1. (1) (a) After receiving the tax collector’s certification and the tax deed application, the clerk must publish a notice of the pending sale once each week for four consecutive weeks in a local newspaper.

2. (b) 1. Proof of publication may be copies of all four advertisements showing the date the advertisements were published. The four advertisements must remain intact with the date line of the paper shown.

   2. Proof of advertisement may also be in the form of a publisher’s affidavit with one copy of the advertisement attached.

3. (c) 1. The form of the notice and the information it contains must be substantially as follows:

   NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED

   The holder of the following tax certificates has filed the certificates for a tax deed to be issued. The certificate numbers and years of issuance, the description of the property, and the names in which it was assessed are:

   ___ Certificate No./Year of Issuance/Description of Property/Name in which assessed

   All of the property is in _________ County, Florida.

   Unless the certificate or certificates are redeemed according to law, the property described in the certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on _______ (date and time).

   Clerk of Circuit Court, ___________ County, Florida Ad No. ___

   2. The notice must be single column and the size of the print must be the same as any other legal advertisement. The clerk must not consolidate legal advertisements of tax deed applications with different legal descriptions.

4. (2) Clerk’s Responsibilities for Delivery to the Sheriff.

   1. (a) If the owner resides in the same county where the property is located, the clerk must deliver an original plus sufficient copies of the notice to the sheriff of that county.
   2. (b) If the owner resides in Florida outside the county where the property is located, the clerk must deliver an original plus sufficient copies of the notice to the sheriff of the county in which the property is located, unless the property is assessed as non-agricultural acreage or vacant land.
   3. (c) If the owner resides outside the State of Florida, the clerk must send notice to the sheriff of the county where the property is located, unless the property is assessed as non-agricultural acreage or vacant land.

Rulemaking Authority 195.022, 195.027(1), 213.06(1) FS. Law Implemented 197.502, 197.512, 197.522, 197.542 FS. History–New 6-18-85, Formerly 12D-13.62, Amended 12-3-01, 1-26-04, 4-5-16, 1-8-19.