Lawmakers call more special session before Florida condo safety deadline

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — There are growing concerns and calls for a special legislative session in Tallahassee to battle a growing issue among condo owners.

Buildings older than 30 years old must have inspections and critical repairs completed by Dec. 31, or owners and associations could face fines.

Jeff Brandes is a former Republican state senator in Pinellas County.

“What this has done is kind of created a rush to the exits as many of these building owners are finding out that they need millions of dollars for repairs,” Brandes said.

The former lawmaker now oversees the non-partisan research group the Florida Policy Project. He has done some digging on what condo owners are now facing because of a recent state law, following the 2021 collapse of condos in Surfside.

“We don’t know how big the fallout on this legislation will be, and that’s why I think we need to pause with the penalties, still require the inspections to be done,” Brandes said.

The following year after the collapse, lawmakers passed safety and maintenance requirements. Before this upcoming December deadline to complete those requirements, Brandes wants a special session to delay that cutoff point.

“I think they will probably go back into special session, if they do it in November, if they go back into organizational session.  Probably a couple weeks after the election,” Brandes said.

Last month, Gov. Ron DeSantis was asked about a special session and said he’s open to the idea.

“If the legislators talk to their folks and have some proposals to provide some reforms that would alleviate some of that burden, I think that would be a welcome thing,” DeSantis said.

Two Tampa Bay area lawmakers, on both sides of the aisle, sent a statement supporting calls for a special session.

“This situation is the result of actions taken by Republicans as early as 2008,” Democratic Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell said. “Since then, the Legislature has barely moved the needle on providing relief for condo owners and has chipped away at condo owners’ rights and ability to hold associations accountable for the duties they fail at fulfilling. HOAs and COAs cannot be permitted to run amok.

Every Floridian deserves the freedom to be healthy, prosperous, and safe, and I support a call for a Special Session to address the condo crisis as long as the Legislature intends to implement effective, bipartisan solutions.”

“Condominium owners in Pinellas County and across Florida are highly concerned about the looming deadline on Dec. 31,” said Republican State Senator Nick DiCeglie, out of Pinellas County. “I have attended several condo town halls and have had many conversations with condo owners, and I hear them loud and clear. I fully support going into a special session to extend this deadline and identify other ways to ease their financial burden while maintaining our priority of ensuring a tragedy, like Surfside, never happens again. I will be working hard to strike that balance”.

The Florida senate president and house speaker have not returned the requests for comment.

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