Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB238 Compare Versions

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Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: West S.B. No. 238
2	2	Substitute the following for S.B. No. 238:
3	3	By: Quintanilla C.S.S.B. No. 238
4	4
5	5
6	6	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	7	AN ACT
8	8	relating to the availability of a property owners' association's
9	9	books and records.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 209.005, Property Code, is amended to
12	12	read as follows:
13	13	Sec. 209.005. ASSOCIATION RECORDS. (a) This section does
14	14	not apply to a property owners' association that is subject to
15	15	Chapter 552, Government Code, by application of Section 552.0036.
16	16	(b) A property owners' association shall make the books and
17	17	records of the association, including financial records, open to
18	18	and reasonably available for examination by [to] an owner [in
19	19	accordance with Section B, Article 2.23, Texas Non Profit
20	20	Corporation Act (Article 1396 2.23, Vernon's Texas Civil
21	21	Statutes)]. An owner is entitled to copies of information
22	22	contained in the books and records.
23	23	(c) [(a-1) A property owners' association described by
24	24	Section 552.0036(2), Government Code, shall make the books and
25	25	records of the association, including financial records,
26	26	reasonably available to any person requesting access to the books
27	27	or records in accordance with Chapter 552, Government Code.
28	28	Subsection (a) does not apply to a property owners' association to
29	29	which this subsection applies.
30	30	[(b)] An attorney's files and records relating to the
31	31	association, excluding invoices requested by an owner under Section
32	32	209.008(d), are not:
33	33	(1) records of the association;
34	34	(2) subject to inspection by the owner; or
35	35	(3) subject to production in a legal proceeding.
36	36	(d) In addition to the requirements of Subsection (b), a
37	37	property owners' association shall maintain a copy of the
38	38	association's books and records, including financial records and
39	39	invoices, in a building:
40	40	(1) in which the books and records are appropriately
41	41	stored; and
42	42	(2) that is:
43	43	(A) staffed during normal business hours;
44	44	(B) accessible to members of the association
45	45	during normal business hours; and
46	46	(C) located on property commonly owned by the
47	47	association within the boundaries of the subdivision governed by
48	48	the association.
49	49	(e) If a building described by Subsection (d) does not exist
50	50	on property described by Subsection (d), the property owners'
51	51	association shall make the books and records available in
52	52	accordance with Subsections (g) and (h).
53	53	(f) A party requesting association books or records shall
54	54	submit the request in writing to a current board member or to the
55	55	mailing address of the association or authorized representative as
56	56	provided on the most current management certificate filed under
57	57	Section 209.004.
58	58	(g) A property owners' association shall make books and
59	59	records requested under Subsection (b) available to the requesting
60	60	party within a reasonable time of the property owners'
61	61	association's receipt of the request.
62	62	(h) A reasonable time for providing information requested
63	63	under Subsection (b) is considered to be 10 business days after the
64	64	date the property owners' association receives a request, except as
65	65	otherwise provided by this section.
66	66	(i) If the property owners' association is unable to produce
67	67	a requested book or record on or before the 10th business day after
68	68	the date the information is requested, the property owners'
69	69	association must provide to the requestor notice that:
70	70	(1) informs the requestor that the property owners'
71	71	association is unable to produce the information on or before the
72	72	10th business day after the date of the request; and
73	73	(2) states a date by which the information will be
74	74	available for inspection that occurs not later than the 30th day
75	75	after the date notice under this subsection is given.
76	76	(j) A property owners' association shall make books and
77	77	records requested under this section available to the requestor in
78	78	one or more of the following formats, as agreed on by the requestor
79	79	and the property owners' association:
80	80	(1) an electronic format:
81	81	(A) delivered to an electronic mail address
82	82	provided by the requestor; or
83	83	(B) delivered in a disc or other standard
84	84	electronic format:
85	85	(i) to the mailing address of the
86	86	requestor; or
87	87	(ii) if the requesting party does not
88	88	provide a mailing address, to the address of the requestor's
89	89	property in the subdivision; or
90	90	(2) a hard-copy format:
91	91	(A) delivered to the mailing address of the
92	92	requestor; or
93	93	(B) if the requesting party does not provide a
94	94	mailing address:
95	95	(i) mailed to the address of the requestor's
96	96	property in the subdivision; or
97	97	(ii) made available at a location not more
98	98	than 50 miles from the boundary of the county in which the
99	99	requestor's property is located.
100	100	(k) This section does not require a property owners'
101	101	association to staff a building described by Subsection (d).
102	102	(l) A property owners' association may charge an owner for
103	103	copies of the requested information in an amount that reasonably
104	104	includes all costs related to reproducing the information,
105	105	including costs of materials, labor, and overhead.
106	106	(m) Any information maintained by the association that is
107	107	released under this section may not identify an individual member
108	108	of an association or an individual's personal financial
109	109	information. Information may be released in an aggregate manner
110	110	that would not identify an individual property owner.
111	111	(n) A property owners' association shall keep all records as
112	112	to changes to the dedicatory instruments in perpetuity and shall
113	113	maintain records related to financial matters of the association,
114	114	including assessments, fines, foreclosures, and enforcement
115	115	actions for at least seven years.
116	116	(o) A member of a property owners' association who is denied
117	117	access to or copies of association books or records to which the
118	118	member is entitled under this section may file a petition with the
119	119	justice of the peace of a justice precinct in which all or part of
120	120	the property that is governed by the association is located,
121	121	requesting relief in accordance with this subsection. If the
122	122	justice of the peace finds that the member is entitled to access to
123	123	or copies of the records, the justice of the peace shall order the
124	124	association to:
125	125	(1) provide the access or copies requested by the
126	126	member; and
127	127	(2) pay the court costs and the member's reasonable
128	128	attorney's fees and court costs.
129	129	(p) For the purposes of this section, "business day" means a
130	130	day other than Saturday, Sunday, or a state or federal holiday.
131	131	SECTION 2. Subsection (o), Section 209.005, Property Code,
132	132	as added by this Act, applies only to a property owners'
133	133	association's failure to comply with Section 209.005, Property
134	134	Code, on or after the effective date of this Act. A property
135	135	owners' association's failure to comply with that section before
136	136	the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect
137	137	immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is
138	138	continued in effect for that purpose.
139	139	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2010.