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Home My WebLink About14-022ORDINANCE NO. 14-022 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 40, ARTICLE VI OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF ST. LUCIE COUNTY, FLORIDA, BY AMENDING SECTIONS 40-175 (WRITTEN AGREEMENT) AND 40-207 (ALTERNAITVE ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES) TO ENSURE THE PROVISIONS THEREOF ARE CONSISTENT WITH, AND NOT MORE RESTRICTIVE THAN, SECTION 163.08, FLORIDA STATUTES; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICTING PROVISIONS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR APPLICABILITY; PROVIDING FOR FILING WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE; PROVIDING FOR ADOPTION; AND PROVIDING FOR CODIFICATION. WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners of St. Lucie County, Florida, has made the following determinations: 1. Ordinance No. 10-025, codified in the Code of Ordinances of St. Lucie County, Florida as Chapter 40, Article VI 2, established the St. Lucie County Sustainability District (the "District") and set forth the parameters by which the District may administer an energy efficiency and sustainability financing program wherein qualified property owners may obtain financing for qualifying improvements repaid over time through a voluntary special assessment as evidenced by a written agreement between the District and the property owner. 2. Section 40-175 thereof provides criteria for applicants and projects which must be satisfied in order to qualify for funding through the financing program, including a maximum limit for borrowing purposes unless the applicant can demonstrate energy savings in excess of the special assessment imposed by the District pursuant to the written agreement. 3. Such requirement is more restrictive than the requirements of section 163.08, Florida Statutes, which is the state law governing this type of energy efficiency financing program, and is a potential obstacle to the long-term success and viability of the financing program. JOSEPH E. SMITH, CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT SAINT LUCIE COUNTY FILE # 4004006 10/14/2014 at 12:13 pM OR BOOK 3680 PAGE 2654 - 2659 Doc Type: ORDN RECORDING: $52.50 4. It is in the best interest of the health, safety and welfare of the County's residents to amend Article VI of Chapter 40 of the County Code of Ordinances to ensure consistency with the requirements of state law and to ensure flexibility in administration of the financing program. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Board of County Commissioners of St. Lucie County, Florida, as follows: PART A. Article VI (St. Lucie County Sustainability District) of Chapter 40 (Special Districts, Municipal Service Taxing Units (MSTUs), Municipal Service Benefit Units (MSBUs) and Other Districts) of the Code of Ordinances of St. Lucie County is amended by amending Sections 40-175 (Written Agreement) and 40-207 (Alternative Assessment Procedures) as follows: Sec. 40-175. Written agreement. Upon submittal of a complete application to enter into the program as approved by the district, the property owner shall enter into a voluntary written agreement with the district that shall constitute the property owner's consent to be subject to a non-ad valorem assessment. The written agreement shall be recorded and provide for the following: ~1) Without the consent of the holders or loan servicers of any mortgage encumbering or otherwise secured b~ the property, the total amount of any non-ad valorem assessment for a property may not exceed 20 percent of the just value of the property as determined by the county propertLppraiser; provided, however, that anon-ad valorem assessment for an energy efficiency improvement or renewable energy improvements that is supported by an energy audit is not subject to the limits of this section if the audit demonstrates that the annual energy savings from the improvement equals or exceeds the annual repayment amount of the non-ad valorem assessment. Notwithstanding an,, tag herein to the contrary, the written agreement ma~pecify a maximum non-ad valorem assessment amount consistent with section 163.08, Florida Statutes, or its successor in function. ft~-rm~u~1i-6#~~e~-g-~e,. +~p,~~~ti ~,,, Q~n nnn nn ,,,, ~n ..,,,.,.~~+ 6~-~SS2~S~(.'d~o~~~4o~C~?E'~oLE~-i'~s-b~'~t 2 • ~~~ r~ / (2) Express voluntary consent to accept the non-ad valorem assessment has been given. (3) The length of time permitted for the property owner to repay the non-ad valorem assessment shall not exceed 20 years, including the term, interest rate and administrative and financing fees. (4) The property owner shall be responsible for ensuring the improvements are completed as reflected in the approved application documents. The property owner also consents to providing access to property to the county to verify that the improvements have been completed as proposed in the application. (5) At the time of a transfer of property ownership, the past due balances of any non-ad valorem assessment under this subsection shall be due for payment, but future payments shall continue as a lien on the property. (6) The risks associated with participating in the program shall be disclosed in the written agreement, including risks related to the failure of the participating property owners to make payments and the risk of issuance of a tax certificate and loss of the property pursuant to F.S. ch. 197. (7) The cost of an energy savings auditor the cost to complete an estimate of information on energy savings measures, estimated energy savings for each measure, estimated greenhouse gas reductions and estimated cost savings from the projects will be subject to reimbursement upon execution of the written agreement to accept the non-ad valorem assessment. (8) The property owner shall agree to apply any rebates provided by an entity other than the district, received for the projects approved by the district, towards the repayment of the non-ad valorem assessment. 3 (9) If property taxes are paid through an escrow account, the property owner is responsible for notifying the lender of any adjustment to monthly payments. (10) The property owner shall provide all copies of final permits and inspections to the district upon completion of the projects. (11) The property owner shall agree to provide the district five years of utility statements showing the energy usage for the property following the year in which the improvements are made. The statements shall be due on the final day of the month when the improvements were completed. Sec. 40-207. Alternative assessment procedures. As an alternative assessment and financing procedure to those set forth in division 1 of this article, the county hereby implements, as an alternative, the assessment procedures set forth in F.S. § 163.08, to finance energy conservation and efficiency improvements, renewable energy improvements and wind resistance improvements as described in F.S. ~ 163.08(2)(b). The county hereby authorizes such assessments to be levied on any real property located within the boundaries of the county, which assessment will be document by a financing agreement between the county or the district and the participating property owners; provided, however, that for any real property located within a municipality, the owner of such real property inay elect to participate in the county or district assessment program unless the municipality in which the real property is located in fact establishes its own assessment program under the authority of F.S. ~ 163.08, and notifies the county of such action with a formal request to the county to not offer its program within municipal limits. The county or district, by subsequent resolution, shall specify the terms and conditions under which it will enter into a financing agreement with a property owner within the parameters set forth in F.S. ~ 163.08, and shall specify the terms and conditions of the financing agreement to be used by the county or district. PART B. CONFLICTING PROVISIONS. Special acts of the Florida legislature applicable only to unincorporated areas of St. Lucie County, County ordinances and County resolutions, or parts thereof, in conflict with this ordinance are hereby superseded by this ordinance to the extent of such conflict. 4 PART C. SEVERABILITY. If any portion of this ordinance is for any reason held or declared to be unconstitutional, inoperative, or void, such holding shall not affect the remaining portions of this ordinance. If this ordinance or any provision thereof shall be held to be inapplicable to any person, property, or circumstance, such holding shall not affect its applicability to any other person, property, or circumstance. PART D. APPLICABILITY OF ORDINANCE. This ordinance shall be applicable in the unincorporated area of St. Lucie County. PART E. FILING WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE. The Clerk is hereby directed forthwith to send a certified copy of this ordinance to the Bureau of Administrative Code and Laws, Department of State, The Capitol, Tallahassee, Florida 32304. PART F. EFFECTIVE DATE. This ordinance shall take effect upon filing with the Department of State. PART G. ADOPTION. After motion and second, the vote on this ordinance was as follows: Chair Frannie Hutchinson AYE Vice Chair Paula A. Lewis AYE Commissioner Tod Mowery AYE Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky AYE Commissioner Kim Johsnon AYE PART H. CODIFICATION. Provisions of this ordinance shall be incorporated in the St. Lucie County Code and Compiled Laws and the word "ordinance" may be changed to "section," "article," or other appropriate word, and the sections of this ordinance may be renumbered or 5 relettered to accomplish such intention; provided, however, that parts B through H shall not be codified. PASSED AND DULY ENACTED this 7th day of October, 2014. ATTEST: Deputy Clerk BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ST. LUCIE COUNTY, ORIDA BY: ~- Chair APPROVED AS TO FORM AND CORRE BY: County Attorn