Public Policy Update
Hi everyone. What a whirlwind of a week it's been. After coming back from a fantastic week-long visit in D.C. for NAR's Legislative Meetings, I hit the road to participate in the Florida Chamber of Commerce's candidate screenings down in Miami. It's a lot of travel, but I can't stress enough how invaluable it is to meet candidates as early in the process as possible. Doing so gets us in on the ground level with them and allows us to develop strong relationships that will help us in our advocacy efforts down the road.
I also wanted to mention that your public policy team is fully engaged in preparation for the upcoming special session on property insurance. If you recall, Governor DeSantis called for lawmakers to hold the special session from May 23 - 27, to "consider legislation related to property insurance, reinsurance, changes to the Florida Building Code to improve the affordability of property insurance, the Office of Insurance Regulation, civil remedies, and appropriations."
Property insurance is a paramount issue for Florida Realtors®, and as such, the public policy team has been meeting with government officials, lawmakers, insurance experts and other stakeholders over the past few weeks to discuss potential solutions to the ongoing insurance crisis. Look for more information on what will transpire during this special session in next week's update.
Governor's Bill-Related Activity
So far, Governor DeSantis has signed 124 pieces of legislation passed during the 2022 legislative session. An additional 10 bills have been presented to the governor that await his signature. That leaves 141 bills passed during session that have not been sent to his desk for approval yet, including the $112 billion state budget.
Governor DeSantis has signed two bills since my last weekly update that I wanted to call to your attention. The first is SB 856 which allows private inspections as an option for onsite sewage and disposal systems (OSTDS) also known as septic systems, in addition to inspections performed by public inspectors. It also provides the qualifications a private inspector must meet to be the equivalent of that of public inspectors. This was a bill of interest that your public policy team tracked throughout the 2022 session.
The second bill I wanted to bring to your attention is SB 434 which extends VISIT Florida in statute through October 1, 2028. The bill brings much needed certainty to the state’s tourism marketing association and is a win for Florida’s tourism industry that relies on VISIT FLORIDA to help attract more than 122 million visitors to our state each year. Tourists account for nearly $100 billion in consumer spending in Florida and for every dollar the state spends on VISIT FLORIDA, an additional $3.27 is returned to the state economy.
You can read more about the governor’s bill related activity here.
Congressional Redistricting Update
Things continue to evolve regarding Florida's new congressional map and the legal challenges associated with it.
Yesterday, Leon County Judge Layne Smith issued an order for the map – which was signed into law by Governor DeSantis – to be replaced for the midterms with an alternative submission from Harvard professor Stephen Ansolabehere. The replacement cartography only redraws districts in North Florida, most notably restoring a configuration similar to how it has looked for the last five years.
Secretary of State Laurel Lee’s Office appealed the court decision, automatically putting Judge Smith’s decision on hold. Florida Realtors® public policy staff and regional teams are monitoring the process and will provide updates as needed. You can read more here.
NAR Legislative Meetings Recap
As I mentioned in last week's update, your public policy team was up in Washington D.C. participating in NAR's 2022 Legislative Meetings. It was a great event, not only because it was the first time in three years that REALTORS® were able to appear in person for the event, but because they got to discuss the pressing issues impacting real estate directly with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
This year's Legislative Meetings drew 9,000 members and industry experts to D.C. for six days of in-depth discussions on the political climate and issues facing the REALTOR® profession. NAR was kind enough to pull together a full summary of the event which I encourage you to check out here.
Housing Market Expected to Enter Period of Uncertainty
National Association of Realtors® Chief Economist Lawrence Yun gave a great run down during last week's Legislative Meetings event on the current state of the housing market and what is expected to happen in the months ahead.
Among other things, he told attendees “Housing kept the economy afloat as home prices rose and buyer demand intensified. However, this year has already thrown some curveballs, including record-low inventory and unyielding inflation.”
I'd encourage you to give the full summary of his presentation a read as it is quite enlightening.
Florida's Rental Assistance Program No Longer Accepting Applications
The OUR Florida Program provides renters who qualify with relief on unpaid rent and utility bills and supports landlords and utilities with relief on lost revenue to support their continued recovery from the pandemic.
OUR Florida has obligated and distributed all funding received by the state and will no longer accept applications for the program. Through OUR Florida, more than 228,000 families have received relief on past due rent and utilities. In one year since the program was launched, OUR Florida distributed more than $1.3 billion to support Floridians.
Florida Homeowner Assistance Fund Update
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) announced that it has awarded more than $6.2 million in total relief via the Florida Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF), with $5.1 million awarded last week alone to some of Florida’s most vulnerable homeowners.
The federal program, which is administered by DEO, is designed to mitigate financial hardships associated with the COVID-19 pandemic by preventing homeowner mortgage delinquencies, defaults, foreclosures, and displacements, as well as by providing assistance with home energy services, internet, property and/or flood insurance, property taxes, and homeowners or condominium association fees.
The full HAF update can be found here.
These, and many other topics can be found on Florida Realtors® website. Also, you can always reach out to us at publicpolicy@floridarealtors.org with any questions you may have.
Sincerely,
Andy Gonzalez
Vice President of Public Policy
Florida Realtors®