Florida rewrote the nonprofit corporation act — and the standard your board is judged by went with it
Florida rewrote the nonprofit corporation act — and the standard your board is judged by went with it
2026-09-10 · Florida · Legislation
What happened. Florida rewrote the statute that supplies the baseline duty of care and the personal-liability shield for community association directors. CS/CS/HB 797 was approved on 25 June 2026, became Chapter 2026-168, Laws of Florida, and took effect on 1 July 2026. It passed the House 114-0 and runs to 190 sections.1
Most Florida condominium and homeowners' associations are incorporated under Chapter 617. Very little coverage has connected this act to them, which is why it is worth setting out carefully.
A new name, and two rewritten sections
Section 617.01011 renames the statute the Florida Nonprofit Corporation Act. Two provisions inside it do the work that reaches association boards: s. 617.0830, the general standards for directors, and s. 617.0834, the immunity provision. The first is a substantial rewording; the second is amended.
The Legislature made the connection explicit. Section 189 of the act reenacts s. 718.111(1)(d) — the condominium fiduciary-duty provision — “for the purpose of incorporating the amendment made by this act to sections 617.0830 and 617.0834.” The History note on s. 718.111 now records “s. 189, ch. 2026-168.”2
The standard of care, restated
Section 617.0830 is now framed in two parts: a director must act in good faith and in a manner the director reasonably believes is in the best interests of the corporation, with the care standard stated separately for decision-making and for oversight. The rewrite adds a codified right to rely on officers, counsel, accountants and board committees, and an express statement that “a director is not a trustee.”
That last clause is not decorative. Trustee-level duties are a materially heavier standard than corporate directors' duties, and the distinction has been litigated against volunteer association boards for years.
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- The immunity provision, and what was struck from it
- Where the rewrite expressly does NOT reach associations
- Emergency powers were reenacted, not expanded
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