Victory for the Moment: Court Decides for Nursing Homes and ALFS - Recently, a significant victory for Florida nursing homes and assisted living facilities was decided in the case of Avante Villa at Jacksonville Beach, Inc. v. Breidert. Andrew R. McCumber, Esq., a FAHSA member who argued the case, has generously provided a legal summary. To read the summary, please go to the Members Only page of the Website.

Retirement Community Round Table Scheduled for FAHSA Annual Meeting & Convention -- Mark Your Calendar - Is your organization facing marketing challenges, occupancy problems, increased consumer demands for more options and amenities, or board complacency? If so, plan to attend FAHSA's Annual Convention and find out what communities throughout the state are doing to address these and other operational issues. Two sessions have been scheduled to discuss how CEOs and administrators can deal with these and other day- to-day challenges and to provide tips on planning for the continued success of your community. The first is an all-day Strategic Visioning program, scheduled for Sunday, July 29 from 8:30 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., featuring outstanding speakers who are well known experts in the field of retirement housing. The second is a two- hour Retirement Community roundtable scheduled for Thursday, August 2 from 8:15 to 10:15 A.M. Moderated by two FAHSA leaders, the annual roundtable is always ranked as one of the most valuable educational sessions of the conference.

For a list of preliminary topics, please go to the FAHSA Retirement Community Web page and click on Roundtable Topics for 2007. Feel free to add to the list by E-mailing your suggestions to meearly@totcon.com

Waterman Village Residents Participate in Property Tax Town Hall Meeting - Last week, State Sen. Carey Baker (R- Eustis) held a town hall meeting to hear what constituents had to say about property taxes. Twelve residents from Waterman Village were among those in attendance.

According to a newspaper article, an informal show of hands by audience members showed that only about half would support cutbacks on municipal services in exchange for lower property taxes. A constitutional amendment to cut property taxes would require the approval of 60 percent of voters statewide. Most of the crowd spoke in favor of trimming government budgets, widely believed to be the crux of the property tax reform issue.

Use Surplus Lands for Affordable Housing - Locating suitable land for affordable housing can be difficult, as in the case of approximately 4,200 Shell Point Village employees who commute more than 40 miles per day to work at Sanibel Island. Peter Dys, CEO, Shell Point Village, joined forces with Community Housing Resources (CHR) to seek the donation of surplus land from Lee County's inventory. Finding a 20-acre parcel just off the Island's causeway, CHR and Shell Point Village formed a subsidiary, Island Coast Community Land Trust, and signed a two-year exploratory agreement to evaluate the possibility of developing a variety of housing types to serve both island and Shell Point workers who are burdened by lengthy commutes and a shortage of affordable housing. CHR is applying for a Predevelopment Loan and receiving technical assistance from the Florida Housing coalition to complete its due diligence and engineering work on the surplus county land.

We have heard from several members about the housing challenges that employees face, especially near high-cost communities. If Shell Point Village succeeds, this type of arrangement may be a helpful option for other organizations to pursue.

MOR Training Held in Miami - Still Time to Register for Two More Meetings - Recently, Jason Pincus, Administrator, Stanley Axlrod UTD Towers, hosted the first of three MOR and Budget training programs. Sharee Russell, SPM, Inc., and Shawn Steen, Director, North Tampa Housing Development Corporation, presented informative and valuable information to approximately 45 attendees. Both Sharee and Shawn answered specific questions and took the time to address each issue in detail. Sharee discussed the entire MOR process and showed how to prepare for an MOR. If you missed the Miami session, register now for either the Orlando training on June 27 at College Park Towers or the Jacksonville training on June 28 at Hurley Manor. Mr. James Branson, Jacksonville HUD's new Field Director, is planning to attend the Jacksonville meeting and looking forward to meeting FAHSA's members.

Upcoming Workshops:

• June 19 - FAHSA's Webinar: Fair Housing, 2:00 p.m.
• June 27 - FAHSA's MOR Workshop, College Park Towers, Orlando
• June 28 - FAHSA's MOR Workshop, Hurley Manor, Jacksonville
• July 29 -- FAHSA's Preceptors Training Program, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, FL
• July 29 -- FAHSA's Strategic Visioning Workshop, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, FL
• July 29 & 30 - FAHSA's Two Day Leadership Intensive: A New leadership Framework for Aging Services, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, FL
• July 29--August 2 -- FAHSA's 44th Annual Convention and Exposition, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, FL
• September 18 & 19 -- FAHSA's Home and Community-Based Services Workshop, Wyndham Jacksonville Riverwalk, Jacksonville
• September 19 & 20 -- FAHSA's Annual HUD and Service Coordinator Workshop, Wyndham Jacksonville Riverwalk, Jacksonville
• October 3 & 4 -- FAHSA's Dynamic Directions Advanced Nurse Leadership Workshop, Safety Harbor
• November 15 - FAHSA's Maintenance Workshop, Holiday Inn, Orlando, FL

Handicapped Parking Requirements Incorporated Into Rule - Rule 9B-70042 (Florida Accessibility Code for Building Construction) has been amended to incorporate legislative changes adopted to a section of the Florida Statutes. To view the changes, please go to the latest General Alert, GEN 07-03.

Other General News:

• Tuberculosis: Know Your Facts and Resources
• Lessons Learned: Now that the Smoke has Cleared
• CARES Program Produces Statewide Training Video for Health Professionals
• Model Living Will Available in 20 Languages

FAHSA Shares Concerns with Lawmakers about Possible Effects of Tax Reform on Affordable Housing - In light of the property tax cuts currently under consideration by the legislature, several cities and counties are now exploring the possibility of replacing lost revenues with user fees and special assessments. This turn of events does not come as a surprise. In fact, some high-growth counties have already shored up their budgets in this way.

If property taxes are reduced and user fees and special assessments become more prevalent, they will adversely affect affordable senior housing communities that are now exempt from ad valorem taxes if they qualify as a non profit "home for the aged". FAHSA sent a message to lawmakers this week reminding them that affordable housing providers could be inadvertently hurt if counties and cities left cash-strapped as a result of reforms are therefore forced to institute other types of fees and assessments. The following text was included in the message:

Although we appreciate and understand the desire of the Florida Legislature to provide immediate property tax relief to its citizens, we are concerned about the long range effect on affordable housing. Yesterday, the City of Marco Island announced its plan to study the possibility of levying a special assessment for funding its fire department. Other similar articles have appeared in various areas of the state. If counties and cities are cash-strapped as a result of reforms, user fees and special assessments may become the norm to fund basic services. Without some controls, these fees and assessments will eventually have a direct effect on the affordability of housing.

In addition to representing multi service retirement communities and nursing homes, the Florida Association of Homes and Services for the Aging is also comprised of more than 175 affordable senior housing apartment complexes, most of which were financed through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Under current state law, HUD senior housing communities receive an ad valorem property tax exemption which enables them to serve the most financially-needy elder Floridians. However, in some areas of the state, our members have already been hit with special assessments and user fees that have been very difficult to pay, mainly because they do not have the ability to raise rents without HUD approval. Even if they did, many of the residents are not in a position to pay more for housing.

To ensure that government-financed affordable housing for the elderly is not inadvertently adversely affected by property tax reforms, we respectfully request that you consider legislative language that either directs or encourages cities and counties not to replace lost revenues by imposing fees and assessments for this type of housing.

New Law Requires Employers to Provide Leave for Domestic Violence Victims - A bill signed into law by Governor Crist this week sets new job protections and leave requirements for employees who have been victims of domestic violence. The new law requires employers with 50 or more employees to allow employees who have been employed for at least three months to request or take up to three working days of leave with or without pay within a 12-month period if the employee is the victim of domestic violence and the leave is sought to:

• seek an injunction for protection against domestic violence;
• obtain medical care or mental health counseling;
• obtain services from a victim-services organization;
• make the employee's home secure or to seek new housing; or
• to seek legal assistance or attend and prepare for court-related proceedings

The law requires employees to provide advance notice of the leave (except in cases of imminent danger) and to first exhaust all available annual or vacation leave, personal leave, and sick leave, unless this requirement is waived by the employer. The law authorizes employers to require documentation, requires employers to keep information relating to the employee's leave confidential, and prohibits employers from taking any disciplinary action against the employee for exercising their rights to leave. An accompanying bill, also signed into law this week, creates a public records exemption for personal identifying information contained in documentation submitted by and records relating to government employees taking advantage of rights under this law.

First Victory Against User Fees on Nursing Home Survey Revisits - In case you missed it in AAHSA's Nursing Home Regulatory News, your voices were heard in Washington, as the first draft of the fiscal 2008 appropriations bill covering the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) specifically omits authority for the agency to impose user fees for survey revisits. For more on this issue and those listed below, please go to the latest Nursing Home Alert, NH 07-15.

Other Nursing Home News:

• Survey Tips on Cold Foods and Pharmacy
• General Tips for Defensive Documentation
• NPI Implementation Affect on Remittance Advice Transactions
• Discontinuation of CMS Unique Physician Identifier Number (UPIN) Registry
• CMS SNF Long-Term Care Open Door Forum- June 21
• Florida Senior Care (Medicaid Reform) Integrated Care Website Updated
• June 2007 FDA Patient Safety News Video Program Available

Investment Tool of the Future - Wouldn't it be nice if someone offered to refund all of the unused insurance premiums paid on your behalf over the last year? We can not wave a magic wand and make that happen, but we can tell you about a plan for you to keep control of your unused health dollars in the future. This new investment tool is a Health Savings Account (HSA). To read the entire article click HERE.

FAHSA's Preferred Business Associates Program (PBAs) -- A list of PBAs can be found by on the FAHSA Web site www.fahsa.org and selecting Preferred Business Associates from the left side menu bar. FAHSA members can also use the on- line directory to search for PBAs by specialty.

FAHSA is pleased to provide an opportunity for you to advertise your "position wanted" or "position available" through the FAHSA Link newsletter and on our Web Page.

FAHSA members may use the Job Mart services at no charge. A nominal fee of $25 will be charged to nonmembers.

Your Job Mart advertisement will be displayed on our Web site for approximately three months. The FAHSA Link is published weekly and distributed to our membership which is comprised of nursing homes, CCRCs, HUD housing, assisted living facilities, independent living facilities and companies/firms.

To reserve advertisement space in our Job Mart program, please complete the application and fax it to FAHSA at (850) 671-3790 or E-mail it to jcopeland@fahsa.org