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Bill S762 ...failure to provide association members timely access to certain meeting minutes

NJ HOA Info@njhoainfo
#1 · September 23, 2023, 2:59 pm

Bill S762 (formerly A4946)

SYNOPSIS

  Establishes penalty on planned real estate development association for failure to provide association members timely access to certain meeting minutes.

More info at link https://pub.njleg.gov/Bills/2022/A5000/4946_I1.HTM

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION

 

 

 

Sponsored by:

Senator  GORDON M. JOHNSON

District 37 (Bergen)

SYNOPSIS

Establishes penalty on planned real estate development association for failure to provide association members timely access to certain meeting minutes.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.

 

 

An Act concerning association member access to executive board meeting minutes in common interest communities, and amending P.L.1993, c.30.

 

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

  1. Section 2 of P.L.1993, c.30 (C.45:22A-44) is amended to read as follows:
  2. a.  Subject to the master deed, declaration of covenants and restrictions or other instruments of creation, the association may do all that it is legally entitled to do under the laws applicable to its form of organization.
  3. The association shall exercise its powers and discharge its functions in a manner that protects and furthers the health, safety and general welfare of the residents of the community.
  4. The association shall provide a fair and efficient procedure for the resolution of disputes between individual unit owners and the association, and between unit owners, which shall be readily available as an alternative to litigation.
  5. The association may assert tort claims concerning the common elements and facilities of the development as if the claims were asserted directly by the unit owners individually.
  6.      The Commissioner of Community Affairs shall have the authority to impose a penalty on an association for failing to make minutes of meetings available to the association members, to the extent required pursuant to subsection a. of section 4 of P.L.1993, c.30 (C.45:22A-46).  A penalty imposed by the commissioner pursuant to this subsection shall not exceed $2,000 per meeting for which the minutes were required to be taken and made available to all association members, but were not made available to one or more association members. 

(cf: P.L.1993, c.30, s.2)

 

  1. This act shall take effect on the first day of the second month next following enactment.

STATEMENT

 

This bill would provide the Commissioner of Community Affairs with the authority to impose a penalty on the association of a planned real estate development for failing to make executive board meeting minutes available to the association members in compliance with the existing requirements of the 1993 supplement to “The Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act”, P.L.1993, c.30 (C.45:22A-43 et seq.).  A penalty imposed by the commissioner pursuant to this bill would not exceed $2,000 per meeting for which the minutes were not made available to one or more association members.

Under existing law, the association of a planned real estate development is required to make minutes of the proceedings of executive board meetings available to all association members prior to the next open meeting.  The meetings subject to this existing requirement consist of all executive board meetings required to be open to all association members, and voting-eligible tenants where applicable.  A planned real estate development is a term defined in the “The Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act,” P.L.1977, c.419 (C.45:22A-21 et seq.) to encompass communities governed by homeowners’ associations, condominiums, and cooperative communities.

 

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Last edited on January 28, 2024, 5:38 pm by NJ HOA Info
Margaret@matenerovich
Logged in Users
#2 · October 15, 2023, 10:46 pm

Hello!  I am new to this site and a long time condo owner who was admin for builder many years and bought into condo we built. Currently run by large management corp and a Board being mislead. This weeks issue is that NO MINUTES posted on TownSq service since COVID. Wrote and posted attached on the 'Forum' but

9/19/2023
Marilynn Walters wrote,

“Good information. I believe the last time the meeting minutes were published on this forum was 10/20/21. Maybe it’s time to begin that practice again.”

Forum/General

Sep 15, 2023 | Friday

Meeting Minutes PPCA 2023

Comments: 1

Margie Tenerovich

Address 307 PARK PLACE DRIVE

DEBUNK - BUSTING the 3 MYTHS About Condo Meeting Minutes, that are erroneous and unjust.
TRUE: A key challenge of operating a community association is to understand the condo meeting minutes. Myths about what minutes are and how they function may lead to a myriad of problems down the road. Here are three common misconceptions about minutes for homeowner association HOA board meetings and annual meetings:
FALSE: 1. Minutes are Transcripts: Contrary to popular belief, minutes are not a word-for-word transcript of everything that was said during a meeting. Instead, minutes should succinctly capture the essence of decisions, motions, action items, and the rationale behind them. The goal is to have a concise, clear, and official record of the choices a board makes and why, and the next steps it agrees to take. Including excessive detail can be burdensome to read and may inadvertently document unnecessary or even inappropriate comments that could expose the association, its directors, or community manager to liability.
2. Only Decisions Need to be Recorded: The results of votes and official decisions are not the only information that should be included in the minutes. While these are essential, it’s also crucial to include enough context so that someone reading the minutes later – even years after – can understand the reasoning behind decisions. This means briefly summarizing why the board acted the way it did, noting any reports or presentations given, and detailing any motions passed. On the flip side, remember that personal opinions, unrelated tangents, or speculative comments don’t have a place in minutes.
3. Meeting Minutes are Optional: This is perhaps one of the riskiest myths. In fact, meeting minutes are legally required. Minutes serve as an official record, ensuring transparency, accountability, and a clear historical trail that the board acted properly when formulating its decisions. Without minutes, associations may face difficulties when trying to trace back decisions, or when they need to prove or validate past actions, especially in legal or contentious situations. Minutes are not just good practice – they are fundamental to the smooth functioning and governance of their HOA.
The Takeaway - Minutes serve as the official record and are pivotal to transparency, accountability, and historical documentation. By debunking these misconceptions, managers and board members can ensure that the association’s minutes are effective, clear, and beneficial to all stakeholders.
Misunderstandings about the role of minutes leads to missed opportunities and potential disputes. It’s imperative that everyone in a community association, from managers to Board members, understands the importance re proper RECORDS of all meeting minutes.

The one reply alerted Associa so they immediately CLOSED (disappeared)!  An attempt to re-open not possible. Unacceptable regulation of owners’ forum complaint and TownSq dba HOAM Ventures advised to just RE-OPEN complaint.

manager immediately 'closed'.  Timely is clearly not the issue but trying this submission to test what advice you may have for us.

Word doc

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