How should a Florida property appraiser assess a home damaged by defective Chinese drywall under the 2010 law?

Plain-English summary

The general counsel for the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser asked for help interpreting a brand-new 2010 law about homes ruined by defective drywall. During the height of the Chinese-drywall problem, the Legislature passed CS/CS/HB 965, enacted as Chapter 2010-170 and codified at section 193.1552, Florida Statutes, which directs property appraisers to lower the assessed value of certain single-family homes affected by imported or domestic drywall, effective for the 2010 and later assessment rolls.

Senior Assistant Attorney General Gerry Hammond gave informal comments. He summarized the statute: when a property appraiser determines that a single-family residential property is affected by such drywall and needs remediation to meet current building standards, the appraiser must adjust the assessed value to account for the drywall's impact, and if the home cannot be used for its intended purpose without remediation, it is assessed at a nominal just value of $0. The relief is limited to properties where the bad drywall was used in construction or improvement, it significantly hurts the property's just value, and the buyer did not know about it at purchase; owners who knew of the drywall when they bought do not qualify.

The core of the question was how the appraiser should make those determinations, and the statute did not say. The office applied the settled principle that a general grant of authority without a prescribed method carries by implication the power to use the means reasonably necessary to carry it out. So the process for making the drywall determinations was within the property appraiser's official discretion, as long as the methods accomplished the statute's purpose. The office added that the Department of Revenue was preparing a bulletin on open issues, such as how the law applies to condominiums, and suggested the appraiser keep working with the Department and professional appraiser organizations.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2010. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: What did Florida's 2010 drywall law require property appraisers to do?
A: Under section 193.1552, when a single-family home is affected by imported or domestic drywall and needs remediation to meet current building standards, the property appraiser must adjust its assessed value for the drywall's impact, and assess it at a nominal $0 if it cannot be used for its intended purpose without remediation.

Q: Which homes qualified for the adjustment?
A: Properties where the defective drywall was used in construction or improvement, the drywall significantly lowered the property's just value, and the purchaser was unaware of it at the time of purchase. Owners who knew about the drywall when they bought did not qualify.

Q: How was the property appraiser supposed to make the determination?
A: The statute did not prescribe a method, so the office concluded the process was within the appraiser's official discretion, provided the methods used accomplished the purpose of section 193.1552.

Q: Was there further guidance coming?
A: Yes. The office noted the Department of Revenue was preparing a bulletin addressing questions like how the law applied to condominiums and what counts as "single-family residential," and it suggested the appraiser coordinate with the Department and appraiser associations.

Background and statutory framework

Chapter 2010-170, Laws of Florida, created section 193.1552 to address homes built or improved with reactive drywall that corrodes metal. The act defined "imported or domestic drywall," set the assessment adjustment in subsection (2), listed the qualifying conditions in subsection (3), and excluded buyers who knew of the drywall in subsection (4). It applied to the 2010 and subsequent assessment rolls.

Because neither the statute nor the House staff analysis told appraisers how to implement it, the office relied on the implied-powers rule that when a law imposes a duty or power on an officer it also confers the powers necessary for the efficient exercise of that duty (State ex rel. Martin v. Michell; In re Advisory Opinion to the Governor). That left the method of determination to the appraiser's discretion, consistent with the bill sponsor's own understanding that appraisers could decide how to handle it, while the Department of Revenue developed a clarifying bulletin.

Citations and references

Statutes and session laws:

• Chapter 2010-170, Laws of Florida (CS/CS/HB 965)
• § 193.1552, Fla. Stat. (assessment of drywall-affected property), including subsections (2), (3)(a)-(c), and (4)

Cases:

• State ex rel. Martin v. Michell, 188 So. 2d 684 (Fla. 4th DCA 1966), implied powers of an officer
• In re Advisory Opinion to the Governor, 60 So. 2d 285 (Fla. 1952)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/ag-opinions/property-appraiser-property-affected-by-drywall
• Original PDF: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/print/pdf/node/8189

Original opinion text

Mr. Will Shepherd

General Counsel, Hillsborough

County Property Appraiser

County Center, 16th Floor

601 East Kennedy Boulevard

Tampa, Florida 33602-4932

Dear Mr. Shepherd:

On behalf of the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser, you have asked for direction in interpreting the scope of the property appraiser's powers and duties under Chapter 2010-170, Laws of Florida. Attorney General McCollum has asked that I respond to your letter and the following informal comments are offered in an effort to assist you.

The Florida Legislature passed CS/CS/HB 965 during the 2010 Legislative session and it has been assigned Chapter 2010-170, Laws of Florida. The law creates section 193.1552, Florida Statutes, relating to real property assessment and requiring property appraisers to adjust the assessed value of certain properties affected by imported or domestic drywall[1] under certain circumstances. The act was approved by the Governor on June 1, 2010, and applies to the 2010 and subsequent assessment rolls.[2]

Subsection (2), about which you have specifically inquired, reads as follows:

"When a property appraiser determines that a single-family residential property is affected by imported or domestic drywall and needs remediation to bring that property up to current building standards, the property appraiser shall adjust the assessed value of that property by taking into consideration the presence of the imported or domestic drywall and the impact of such drywall on the assessed value. If the building cannot be used for its intended purpose without remediation or repair, the value of such building shall be assessed at the nominal just value of $0."

The statute limits its application to properties in which

• imported or domestic drywall was used in construction or in improvement of the property.

• the drywall has a significant negative impact on the just value of the property or the improvement.

• the purchaser was unaware of the imported or domestic drywall at the time of purchase.[3]

The provisions of the section do not apply to property owners who were aware of the presence of imported or domestic drywall when they purchased the property.[4]

My review of the newly adopted statutory language and the House of Representatives Staff Analysis for CS/CS/HB 965 does not reveal any direction given to the property appraisers on the matter of implementation of section 193.1552, Florida Statutes.

A general grant of power or authority unaccompanied by definite direction as to how the power or authority is to be exercised implies a right to employ the means and methods necessary to comply with the statute.[5] Thus, when the law imposes a duty or power on an officer, it also confers by implication such powers as are necessary for the due and efficient exercise of the duties or powers expressly granted or such as may be fairly implied therefrom.[6]

Thus, in the absence of a statutory provision setting forth the method by which the property appraiser is to make those determinations required by Chapter 2010-170, Laws of Florida, the process to be used in making such determinations is within the property appraiser's official discretion so long as the methods employed accomplish the objectives or purposes of section 193.1552, Florida Statutes 2010.[7]

In conversations with the Department of Revenue on the subject of implementation of Chapter 2010-170, Laws of Florida, I was advised that the department is preparing a bulletin on this matter. The application of the new statutory language to condominiums and other types of property and the characterization of that property as "single-family residential" is currently being reviewed and the bulletin will address this matter. I would suggest that you continue to work with the Department of Revenue and the several professional organizations representing property appraisers in this state in an effort to develop procedures for implementing this bill.

I trust that these informal comments will be of some assistance to you in advising your client.

Sincerely,

Gerry Hammond

Senior Assistant Attorney General

GH/tsh

[1] See s. 1, Ch. 2010-170, Laws of Fla., defining "imported or domestic drywall" as "drywall that contains elevated levels of elemental sulfur that results in corrosion of certain metals."

[2] See s. 2, Ch. 2010-170, Laws of Fla.

[3] Section 193.1552(3)(a) - (c), Fla. Stat. (2010).

[4] Section 193.1552(4), Fla. Stat. (2010).

[5] 67 C.J.S. Officers s. 193(a).

[6] See State ex rel. Martin v. Michell, 188 So. 2d 684 (Fla. 4th DCA 1966), cert. discharged, 192 So. 2d 281 (Fla. 1966); In re Advisory Opinion to the Governor, 60 So. 2d 285 (Fla. 1952); Peter v. Hansen, 157 So. 2d 103 (Fla. 2d DCA 1963); cf. Molwin Investment Co. v. Turner, 167 So. 33 (Fla. 1936); Southern Utilities Co. v. City of Palatka, 99 So. 236 (Fla. 1923); Ops. Att'y Gen. Fla. 10-01 (2010) and 04-27 (2004).

[7] In fact, this seems to be the understanding of the sponsor of the bill, Senator Ronda Storms, who is quoted in a recent Tampa Tribune article on the issue acknowledging that the wording of the statute may be confusing, but that "property appraisers are able to decide how to handle it." See http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/jun/13/bz-drywall-bill-gives-power-to-appraisers/.