A new law has been passed that could help homeowners with sinkhole issues bring their property values back up.
Senate Bill 1216, which was put together by state Sen. Wilton Simpson, contains a provision that would allow the county to come into sinkhole-prone communities and designate them as areas that need improvement.
The bill was signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott earlier this month.
That designation would then allow the county to reach out to FEMA and other resources for funding to fix problems caused by sinkholes.
"By bringing these resources, we may have finally found a solution for our problems in mass scale, not one at time but now entire communities to repair," Simpson said.
That law could be helpful to homeowners like Myra Bonventre. Bonventre purchased her Port Richey home 37 years ago, but she wasn't aware that her home was in the middle of one of Pasco County's most sinkhole-prone areas.
Bonventre said the sinkhole activity has taken a toll on her property values.
"Years ago this house would have sold for $110,000 and I had somebody come here and look at the house and she told me $45,000,” she said.
Even though the county is glad it now has the option to reach out to FEMA to help homeowners like Bonventre, county officials want to proceed with caution when labeling areas.
“You have got to be careful about declaring them as blighted because the neighborhood next over is going to be affected by lower property value,” Pasco County spokesperson Doug Tobin said.
Instead, the county says it will most likely give out loans to help residents fix their sinkhole issues. Either way, Myra is relieved she’ll be seeing relief if another hole opens in her home.