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By Jan Bergemann Published September 17, 2013 We are obviously not the only ones unhappy with the way the DBPR CAM Licensing Department is dealing with the enforcement of statutes and rules regulating Florida's licensed community association managers. During a TOWN HALL MEETING at the Doral Park Country Club on Saturday, September 7, 2013 Mayor Luigi Boria explained that the City of Doral under his leadership is working on creating an ordinance that will finally prevent licensed CAMs notorious of violating rules and statutes to do business within the city limits of Doral. The lack of enforcement of the statutes by DBPR CAM Licensing annoys many board members and owners. Mayor Luigi Boria made it very clear that he is trying to weed out the bad apples among the CAMs and wants to protect the homeowners' associations inside the city limits against some of these "notorious" CAM firms! The Mayor's explanations in regards to the planned ordinance were loudly applauded by the audience.
For more than 90 minutes the panel members discussed the main topic of the meeting: "HOA REFORMS" with a very appreciative audience. Many detailed questions showed how interested HOA members are in far reaching reforms. After a detailed explanation about the provisions of House Bill 7119, signed into law by Governor Rick Scott on June 14, 2013 (see FLYER H7119), the audience asked pointed questions about this law effective July 1, 2013. Especially the added provisions regarding record requests -- always one of the hottest topics at such meetings -- caused lengthy debates. Some of the stories from the audience were just outrageous! The fact that the new law includes a paragraph that provides for free Board Certification Seminars was much applauded and immediately sparked the interest of "When" and "Where." We promised to distribute schedules with dates and locations. The fact that all HOAs now have to register with the Division latest on November 23, 2013 found the consent of everyone in the audience, since most all of the members of the audience favored the creation of a regulatory agency for homeowners' associations -- finally! A regulatory agency and election reform for HOAs definitely piqued the interest of the many homeowners who listened to the presentation of the first draft of the HOA Reform Bill for the 2014 legislative session. Many members of the audience promised their active support of the bill. And yes, this bill proposal is definitely worth fighting for -- for owners and board members alike. No matter what the opposition claims -- and some board members even believe their propaganda -- the bill, if enacted, will save homeowners' associations and their members lots of money and frustration. We definitely won a lot more supporters for our attempts to reform the statutes regulating Florida's homeowners' associations. FAIRNESS IN ASSOCIATIONS IS OUR GOAL!
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