The CotoBuzz Journal, Community Journalism

The CotoBuzz Journal

Community Journalism, Newsletters and Blogs Covering South Orange County, CA

The CotoBuzz Journal is a member of Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) and NAHJ

July 2007 Issue

We do not make jokes, we simply watch the LA Times, the Orange County Register and the Coto de Caza Board of directors and report the facts!

COLUMN

SENATOR AANESTAAD: PIMP MY HOA!

75,257 HOAATM Members Want Senator Aanestaad to Get this Message: Stop Messing With Our Property Rights!!!

by Donie Vanitzian, J.D., Arbitrator
(c)2007 Vanitzian

June 18, 2007

Senate Bill No. 528 should really be called "How The California Legislature Takes Property Away Piecemeal Without The Guilt of Eminent Domain."

Senate Bill No. 528, does just that, it pimp’s every homeowner association in California by disenfranchising titleholders who pay for the fraud being perpetrated on us right now by our legislature.

Senate Bill No. 528 nullifies Civil Code Section 1363.05, the Common Interest Development Open Meeting Act. This Senate Bill all but voids what little protections titleholders in these orsaken hell holes called homeowner associations ("Assoc" for short).

Senate Bill No. 528 unilaterally disenfranchises the physically challenged; anyone who owns property but live elsewhere; anyone who travels; anyone who takes vacations; anyone with a job or with a busy schedule; anyone who has to prepare documentation prior to the meeting; and anyone who wants to protect their assets by attending an association board of directors meeting.

Senate Bill No. 528 elevates the status of third party vendors by injecting vendors into the shoes and/or positions of board directors by giving them an equal footing at Open Meetings. These third party vendors are EMPLOYEES of the association, just like the vendors who clean out the sewers, plant the plants, spread fertilizer, clean out the plumbing -- legally a management company is no different than any other third party VENDOR. ALL third party vendors, management companies included, have a vested interest in their CONTRACTS and PAYCHECKS and getting PAID.

Titleholders have a VESTED INTEREST IN OUR PROPERTY that we PAID MONEY FOR. IT IS OUR MONEY THAT PAYS THOSE CONTRACTS!

SENATE BILL NO. 528 STATES:

"The act also requires that notice of the time and place of a meeting be given to members at least four (4) days prior to the meeting, except in the case of an emergency meeting, as described."

SENATE BILL NO. 528 DOES NOT TELL YOU:

Say what? Listen up kiddies, "just because the [Davis-Stupid] Act says it’s so, doesn’t make it so!"
That the initial "FOUR" day notice was meant for developers NOT for association boards of directors. The reason it was only 4-days, was because the units were sold very slowly and they were sold as the others continued to be built AND even if "many" units were sold, the developer kept control of the development because he was still receiving state subsidies and wanted and needed to CONTROL THE MONEY -- AND -- control the board because the common interest development had not yet been turned over to the owners pursuant to the California laws! That meant, the only people the developer really had to give notice to, (a) was himself; and (b) his crew or investors that SAT on HIS board. In THAT situation, 4 days might have been acceptable. I said: MIGHT.

Fast forward to today’s reality in homeowner associations: Here’s the new 4-day notice. A management company employee climbs up a telephone pole and posts the notice. Takes a picture of it. Rips the notice down. Board has its meeting. Owner complains. Management company employee, in a SWORN UNDER OATH affidavit, says, "I put the notice up. Here’s the picture. It was there, if they didn’t see it, that’s not my problem or the board’s problem." Hell, you can't make a dentist appoint in 4 days!

HOAATM MEMBERS WANT:

Fourteen (14) days notice of all homeowner association board of directors meetings. Anything short of that disenfranchises titleholders. Not only do we want 14 days minimum notice, we want PROOF you gave us notice!

HOAATM MEMBERS WANT:

We want Senator Aanestaad to understand that if we are physically challenged, or out of the area from our common interest development, or not able to make it to the telephone pole in 24 hours to look at that stupid notice for your stupid meeting, that you must give us enough time to have our nurses or attendants prepare us for that meeting, get us some transportation, so that we can be there. We want Senator Aanestaad to understand if we are at the other end of the state or have the flu, or in the hospital, or have classes, we need time and NOTICE to be able to make it back for a meeting.

We want Senator Aanestaad to understand that this so-called Senate Bill disenfranchises the physically challenged, while at the same time unilaterally removing what little protections PROPERTY OWNERS **MIGHT** HAVE HAD TO PROTECT THEIR HOMES.

HOAATM MEMBERS WANT:

Obviously this Honorable Senator is of a privileged class of individuals, because he could NOT possibly live under the regime of an association board infiltrated by third party interlopers who interfere with individual titleholder property rights and have the audacity to put in print what is in this Senate Bill No. 528.

HOAATM members want the Honorable Senator to understand that presently too many management companies have perfected the art of disenfranchising owners THROUGH the board of directors. One of the quickest ways of accomplishing this is by insisting the board of directors hold meetings at locations OTHER THAN THE COMMON INTEREST DEVELOPMENT!! This means, if meetings are held OFF or OUTSIDE of THE DEVELOPMENT, or AWAY FROM the development, 4-DAYS NOTICE IS RIDICULOUS -- thus making it impossible for owners to exercise their right to the Common Interest Development Open Meeting Act. It may be an impossibility for us to get there for a variety of reasons, including the fact that some will have to arrange transportation, arrange for care givers, babysitters, and so on.

SENATE BILL NO. 528 STATES:

This bill would require the above notice to contain the agenda for the meeting. It would prohibit the board of directors from discussing or taking action on any item at a non-emergency meeting unless the item was placed on the agenda included in the notice. The bill would provide that these provisions do not prohibit a resident who is not a member of the board from speaking on issues not on the agenda. The bill would also permit the board of directors, its managing agent, or its other agents or staff, to briefly respond to statements made or questions posed by a person speaking at a meeting, ask a question for clarification, make a brief announcement, or make a brief report on his or her own activities, as specified.

SENATE BILL NO. 528 DOES NOT TELL YOU:

No one in their right mind could take that paragraph seriously, it is so patently preposterous one must contain one’s self from saying, ARE YOU ****I*** SERIOUS? Right now, the titleholder letters I receive IN BULK COMPLAIN of constant interference from Assoc.. Attorneys, Ass. management companies, Ass. Board Directors WHILE the titleholder is "trying" to speak. That’s right, the t-i-t-l-e-h-o-l-d-e-r => is a person who paid m-o-n-e-y for p-r-o-p-e-r-t-y => this titleholder wants to protect his a-s-s-e-t -- you know -- that p-r-o-p-e-r-t-y that he PAID M-O-N-E-Y for that is located in a common interest development. This is likely the same titleholder who can’t get his board to answer his letters! The same titleholder who is sabotaged by management company personnel. This titleholder => who has a VESTED INTEREST IN HIS PROPERTY => wants to SAY something and the ONLY *TIME* he will get to say it, is at an duly NOTICED Open Meeting. [that now, thanks to YOU, will be reduced to 4 **** days notice] Now, the Honorable Senator wants to TAKE that from us.

HOAATM MEMBERS SAY:

Management companies need to conduct THEIR business ON THEIR OWN TIME (that's what they supposedly get paid for) -- AND NOT CONDUCT THEIR BUSINESS ON THE TIME ALLOCATED FOR OWNERS TO CONDUCT OUR BUSINESS. Keep management OUT of the association meetings -- they do not belong there. Hell! The next thing you know, management company personnel will want to sit on our board!

Management companies GET PAID to PERFORM under the terms of their contract -- letting management do business at Open Meetings will mean they are doing business on OUR time ===> AND, they will be getting paid DOUBLE what their contract terms state.

SENATE BILL NO. 528 DOES NOT TELL YOU:

The Senate Bill No. 528 states "nonemergency":
The only section of code in the entire Davis-Stupid Act that defines "emergency" is in the section that allows the board to SPECIALLY ASSESS (gee, that's a real surprise).

Civil Code Section 1366 states "This section does not limit assessment increases necessary for emergency situations."

In EVERY other section located in the Davis-Stupid Act, the word "emergency" is used as an escape hatch for the board to conduct meetings giving 4-day notice (if that) to circumvent holding an ACTUAL bona fide association board of directors meeting. Other than that, nowhere in the Davis–Stupid Act is EMERGENCY or NON-EMERGENCY DEFINED. So how the hell does the Senator expect the public to understand this slop that he has written and calls "LAW"?

HOAATM MEMBERS WANT:

We want to know if the Honorable Senator will be there when the Agenda is NOT FOLLOWED?

We want to know WHERE’S THE PENALTY AGAINST THE BOARD for not following the law?

We want the Honorable Senator Aanestaad to REMOVE the provision that allows third parties to speak at a HOMEOWNER MEETING on issues that are NOT on the agenda. If the Senator is making ONE EXCEPTION then he has nullified his own bill. If he has nullified his own bill, then he has a DUTY to the public to REMOVE his bill from the Senate lineup. He has a DUTY to be HONORABLE and KILL SENATE BILL 528.

SENATE BILL NO. 528 STATES:

This Senate Bill No. 528 would further permit the board of directors or a member of the board of directors, subject to rules or procedures of the board of directors, to provide a reference or factual information to its managing agent or other agents or staff, request its managing agent or other agents or staff to report back to the board of directors at a subsequent meeting or to place a matter of business on a future agenda, or direct its managing agent or other agents or staff to perform administrative tasks that are necessary to carry out these provisions. The bill would also make technical changes.

SENATE BILL NO. 528 DOES NOT TELL YOU:

This Senate Bill is a free-for-all, giving every board of director and their aiders and abettors a blank check to take over not only the association meeting, but the common interest development. Don’t laugh, read the DANGEROUS LEGAL EFFECT OF THE LANGUAGE of Aanastaad’s bill: "to provide a reference or factual information to its managing agent or other agents or staff, request its managing agent or other agents or staff to report back to the board of directors at a subsequent meeting or to place a matter of business on a future agenda, or direct its managing agent or other agents or staff to perform administrative tasks that are necessary to carry out these provisions. . ."

The bill states "The bill would also make technical changes." ==> OF COURSE NO ONE KNOWS WHAT THE HELL THE HONORABLE SENATOR IS REFERRING TO? Trick? No. That is INTENTIONAL.

HOAATM MEMBERS WANT:

WE WANT management company personnel OUT of OUR meetings.

WE WANT Assoc. board attorneys OUT of OUR meetings.

WE WANT Senator Aanestaad to do the honorable thing, and KILL THIS BILL. It is a BAD bill. It will NOT help homeowners.

SENATE BILL NO. 528 STATES:

". . . except as specified. . ." - and - ". . . as specified . . ." WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN?

HOAATM MEMBERS WANT:

WE WANT all STUPID language REMOVED from the Honorable Senator’s Senate Bill 528. The Honorable Senator Aanestaad cannot possibly justify language that is not self-explanatory.

The Honorable Senator Aanestaad cannot justify language that makes the public do something that is "open to interpretation."

The Honorable Senator Aanestaad cannot justify forcing an entire segment of our society to live by his incompetence.

WE WANT the Honorable Senator Aanestaad to PLEASE be present when my Assoc. board says these fatal, lethal, damning words: "as specified, so passed."