SECTION 420.518. Fraudulent or material misrepresentation.

• (1) An applicant or affiliate of an applicant may be precluded from participation in any corporation program if the applicant or affiliate of the applicant has:

  (a) Made a material misrepresentation or engaged in fraudulent actions in connection with any corporation program.

  (b) Been convicted or found guilty of, or entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a crime in any jurisdiction which directly relates to the financing, construction, or management of affordable housing or the fraudulent procurement of state or federal funds. The record of a conviction certified or authenticated in such form as to be admissible in evidence under the laws of the state shall be admissible as prima facie evidence of such guilt.

  (c) Been excluded from any federal funding program related to the provision of housing.

  (d) Been excluded from any Florida procurement programs.

  (e) Offered or given consideration, other than the consideration to provide affordable housing, with respect to a local contribution.

  (f) Demonstrated a pattern of noncompliance and a failure to correct any such noncompliance after notice from the corporation in the construction, operation, or management of one or more developments funded through a corporation program.
  (2) Upon a determination by the board of directors of the corporation that an applicant or affiliate of the applicant be precluded from participation in any corporation program, the board may issue an order taking any or all of the following actions:

  (a) Preclude such applicant or affiliate from applying for funding from any corporation program for a specified period. The period may be a specified period of time or permanent in nature. With regard to establishing the duration, the board shall consider the facts and circumstances, inclusive of the compliance history of the applicant or affiliate of the applicant, the type of action under subsection (1), and the degree of harm to the corporation’s programs that has been or may be done.

  (b) Revoke any funding previously awarded by the corporation for any development for which construction or rehabilitation has not commenced.
  (3) Before any order issued under this section can be final, an administrative complaint must be served on the applicant, affiliate of the applicant, or its registered agent that provides notification of findings of the board, the intended action, and the opportunity to request a proceeding pursuant to ss. 120.569 and 120.57.
  (4) Any funding, allocation of federal housing credits, credit underwriting procedures, or application review for any development for which construction or rehabilitation has not commenced may be suspended by the corporation upon the service of an administrative complaint on the applicant, affiliate of the applicant, or its registered agent. The suspension shall be effective from the date the administrative complaint is served until an order issued by the corporation in regard to that complaint becomes final.

History.-s. 13, ch. 2020-27.

History.-s. 13, ch. 2020-27.