Proposed Improvements to Community Association Bill S 1196

April 6, 2010

Re: Proposed amendments to S 1196 -- Community Associations

Dear Senator Mike Fasano,

With all undue respect, since you are so determined to create more problems for homeowners living in mandatory homeowners' associations in Florida (OPPAGA estimates about 2.5 million homes are regulated by FS 720), we have worked hard over the long weekend to come up with some proposals to give dictatorial boards and/or service providers some more effective tools to rein in unruly homeowners who don't stand at attention when being told to or who just don't want to follow the association board's party-line.

Since you are hell-bent to overthrow the owner-friendly progress made by Governor Jeb Bush's HOA Task Force and reintroduce enforcement of fines -- levied by a kangaroo court -- with the help of liens and foreclosures, we thought you might be interested in adding some more dictatorial provisions to your bill.

Believe me, I can understand why you are so opposed to the owner-friendly provisions created by the HOA Task Force. We members voted 14-1 against your pet-project that would have made it easy to turn voluntary associations into mandatory associations.

Here are some suggestions to give boards more dictatorial powers than they already have. We hope they meet your approval!

This is actually a proposal from a West Coast newspaper: Create the F.U. program (Fine Unbind Program -- just in case somebody has a dirty mind) that will help to eliminate situations in which exorbitant interest accrues because of non-payment of fines.

When a participating homeowner is found in violation of an HOA rule, the HOA will send one notice via certified mail of the violation and the fine. The money will be automatically deducted from the owner's bank account within five business days of the postmark date of the notice.

If the debit is rejected because of insufficient funds, the homeowner will be responsible for any and all bank fees as well as a $500 convenience fee in addition to the original fine.

HOA leaders should also be allowed to make fine payment easier for homeowners leery of supplying their account information. Using fines already collected, HOAs will be installing ATM-style kiosks at the clubhouse. Homeowners will be able to pay their fines conveniently through these machines, which will take check, debit and all major credit cards.

ATM-style kiosks at Town

Hall will take checks, debit

cards and all major credit

cards.

If all harassment, fines and lawsuits don't work to shut up these "disgruntled" homeowners, more draconian measures seem to be appropriate:

Since the end of the Cold War our relations with Russia have greatly improved. You may add some wording into the bill that would empower the Community Associations Institute (CAI) to start contract negotiations with Russia to allow Florida homeowners' association boards to send absolutely obnoxious homeowners to Siberia. It seems nothing else will really help to get these homeowners under control. GULAGs were always a great way to educate unruly citizens and were always recognized as a major instrument of political repression.

I just hope that the actual sponsors of the initial bill S 1196, Peter Dunbar and Gary Poliakoff, will not object to add a few effective dictatorial tools to this bill. Most of the proposals in the initial bill regarding changes to FS 720 are trying to give boards more dictatorial power, remove transparency from association business and increase the profits of the service providers.

I am pretty sure that you will have no problems adding these improvements to your bill that is anyway aimed at taking away more rights from the homeowners and adding more dictatorial powers for association board members and/or service providers. I'm sure a little arm-twisting -- I heard you are good at it -- will convince your colleagues to vote favorably on your amended bill.

Considering our bad economy and the dead real estate market, it is really important to create more laws that will make living in homeowners' associations more expensive and subdue possible complaints from homeowners who feel used as a cash-cow.

Thank you for considering our proposals!

Regards,

Jan Bergemann, President
Cyber Citizens For Justice, Inc.

Senate Committee on Judiciary 2010

Chair: Senator Joe Negron (R) [email protected]
Vice Chair: Senator Arthenia L. Joyner (D) [email protected]

Senator Carey Baker (R) [email protected]
Senator Mike Fasano (R) [email protected]
Senator Dan Gelber (D) [email protected]
Senator Mike Haridopolos (R) [email protected]
Senator Durell Peaden, Jr. (R) [email protected]
Senator Garrett S. Richter (R) [email protected]
Senator Jeremy Ring (D) [email protected]

OUTLOOK:

[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected], [email protected]; [email protected]

AOL:

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]