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Alert
on Pending Legislation !!
May 20, 2005
In March, 2005, a committee
amendment to SB 1520 added a Section 9 to what is
otherwise an omnibus consumer protection bill. That
Section 9 creates a new definition under that portion of
Florida's Consumer Protection Act, Ch 559, Fla. Stat.,
that deals with sellers of travel services
Masquerading as lightly regulated
"travel clubs," these timeshare plans will be
able to add homes, villas and condominium units to their
programs that thus far have been off-limits to them if
SB 1520 becomes law in Florida
Why does this matter?
Because many local zoning codes, neighborhood
covenants and restrictions, residential declarations
of condominium, and courts rely on state timeshare law
to tell them what is and what is not timeshare in
Florida. The proposed
new law places no limits on a right-to-use timeshare
plan’s ability to avoid timeshare regulation by
registering instead as a travel club under the sellers
of travel law. The proposed new law specifically
states that travel clubs registered under the sellers
of travel law are not timeshare plans. Therefore,
local land use authorities and homeowners’ and
condominium associations will be in many cases
powerless to prevent these travel clubs from buying in
their neighborhoods or projects and offering their
neighborhoods and projects to travel club members for
transient leisure timeshare use.
Whole ownership condominium
associations are particularly exposed to this
problem. This is because Florida condominium law
prohibits the creation of timeshare interests in
Florida condominiums unless the declaration
expressly allows timeshare in condominium units.
However, if SB 1520 becomes law, these right-to-use
timeshare plans will be allowed to buy condominium
units and use them just like a timeshare plan would
because state law will say that they are not
timeshare plans, and because most condominium
declarations rely on state law to define what a
timeshare plan is
Florida has a great interest in
supporting tourism, but historically there has been a
strong separation between tourist areas and the areas
Florida citizens call home. This bill obliterates that
historic distinction and opens every single community
in the state to an influx of tourists. For these
reasons I recommend and urge you to contact the Office
of the Governor to request that he veto SB 1520.
The addresses are:
Governor Jeb Bush at Jeb.Bush@MyFlorida.com,
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