Does Florida's farm-building exemption cover the whole Building Code or only structural rules?

Plain-English summary

In a 2007 informal letter to an Okeechobee code compliance director, the Attorney General's office read Florida's exemption for nonresidential farm buildings on farms as referring to the Florida Building Code as a whole. It found no language in the statutes limiting the exemption to structural provisions. The letter also repeated Attorney General Opinion 01-71's conclusion that the exemption extended to county and municipal building codes and made building permits unnecessary for those buildings.

The writer declined to issue a formal opinion on the director's request because the office required a request from the board of county commissioners, or the county attorney on its behalf, with a memorandum of law. The letter expressly said its informal comments should not be treated as a formal Attorney General opinion.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2007. 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: Did the 2007 letter confine the farm-building exemption to structural provisions?
A: No. It said the statutory reference was to the Florida Building Code itself and found nothing in the cited provisions limiting the exemption to one part of that code.

Q: What buildings did the letter discuss?
A: It discussed nonresidential farm buildings located on farms, the category described in the exemption and in the earlier Attorney General opinion it cited.

Q: Did the office issue a formal ruling on Okeechobee's question?
A: No. It explained the request procedure for a formal opinion, then offered informal comments and expressly disclaimed formal-opinion status.

Background and statutory framework

The director asked whether exemptions in sections 553.73 and 604.50, Florida Statutes, referred only to structural regulation. The letter quoted section 553.72's description of a single unified code and section 553.73's provision for a code that incorporates laws and rules governing building design, construction, alteration, and demolition. It then read the farm-building references as applying to that unified code, while citing Opinion 01-71 on local building codes and permits.

Citations and references

The letter discussed sections 553.72, 553.73, and 604.50, Florida Statutes, and Attorney General Opinion 01-71. It referred in a footnote to section 125.56(1), which authorized county boards to enforce the Building Code.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/ag-opinions/farm-building-exemption-from-fla-blg-code
• Official print view: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/print/pdf/node/8294

Original opinion text

Mr. Arnold M. Verwey

Code Compliance Director

499 Northwest 5th Avenue

Okeechobee, Florida 34972-2572

Dear Mr. Verwey:

You ask for a formal opinion of this office as to whether sections 553.73(8)(c) and 604.50, Florida Statutes, in exempting nonresidential farm buildings on farms from the Florida Building Code refers to a code regulating structural elements or to all of the Florida Building Code.

Requests for opinions should be submitted to this office by the head of the agency in question, accompanied by a memorandum of law. Thus, in the instant inquiry a request should be made by the board of county commissioners as the governing body of the county, or by the county attorney on the board's behalf, accompanied by a memorandum of law prepared by the county attorney.[1]

In an effort to be of assistance, however, I would note that in Attorney General Opinion 01-71, this office concluded that sections 553.73(7)(c) [now section 553.73(8)(c)] and 604.50, Florida Statutes, exempt nonresidential farm buildings located on a farm from the Florida Building Code and any county or municipal building code, making building permits unnecessary for such buildings. The opinion notes that while the Legislature in 1974 established statewide standards known as the State Minimum Building Codes, in 1998, as a result of a building codes study commission report suggesting the development of a single statewide building code, the Legislature created a statewide unified building code.[2]

Section 553.72(1), Florida Statutes, in setting forth the intent for the chapter, states:

"The purpose and intent of this act is to provide a mechanism for the uniform adoption, updating, amendment, interpretation, and enforcement of a single, unified state building code, to be called the Florida Building Code, which consists of a single set of documents that apply to the design, construction, erection, alteration, modification, repair, or demolition of public or private buildings, structures, or facilities in this state and to the enforcement of such requirements and which will allow effective and reasonable protection for public safety, health, and general welfare for all the people of Florida at the most reasonable cost to the consumer. The Florida Building Code shall be organized to provide consistency and simplicity of use. The Florida Building Code shall be applied, administered, and enforced uniformly and consistently from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The Florida Building Code shall provide for flexibility to be exercised in a manner that meets minimum requirements, is affordable, does not inhibit competition, and promotes innovation and new technology. The Florida Building Code shall establish minimum standards primarily for public health and lifesafety, and secondarily for protection of property as appropriate."[3] (e.s.)

Section 553.73(1)(a), Florida Statutes, provides that the Florida Building Commission shall adopt, by rule, the Florida Building Code "which shall contain or incorporate by reference all laws and rules which pertain to and govern the design, construction, erection, alteration, modification, repair, and demolition of public and private buildings, structures, and facilities and enforcement of such laws and rules, except as otherwise provided in this section."[4]

Section 553.73(9)(c), Florida Statutes, provides that nonresidential farm buildings on farms are exempt from the Florida Building Code as provided by law.[5] The reference to the Florida Building Code would appear to be the same code as discussed elsewhere in that statute and as adopted by the Florida Building Commission. There is nothing in section 553.73(8) which limits the reference to a particular portion of the Florida Building Code. Similarly, the reference in section 604.50, Florida Statutes, is to the Florida Building Code, and not to a particular part of the code.

I hope that the above informal comments which should not be considered a formal opinion of this office may be of assistance. Thank you for contacting the Attorney General's Office.

Sincerely,

Joslyn Wilson

Assistant Attorney General

JW/t

---------------------------------------------------------------

[1] Cf. s. 125.56(1), Fla. Stat., authorizing the board of county commissioners of each of the several counties of the state to enforce the Florida Building Code.

[2] See Ch. 98-287, Laws of Fla.

[3] And see s. 553.72(3), Fla. Stat., providing that it is the intent of the Legislature that the Florida Building Code be adopted, modified, updated, interpreted, and maintained by the Florida Building Commission in accordance with sections 120.536(1) and 120.54, Florida Statutes, and enforced by authorized state and local government enforcement agencies.

[4] And see Rule 9B-3.047(1), Fla. Admin. C., stating that the Florida Building Code as updated by the Florida Building Commission on July 1, 2005, and as amended by the Commission on December 11, 2005, December 8, 2006, and May 21, 2007, incorporated herein by reference is hereby adopted as the building code for the State of Florida. See also section 553.73(6)(a), Florida Statutes, requiring the commission to update the Florida Building Code every 3 years, selecting "the most current version of the International Building Code, the International Fuel Gas Code, the International Mechanical Code, the International Plumbing Code, and the International Residential Code, all of which are adopted by the International Code Council, and the National Electrical Code, which is adopted by the National Fire Protection Association, to form the foundation codes of the updated Florida Building Code, if the version has been adopted by the applicable model code entity and made available to the public at least 6 months prior to its selection by the commission."

[5] See s. 604.50, Fla. Stat.