CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION EDUCATION

BOARD AND MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS

FS 718.112(2) allows board meetings and owners’ meetings to be held by ZOOM, but requires that the actual meeting is held on location, no more than 15 miles away from the location of the condo building.

But board members – or managers – can no longer mute owners using their three minutes allowed by statute to speak on agenda items. Owners can – in person – participate in these meetings. The wording of the statutes – see below – specifically states that a meeting on location is required, and if the meeting is televised by ZOOM, it is required that all persons in the room can understand what people participating by ZOOM are saying and that all folks participating by ZOOM can hear what all members of board and owners at location are saying.

If Zoom is being used, the recording has to be maintained as an official record of the association and has to be posted on the association’s website, if the association is – by law --- required to maintain a website.

These provisions are making sure that the right of owners to speak for minimum three minutes on an agenda item is not being infringed upon.

FS 718.112(2)
(c) Board of administration meetings.
In a residential condominium association of more than 10 units, the board of administration shall meet at least once each quarter. At least four times each year, the meeting agenda must include an opportunity for members to ask questions of the board. Meetings of the board of administration at which a quorum of the members is present are open to all unit owners. Members of the board of administration may use e-mail as a means of communication but 1626 may not cast a vote on an association matter via e-mail. A unit owner may tape record or videotape the meetings. The right to attend such meetings includes the right to speak at such 1629 meetings with reference to all designated agenda items and the right to ask questions relating to reports on the status of construction or repair projects, the status of revenues and expenditures during the current fiscal year, and other issues affecting the condominium. The division shall adopt reasonable rules governing the tape recording and videotaping of the meeting. The association may adopt written reasonable rules governing the frequency, duration, and manner of unit owner statements.

1. Adequate notice of all board meetings, which must specifically identify all agenda items, must be posted conspicuously on the condominium property at least 48 continuous hours before the meeting except in an emergency. If the board meeting is to be conducted via video conference, the notice must state that such meeting will be via video conference and must include a hyperlink and a conference telephone number for unit owners to attend the meeting via video conference, as well as the address of the physical location where the unit owners can attend the meeting in person. If the meeting is conducted via video conference, it must be recorded and such recording must be maintained as an official record of the association. If 20 percent of the voting interests petition the board to address an item of business, the board, within 60 days after receipt of the petition, shall place the item on the agenda at its next regular board meeting or at a special meeting called for that purpose. An item not included on the notice may be taken up on an emergency basis by a vote of at least a majority plus one of the board members. Such emergency action must be noticed and ratified at the next regular board meeting. Written notice of a meeting at which a nonemergency special assessment or an amendment to rules regarding unit use will be considered must be mailed, delivered, or electronically transmitted to the unit owners and posted conspicuously on the condominium property at least 14 days before the meeting. Evidence of compliance with this 14-day notice requirement must be made by an affidavit executed by the person providing the notice and filed with the official records of the association.

(d) Unit owner meetings.
1. An annual meeting of the unit owners must be held at the location provided in the association bylaws and, if the bylaws are silent as to the location, the meeting must be held within 15 miles of the condominium property or within the same county as the condominium property. However, such distance requirement does not apply to an association governing a timeshare condominium. If a unit owner meeting is conducted via video conference, a unit owner may vote electronically in the manner provided in s. 718.128.
2. Unit owner meetings, including the annual meeting of the unit owners, may be conducted in person or via video conference. If the annual meeting of the unit owners is conducted via video conference, a quorum of the members of the board of administration must be physically present at the physical location where unit owners can attend the meeting. The location must be provided in the association bylaws and, if the bylaws are silent as to the location, the meeting must be held within 15 miles of the condominium property or within the same county as the condominium property. If the unit owner meeting is conducted via video conference, the video conference must be recorded and such recording must be maintained as an official record of the association. The division shall adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536 and 120.54 governing the requirements for meetings.

 


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