Annual meetings, elections, and special meetings of the members are generally a big deal for community associations.
In an active community such meetings are the time and place during which the proverbial rubber meets the road and the membership is able to shape its community. Most associations and their managers know that in order to have a membership meeting, they must first properly notice the meeting. This involves mailing, or as of fairly recently emailing, the meeting notices to the owners. Seems simple enough, but are the notices actually being delivered to the correct addresses?
While many communities maintain rosters of the members’ preferred mailing addresses, or simply mail their notices to the physical address of the home in the community, Section 720.306(1)(g), Florida Statutes, was amended in 2018, and now appears to require that the Association rely upon the property appraiser’s records in the case of membership meetings (as opposed to Board meetings).
According to this section, the notice must be mailed or delivered to the address identified as the parcel owner’s mailing address on the property appraiser’s website for the county in which the parcel is located, or electronically transmitted in a manner authorized by the association if the parcel owner has consented, in writing, to receive notice by electronic transmission. In other words, the statute allows two types of delivery destinations for membership meeting notices: (1) the mailing address listed on the property appraiser’s website; or (2) the email address of those owners who have consented to receive notices by email in advance. The statute states nothing further in terms of alternative mailing arrangements. Also note that 720.303 pertaining to Board meetings was not amended and this requirement arguably does not apply to Board meeting notices that are mailed.
Therefore, while it may still be a good idea to mail a notice to an owner’s preferred mailing address or the physical address of the home in the community, be sure to obtain and use the owner’s mailing address as listed on the property appraiser’s website for your next membership meeting to ensure compliance with Florida Statutes.