Backup Documents 05/14/2019 Item #11E (Property Assessed Clean Energy Consumer Protection Ordinance)
Collier County
Property Assessed Clean Energy
Consumer Protection Ordinance
Jamie French - Deputy Department Head
Growth Management Division
Board of County Commissioners Meeting – May 14, 2019
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Stakeholder Meeting
Hosted stakeholder feedback session - April 2, 2019
PACE Industry
Public
City of Naples
Habitat for Humanity
CBIA
Ten day comment period seeking enhanced consumer protections and best practices
Reporting information was requested and provided by each PACE provider
Additional research was performed to determine current program and activity
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Recommended Consumer Protections
and
Enhancements
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Qualifying Improvements
Qualifying Improvements must be permitted and comply with applicable Florida Laws and County codes
Licensed Contractors
Qualifying Improvements must be done by a properly licensed and insured contractor
Contractor Pricing
PACE Providers shall have pricing rules and enforcement mechanisms to avoid excessive or unjustified pricing and charges
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Contractor Management
Recruit local licensed contractors, if available
Establish a Code of Conduct
Train all PACE program contractors
Contractors must have proper license and insurance
Annual contractor compliance checks
PACE Provider will provide a list of all approved licensed contractors to ensure the most competitive price
Contractor will provide full warranty disclosure
Estimated savings provided to property owner with an estimate of savings from Qualifying Improvements
Coordination between electric company and contractor for installation of solar panels
PACE Assessment against the property owner will not be processed until the Qualifying Improvements have received a Certificate of Completion from the County
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Notice to Property Owner
Five day disclosure notice of the following:
Total debt and interest rates
PACE assessment will appear on annual tax bill and be collected by Collier County Tax Collector
Qualified Improvement may or may not affect property value
Failure to pay disclosure
Risk of future sale or refinancing of the property
Right to cancel within three days
Required acknowledgements and signature sections
All documents required to be signed will be provided to the property owner
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Customer Service
Transparent customer feedback and complaint process
Defined dispute and resolution process
Reporting and record requirements
Full accounting of PACE Assessment made available to the property owner upon request
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Residential property requirements
Mortgage holder consent to PACE Financing Agreement and PACE Assessment
Total amount of any annual property taxes and assessments do not exceed five percent of the property's fair market value
Property owner attests that the total amount of annual PACE assessments do not exceed five percent of their total annual gross income in the prior calendar year
PACE Provider responsible for all matters associated with origination, funding, financing, collection and administration of each of the Special Assessments
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Reporting Documents
Ten day written request where the PACE Provider shall supply the County any and all requested records produced and maintained by the PACE Provider, it’s employees, contractors, and consultants
All records shall be deemed as public record in accordance with Florida Statute
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Penalty for Violations
Violation of any provision of this Ordinance shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding $500
All violations of this Ordinance may be processed according to the Collier County Consolidated Code Enforcement Ordinance
Violations shall be considered a substantial breach of the Standard Membership Agreement and grounds for the termination by the Board
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Research
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Considerations
Ordinance ensures additional consumer protections that provide information and options to participating property owners
Supports competitive pricing practices and protections against unlicensed and unpermitted activities
Violations are punishable through the Collier County Code Enforcement Ordinance
Recommendation
Direct the County Attorney to advertise and bring back for adoption The Collier County PACE Consumer Protection Ordinance
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