Beginning Oct. 1, 2021, Florida’s County and Municipal Building Departments will be subject to new building permit application requirements that aim to make the process easier to navigate for Florida contractors and homeowners.
The change is the result of House Bill 1059, a House of Representatives Commerce Committee Bill, that was passed by the Florida State Legislature and approved by Governor DeSantis this year.
Under the new provisions of HB 1059, rather than listing on their websites only the types of permits available, Florida cities and counties that issue building permits are now required to list on the building department website all types of building permits issued in the jurisdiction and all attachments, drawings or other requirements for each type of permit.
It is expected that requiring building departments to list all permit application attachments will help eliminate any “surprise” requirements during the building permit application process and reduce the number of requests for additional information after submitting an application.
If there is a need for additional information on a building permit application, HB 1059 places new deadlines on building officials aimed to make the process more transparent.
Specifically, if there is a request for additional information by a building official and the contractor responds with the requested information within 30 days, the building official must review the application for completeness and issue a letter indicating the application is complete or else specify any remaining deficiencies within 30 days of receiving the requested information.
On the second request for additional information, the building official only has 10 days to issue a letter of completeness or deficiency after receiving the requested information. On the third request the building official must offer a meeting to the permit applicant before the request is made and then must deem the application complete within 10 days of receiving the requested information and move the permit application on to plan review.
These new requirements should keep permit applications moving through the process rather than the current month-long waits for review of applications.
HB 1059 also requires Florida’s building officials to increase the functionality of their online services. Florida counties and cities are now required to post and update the status of every received building permit application on the building department website until the permit is issued, allowing contractors and homeowners the ability to keep track of their permit applications. This adds transparency to the application process by making permit status information easily available.
Furthermore, HB 1059 clarifies the electronic application submission requirement. Building departments now must be able to accept all applications, payments, attachments, or parts of the permit application electronically, expanding the earlier requirement that only completed applications must be accepted electronically. This will streamline the application process and make the process easier to track.
Florida pool contractors can thank the Florida Swimming Pool Association for HB 1059, whose government relations team had conversations with the staff of the Florida House of Representatives Commerce Committee in the lead-up to the 2021 legislative session.
FSPA played a major role in expressing builders’ frustrations with the lack of consistency and lack of transparency in the application process. HB 1059 reduces the complication of the building permitting process, making it easier navigate and easier for builders’ clients to understand.
For questions about HB 1059 or any other government affairs issues, contact FSPA Government Affairs Manager Dallas Thiesen at [email protected] or call 941-952-9293.
