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HIDING PUBLIC RECORDS?
By
Jan Bergemann
Published
April 26, 2013
Hiding
Easter eggs is fun – hiding the association’s public records
definitely isn’t fun, it’s serious business!
But it is common practice in Florida’s community associations, especially since there is no way to
punish the actual persons trying to hide these records – in
clear violation of Florida law. Does anybody honestly believe that the “punishment” of
$500 paid from association funds deters dictatorial board
members from spending thousands of dollars to avoid allowing
inspection and/or copying of records that are clearly marked as
“public” records in the statutes?
The
war over record inspection is most likely the most common
problem we see happening daily in community associations. The
excuses we hear from boards are just that: SAD
EXCUSES in an attempt to prevent an owner from
exercising his/her lawful right to inspect/copy records.
From
attorney/client privilege to privacy issues – we have heard it
all. But board members and their attorneys (or call them private
body guards paid for with association funds) know full well that
many owners are unwilling to go to court in order to enforce
their rights. Owners have to be willing to invest some of their
own money to enforce the laws – since many of the regulations
in HOA laws (FS 720) are pretty much toothless.
Who
wants to spend about $1,000 before even getting into a court
room to try to enforce the statutes – only to be told by a
judge to participate in mediation – again!
In
reality I blame the attorneys who are willing to fight these
record requests knowing full well that the owners have the right
according to
Florida
statutes. The word: Billing Hours ring a bell?
Over
the years we have seen lots of language included into bills
trying to clarify what Official
Records are accessible and what
kind of records are not accessible. FS 720 contains lengthy
explanations in regards to this issue. It’s spelled out in
detail.
But
nevertheless, the fights over record request are raging all over
Florida
– with no end in sight!
I sometimes wonder why legislators bother to create laws if they
are unwilling to add enforcement provisions to these laws.
Laws
without teeth are useless. STAY GREEN – let’s not waste paper on useless laws only
aimed to make people feel better without really serving the
purpose of improving a dismal situation!
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