Finally, there’s some good news for the beleaguered timeshare industry. No, it isn’t a leap in sales volumes or a sudden thawing of the lending markets. Rather, this victory came in the Florida state legislature, which last week passed a law that both protects timeshare owners and should help the industry solidify its image as a business to trust.

The bill, HB 61, has three major provisions critical to the vacation ownership industry:

• It specifically prohibits the state or local jurisdictions from taxing the value of timeshare exchanges. While no city in Florida or elsewhere currently levies occupancy or sales taxes on exchanges, the industry was worried that cash-strapped communities would look in that direction to build additional revenues. Two other states, California and South Carolina, have passed similar legislation.

“It couldn’t be a stronger statement than to have this legislation pass in a state like Florida, where it is now cemented in law and also supported by the Department of Revenue,” says Jason Gamel, vice president of state government affairs for the American Resort Developers Association. “It has vast economic implications in that it gives owners certainty that they won’t have to pay these taxes.”

And while the law provides protection to timeshare owners, Gamel considers it a big win for the industry, as well.

“Given that exchange is a very large part of how timeshare owners use and enjoy the product, and now that they don’t need to worry about taxes, it continues to enhance the value of the product,” says Gamel. “Now developers can say with assurance what the price will be for their products. And from a global perspective, it gives people one more reason to buy a timeshare in the state of Florida.”

• On the flip side, another part of the law codifies a common industry practice in Florida and many other states by applying occupancy or sale taxes when timeshare units are sold for transient stays. Although a previous loophole in the law didn’t specifically sanction this practice, it was common in most communities with timeshare units.

“As an association, we always advocated that when a timeshare unit is rented like a hotel room, it should be taxed like a hotel room,” says Gamel.

• The third provision borrows a page from the auto industry as it allows timeshare developers an opportunity to offer debt cancellation options to purchasers of their products. As some auto manufacturers do, timeshare sellers can allow buyers to return units to developers or sellers if they lose a job or are otherwise faced with economic hardship. Doing so wouldn’t have an affect on the consumer’s credit score. This, too, helps the industry, says Gamel, in that it provides customers more comfort that their purchases will be protected.

Gamel and other ARDA lobbyists are following a number of other federal, state and local legislative issues that could help or hurt the industry and its customers.

Of particular concern to Gamel are the massive budget problems faced by many states. “A number of states—including popular timeshare locations like Florida, California, Hawaii and South Carolina—are facing serious fiscal issues, and lawmakers are looking around for new sources of revenues,” he says. “Among the possibilities that concern us are increases in real estate taxes and sales taxes.”

ARDA is also supporting in several states adoption of non-judicial foreclosure procedures. Gamel says such a change can help homeowners associations minimize their losses when timeshare owners are unable or unwilling to pay their maintenance fees.

“HOAs suffer disproportionately when owners are delinquent with their dues,” he says. “A traditional judicial approach can take a year to complete and may cost the HOA three times the amount of fees it’s due.”