Closed Condo Committee Meetings and CIOA

M.L. from Fairfield County writes:

Dear Mister Condo,

Under the CIOA ACT, are committee meetings where the committee does not have the power to act on behalf of the association, subject to being open to all unit owners as is required for Board Meetings?

Mister Condo replies:

M.L., that is an interesting question. The Common Interest Ownership Act (CIOA) certainly encourages an atmosphere of openness with regards to governance of the association. However, a committee that does not have the power to act on behalf of the Board would seem to fall outside the general guise of CIOA. Just to be certain, I asked an attorney who specializes in community association law for an opinion. Here is what the attorney had to offer:

“CIOA says that: “The following requirements apply to meetings of the executive board and committees of the association authorized to act for the association… Meetings shall be open to the unit owners and to a representative designated by any unit owner except during executive sessions.”  So technically speaking, the statute does not specifically mandate that meetings of committees which are not authorized to act for the association be open to all owners.  The governing documents or policies of your association may differ.”

That sounds like solid advice to me, D.L.. Thanks for the question.