Bill Text: NY A00581 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Creates a residential condominium owner bill of rights that includes the right to transparency, the right to timely decisions, voting rights, the right to notice, and the right against extraordinary expenses.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-04-30 - enacting clause stricken [A00581 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A00581-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                           581
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                     January 9, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  SEPULVEDA  --  read once and referred to the
          Committee on Housing
        AN ACT to amend the real property law, in relation to creating  a  resi-
          dential condominium owner bill of rights
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The real property law is amended by adding  a  new  section
     2  339-11 to read as follows:
     3    §  339-11.  Residential condominium owner's bill of rights. The organ-
     4  izational and operating documents of every residential condominium asso-
     5  ciation, including both private and not-for-profit, established or oper-
     6  ating pursuant to the laws of the state shall  guarantee  the  following
     7  rights to each unit owner.
     8    1.  The  right to transparency. Complete and accurate financial state-
     9  ments, reports of hired accountants and consultants  on  behalf  of  the
    10  association,  reports  by  municipal  or county inspectors, and approved
    11  minutes of the board of managers' meetings shall be available for review
    12  within a timely fashion of a request to review, inspect,  or  copy.  Any
    13  financial  statements,  reports,  or minutes ordinarily provided to unit
    14  owners shall be provided in a timely  fashion  pursuant  to  established
    15  timetables.  In  addition  to  any  other  notice required, the approved
    16  minutes of all board and unit owner meetings shall be posted in a promi-
    17  nent place accessible to all unit owners in each building comprising the
    18  condominium within one day of their approval. For the purposes  of  this
    19  subdivision,  "financial statements" shall include a complete accounting
    20  for all expenditures, capital improvements, or anything in excess of the
    21  contingency fund including the budget,  a  comparison  of  any  and  all
    22  bidding  processes for work to be done on the condominium including work
    23  that was conducted and the amounts of the contributions  of  each  owner
    24  whether  individual  or  group sponsored, billings, estimates, overages,
    25  and proof of the expenditures that comprise the total of  the  surcharge
    26  and  minutes  of  each  meeting  where  the  planning  and voting on the
    27  proposal was discussed with all the owners, for any and all expenditures
    28  not made in the ordinary course of business, bank account and  financial
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06852-01-7
        A. 581                              2
     1  investment statements, and the association's IRS form nine-hundred-nine-
     2  ty, if applicable, for each of the three most current fiscal years.
     3    2.  The  right to timely decisions. All applications by unit owners in
     4  connection with matters which require approval of the board of  managers
     5  and  all requests for determinations by the board of managers including,
     6  but not limited to, requests for the resolution of disputes  between  or
     7  among  unit  owners,  disputes  between  unit owners and the condominium
     8  association such as disputes concerning responsibility for repairs shall
     9  be processed in a reasonably  expeditious  manner  pursuant  to  uniform
    10  procedures and timetables adopted in writing. The board's decision shall
    11  be  in  writing and shall set forth the reasons therefor, except that no
    12  reason shall be required when approval is granted.
    13    3. Voting rights.  (a) The board of managers shall call a  meeting  to
    14  fill  any  vacancies  which occur on such board within sixty days of the
    15  occurrence of such vacancy if the vacancy occurs more  than  six  months
    16  prior to the annual meeting of unit owners.
    17    (b) The final results of elections for the board of managers including
    18  a  tally  of the votes received by each candidate shall be posted within
    19  one business day following the availability of  such  information  in  a
    20  prominent  place accessible to all unit owners in each building compris-
    21  ing the condominium.
    22    (c) Any member of a board of managers who  is  elected  while  a  unit
    23  owner  in  the  condominium,  who  sells  his or her apartment, and who,
    24  subsequent to such sale shall no longer be a unit owner in  such  condo-
    25  minium,  shall  resign from such board no later than the closing date of
    26  such sale.
    27    4. The right to notice. In addition  to  any  other  notice  required,
    28  notice  of all board and unit owner meetings shall be posted in a promi-
    29  nent place accessible to all unit owners in each building comprising the
    30  condominium.
    31    5. The right against extraordinary expenses.  No  less  than  once  in
    32  every  five  years the board shall propose expense limits which shall be
    33  included in the notice of the annual or any other meeting  of  the  unit
    34  owners.  An  opportunity for unit owners to comment on such proposal and
    35  to offer lower expense limits shall be included in the agenda  for  such
    36  meeting.  At the conclusion of the comment period the board shall, by an
    37  open  vote,  adopt  expense  limits  not to exceed those proposed by the
    38  board which shall be effective until changed. Once approved by vote, the
    39  board shall not enter into contracts for extraordinary expenses  without
    40  approval  of  the unit owners, unless it is deemed to be an emergency or
    41  is required for refinancing of the mortgage.
    42    6. The attorney general is authorized to  enforce  the  provisions  of
    43  this  section and may, upon his or her own initiative, or in response to
    44  a complaint by one or more unit owners, investigate allegations  of  any
    45  failure to comply with the provisions hereof.
    46    §  2. Within six months of the effective date of this act the attorney
    47  general shall promulgate a  handbook  summarizing  the  rights  of  unit
    48  owners  vis-a-vis  condominium associations and the procedures and proc-
    49  esses available to unit owners to enforce such rights.
    50    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided,  however,  that
    51  as  to  residential  condominium  associations existing and operating as
    52  such on the effective date of this act the boards of  managers  of  such
    53  associations  shall  within  one  year of the effective date of this act
    54  take all steps necessary to amend  the  appropriate  organizational  and
    55  operating  documents of such associations to implement the provisions of
    56  this act.