Sunday, May 14, 2017

HB 1237 - Condominiums


All of us who live in condominiums run by a board of directors can only hope that Gov. Rick Scott will sign this bill. As I live in a condo with a board of directors from hell and people who are clueless on Florida law, I am in strong support of HB 1237, which will finally bring about much needed accountability in condominium associations and the boards that govern our day-to-day operations. July 1 can't come soon enough.

CS/CS/HB 1237: Condominiums

GENERAL BILL by Judiciary Committee ; Civil Justice and Claims Subcommittee ; Diaz, J. ; (CO-INTRODUCERS) Avila ; Cortes, J. ; Diaz, M. ; Mercado ; Nunez

Condominiums; Revises & provides requirements relating to condominiums, including kickbacks, association documents, attorney representation, recordkeeping requirements, purchasing of units at foreclosure sale, financial statements, powers & duties of Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, & Mobile Homes, board membership, management services, conflicts of interest, arbitration, member voting rights, & reporting requirements; provides criminal penalties.

Effective Date: 7/1/2017
Last Action: 5/1/2017 House - Ordered enrolled -HJ 1022

Some of the highlights of this bill that I particularly like:
  • Prohibiting a condominium association and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from using a debit card issued in the name of the association, or billed directly to the association, for the payment of any association expense
  • Term limits; with exceptions
  • Forgery of a ballot envelope or voting certificate  used in a condominium association election is punishable as  provided in s. 831.01, the theft or embezzlement of funds of a  condominium association is punishable as provided in s. 812.014,  and the destruction of or the refusal to allow inspection or  copying of an official record of a condominium association that  is accessible to unit owners within the time periods required by general law in furtherance of any crime is punishable as  tampering with physical evidence as provided in s. 918.13 or as  obstruction of justice as provided in chapter 843
  • The association may contract, sue, or be sued with respect to the exercise or nonexercise of its powers. For these  purposes, the powers of the association include, but are not  limited to, the maintenance, management, and operation of the condominium property.

Read HB 1237

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

With condo board positions always hard to fill, no pay, big headaches and unappreciative owner/members, this bill will go a long way to fill the seats.

Lynn Anderson said...

These so called "volunteers" need to learn their jobs and the law. There are way too many who ignore the documents and do as they please. Hopefully, this will come to a halt as now they will be held criminally responsible. All associations should have a lawyer that can keep them on the right track.
Board members should be appreciated if they do the job that they agree to do. but too many just want the power, the prestige or whatever motivates these lazy bums to become board members in the first place. Good ones are an exception these days at least in my community.

Anonymous said...

Do you think that holding people criminally liable for their actions as volunteers on a condo board will attract better quality board officers?

Lynn Anderson said...

I think it will make them THINK twice before they purposely subvert the law. Hopefully, it will Attract people who know they must work within the Statues and documents. Doing it right is as easy as doing it wrong.

Anonymous said...

Most of the Condo and HOA Board members have never read the Declaration, Articles of Incorporation, and By Laws, let alone the Statutes. Of those who have read them, even fewer understand them.

Lynn Anderson said...

True, anonymous at 12:34...and they must sign an affidavit that he or she has read the association's declaration of condominium, articles of incorporation, bylaws, and current written policies; that he or she will work to uphold such documents and policies to the best of his or her ability; and that he or she will faithfully discharge his or her fiduciary responsibility to the association's members.

Because most have not done this, as you state, gets condo associations in trouble. The other thing is not referring to their board attorney when they don't fully have an answer in order to be compliant and within the law.

Anonymous said...

Couldn't have said it better myself!

Anonymous said...

Looks like the blogger is responding to her own posts again. Slow news day on the conservative front?

Lynn Anderson said...

To the person who tried to post here saying I live in a dumpy apartment, etc. and hopes that the Lord will forgive me before I die--I think it is you who should be worried about the after life. Maybe He will forgive your ineptness and lies in "running" this association. You have way too much hate in your heart.

Anonymous said...

Condo commandos are well known in Florida. So many of them are useless. Condo living can be horrible if you don't have the right management.

Unknown said...

Lynn, you are spot on with HB 1237. We are focused on the requirements of the condominium association of having a secure website for the unit owners. It is important to understand that this will be low January 1st, 2019 and condominium associations that are not compliant can be hit with fines up to $5000 and may even have their charter revoked. We here at Condominium Association Websites of Florida are ready to assist you with this problem. We provide a full service solution by building out your condo association website, renovating your current site, adding the secure access for your unit owners, management of those owners, customer service to you and your unit owners, updates on the site, and keeping up with the latest changes to the law. We are 100% American Made and based out of Coral Springs Florida.