read: 178 509.251 License fees.— 179 (1) The division shall adopt, by rule, a schedule of fees 180 to be paid by each public lodging establishment as a 181 prerequisite to issuance or renewal of a license. Such fees 182 shall be based on the number of rental units in the 183 establishment. The aggregate fee per establishment charged any 184 public lodging establishment shall not exceed $1,000; however, 185 the fees described in paragraphs (a) and (b) may not be included 186 as part of the aggregate fee subject to this cap. Vacation 187 rentalResort condominiumunits within separate buildings or at 188 separate locations but managed by one licensed agent may be 189 combined in a single license application, and the division shall 190 charge a license fee as if all units in the application are in a 191 single licensed establishment.Resort dwelling units may be192licensed in the same manner as condominium units.The fee 193 schedule shall require an establishment which applies for an 194 initial license to pay the full license fee if application is 195 made during the annual renewal period or more than 6 months 196 prior to the next such renewal period and one-half of the fee if 197 application is made 6 months or less prior to such period. The 198 fee schedule shall include fees collected for the purpose of 199 funding the Hospitality Education Program, pursuant to s. 200 509.302, which are payable in full for each application 201 regardless of when the application is submitted. 202 (a) Upon making initial application or an application for 203 change of ownership, the applicant shall pay to the division a 204 fee as prescribed by rule, not to exceed $50, in addition to any 205 other fees required by law, which shall cover all costs 206 associated with initiating regulation of the establishment. 207 (b) A license renewal filed with the division within 30 208 days after the expiration date shall be accompanied by a 209 delinquent fee as prescribed by rule, not to exceed $50, in 210 addition to the renewal fee and any other fees required by law. 211 A license renewal filed with the division more than 30 but not 212 more than 60 days after the expiration date shall be accompanied 213 by a delinquent fee as prescribed by rule, not to exceed $100, 214 in addition to the renewal fee and any other fees required by 215 law. 216 Section 6. Subsection (1) of section 509.261, Florida 217 Statutes, is amended to read: 218 509.261 Revocation or suspension of licenses; fines; 219 procedure.— 220 (1) Any public lodging establishment or public food service 221 establishment that has operated or is operating in violation of 222 this chapter or the rules of the division, operating without a 223 license, or operating with a suspended or revoked license may be 224 subject by the division to: 225 (a) Fines not to exceed $1,000 per offense; 226 (b) Mandatory completionattendance, at personal expense, 227 of a remedialat aneducational program administeredsponsored228 by a food safety training program provider whose program has 229 been approved by the division, as provided in s. 509.049the230Hospitality Education Program; and 231 (c) The suspension, revocation, or refusal of a license 232 issued pursuant to this chapter. 233 Section 7. Subsection (1) of section 509.291, Florida 234 Statutes, is amended to read: 235 509.291 Advisory council.— 236 (1) There is created a 10-member advisory council. 237 (a) The Secretary of Business and Professional Regulation 238 shall appoint sixsevenvoting members to the advisory council. 239 Each member appointed by the secretary must be an operator of an 240 establishment licensed under this chapter and shall represent 241 the industries regulated by the division, except that one member 242 appointed by the secretary must be a layperson representing the 243 general public and one member must be a hospitality education 244 administrator from an institution of higher education of this 245 state. Such members of the council shall serve staggered terms 246 of 4 years. 247 (b) The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association shall 248 designate one representative to serve as a voting member of the 249 council. The Florida Vacation Rental Managers Association shall 250 designate one representative to serve as a voting member of the 251 council. The Florida Apartment Association and the Florida 252 Association of Realtors shall each designate one representative 253 to serve as a voting member of the council. 254 (c) Any member who fails to attend three consecutive 255 council meetings without good cause may be removed from the 256 council by the secretary. 257 Section 8. Paragraph (c) of subsection (8) of section 258 381.008, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 259 381.008 Definitions of terms used in ss. 381.008 260 381.00897.—As used in ss. 381.008-381.00897, the following words 261 and phrases mean: 262 (8) “Residential migrant housing”—A building, structure, 263 mobile home, barracks, or dormitory, and any combination thereof 264 on adjacent property which is under the same ownership, 265 management, or control, and the land appertaining thereto, that 266 is rented or reserved for occupancy by five or more seasonal or 267 migrant farmworkers, except: 268 (c) A hotel or,motel,or resort condominium,as described 269definedin chapter 509, that is furnished for transient 270 occupancy. 271 Section 9. Subsection (4) of section 386.203, Florida 272 Statutes, is amended to read: 273 386.203 Definitions.—As used in this part: 274 (4) “Designated smoking guest rooms at public lodging 275 establishments” means the sleeping rooms and directly associated 276 private areas, such as bathrooms, living rooms, and kitchen 277 areas, if any, rented to guests for their exclusive transient 278 occupancy in public lodging establishments, including hotels, 279 motels, vacation rentalsresort condominiums, transient 280 apartments, transient lodging establishments, rooming houses, 281 boarding houses,resort dwellings,bed and breakfast inns, and 282 the like; and designated by the person or persons having 283 management authority over such public lodging establishment as 284 rooms in which smoking may be permitted. 285 Section 10. Sections 11 through 14 of this act may be cited 286 as the “Tourist Safety Act.” 287 Section 11. Section 509.144, Florida Statutes, is amended 288 to read: 289 509.144 Prohibited handbill distribution in a public 290 lodging establishment; penalties.— 291 (1) As used in this section, the term: 292 (a) “Handbill” means a flier, leaflet, pamphlet, or other 293 written material that advertises, promotes, or informs persons 294 about a personan individual, business, company, or food service 295 establishment, but doesshallnot include employee 296 communications permissible under the National Labor Relations 297 Act, other communications protected by the First Amendment to 298 the United States Constitution, or communications that relate to 299 the public health, safety, or welfare and that are distributed 300 by a federal, state, or local governmental entity or a public or 301 private utility. 302 (b) “Without permission” means without the expressed 303 writtenor oralpermission of the owner, manager, or agent of 304 the owner or manager of the public lodging establishment where a 305 sign is posted prohibiting advertising or solicitation in the 306 manner provided in subsection (5)(4). 307 (c) “At or in a public lodging establishment” means any 308 property under the sole ownership or control of a public lodging 309 establishment. 310 (2) Any personindividual, agent, contractor, or volunteer 311 who is acting on behalf of a personan individual, business, 312 company, or food service establishment and who, without 313 permission, delivers, distributes, or places, or attempts to 314 deliver, distribute, or place, a handbill at or in a public 315 lodging establishment commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, 316 punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 317 (3) Any person who, without permission, directs another 318 person to deliver, distribute, or place, or attempts to deliver, 319 distribute, or place, a handbill at or in a public lodging 320 establishment commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, 321 punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. Any person 322 sentenced under this subsection shall be ordered to pay a 323 minimum fine of $500 in addition to any other penalty imposed by 324 the court. 325 (4) In addition to any other penalty imposed by the court, 326 a person who violates subsection (2) or subsection (3): 327 (a) A second time shall be ordered to pay a minimum fine of 328 $2,000. 329 (b) A third or subsequent time shall be ordered to pay a 330 minimum fine of $3,000. 331 (5)(4)For purposes of this section, a public lodging 332 establishment that intends to prohibit advertising or 333 solicitation, as described in this section, at or in such 334 establishment must comply with the following requirements when 335 posting a sign prohibiting such solicitation or advertising: 336 (a) There must appear prominently on any sign referred to 337 in this subsection, in letters of not less than 2 inches in 338 height, the terms “no advertising” or “no solicitation” or terms 339 that indicate the same meaning. 340 (b) The sign must be posted conspicuously. 341 (c) If the main office of the public lodging establishment 342 is immediately accessible by entering the office through a door 343 from a street, parking lot, grounds, or other area outside such 344 establishment, the sign must be placed on a part of the main 345 office, such as a door or window, and the sign must face the 346 street, parking lot, grounds, or other area outside such 347 establishment. 348 (d) If the main office of the public lodging establishment 349 is not immediately accessible by entering the office through a 350 door from a street, parking lot, grounds, or other area outside 351 such establishment, the sign must be placed in the immediate 352 vicinity of the main entrance to such establishment, and the 353 sign must face the street, parking lot, grounds, or other area 354 outside such establishment. 355 (6) Any personal property, including, but not limited to, 356 any vehicle of any kind, item, object, tool, device, weapon, 357 machine, money, security, book, or record, which is used or 358 attempted to be used as an instrumentality in the commission of, 359 or in aiding and abetting in the commission of, a person’s third 360 or subsequent violation of this section, whether or not 361 comprising an element of the offense, is subject to seizure and 362 forfeiture under the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act. 363 Section 12. Section 901.1503, Florida Statutes, is created 364 to read: 365 901.1503 When notice to appear by officer without warrant 366 is lawful.—A law enforcement officer may give a notice to appear 367 to a person without a warrant when the officer has determined 368 that he or she has probable cause to believe that a violation of 369 s. 509.144 has been committed and the owner or manager of the 370 public lodging establishment in which the violation occurred, 371 and one additional affiant, signs an affidavit containing 372 information that supports the officer’s determination of 373 probable cause. 374 Section 13. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 375 932.701, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 376 932.701 Short title; definitions.— 377 (2) As used in the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act: 378 (a) “Contraband article” means: 379 1. Any controlled substance as defined in chapter 893 or 380 any substance, device, paraphernalia, or currency or other means 381 of exchange that was used, was attempted to be used, or was 382 intended to be used in violation of any provision of chapter 383 893, if the totality of the facts presented by the state is 384 clearly sufficient to meet the state’s burden of establishing 385 probable cause to believe that a nexus exists between the 386 article seized and the narcotics activity, whether or not the 387 use of the contraband article can be traced to a specific 388 narcotics transaction. 389 2. Any gambling paraphernalia, lottery tickets, money, 390 currency, or other means of exchange which was used, was 391 attempted, or intended to be used in violation of the gambling 392 laws of the state. 393 3. Any equipment, liquid or solid, which was being used, is 394 being used, was attempted to be used, or intended to be used in 395 violation of the beverage or tobacco laws of the state. 396 4. Any motor fuel upon which the motor fuel tax has not 397 been paid as required by law. 398 5. Any personal property, including, but not limited to, 399 any vessel, aircraft, item, object, tool, substance, device, 400 weapon, machine, vehicle of any kind, money, securities, books, 401 records, research, negotiable instruments, or currency, which 402 was used or was attempted to be used as an instrumentality in 403 the commission of, or in aiding or abetting in the commission 404 of, any felony, whether or not comprising an element of the 405 felony, or which is acquired by proceeds obtained as a result of 406 a violation of the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act. 407 6. Any real property, including any right, title, 408 leasehold, or other interest in the whole of any lot or tract of 409 land, which was used, is being used, or was attempted to be used 410 as an instrumentality in the commission of, or in aiding or 411 abetting in the commission of, any felony, or which is acquired 412 by proceeds obtained as a result of a violation of the Florida 413 Contraband Forfeiture Act. 414 7. Any personal property, including, but not limited to, 415 equipment, money, securities, books, records, research, 416 negotiable instruments, currency, or any vessel, aircraft, item, 417 object, tool, substance, device, weapon, machine, or vehicle of 418 any kind in the possession of or belonging to any person who 419 takes aquaculture products in violation of s. 812.014(2)(c). 420 8. Any motor vehicle offered for sale in violation of s. 421 320.28. 422 9. Any motor vehicle used during the course of committing 423 an offense in violation of s. 322.34(9)(a). 424 10. Any photograph, film, or other recorded image, 425 including an image recorded on videotape, a compact disc, 426 digital tape, or fixed disk, that is recorded in violation of s. 427 810.145 and is possessed for the purpose of amusement, 428 entertainment, sexual arousal, gratification, or profit, or for 429 the purpose of degrading or abusing another person. 430 11. Any real property, including any right, title, 431 leasehold, or other interest in the whole of any lot or tract of 432 land, which is acquired by proceeds obtained as a result of 433 Medicaid fraud under s. 409.920 or s. 409.9201; any personal 434 property, including, but not limited to, equipment, money, 435 securities, books, records, research, negotiable instruments, or 436 currency; or any vessel, aircraft, item, object, tool, 437 substance, device, weapon, machine, or vehicle of any kind in 438 the possession of or belonging to any person which is acquired 439 by proceeds obtained as a result of Medicaid fraud under s. 440 409.920 or s. 409.9201. 441 12. Any personal property, including, but not limited to, 442 any vehicle of any kind, item, object, tool, device, weapon, 443 machine, money, security, book, or record, which is used or 444 attempted to be used as an instrumentality in the commission of, 445 or in aiding and abetting in the commission of, a person’s third 446 or subsequent violation of s. 509.144, whether or not comprising 447 an element of the offense. 448 Section 14. The amendments made by this act to ss. 509.144 449 and 932.701, Florida Statutes, and the creation of s. 901.1503, 450 Florida Statutes, by this act do not affect or impede the 451 provisions of s. 790.251, Florida Statutes, or any other 452 protection or right guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the 453 United States Constitution. 454 Section 15. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.