TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Jan. 20, 2012 – The second week of the 2012 legislative session ended on a high note for Florida Realtors.

Bills dealing with two major initiatives for 2012 advanced in committee, as did a pair of bills providing additional homestead exemptions for senior citizens and surviving spouses of military and emergency personnel.

Most of the action happened yesterday.

A bill supported by Florida Realtors to eliminate a statewide requirement for septic tank inspections passed the House Economic Affairs committee.

Scientists say Florida’s springs and waterways have become choked with weeds and algae fed by nitrogen and phosphorus compounds from a variety of sources, including fertilizer, storm water runoff, sewage treatment plants and septic tanks.

In 2010, the Legislature passed a law requiring septic tanks to be inspected every five years. The requirement, though, created a backlash among rural property owners and Panhandle legislators.

HB 999 by Rep. Chris Dorworth (R-Heathrow) would repeal the 2010 statewide requirement. Instead, 19 counties with the 33 largest “first-magnitude” springs would be required to conduct inspections unless county commissions vote to not do them.

Also on Thursday, a bill that could help attract insurance companies to Florida cleared its first hurdle, the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee. SB 1346 by Sen. Steve Oelrich (R-Cross City) would greatly reduce the amount of money insurance companies have to pay Citizens Property Insurance Corporation upfront – and later recoup from their policyholders – if Citizens incurs a deficit.

“With 1.5 million policies, it’s unlikely Citizens would have enough money to pay claims if a truly catastrophic hurricane or a series of catastrophic hurricanes hits the state,” says Trey Goldman, legislative counsel for Florida Realtors. “By law, private insurers have to cover Citizens losses within 30 days. These insurers can recoup this money by assessing their customers. However, it often takes two years to get the money back. If a small insurer had to write a big check – currently up to 18 percent of its premiums – to Citizens within 30 days of a major storm, they’d likely go out of business.”

According to Goldman, “This requirement is keeping new insurers from wanting to do business in Florida.”

It should be noted that Citizens will still get its money under these bills, but it will come from emergency assessments, which are paid by essentially all insurance policyholders, including Citizens – not just policyholders in the voluntary market. And the assessment can be amortized over time, rather than collected and paid immediately.

Florida Realtors Board of Directors approved a motion at its Mid-winter Business Meetings last week to support SB 1346 and its House companion, HB 1127.

Last Tuesday, the House Finance and Tax Committee advanced two House resolutions regarding homestead exemptions. Following sometimes emotional debate, the panel approved HJR 93, which would allow widows and widowers of military personnel and emergency first responders to obtain and additional exemption on $25,000 of assessed property value for non-school related ad valorem taxes.

Another measure, HJR 55, would permit counties and municipalities to limit ad valorem tax assessments for their respective levies to the previous year’s assessed value for homestead property that qualifies for the low-income senior exemption. Both bills passed unanimously.

© 2012 Florida Realtors®