420.504 Public corporation; creation, membership, terms, expenses.—(1) A public corporation and a public body corporate and politic, to be known as the “Florida Housing Finance Corporation,” is created within the Department of Economic Opportunity. It is declared to be the intent of and constitutional construction by the Legislature that the Florida Housing Finance Corporation constitutes an entrepreneurial public corporation organized to provide and promote the public welfare by administering the governmental function of financing or refinancing housing and related facilities in this state and that the corporation is not a department of the executive branch of state government within the scope and meaning of s. 6, Art. IV of the State Constitution, but is functionally related to the Department of Economic Opportunity in which it is placed. The executive function of state government to be performed by the Secretary of Economic Opportunity in the conduct of the business of the Florida Housing Finance Corporation must be performed pursuant to a contract to monitor and set performance standards for the implementation of the business plan for the provision of housing approved for the corporation as provided in s. 420.0006. This contract must include performance standards for the provision of affordable housing in this state established in the strategic business plan described in s. 420.511. (2) The corporation is constituted as a public instrumentality, and the exercise by the corporation of the power conferred by this act is considered to be the performance of an essential public function. The corporation is an agency for the purposes of s. 120.52 and is a state agency for purposes of s. 159.807(4). The corporation is subject to chapter 119, subject to exceptions applicable to the corporation, and to the provisions of chapter 286; however, the corporation shall be entitled to provide notice of internal review committee meetings for competitive proposals or procurement to applicants by mail, facsimile, or publication on an Internet website, rather than by means of publication. The corporation is not governed by chapter 607 or chapter 617, but by the provisions of this part. If for any reason the establishment of the corporation is deemed in violation of law, such provision is severable and the remainder of this act remains in full force and effect. History.—s. 1, ch. 80-161; s. 48, ch. 81-167; s. 51, ch. 83-55; s. 19, ch. 85-265; s. 6, ch. 88-376; s. 7, ch. 93-181; s. 1, ch. 96-332; s. 1045, ch. 97-103; s. 7, ch. 97-167; ss. 4, 17, ch. 98-56; s. 49, ch. 2003-1; s. 71, ch. 2005-2; s. 10, ch. 2007-198; s. 330, ch. 2011-142; s. 9, ch. 2011-189; s. 9, ch. 2013-83; s. 42, ch. 2021-25; s. 28, ch. 2023-17.
1Note.—Section 43, ch. 2023-17, provides that:“(1) The Department of Revenue is authorized, and all conditions are deemed met, to adopt emergency rules under s. 120.54(4), Florida Statutes, for the purpose of implementing provisions related to the Live Local Program created by this act. Notwithstanding any other law, emergency rules adopted under this section are effective for 6 months after adoption and may be renewed during the pendency of procedures to adopt permanent rules addressing the subject of the emergency rules.
“(2) This section expires July 1, 2026.”