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Six homeowner association bills signed

This legislative session Utah Gov. Gary Herbert signed six laws changing the way homeowner associations operate, including how they deal with rental units, conduct board meetings and make disclosures.

The six bills are multi-faceted pieces of legislation and impact the associations in varying degrees. Some address procedural matters, while others will directly affect how association business and meetings are conducted. Homeowner associations (HOA) operate as nonprofit corporations to maintain common areas and establish specific neighborhood covenants and restrictions.

Two of the bills require the neighborhood groups to open all meetings to homeowners and to disclose financial information. Each bill successfully passed through the Utah Legislature with little opposition.

Summit County’s representatives, Rep. Mel Brown, Sen. Allen Christensen, Sen. Kevin Van Tassell, Rep. Kraig Powell, and Rep. Brian King, all voted in favor of the measures.

John Morris, an HOA attorney with the Utah law firm, Morris Sperry, said the bills follow a few themes in the way they impact the associations. Morris said the perception in the legislature is that oftentimes the balance of power is swayed in the direction of the associations. It is rare, but in some instances associations are poorly run and can be tyrannical, Morris said.

For some of the new laws, Morris said this is about trying to balance out the power between associations and owners. He said the changes won’t significantly impact "well-run associations."

"For others, this is about making it easier for associations to do the business they need to do while making sure the protections for owners are in place that need to be in place," Morris said.

The six bills are:

  • HB 99, which requires that board meetings be open to each unit or lot owner and upon the owner’s request, the association must provide email notification to owners of meeting dates and times.
  • SB 118 changes the procedure for owners requesting copies of records from the association and clearly defines how to make those requests. It also imposes a fine if associations fail to comply with proper requests. Another component of the bill helps associations amend their governing documents.
  • HB 304 allows associations to contact utility companies to request the companies give the HOA notice before utility service is terminated at a residence. This gives the association the opportunity to winterize the unit and prevent pipes from freezing and flooding.
  • SB 80 makes a minor change to the laws pertaining to fund reserves, which address the obligation of associations to save money for future repairs. The amendment requires developers to provide financial disclosures to purchasers in new associations.
  • HB 98 adds significant changes to how associations deal with rental units. It places some new limitations on future rental restrictions and modifies and clarifies the procedures by which an association may assess a fine or issue warning letters.
  • SB 206 amends the law concerning nonprofit corporations and changes how HOAs conduct business via email.

Five of the bills will go into effect May 12 and HB 99 will go into effect July 1.

"Homeowners should know that they have clear rights and some very serious remedies at least as it relates to attending meetings of the board and getting copies of association financial records," he said.

In turn, these procedural amendments will also make it easier for the associations to conduct business by email and associations might not have been able to amend their governing documents, Morris said.

Each year, more and more bills are passing through with legislation affecting HOAs, Morris said.

"I don’t know if that’s because the industry is getting more sophisticated," he said. "But there is definitely that balance of power issue that is out there and the Legislature is eager to respond when they perceive one party has unfair power over the other."

Summit County


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