By Curtis G. Kimble.
On our Facebook page, we share information, articles, links, and developments in condo and HOA issues, in addition to our more detailed posts on this blog. For those of you who don’t subscribe to our Facebook page, I thought I’d pass on some recent links and news we’ve shared recently:
- Condo Association Settles Lawsuit with Veteran over Service Dog By Erin Alberty | The Salt Lake Tribune
“A Park City condo association will pay $20,000 to a disabled veteran, ending a legal conflict over whether the man should be forced to pay fees to keep a service dog that helps him cope with depression and anxiety.
The U.S. Justice Department sued the Fox Point at Redstone condo association and its management company in November, alleging that Thomas Burton, a combat veteran of the first Gulf War, was forced to move out of his rented condo because the association would not waive its pet fees and insurance requirements for Burton’s service dog . . .” Read more here
- Who Prepares Your Association’s Tax Return? by Lisa Magill, Florida Condo and HOA Law Blog
“A Las Vegas HOA is currently fighting with the IRS over the question of whether $2 million held in the HOA’s savings account is subject to income tax at the rate of 30%.
Associations are generally organized as not-for-profit corporations (some older associations are not incorporated) and therefore must file tax returns like other not-for-profit corporations. Associations are not entitled to tax exempt status like charitable organizations. To be tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, an organization must be organized and operated exclusively for exempt purposes set forth in the Code. To be tax exempt under IRC 501(c)(4), a homeowners’ association must operate for the benefit of the general public, i.e., it must provide a community benefit – not a benefit to the owners or residents . . .” Read more here
- Although written in Virginia, the same principles apply in Utah: Is It Time for Your Community Association to Audit Its Governing Documents? By Susan Bradford Tarley.
“Many communities were established 20-40 years ago with governing documents that worked well for the developer, and for the most part the community association. However, many of these governing documents are outdated. Virginia and federal laws pertaining to community associations have changed substantially. If your board of directors has not engaged in an audit of your communities governing documents in the past 5-7 years, it should.
When should documents be amended? Although there are many reasons for amending documents, these 7 reasons are the most common: . . .” Read more here
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Utah HOA Law Blog 
Is it illegal to ask the board members how many children are living in the HOA community? Also is illegal for all the homeowners to have a telephone book with all names and phone numbers of those living in the association?
No, neither of those is illegal. You can ask the board how many children are living in the HOA, but whether the board knows the answer or responds is a different matter. Nothing would require the board to know how many children are living in the HOA, unless the HOA’s governing documents require it for some reason, such as possibly in a 55 and older community.
It is not illegal for all the homeowners to have a telephone book with all names and phone numbers of those living in the association. In fact, this is quite common.