Palm
Tree Acres Mobile Home Park (Palm Tree Acres or Park) is located in Zephyrhills,
Pasco County, Florida. The Park is comprised of two types of residents: those
who rent their lot from the Park (tenants) and those who own their lot (lot
owners). The Park provides water and wastewater service to both tenants and lot
owners. Since its inception, the Park has not petitioned the Florida Public
Service Commission (Commission) for a certificate of authorization to provide water or wastewater service or
for recognition of exempt status under Section 367.022, Florida Statutes
(F.S.).[1]
In
June 2017, the attorney for several lot owners requested that the Commission
assert jurisdiction over the Park as they believed it was operating in
violation of Chapter 367, F.S., as an uncertificated utility by providing water
and wastewater service to non-tenant customers for compensation.
Following
the Park and lot owners’ unsuccessful attempts to resolve their dispute, Commission
staff opened the instant docket to initiate show cause proceedings against Palm
Tree Acres for allegedly providing water and wastewater service to the public
for compensation without first obtaining a certificate of authorization from
the Commission.
At the January 8, 2019 Commission Conference, staff recommended that the Commission order Palm Tree Acres to show cause in writing, within 21 days, as to why it should not be fined for providing water and wastewater service to the public for compensation without first obtaining a certificate of authorization from the Commission in apparent violation of Section 367.031, F.S., and Rule 25-30.033, Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.), and why it should not bring itself into compliance with the Commission’s statutes and rules. Representatives for Palm Tree Acres, the lot owners, and the Office of Public Counsel (OPC) were present at the Commission Conference and participated in the discussion on staff’s recommendation. The Commission ultimately voted to defer consideration of staff’s recommendation to issue a show cause order and initiated rulemaking to explore the possibility of adopting a rule defining “landlord” and “tenant” as used in Section 367.022(5), F.S.
Staff opened a rulemaking docket[2] on February 13, 2019 and a Notice of Development of Rulemaking was published in the February 15, 2019 edition of the Florida Administrative Register. On March 4, 2019, staff held a rule development workshop. The workshop was attended by representatives from the Florida Manufactured Housing Association, Inc., the Goss family (who owns several mobile home parks in Florida, including Palm Tree Acres), and OPC. All three groups filed post-workshop comments on March 18, 2019.
At the October 3, 2019 Commission Conference, staff recommended the adoption of Rule 25-30.0115, F.A.C., to define “landlord” and “tenant” as used within Section 367.022(5), F.S. The Commission voted to defer its determination until after the end of the 2020 Florida Legislative session.
On March 13, 2020, the Florida Legislature passed HB 1339. Among other things, the bill created a new exemption from Commission jurisdiction for owners of mobile home parks that operate both as a mobile home park and a mobile home subdivision and provide water or wastewater service to both tenants and lot owners within the park/subdivision. The Governor signed the bill into law on June 9, 2020, and the law takes effect on July 1, 2020.
This
recommendation revisits the issue of whether the Commission should order Palm
Tree Acres to show cause as to why it should not be fined for providing
water and wastewater service without first obtaining a certificate of
authorization from the Commission and why it should not bring itself into
compliance with the Commission’s statutes and rules, in light of the new statutory language.
The Commission has jurisdiction over this matter pursuant to Sections 367.011 and 367.161, F.S.