286.23 Real property conveyed to public agency;
disclosure of beneficial interests; notice; exemptions. ---
(1) Any person or entity holding real property in the form of a
partnership, limited partnership, corporation, trust, or any form of
representative capacity whatsoever for others, except as otherwise provided in
this section, shall, before entering into any contract whereby such real
property held in representative capacity is sold, leased, taken by eminent
domain, or otherwise conveyed to the state or any local governmental unit, or
an agency of either, make a public disclosure in writing, under oath and
subject to the penalties prescribed for perjury, which shall state his or her
name and address and the name and address of every person having a beneficial
interest in the real property, however small or minimal. This written
disclosure shall be made to the chief officer, or to his or her officially
designated representative, of the state, local governmental unit, or agency of
either, with which the transaction is made at least 10 days prior to the time
of closing or, in the case of an eminent domain taking, within 48 hours after
the time when the required sum is deposited in the registry of the court.
Notice of the deposit shall be made to the person or entity by registered or
certified mail before the 48-hour period begins.
(2) The state or local governmental unit, or an agency of either,
shall send written notice by registered mail to the person required to make
disclosures under this section, prior to the time when such disclosures are
required to be made, which written request shall also inform the person
required to make such disclosure that such disclosure must be made under oath,
subject to the penalties prescribed for perjury.
(3)
(a) The beneficial interest in any entity registered with the Federal
Securities Exchange Commission or registered pursuant to chapter 517, whose
interest is for sale to the general public, is hereby exempt from the
provisions of this section. When disclosure of persons having beneficial
interests in nonpublic entities is required, the entity or person shall not be
required by the provisions of this section to disclose persons or entities
holding less than 5 percent of the beneficial interest in the disclosing
entity.
(b) In the case of an eminent domain taking, any entity or person
other than a public officer or public employee, holding real property in the
form of a trust which was created more than 3 years prior to the deposit of
the required sum in the registry of the court, is hereby exempt from the
provisions of this section. However, in order to qualify for the exemption set
forth in this section, the trustee of such trust shall be required to certify
within 48 hours after such deposit, under penalty of perjury, that no public
officer or public employee has any beneficial interest whatsoever in such
trust. Disclosure of any changes in the trust instrument or of persons having
beneficial interest in the trust shall be made if such changes occurred during
the 3 years prior to the deposit of said sum in the registry of the
court.
(4) This section shall be liberally construed to accomplish the
purpose of requiring the identification of the actual parties benefiting from
any transaction with a governmental unit or agency involving the procurement
of the ownership or use of property by such governmental unit or
agency.
History: ss. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, ch. 74-174; s. 1, ch. 77-174; s. 72, ch. 86-186; s.
7, ch. 91-56; s. 212, ch. 95-148.