HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R. NO.

128

TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2014

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

 

Urging the Department of commerce and consumer affairs to issue an interpretation that includes email addresses in the overall meaning of "current addresses" of condominium association members pursuant to sections 514A-83.3 and 514B-153, Hawaii revised statutes.

 

 

 


WHEREAS, clarity is needed on the undefined meaning of "current addresses" of condominium association members pursuant to sections 514A-83.3 and 514B-153, Hawaii Revised Statutes; and

 

WHEREAS, some condominium association members interpret the meaning of "current addresses" to include email addresses, and this unresolved issue is causing friction among members, boards of directors, and management companies; and

 

WHEREAS, resident managers are statutorily required to keep a record of the current addresses of condominium association members and to provide a copy of the record, upon request of and at cost to, a member to use for specified association purposes; and

 

WHEREAS, current law does not specify that an email address is an acceptable form of a current address of a condominium association member, and this lack of clarification is frustrating members who want to use email to share time-sensitive, association-related information with other members; and

 

WHEREAS, modern email technology is inexpensive, fast, and efficient, and will help expedite the sharing of information between condominium association members who need to make informed decisions on association matters; and

 

WHEREAS, out-of-state condominium association members are sometimes the last members to receive association-related information via traditional mail carriers, and these members would benefit from faster, email transmissions; and

WHEREAS, the Legislature already authorizes the release of a condominium association member's residence or business address, which some members consider more private than a common, widely-used email address; and

 

WHEREAS, condominium association members often use traditional mail carriers to deliver association-related information between each other and some members consider this delivery method unfair, expensive, and inefficient for an in-house task that can be done better with email; and

 

WHEREAS, sections 514A-83.3 and 514B-153, Hawaii Revised Statutes, are outdated and need to be clarified for the benefit of condominium association members who need to share timely, association-related information with other members; and

 

WHEREAS, condominium association members stated that clarification from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs on whether the undefined meaning of "current addresses" encompasses email addresses would help to resolve this issue without the need for statutory amendments; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-seventh Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2014, that the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs is urged to issue an interpretation to allow the inclusion of email addresses in the overall meaning of "current addresses" of condominium association members pursuant to sections 514A-83.3 and 514B-153, Hawaii Revised Statutes; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and the President of the Hawaii Chapter of the Community Associations Institute.

 

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Email Address Access; Condominium Association Members; Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs