There had been few attempts of the Florida legislation to clarify additional administrative fees.
Upon adoption or written management agreement, the Board has the authority to charge a fee for a certificate. This means, if not stated in your community documents, a fee for the preparation of an estoppel certificate may be collected. The legislation does not state the minimum amounts.

The local standard for prepared board approval forms are $100.00, which includes processing. Question & Answer sheets would be a $25.00 additional charge. Assuming the amended resolution means the estoppel certificate, a reasonable additional charge may range from $25.00 to $35.00. Clarification is scarce in this amendment.

If the sale fell through, and the payor is NOT a unit owner, within 30 days the payor can request a refund. The seller will be responsible for reimbursements and collected by the Association as an assessment. See Section 718.116:

(d)  The authority to charge a fee for the certificate shall be established by a written resolution adopted by the board or provided by a written management, bookkeeping, or maintenance contract and is payable upon the preparation of the certificate. If the certificate is requested in conjunction with the sale or mortgage of a unit but the closing does not occur and no later than 30 days after the closing date for which the certificate was sought the preparer receives a written request, accompanied by reasonable documentation, that the sale did not occur from a payor that is not the unit owner, the fee shall be refunded to that payor within 30 days after receipt of the request. The refund is the obligation of the unit owner, and the association may collect it from that owner in the same manner as an assessment as provided in this section.

Now it is mandatory to have an insurance appraisal prepared by an independent appraiser at least once every 36 months. The appraisal must be based upon actual replacement costs. This may be a confirmed law, but has always been a common practice to ensure adequate coverage.

Another new statute confirms that the board of directors will establish the insurance deductibles base on local standards. Again, this has been common practice. It’s common to have an Insurance Committee recommend deductibles for the Board to consider.

On or after January 1, 2009, all portions of a condominium property with any alteration or additions must provide primary coverage excluding all personal property. Once again, this is common practice.

Beyond recall by the association, homeowners may display a United States flag in a respectful manner. However, if the flag is obtrusively too big, the board may deem a nuisance. See, “Displaying an American Flag in a Planned Development, Condominium or Homeowner”.

If an owner, resident or occupant has a disability which requires wheelchair access, may install a ramp under these conditions:

Design, plans or specifications are submitted to the association in advance. This should be part of the application process.

The access ramp should be designed to aesthetically blend with walkways. The board can make reasonable chances to architecturally fuse or fit with existing surfaces and structures.

The parcel owner must submit to the association an affidavit from a physician attesting to the medical necessity or disability of the resident or occupant of the parcel requiring the access ramp. Certification used for s. 320.0848 shall be sufficient to meet the affidavit requirement.

Most governing documents prohibits signs posted in the community. However, a security sign of reasonable size cannot be revoked if placed ten feet from the front entrance of a home.

A Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) suit cannot with merit be brought against a parcel owner for any of the above actions. Nor, can a homeowner association use association funds to bring such actions to court. For more fun facts see, “What you should know about Hurricane Shutter Installations in Condominiums and Cooperatives”. To review supporting documents, click here.

720.304  Right of owners to peaceably assemble; display of flag; SLAPP suits prohibited.–
(1)  All common areas and recreational facilities serving any homeowners’ association shall be available to parcel owners in the homeowners’ association served thereby and their invited guests for the use intended for such common areas and recreational facilities. The entity or entities responsible for the operation of the common areas and recreational facilities may adopt reasonable rules and regulations pertaining to the use of such common areas and recreational facilities. No entity or entities shall unreasonably restrict any parcel owner’s right to peaceably assemble or right to invite public officers or candidates for public office to appear and speak in common areas and recreational facilities.
(2)  Any homeowner may display one portable, removable United States flag or official flag of the State of Florida in a respectful manner, and on Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, and Veterans Day may display in a respectful manner portable, removable official flags, not larger than 41/2 feet by 6 feet, which represent the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard, regardless of any declaration rules or requirements dealing with flags or decorations.
(3)  Any owner prevented from exercising rights guaranteed by subsection (1) or subsection (2) may bring an action in the appropriate court of the county in which the alleged infringement occurred, and, upon favorable adjudication, the court shall enjoin the enforcement of any provision contained in any homeowners’ association document or rule that operates to deprive the owner of such rights.
(4)  It is the intent of the Legislature to protect the right of parcel owners to exercise their rights to instruct their representatives and petition for redress of grievances before the various governmental entities of this state as protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and s. 5, Art. I of the State Constitution. The Legislature recognizes that “Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation” or “SLAPP” suits, as they are typically called, have occurred when members are sued by individuals, business entities, or governmental entities arising out of a parcel owner’s appearance and presentation before a governmental entity on matters related to the homeowners’ association. However, it is the public policy of this state that government entities, business organizations, and individuals not engage in SLAPP suits because such actions are inconsistent with the right of parcel owners to participate in the state’s institutions of government. Therefore, the Legislature finds and declares that prohibiting such lawsuits by governmental entities, business entities, and individuals against parcel owners who address matters concerning their homeowners’ association will preserve this fundamental state policy, preserve the constitutional rights of parcel owners, and assure the continuation of representative government in this state. It is the intent of the Legislature that such lawsuits be expeditiously disposed of by the courts.
(a)  As used in this subsection, the term “governmental entity” means the state, including the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government, the independent establishments of the state, counties, municipalities, districts, authorities, boards, or commissions, or any agencies of these branches which are subject to chapter 286.
(b)  A governmental entity, business organization, or individual in this state may not file or cause to be filed through its employees or agents any lawsuit, cause of action, claim, cross-claim, or counterclaim against a parcel owner without merit and solely because such parcel owner has exercised the right to instruct his or her representatives or the right to petition for redress of grievances before the various governmental entities of this state, as protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and s. 5, Art. I of the State Constitution.
(c)  A parcel owner sued by a governmental entity, business organization, or individual in violation of this section has a right to an expeditious resolution of a claim that the suit is in violation of this section. A parcel owner may petition the court for an order dismissing the action or granting final judgment in favor of that parcel owner. The petitioner may file a motion for summary judgment, together with supplemental affidavits, seeking a determination that the governmental entity’s, business organization’s, or individual’s lawsuit has been brought in violation of this section. The governmental entity, business organization, or individual shall thereafter file its response and any supplemental affidavits. As soon as practicable, the court shall set a hearing on the petitioner’s motion, which shall be held at the earliest possible time after the filing of the governmental entity’s, business organization’s or individual’s response. The court may award the parcel owner sued by the governmental entity, business organization, or individual actual damages arising from the governmental entity’s, individual’s, or business organization’s violation of this section. A court may treble the damages awarded to a prevailing parcel owner and shall state the basis for the treble damages award in its judgment. The court shall award the prevailing party reasonable attorney’s fees and costs incurred in connection with a claim that an action was filed in violation of this section.
(d)  Homeowners’ associations may not expend association funds in prosecuting a SLAPP suit against a parcel owner.
(5)(a)  Any parcel owner may construct an access ramp if a resident or occupant of the parcel has a medical necessity or disability that requires a ramp for egress and ingress under the following conditions:
1.  The ramp must be as unobtrusive as possible, be designed to blend in aesthetically as practicable, and be reasonably sized to fit the intended use.
2.  Plans for the ramp must be submitted in advance to the homeowners’ association. The association may make reasonable requests to modify the design to achieve architectural consistency with surrounding structures and surfaces.
(b)  The parcel owner must submit to the association an affidavit from a physician attesting to the medical necessity or disability of the resident or occupant of the parcel requiring the access ramp. Certification used for s. 320.0848 shall be sufficient to meet the affidavit requirement.
(6)  Any parcel owner may display a sign of reasonable size provided by a contractor for security services within 10 feet of any entrance to the home.

In order to pass the “paper trail” bill, a number of amendments were added to satisfy the greedy legislators. One of the attached amendments was to move state primary back to January 29, 2008, which blatantly undermines the Democratic National Committee (DNC).  For a chance to regain compliance, the DNC gave a thirty day period or window by allowing florida state legislation to move democratic primary dates forward. The Florida legislation decided to argue with the DNC instead. Since Florida legislation pissed off the DNC, us floridians lost all votes for the presidential democratic nomination.

In the first place, if goveneror Charlie Crist made a consious decision to fight for the removal of moving the earily primary date, we would have had a vote. Now that the presumptuous mistake is in place, Charlie Crist is bickering with the DNC to allow our votes to count. This is one out of many screw ups which costs floridians. But this mistake doesn’t compare to the promise made by Charlie Crist if elected, he would lower our homeowners insurance. Incase you haven’t noticed, our homeower insurance rates were never lowered, in fact Charlie Crist stepped down and agreed with the greedy legislators to freeze Citizen’s insurance rates for three years.

Gee thanks Mr. Charlie Crist, now that insurance rates are two to three times higher (by Citizen’s, a Florida controlled insurance company) a freeze now gives any new insurance companies a higher-standard-rate to compete with. The end result is that floridains are stuck with ridiculously high insurance premimums and most likely will only raise to an even higher rate after the misally three year freeze.

More than ever, high insurance rates by Citizen’s, are currently hurting floridains financailly. Especially those who live on fixed incomes. Citizen’s high insurance rates are the direct result of associations exsuberately high maintenance fees. The only remedy floridains have for combating high insurance rates is to read, “Property Insurance at a All time High” then write and send an appropraite letter to the florida state legislation.

The second notice should have an agenda as described in the community documents. Since all agenda items are open for membership discussion, written description or purposes of the meeting would not be necessary.

Although rules and regulation adopted by the board can govern the duration, frequency and manner of statements given, as long as written request was given prior of the meeting, a member can speak for a minimum of three minutes on each subject.

In the event there is not a quorum at the annual meeting, the board may reconvene and continue the meeting on a later date. The opted date should be announced at the meeting and then the adjournment. For those members who were not registered at the original annual meeting, a notice should be sent and posted with the date in which the meeting will reconvened.

Proxies must state the date, time, place of annual meeting, signed and dated by the registered owner of record. Addresses are helpful for the administration. A proxy is executed for a specific meeting as the meeting may lawfully be adjourned and reconvened from time to time. Although intended to assign a proxy holder or substitute to act in place of the executioner, the proxy is revocable and expirers after ninety days after originally given.

Election of directors must be conducted as set fourth in the governing bylaws of the association. Even if a formal election is in process prior of annual meeting, a register member may nominate him or herself as a candidate for the board. Any election disputes between members and the association are subject to mandatory arbitration see, “Alternative Dispute Resolution for both Condominium & Homeowner Associations”. To review supporting documents, click here.
720.306 (4)  CONTENT OF NOTICE.–Unless law or the governing documents require otherwise, notice of an annual meeting need not include a description of the purpose or purposes for which the meeting is called. Notice of a special meeting must include a description of the purpose or purposes for which the meeting is called.
(5)  NOTICE OF MEETINGS.–The bylaws shall provide for giving notice to members of all member meetings, and if they do not do so shall be deemed to provide the following: The association shall give all parcel owners and members actual notice of all membership meetings, which shall be mailed, delivered, or electronically transmitted to the members not less than 14 days prior to the meeting. Evidence of compliance with this 14-day notice shall be made by an affidavit executed by the person providing the notice and filed upon execution among the official records of the association. In addition to mailing, delivering, or electronically transmitting the notice of any meeting, the association may, by reasonable rule, adopt a procedure for conspicuously posting and repeatedly broadcasting the notice and the agenda on a closed-circuit cable television system serving the association. When broadcast notice is provided, the notice and agenda must be broadcast in a manner and for a sufficient continuous length of time so as to allow an average reader to observe the notice and read and comprehend the entire content of the notice and the agenda.
(6)  RIGHT TO SPEAK.–Members and parcel owners have the right to attend all membership meetings and to speak at any meeting with reference to all items opened for discussion or included on the agenda. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in the governing documents or any rules adopted by the board or by the membership, a member and a parcel owner have the right to speak for at least 3 minutes on any item, provided that the member or parcel owner submits a written request to speak prior to the meeting. The association may adopt written reasonable rules governing the frequency, duration, and other manner of member and parcel owner statements, which rules must be consistent with this subsection.
(7)  ADJOURNMENT.–Unless the bylaws require otherwise, adjournment of an annual or special meeting to a different date, time, or place must be announced at that meeting before an adjournment is taken, or notice must be given of the new date, time, or place pursuant to s. 720.303(2). Any business that might have been transacted on the original date of the meeting may be transacted at the adjourned meeting. If a new record date for the adjourned meeting is or must be fixed under 1s. 617.0707, notice of the adjourned meeting must be given to persons who are entitled to vote and are members as of the new record date but were not members as of the previous record date.
(8)  PROXY VOTING.–The members have the right, unless otherwise provided in this subsection or in the governing documents, to vote in person or by proxy. To be valid, a proxy must be dated, must state the date, time, and place of the meeting for which it was given, and must be signed by the authorized person who executed the proxy. A proxy is effective only for the specific meeting for which it was originally given, as the meeting may lawfully be adjourned and reconvened from time to time, and automatically expires 90 days after the date of the meeting for which it was originally given. A proxy is revocable at any time at the pleasure of the person who executes it. If the proxy form expressly so provides, any proxy holder may appoint, in writing, a substitute to act in his or her place.
(9)  ELECTIONS.–Elections of directors must be conducted in accordance with the procedures set forth in the governing documents of the association. All members of the association shall be eligible to serve on the board of directors, and a member may nominate himself or herself as a candidate for the board at a meeting where the election is to be held. Except as otherwise provided in the governing documents, boards of directors must be elected by a plurality of the votes cast by eligible voters. Any election dispute between a member and an association must be submitted to mandatory binding arbitration with the division. Such proceedings shall be conducted in the manner provided by s. 718.1255 and the procedural rules adopted by the division.
(10)  RECORDING.–Any parcel owner may tape record or videotape meetings of the board of directors and meetings of the members. The board of directors of the association may adopt reasonable rules governing the taping of meetings of the board and the membership.

Annual meetings are held for the purpose of any business that comes before the members and for the election of directors, if necessary. If there were a lack of interest to run for the board, there would be no election at the annual meeting. The remaining officers at the time of the annual meeting will automatically return or shift to directors and would appoint  volunteers to fill board vacancies. If there were no interest to fill board vacancies to constitute a quorum, beware. See, “The Consequences of not having a Board Sufficient to Constitute a Quorum”.

If not provided for in the governing bylaws, the minimun Florida Statute quorum requirement of members at an annual meeting is 30% of the voting interest. Many homeowner documents require a 33% to constitute a quorum. A lower number of quorum requirement in the community documents, supersedes the Florida Statute, see 720.306 on the next page.

A quorum of an annual meeting can be in person or by proxy. Decisions requiring a members vote, such as a roll over or a waiver of financial reporting are carried by a majority vote of members present. Unless otherwise stated in the governing articles of incorporation’s or bylaws, amendment of governing documents requires a 2/3% vote of the total voting interest.

Unless otherwise provided for in the governing documents, changes of the total voting interest due to appurtenances or addition of property, requires a 100% members vote. For more fun facts see, “Sale and Lease Transfer Fee’s for Condominium and Homeowner Associations”. To review supporting documents, click here.

720.306  Meetings of members; voting and election procedures; amendments.–
(1)  QUORUM; AMENDMENTS.–
(a)  Unless a lower number is provided in the bylaws, the percentage of voting interests required to constitute a quorum at a meeting of the members shall be 30 percent of the total voting interests. Unless otherwise provided in this chapter or in the articles of incorporation or bylaws, decisions that require a vote of the members must be made by the concurrence of at least a majority of the voting interests present, in person or by proxy, at a meeting at which a quorum has been attained.
(b)  Unless otherwise provided in the governing documents or required by law, and other than those matters set forth in paragraph (c), any governing document of an association may be amended by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the voting interests of the association.
(c)  Unless otherwise provided in the governing documents as originally recorded or permitted by this chapter or chapter 617, an amendment may not materially and adversely alter the proportionate voting interest appurtenant to a parcel or increase the proportion or percentage by which a parcel shares in the common expenses of the association unless the record parcel owner and all record owners of liens on the parcels join in the execution of the amendment. For purposes of this section, a change in quorum requirements is not an alteration of voting interests. The merger or consolidation of one or more associations under a plan of merger or consolidation under chapter 607 or chapter 617 shall not be considered a material or adverse alteration of the proportionate voting interest appurtenant to a parcel.
(2)  ANNUAL MEETING.–The association shall hold a meeting of its members annually for the transaction of any and all proper business at a time, date, and place stated in, or fixed in accordance with, the bylaws. The election of directors, if one is required to be held, must be held at, or in conjunction with, the annual meeting or as provided in the governing documents.

Like most laws, there are special provisions and exceptions. For example, if there is only one vendor in the local county who performs unique services, such as elevator pit cleaning, foam roof installation and even chickee hut replacement, would not be subject to this law. Competitive bids are not required in emergency situations. Pipe break/s, sewer overflow, roof leak/s, irrigation pump repair (which may cause massive plant lost), and ever after a hurricane where services and materials are limited, are all examples of emergencies.

Services that do not required competitive bids:

• Employees
• Attorneys
• Accountants
• Architects
• Engineers
• Property managers
• Landscape architects

As in most cases, if standards are not less stringent than those in these statutes, then communities may operate under provisions provided for in their governing document.  For more fun facts see, “What to know about Association Late Charges“. To review supporting documents, click here.
720.3055  Contracts for products and services; in writing; bids; exceptions.–
(1)  All contracts as further described in this section or any contract that is not to be fully performed within 1 year after the making thereof for the purchase, lease, or renting of materials or equipment to be used by the association in accomplishing its purposes under this chapter or the governing documents, and all contracts for the provision of services, shall be in writing. If a contract for the purchase, lease, or renting of materials or equipment, or for the provision of services, requires payment by the association that exceeds 10 percent of the total annual budget of the association, including reserves, the association must obtain competitive bids for the materials, equipment, or services. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to require the association to accept the lowest bid.
(2)(a)1.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, contracts with employees of the association, and contracts for attorney, accountant, architect, community association manager, engineering, and landscape architect services are not subject to the provisions of this section.
2.  A contract executed before October 1, 2004, and any renewal thereof, is not subject to the competitive bid requirements of this section. If a contract was awarded under the competitive bid procedures of this section, any renewal of that contract is not subject to such competitive bid requirements if the contract contains a provision that allows the board to cancel the contract on 30 days’ notice. Materials, equipment, or services provided to an association under a local government franchise agreement by a franchise holder are not subject to the competitive bid requirements of this section. A contract with a manager, if made by a competitive bid, may be made for up to 3 years. An association whose declaration or bylaws provide for competitive bidding for services may operate under the provisions of that declaration or bylaws in lieu of this section if those provisions are not less stringent than the requirements of this section.
(b)  Nothing contained in this section is intended to limit the ability of an association to obtain needed products and services in an emergency.
(c)  This section does not apply if the business entity with which the association desires to enter into a contract is the only source of supply within the county serving the association.
(d)  Nothing contained in this section shall excuse a party contracting to provide maintenance or management services from compliance with s. 720.309.

As soon as a new improvement are made within a community, for some reason residents will duplicate improvements without realizing they are now in violation of the governing documents. We recommend upon signing a title deed that the new homeowner or owners read and sign a release stating the repercussions of any improvements made without board approval. In this way there would be less of a chance of document violation or violations. Also, may prevent the homeowner from making a costly mistake of adding enhancements and have the burden of paying for restoration.

For more fun facts see, “Displaying an American Flag in a Planned Development, Condominium or Homeowner”. To review supporting documents, click here.
720.3035  Architectural control covenants; parcel owner improvements; rights and privileges.–
(1)  The authority of an association or any architectural, construction improvement, or other such similar committee of an association to review and approve plans and specifications for the location, size, type, or appearance of any structure or other improvement on a parcel, or to enforce standards for the external appearance of any structure or improvement located on a parcel, shall be permitted only to the extent that the authority is specifically stated or reasonably inferred as to such location, size, type, or appearance in the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants.
(2)  If the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants provides options for the use of material, the size of the structure or improvement, the design of the structure or improvement, or the location of the structure or improvement on the parcel, neither the association nor any architectural, construction improvement, or other such similar committee of the association shall restrict the right of a parcel owner to select from the options provided in the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants.
(3)  Unless otherwise specifically stated in the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants, each parcel shall be deemed to have only one front for purposes of determining the required front setback even if the parcel is bounded by a roadway or other easement on more than one side. When the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants do not provide for specific setback limitations, the applicable county or municipal setback limitations shall apply, and neither the association nor any architectural, construction improvement, or other such similar committee of the association shall enforce or attempt to enforce any setback limitation that is inconsistent with the applicable county or municipal standard or standards.
(4)  Each parcel owner shall be entitled to the rights and privileges set forth in the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants concerning the architectural use of the parcel, and the construction of permitted structures and improvements on the parcel and such rights and privileges shall not be unreasonably infringed upon or impaired by the association or any architectural, construction improvement, or other such similar committee of the association. If the association or any architectural, construction improvement, or other such similar committee of the association should unreasonably, knowingly, and willfully infringe upon or impair the rights and privileges set forth in the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants, the adversely affected parcel owner shall be entitled to recover damages caused by such infringement or impairment, including any costs and reasonable attorney’s fees incurred in preserving or restoring the rights and privileges of the parcel owner set forth in the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants.
(5)  Neither the association nor any architectural, construction improvement, or other such similar committee of the association shall enforce any policy or restriction that is inconsistent with the rights and privileges of a parcel owner set forth in the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants, whether uniformly applied or not. Neither the association nor any architectural, construction improvement, or other such similar committee of the association may rely upon a policy or restriction that is inconsistent with the declaration of covenants or other published guidelines and standards authorized by the declaration of covenants, whether uniformly applied or not, in defense of any action taken in the name of or on behalf of the association against a parcel owner.

Ideally, director membership should be rotated among members. Each member of a community should volunteer their time to serve on the board for one term, even if they know nothing about directorship. By equal participation, the members can pay their contribution while learning how their community is run.  

Any or all directors can be recalled or impeached with or without cause. The best way to impeach a director or directors is by petition. Attached with the petition should be a ballot of the new member willing to serve on the board. A majority of the voting membership interest will automatically remove a director or directors subject to the provisions of statute 720.307.

Within five days of certified written recall by the majority voting interest, the association shall call a board meeting to honor the impeachment. The meeting minutes should show the date and time, decision of the board and the vote count taken on each board member subject to the recall. After majority of vote by the board, the member who had been recalled shall immediately step down and return all association property and records. If the board so elects not to certify the recall, within five days can file for binding arbitration.

Recall of a board member is enforceable in a circuit court in the same county of the association. For more fun facts see, “The Consequences of not having a Board Sufficient to Constitute a Quorum”. To review supporting document, click here.
720.303  (10)  RECALL OF DIRECTORS.–
(a)1.  Regardless of any provision to the contrary contained in the governing documents, subject to the provisions of s. 720.307 regarding transition of association control, any member of the board of directors may be recalled and removed from office with or without cause by a majority of the total voting interests.
2.  When the governing documents, including the declaration, articles of incorporation, or bylaws, provide that only a specific class of members is entitled to elect a board director or directors, only that class of members may vote to recall those board directors so elected.
(b)1.  Board directors may be recalled by an agreement in writing or by written ballot without a membership meeting. The agreement in writing or the written ballots, or a copy thereof, shall be served on the association by certified mail or by personal service in the manner authorized by chapter 48 and the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure.
2.  The board shall duly notice and hold a meeting of the board within 5 full business days after receipt of the agreement in writing or written ballots. At the meeting, the board shall either certify the written ballots or written agreement to recall a director or directors of the board, in which case such director or directors shall be recalled effective immediately and shall turn over to the board within 5 full business days any and all records and property of the association in their possession, or proceed as described in paragraph (d).
3.  When it is determined by the department pursuant to binding arbitration proceedings that an initial recall effort was defective, written recall agreements or written ballots used in the first recall effort and not found to be defective may be reused in one subsequent recall effort. However, in no event is a written agreement or written ballot valid for more than 120 days after it has been signed by the member.
4.  Any rescission or revocation of a member’s written recall ballot or agreement must be in writing and, in order to be effective, must be delivered to the association before the association is served with the written recall agreements or ballots.
5.  The agreement in writing or ballot shall list at least as many possible replacement directors as there are directors subject to the recall, when at least a majority of the board is sought to be recalled; the person executing the recall instrument may vote for as many replacement candidates as there are directors subject to the recall.
(c)1.  If the declaration, articles of incorporation, or bylaws specifically provide, the members may also recall and remove a board director or directors by a vote taken at a meeting. If so provided in the governing documents, a special meeting of the members to recall a director or directors of the board of administration may be called by 10 percent of the voting interests giving notice of the meeting as required for a meeting of members, and the notice shall state the purpose of the meeting. Electronic transmission may not be used as a method of giving notice of a meeting called in whole or in part for this purpose.
2.  The board shall duly notice and hold a board meeting within 5 full business days after the adjournment of the member meeting to recall one or more directors. At the meeting, the board shall certify the recall, in which case such member or members shall be recalled effective immediately and shall turn over to the board within 5 full business days any and all records and property of the association in their possession, or shall proceed as set forth in subparagraph (d).
(d)  If the board determines not to certify the written agreement or written ballots to recall a director or directors of the board or does not certify the recall by a vote at a meeting, the board shall, within 5 full business days after the meeting, file with the department a petition for binding arbitration pursuant to the applicable procedures in ss. 718.112(2)(j) and 718.1255 and the rules adopted thereunder. For the purposes of this section, the members who voted at the meeting or who executed the agreement in writing shall constitute one party under the petition for arbitration. If the arbitrator certifies the recall as to any director or directors of the board, the recall will be effective upon mailing of the final order of arbitration to the association. The director or directors so recalled shall deliver to the board any and all records of the association in their possession within 5 full business days after the effective date of the recall.
(e)  If a vacancy occurs on the board as a result of a recall and less than a majority of the board directors are removed, the vacancy may be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of the remaining directors, notwithstanding any provision to the contrary contained in this subsection or in the association documents. If vacancies occur on the board as a result of a recall and a majority or more of the board directors are removed, the vacancies shall be filled by members voting in favor of the recall; if removal is at a meeting, any vacancies shall be filled by the members at the meeting. If the recall occurred by agreement in writing or by written ballot, members may vote for replacement directors in the same instrument in accordance with procedural rules adopted by the division, which rules need not be consistent with this subsection.
(f)  If the board fails to duly notice and hold a board meeting within 5 full business days after service of an agreement in writing or within 5 full business days after the adjournment of the member recall meeting, the recall shall be deemed effective and the board directors so recalled shall immediately turn over to the board all records and property of the association.
(g)  If a director who is removed fails to relinquish his or her office or turn over records as required under this section, the circuit court in the county where the association maintains its principal office may, upon the petition of the association, summarily order the director to relinquish his or her office and turn over all association records upon application of the association.
(h)  The minutes of the board meeting at which the board decides whether to certify the recall are an official association record. The minutes must record the date and time of the meeting, the decision of the board, and the vote count taken on each board member subject to the recall. In addition, when the board decides not to certify the recall, as to each vote rejected, the minutes must identify the parcel number and the specific reason for each such rejection.
(i)  When the recall of more than one board director is sought, the written agreement, ballot, or vote at a meeting shall provide for a separate vote for each board director sought to be recalled.

The following is privilege information by the board of directors and should not be made accessible to members or parcel owners:

Records protected by client-lawyer confidential laws.

Lease/sales applications and any attachments that are in conjunction with board approval.

Employee records such as employment application, disciplinary actions made by the association, health/medical, insurance and personnel records.

Medical records of parcel owners or community residents.

For more fun facts see, “Directors & Officers is a Thankless Job”. To review supporting information, click here.

720.303:  Any record protected by the lawyer-client privilege as described in s. 90.502 and any record protected by the work-product privilege, including, but not limited to, any record prepared by an association attorney or prepared at the attorney’s express direction which reflects a mental impression, conclusion, litigation strategy, or legal theory of the attorney or the association and was prepared exclusively for civil or criminal litigation or for adversarial administrative proceedings or which was prepared in anticipation of imminent civil or criminal litigation or imminent adversarial administrative proceedings until the conclusion of the litigation or adversarial administrative proceedings.
2.  Information obtained by an association in connection with the approval of the lease, sale, or other transfer of a parcel.
3.  Disciplinary, health, insurance, and personnel records of the association’s employees.
4.  Medical records of parcel owners or community residents.
(d)  The association or its authorized agent is not required to provide a prospective purchaser or lienholder with information about the residential subdivision or the association other than information or documents required by this chapter to be made available or disclosed. The association or its authorized agent may charge a reasonable fee to the prospective purchaser or lienholder or the current parcel owner or member for providing good faith responses to requests for information by or on behalf of a prospective purchaser or lienholder, other than that required by law, if the fee does not exceed $150 plus the reasonable cost of photocopying and any attorney’s fees incurred by the association in connection with the response.