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Florida Pool Pro
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• March 2015
form of statement; revises contractual provisions in public agency contract for
services regarding contractor’s compliance with public records laws; specifies
circumstances under which court may assess and award reasonable costs of
enforcement against public agency or contractor. Comments: The bill provides
that the public must make all public records requests relating to contracts for
services to the agency. (Currently, the public may request records directly from
the contractor) If the agency is not in possession of a record, the agency may
request the record from the contractor. Under the bill, a contractor who fails to
provide records to an agency within a reasonable amount of time is subject to
s. 119.10, F.S. Section 119.10, F.S. provides that a public officer who violates
the Public Records Act may be fined up to $500, subject to impeachment, or
held criminally liable. The effective date would be upon becoming a law. Status:
HB 163 - Referred to Government Operations Subcommittee; Government
Operations Appropriations Subcommittee; and State Affairs Committee on
1/15/15. SB 224 – Voted favorable with an amendment by the Government
Oversight and Accountability Committee with a 5-0 vote on 2/3/15.
T h e C o n s t r u c t i o n D e f e c t C l a i m s b i l l -
HB 87 by Rep. Passidomo now has a Senate version, SB 418 by Sen. Richter.
Comments: Chapter 558, F.S., provides a method for resolving construction
defect disputes before filing a lawsuit. In short, it provides for notice and an
opportunity to cure. Before the property owner may sue a contractor, the
property owner is required to notify the contractor of the defect and to give the
contractor the opportunity to examine the defect. If the contractor agrees that
the defect exists, the contractor is given a reasonable opportunity to repair the
defect or make some other offer in settlement. If the parties still disagree, the
matter may go to court. The amendment passed by the Civil Justice Committee
provides that any claim that has been previously resolved by making repairs
in the time and manner agreed to by the parties is deemed frivolous.
Notaries Public - SB 436 by Sen. Soto. Requiring a notary public to record
specified information in a notarial journal when performing certain notarial acts;
requiring that a notary public retain a notarial journal for a specified period;
requiring a notary public to notify the Notary Section of the Executive Office of
