LaVon Bracy Davis, Mitch Rosenwald pitch fixes to ‘glitches’ in My Safe Florida Home Program

Two Democratic lawmakers want to give homeowners a do-over when paperwork mistakes lead to rejection from state hurricane-hardening grants.

Ocoee Sen. LaVon Bracy Davis and Oakland Park Rep. Mitch Rosenwald have filed twin bills (SB 1148, HB 1045) that would ease rigid application rules in the My Safe Florida Home Program.

It would allow homeowners to correct errors, meet missed deadlines and reapply for inspections and grants that can lower insurance costs.

“At a time when Florida’s families are struggling with rising insurance, we cannot allow bureaucratic technicalities to block access to affordability tools,” Bracy Davis said in a statement.

The My Safe Florida Home Program, created in the mid-2000s and resurrected by the Legislature in 2022, offers eligible homeowners free wind-mitigation inspections and up to $10,000 in grants to help pay for improvements such as impact-resistant windows, reinforced doors and roof upgrades.

Those improvements — funded by hundreds of millions of dollars in state budget set-asides — can reduce storm damage and, in many cases, lower insurance premiums. In 2024, lawmakers expanded the program to cover condos in addition to stand-alone houses and townhomes.

Under current law, applications can be deemed withdrawn or abandoned if homeowners fail to respond to requests for additional information or miss construction deadlines. In some cases, that designation blocks homeowners from submitting another application for the same property, even when the issue stems from a minor misunderstanding or clerical error.

In recent months, multiple media outlets have reported on homeowners’ frustration with the system’s rejection. Steven Fielder, who oversees the program at the Department of Financial Services, told lawmakers in October that of 122,057 homeowners who registered for grants so far, just 40,719 had completed their home improvements and received grants.

If passed, SB 1148 would require the Department of Financial Services to notify applicants when an application is deemed withdrawn or a grant abandoned. Applicants would then have five business days to respond, demonstrate good cause, and correct the error or omission.

The bill would also allow homeowners whose grants were deemed abandoned for missed deadlines to submit a subsequent application if they promptly respond and justify the delay. Applications would no longer be automatically withdrawn when errors are corrected quickly after notice.

“This program can be a lifeline for seniors and low-income homeowners,” Rosenwald said in a statement. “In response to Floridians reporting that they have been blocked from submitting a new application because of a misunderstanding or reasonable mistake concerning program compliance, I filed this glitch-fixing bill.”

The changes would take effect July 1.