One of the key elements of the new Florida law regulating homeowners’ associations is transparency in association records.
There are new criminal penalties for board members and associations who willfully refuse to provide official records.
There are new rules that eliminate fines if records aren’t provided.
HOAs have to respond within five days to a subpoena for records.
Board members are now required to have formal training on record keeping too!
In all, there are 70 references to records in the new law.
One of the biggest changes in record keeping now that HB1203 is law is a requirement to ensure nearly all of an association’s records are available online by January 1, 2025. That is only in six months – so associations must act fast to be in compliance.
The attorneys at The Orlando Law Group represent more than 100 communities in Central Florida If you live in Orlando, Winter Garden, Altamonte Springs, Kissimmee or anywhere throughout Central Florida, The Orlando Law Group is ready to help you.
What do I need to put on our website?
This law is the first time the state’s statutes have listed exactly what needs to be on a website and how it needs to be listed. It’s a long list – nearly 10 percent of the bill’s text was devoted to this topic – three pages of items required.
Here is everything that is required:
- The articles of incorporation of the association.
- The recorded bylaws of the association and any amendments.
- The declaration of covenants and any amendments.
- The current rules of the association.
- A list of all current contracts or documents to which the association is a party.
- A list of bids received by the association within the past year.
- The annual budget and any proposed budget being considered at the annual meeting.
- The financial report any monthly income or expense statement.
- The association’s current insurance policies.
- The certification of each director.
- All contracts or transactions in which a director of an association has a financial interest.
- Any contract or document regarding a conflict of interest or possible conflict of interest.
- Notice of any scheduled meeting of members and the agenda for the meeting at least 14 days before such meeting.
- Notice of any board meeting, the agenda, and any other document required for such meeting.
Many of these documents have very specific instructions on what needs to be available.
For instance, the notice for public meetings “must be posted in plain view on the homepage of the website or application, or on a separate subpage of the website or application labeled “Notices” which is conspicuously visible and linked from the homepage.
“The association shall also post on its website or application any document to be considered and voted on by the members during the meeting or any document listed on the meeting agenda at least 7 days before the meeting at which such document or information within the document will be considered.”
Frankly, there are many places where a homeowners’ association could inadvertently violate the new law.
What are the rules for this new statute?
Not only did the statute say what was required to be available, but it also provided relatively clear direction on how they needed to be displayed.
For the most part, these websites must have a “subpage, web portal, or other protected electronic location that is inaccessible to the general public and accessible only to parcel owners and employees of the association.”
It is required that every homeowner – on request – must be provided a password and user name to access the documents.
In addition, the statute says the association needs to redact non-public information and be careful about putting exempt information on the web portal. However, unless it was an intentional disregard for the law, an association is not liable for disclosing exempt information on the portal. (Exempt information can be found here)
What do we need to do now?
The law is clear. By January 1, 2025, all homeowners’ associations with more than 100 parcels will need to have this program live.
If a community does not have a website, using Facebook perhaps, the community will need to find a web developer as soon as possible to help build a basic website for the community.
If a community has a website, they will need to work with their web developer to ensure they comply and can develop a password-protected section on the website.
Finally, there are a lot of legal nuances and references to multiple statutes in the section. An attorney must review all of the documents to ensure they meet the new statute.
The attorneys at The Orlando Law Group can help association board members and managers in Orlando, Waterford Lakes, Altamonte Springs, Winter Garden, Lake Nona, St. Cloud, Kissimmee, and throughout Central Florida.
If you have questions about anything discussed in this article or other legal matters, give our office a call at 407-512-4394 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a consultation to discuss your case. We have an office conveniently located at 12301 Lake Underhill Rd, Suite 213, Orlando, FL 32828, as well as offices in Seminole, Osceola and West Orange counties to assist you.
The articles on this blog are for informative purposes only and are no substitute for legal advice or an attorney-client relationship. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact our law firm directly.
Last Updated on June 12, 2024 by The Orlando Law Group
