By Fred Seely, Editor
It's that time of year again. Spring is near, the birds (feathered and snow) are passing through and all political eyes are focused west on Interstate 10 to Tallahassee.
Florida's annual legislative session started this month and is scheduled to finish on May 2 — unless the senators and representatives can't get everything done. But for those in the real estate and construction industries, there doesn't appear to be any surprises ahead.
"It's an election year, so it's not likely that you'll see much in the way of controversy," said lobbyist Joe Mobley of the Jacksonville-based Fiorentino Group, which counts the building associations among its clients. "If there's a big deal coming, it's about casino gambling in Miami."
Both the real estate and construction associations have had their agendas ready since last year. The Legislature may meet as a group now but committees of the House and Senate make it a year-round effort for advocates of the various causes.
The advocates, like the legislators, don't wait for March and stay close lest something be slipped through the cracks in the process as bills of interest wind their way through the system. Many bills are targeted for becoming law; many are targeted to vanish.
"It's a fascinating place," said NEFAR's Nancy Garcia, who has been the association's lobbyist for 15 years. "I enjoy the fact that I get to go and watch it all happen. It's hard work, to be sure, but you meet a lot of great people."
Part of her job is to make sure her constituents — NEFAR members — are up to date on legislative doings, and that they have an opportunity to be part of the process.
She attends as many meetings as she can work into her schedule and coordinates the association's major outreach: getting its leaders and as many members as possible to participate in the annual Great American Realtor Day at Tallahassee, where there are numerous one-on-one opportunities with legislators.
To the NEFAR members, the elected officials may be people in the process. To the legislators, NEFAR members are voters, and influential ones, at that.
Garcia also assists the work of the state association's lobbyists in Tallahassee. It's a powerful group, too, led by veteran Senior Vice President of Public Policy John Sebree, who coordinates a lengthy list of in-house and contract workers to influence legislation.
The builder side also has a strong contingent in Tallahassee. The Florida Home Builders Association headquarters are a few blocks from the Capitol (Florida Realtors is based in Orlando) and its soon-to-retire CEO Paul Thompson leads the group.
If there is a battle ahead, it's the same one that both real estate and construction have faced seemingly forever: Keeping the funds dedicated to the Sadowski Trust Fund where they were intended to go, rather than being "swept" into general revenue.
In 1992, the Sadowski Act was passed, which increased the documentary stamp tax paid on real estate transactions. Seventy percent of the money was mandated to go to counties and qualifying cities through the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) and 30 percent to state programs such as the State Apartment Incentive Loan (SAIL). SHIP money goes to such things as emergency repairs, rehab and new construction, assistance with down payments and closing costs, acquisition of property for affordable housing and homeownership counseling.
The Legislature annually seeks to "sweep" some Sadowski money from the trust fund into other areas.
Both associations are part of the the Sadowski Housing Coalition, which has fought to end the sweeping and is demanding that the Legislature roll back the doc stamp increase if the funds are not directed to affordable housing as intended.
Other priority issues for builders are funding for educational assistance for members of the Future Builders of America, the annual vigilance to head off attempts to change building codes to make construction more difficult or expensive, reduction of Workers Comp rates, and opposition to additional rules regarding Homeowners Associations and changes in residential Construction Warranties.
Realtors want a phase down of the tax on commercial real estate transactions and bills are being pushed to lower the applicable rate to five percent for this item, and begin the phase out process.
Also, during the recent economic recession, some Florida community associations increased the fees they charged for the preparation of estoppel letters to unreasonably high amounts, and Florida Realtors wants this addressed to cut fees charged by the associations and attorneys.