Expansions.

(1)(a) A provider must obtain written approval from the office before commencing construction or marketing for an expansion of a certificated facility equivalent to the addition of at least 20 percent of existing units or 20 percent or more of the number of continuing care at-home contracts. If the provider has exceeded the current statewide median for days cash on hand, debt service coverage ratio, and total facility occupancy for the most recent two consecutive annual reporting periods, the provider is automatically granted approval to expand the total number of existing units by up to 35 percent upon submitting a letter to the office indicating the total number of planned units in the expansion, the proposed sources and uses of funds, and an attestation that the provider understands and pledges to comply with all minimum liquid reserve and escrow account requirements. As used in this section, the term “existing units” means the sum of the total number of independent living units and assisted living units identified in the most recent annual report filed with the office pursuant to s. 651.026. For purposes of this section, the statewide median for days cash on hand, debt service coverage ratio, and total facility occupancy is the median calculated in the most recent annual report submitted by the office to the Continuing Care Advisory Council pursuant to s. 651.121(8). This section does not apply to construction for which a certificate of need from the Agency for Health Care Administration is required.

(b) The application for the approval of an addition consisting of 20 percent or more of existing units or continuing care at-home contracts must be on forms adopted by the commission. The application must include the feasibility study required by this section and such other information as reasonably requested by the office. If the expansion is only for continuing care at-home contracts, an actuarial study prepared by an independent actuary in accordance with standards adopted by the American Academy of Actuaries which presents the financial impact of the expansion may be substituted for the feasibility study.

(c) In determining whether an expansion should be approved, the office shall consider:

1. Whether the application meets all requirements of law;

2. Whether the feasibility study was based on sufficient data and reasonable assumptions; and

3. Whether the applicant will be able to provide continuing care or continuing care at-home as proposed and meet all financial obligations related to its operations, including the financial requirements of this chapter.

If the application is denied, the office must notify the applicant in writing, citing the specific failures to meet the provisions of this chapter. A denial entitles the applicant to a hearing pursuant to chapter 120.

(2) A provider applying for expansion of a certificated facility must submit all of the following:

(a) A feasibility study prepared by an independent certified public accountant. The feasibility study must include at least the following information:

1. A description of the facility and proposed expansion, including the location, the size, the anticipated completion date, and the proposed construction program.

2. An identification and evaluation of the primary and, if applicable, secondary market areas of the facility and the projected unit sales per month.

3. Projected revenues, including anticipated entrance fees; monthly service fees; nursing care revenues, if applicable; and all other sources of revenue.

4. Projected expenses, including for staffing requirements and salaries; the cost of property, plant, and equipment, including depreciation expense; interest expense; marketing expense; and other operating expenses.

5. A projected balance sheet of the applicant.

6. The expectations for the financial condition of the project, including the projected cash flow and an estimate of the funds anticipated to be necessary to cover startup losses.

7. The inflation factor, if any, assumed in the study for the proposed expansion and how and where it is applied.

8. Project costs; the total amount of debt financing required; marketing projections; resident rates, fees, and charges; the competition; resident contract provisions; and other factors that affect the feasibility of the facility.

9. Appropriate population projections, including morbidity and mortality assumptions.

10. The name of the person who prepared the feasibility study and his or her experience in preparing similar studies or otherwise consulting in the field of continuing care.

11. Financial forecasts or projections prepared in accordance with standards adopted by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants or in accordance with standards for feasibility studies for continuing care retirement communities adopted by the Actuarial Standards Board.

12. An independent evaluation and examination opinion for the first 5 years of operations, or a comparable opinion acceptable to the office, by the certified public accountant who prepared the study, of the underlying assumptions used as a basis for the forecasts or projections in the study and that the assumptions are reasonable and proper and the project as proposed is feasible.

13. Any other information that the provider deems relevant and appropriate to provide to enable the office to make a more informed determination.

(b) Such other reasonable data, financial statements, and pertinent information as the commission or office may require with respect to the applicant or the facility to determine the financial status of the facility and the management capabilities of its managers and owners.

If any material change occurs in the facts set forth in an application filed with the office pursuant to this section, an amendment setting forth such change must be filed with the office within 10 business days after the applicant becomes aware of such change, and a copy of the amendment must be sent by registered mail to the principal office of the facility and to the principal office of the controlling company.

(3) A minimum of 75 percent of the moneys paid for all or any part of an initial entrance fee or reservation deposit collected for units in the expansion and 50 percent of the moneys paid for all or any part of an initial fee collected for continuing care at-home contracts in the expansion must be placed in an escrow account or on deposit with the department as prescribed in s. 651.033. Up to 25 percent of the moneys paid for all or any part of an initial entrance fee or reservation deposit may be included or pledged for the construction or purchase of the facility or as security for long-term financing. As used in this section, the term “initial entrance fee” means the total entrance fee charged by the facility to the first occupant of a unit.

(4) The provider is entitled to secure release of the moneys held in escrow within 7 days after receipt by the office of an affidavit from the provider, along with appropriate copies to verify, and notification to the escrow agent by certified mail that the following conditions have been satisfied:

(a) A certificate of occupancy has been issued.

(b) Payment in full has been received for at least 50 percent of the total units of a phase or of the total of the combined phases constructed; or a provider has collected a reservation deposit for at least 75 percent of the proposed units for which an entrance fee is to be charged, and the escrowed funds will be used for the sole purpose of paying secured indebtedness as specified in the feasibility study submitted pursuant to paragraph (2)(a). The minimum reservation deposit must be the lesser of $40,000 or 10 percent of the then-current entrance fee for the unit being reserved. If the expansion is to be completed in multiple phases, the 75 percent reservation requirement applies separately to each phase of the expansion. If a provider offering continuing care at-home is applying for a release of escrowed entrance fees, the same minimum requirement must be met for the continuing care and continuing care at-home contracts independently of each other.

(c) Documents evidencing that commitments have been secured or that a documented plan adopted by the applicant has been approved by the office for long-term financing.

(d) Documents evidencing that the provider has sufficient funds to meet the requirements of s. 651.035, which may include funds deposited in the initial entrance fee account.

(e) Documents evidencing the intended application of the proceeds upon release and documentation that the entrance fees, when released, will be applied as represented to the office.

Notwithstanding chapter 120, only the provider, the escrow agent, and the office have a substantial interest in any office decision regarding release of escrow funds in any proceedings under chapter 120 or this chapter.

(5)(a) Within 30 days after receipt of an application for expansion, the office shall examine the application and shall notify the applicant in writing, specifically requesting any additional information that the office is authorized to require. Within 15 days after the office receives all the requested additional information, the office shall notify the applicant in writing that the requested information has been received and that the application is deemed complete as of the date of the notice. Failure to notify the applicant in writing within the 15-day period constitutes acknowledgment by the office that it has received all requested additional information, and the application is deemed complete for purposes of review on the date the applicant files all of the required additional information. If the application submitted is determined by the office to be substantially incomplete so as to require substantial additional information, including biographical information, the office may return the application to the applicant with a written notice stating that the application as received is substantially incomplete and, therefore, is unacceptable for filing without further action required by the office. Any filing fee received must be refunded to the applicant.

(b) An application is deemed complete upon the office receiving all requested information and the applicant correcting any error or omission of which the applicant was timely notified or when the time for such notification has expired. The office shall notify the applicant in writing of the date on which the application was deemed complete.

(6) Within 30 days after the date on which an application is deemed complete as provided in paragraph (5)(b), the office shall complete its review and, based upon its review, approve an expansion by the applicant and issue a determination that the application meets all requirements of law, that the feasibility study was based on sufficient data and reasonable assumptions, and that the applicant will be able to provide continuing care or continuing care at-home as proposed and meet all financial and contractual obligations related to its operations, including the financial requirements of this chapter. If the application is denied, the office must notify the applicant in writing, citing the specific failures to meet the requirements of this chapter. The denial entitles the applicant to a hearing pursuant to chapter 120.