Florida community association education. Reviewed November 4, 2026. General information, not legal advice.
What the official history establishes
SB 154 became Chapter 2023-203. The official bill history lists a general effective date of June 9, 2023, except as otherwise provided. It addressed condominium and cooperative associations, including milestone-inspection responsibility, professional progress reporting, budget meetings, dispute procedures and developer turnover materials.
The distinction between a general effective date and section-specific provisions matters. A board should not tell owners that every requirement in a large act began on one date without reading the final enacted language. This article explains the current planning issues that make the 2023 revisions relevant, rather than treating every current sentence as if it originated in SB 154.
Local building facts control the inspection plan
Under current section 553.899, the milestone framework applies to qualifying residential condominium and cooperative buildings with three or more habitable stories, subject to specific exclusions. The certificate of occupancy ordinarily establishes building age. If that record is unavailable, the statute directs attention to occupancy evidence in local building-official records.
The general inspection cycle begins at 30 years and repeats every 10 years. Local enforcement can require a 25-year trigger based on local circumstances, including environmental conditions. A Northwest Florida coastal location should prompt verification with the local authority, not an assumption that every coastal building follows the same deadline.
The statute provides for consideration of prior inspections and initial-deadline extensions under stated conditions. Written acceptance or an approved extension is the useful evidence. A consultant's availability, a board discussion or a proposed contract does not independently establish that the local deadline changed.
Budgeting and turnover need separate reviews
Reserve planning under current Chapter 718 must be checked against later amendments, including the 2025 legislation. Historical references to earlier SIRS deadlines should be labeled as history. The current study, funding method and annual budget should tell a consistent story about the work the association is responsible to perform.
Developer turnover is another distinct process. Inspection reports and other turnover materials must be evaluated under the applicable current statute and the community's circumstances. Receiving a box of documents does not show that every required item was delivered or that all building conditions have been resolved.
Board checklist
Confirm residential use, ownership form, habitable-story count and age for each building. Obtain the local agency's applicable deadline and any written acceptance of earlier work. Separate inspection, repair, reserve-study and turnover deliverables. Use the current statute for future decisions and the session law for historical questions. Preserve the reason an exception was applied. Have counsel review unresolved deadline or developer-delivery issues before representing the association as compliant. This approach gives owners a clear explanation of what is known, what remains due and who is responsible.