Wayside is a small, ten-home, self-managed homeowners’ association located in Seminole County. Pecchia and Porter both respectively own homes within Wayside. As members of the association, Pecchia and Porter were concerned that Wayside was failing to adequately maintain the association’s common elements, and that it also was not enforcing violations of the CCRs against homeowners. As a result, they requested the official association records from Wayside pursuant to section 720.303(5), including insurance policies for the prior two years, and records reflecting maintenance expenditures and upkeep of individual lots and common areas.
In November of 2019, through counsel, Pecchia and Porter submitted a formal records request via certified mail to Wayside pursuant to section 720.303(5), requesting that Wayside make the official association records which it was required to maintain in accordance with section 720.303(4) available for inspection within ten days. Wayside signed for the certified letter on November 4, 2019, which meant the deadline for inspection under section 720.303(5) was November 19, 2019. Pecchia and Porter did not receive a response by the statutory deadline, and their counsel again reached out to Wayside on November 22, 2019. Pecchia’s and Porter’s counsel then exchanged some emails with Wayside’s secretary regarding the manner and date of the inspection. On December 13, 2019, Wayside responded by providing photocopies of some of the requested documents to Pecchia’s and Porter’s counsel; however, numerous requested documents required to be kept under section 720.303(4) were still missing. Pecchia and Porter submitted a renewed request for the documents on January 13, 2020.
The parties attempted to negotiate the issue over the documents for the next couple of months with no resolution. Ultimately, Pecchia and Porter filed a verified complaint for injunctive relief against Wayside. At the conclusion of the trial, the court denied Pecchia’s and Porter’s request for injunctive relief as to the requested records and documents. In doing so, the court found that Wayside had “provided sufficient documents in response to the plaintiffs’ request” and that the issue was now moot. The court ruled that bank statements and cancelled checks are not included in the records required to be maintained. Thus, the court found that Wayside had sufficiently complied with the statutory requirements of sections 720.303(4) and (5). Finally, the court ruled that although the requested documents had not been provided within the ten-day statutory time limit, Wayside was not in violation of the deadline because “sufficient” documents were ultimately provided.
On Appeal
The appeals court held that the trial court erred in its interpretation of section 720.303 when it ruled that Wayside had sufficiently complied with the requirements of sections 720.303(4) and (5). The court held that the repeated usage of the word “shall” in sections 720.303(4) and (5) signifies that there is no statutory flexibility in an association’s obligations to maintain the records provided under section 720.303(4) and to permit inspection in conformity with section 720.303(5). Thus, the use of word “shall” in the statute means that an association is not afforded discretion in determining which documents to maintain for the inspection of its members or to provide to its members, nor is the ten-day period discretionary. These obligations are clearly mandatory under the statute.
The Insurance Policies
The Appeals Court held that Section 720.303(4)(h) expressly provides that the association “shall maintain” as its official records “all of the association’s insurance policies or a copy thereof, which policies must be retained for at least 7 years.” As such, under section 720.303(5), they should have been made available or provided to Pecchia and Porter. Since these policies were not provided or made available, the trial court erred and this matter was not moot. Thus, the trial court should have entered an injunction requiring Wayside to provide the requested insurance policies.
The Bank Statements
Pecchia and Porter argue on appeal that they were entitled under sections 720.303(4) and 720.303(5) to any canceled checks and bank statements showing Wayside’s payments for repairs and maintenance on the association common property.
The Appels Court held that Section 720.303(4)(j) requires the association to maintain “financial and accounting records.” The financial and accounting records must include:
1. Accurate, itemized, and detailed records of all receipts and expenditures.
…
3. All tax returns, financial statements, and financial reports of the association.
4. Any other records that identify, measure, record, or communicate financial information.
720.303(4)(j) 1., 3., & 4., Fla. Stat. (2019).
The Appeals Court held that under this section, bank statements would be included in the financial and accounting records which a homeowners’ association is required to maintain. Bank statements could be included in the definition of “[a]ccurate, itemized, and detailed records of all receipts and expenditures” under section 720.303(4)(j) 1. Specifically, though, under 720.303(4)(j)3., bank statements fall within the ambit of “financial statement[s],” and per 720.303(4)(j)4., they clearly constitute “records that identify, measure, record, or communicate financial information.” Thus, the financial and accounting records required to be kept under section 720.303(4) must include the association’s bank statements. Because section 720.303(5) provides for the homeowner’s right to inspect all records required to be maintained under section 720.303(4), Pecchia and Porter were entitled to request and inspect Wayside’s bank statements.
Pecchia v. Wayside Estates Home Owners Association, Inc., 388 So.3d 1136 (Fla.App. 5 Dist., 2024)
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