WHERE IS FLORIDA’S HOMEOWNERS’ BILL OF RIGHTS?

WHERE IS FLORIDA’S HOMEOWNERS’ BILL OF RIGHTS?

Momentum is building around the nation to finally say enough is enough when it comes to overly intrusive governmental regulations.  More and more citizens are becoming aware of the fact that almost invariably each new, well intentioned governmental regulation comes with far reaching unintended consequences.  Not only do these unintended consequences usually strip away property rights, but the accumulation of the unintended consequences over time cause a financial drag on communities.

Most recently, two legislators in Wisconsin rolled out their “Homeowners Bill of Rights”.  The stated intent of their legislation is to protect homeowners from the “creep of overbearing government at all levels”.  Citing studies indicating nearly 25% of the price of a new home is directly attributable to governmental regulation; the legislation seeks to significantly reduce housing costs, which will in turn lead to greater home ownership and a more invested community.  The Wisconsin Homeowners' Bill of Rights includes provisions to:

1) Control property taxes
2) Increase broadband access
3) Make the supply and delivery system for propane affordable 
4) Provide property owners additional protections from "takings" 
5) Reform unreasonable regulations that threaten property rights
6) Reduce regulatory barriers for home buyers
7) Protect your "right to fly the flag"
8) Require a warrant based on probable cause for any search of a property
9) Broaden the concept of grandfathering
10) Inject a private property rights element into the Smart Growth program

Any such bill would obviously need to tweaked a bit to conform to Florida’s peculiarities.  But wouldn’t it be nice to see our legislators in Tallahassee taking concrete steps to proactively begin reigning in overzealous governmental entities, protecting property rights, encouraging families to become homeowners and fostering the American Dream?