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The Official Communication and Electronic Notice to TKPOA Property Owners
The Official Communication and Electronic Notice to Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association (TKPOA) Property Owners
By Heather Blumenthal, Operations Manager
Beginning this past January 1st, 2022, there has been a change in the Davis Stirling Civil Code, that now requires Associations to request members' preferred delivery method (email, mail, or both) for notices and disclosures. In addition, Associations must annually give notice that members are not required to provide their email address to the Association (Civil Code §4041). This notice must be given no later than 30 days prior to mailing the annual budget report (we also call this the “Annual Disclosure”). If a preferred method is not selected by a member, then notices and documents must be sent by First-class mail, postage prepaid, registered, or certified mail, express mail, or overnight delivery by an express service carrier (Civil Code §4040).
This is currently the practice of the Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association (TKPOA) in following this Civil Code §4041 requirement, in providing the Annual Disclosure Mailing and “Official Notices” via Postage Prepaid Mail and in the Keys Breeze. (This has also been the practice for the past seven years once the Keys Breeze went to a monthly publication in 2015).
The new provision in this 2022 Davis Stirling Civil Code change is that for documents requiring general
delivery, Associations can now post the documents on their website provided this is disclosed to the members in the Association's Annual Policy Statement (aka the TKPOA Annual Disclosure). (Civil Code §4045)
As stated above this would then allow the TKPOA to cut down on it’s direct mailing by Postage Prepaid to TKPOA Property Owners, which will result in an overall cost savings, of postage, mailing material, TKPOA Staff, Volunteers, Contracted Companies time and effort to produce these mailings.
As of July 20th, 2022 the TKPOA Board of Directors have provided the TKPOA Staff “Board Direction” to begin this process of notification to members using the TKPOA Website, but also continuing our current practices. Because this change cannot “officially” take place until the “TKPOA Annual Disclosure” is issued in November 2022.
The Keys Breeze publication meets the requirements of a California Homeowners Association for a Common Interest Development “Official Communication” method to its members; because this is the monthly publication of the Keys Breeze.
In meeting these “Official Communication” requirements, TKPOA has utilized the Keys Breeze for Civil Code §4360. Notice and Approval of Rule Change by Board of Directors. The Keys Breeze can also continue to be used for the “Official Communication” for notification to the TKPOA Property Owners, in combination with this new notification method of posting items on the TKPOA Website, currently and officially after November 2022. Ideally this method would be utilized for limited rule changes of no more than a page of copy. In doing so, the TKPOA again will save money on direct mailing and staff costs to prepare rules change mailings.
The Davis-Stirling Act Civil Code §4040 and §4045 and §4050 indicates Association documents shall be delivered by one or more of the following methods:
1. Personal delivery. 2. First-class mail, postage prepaid, addressed to a member at the address last shown on the books of the Association or otherwise provided by the member. Delivery is deemed to be complete on deposit into the United States mail. 3. E-mail, facsimile, or other electronic means if the recipient has agreed to that method of delivery.
The agreement obtained by the Association shall be consistent with the conditions for obtaining consumer consent described in Section 20 of the
Corporations Code. If a document is delivered by electronic means, delivery is complete at the time of transmission. 4. By publication in a periodical that is circulated primarily to members of the Association. [The Keys
Breeze would qualify for this definition]. 5. If the Association broadcasts television programming for the purpose of distributing information on Association business to its members, by inclusion in the programming. 6. A method of delivery provided in a recorded provision of the governing documents. 7. Any other method of delivery provided that the recipient has agreed to that method of delivery.
A document may be included in or delivered with a billing statement, newsletter, or other document that is delivered by one of the methods provided in the method list above 1-7.
For the purposes of this section, an unrecorded provision of the governing documents providing for a particular method of delivery does not constitute agreement by a member of the Association to that method of delivery.
The Keys Breeze publication also meets the standards of the Corporations Code §5016. Notices and Reports Via Newsletters, that applies to California Homeowners Association for a Common Interest Development. Code §5016: A notice or report mailed or delivered as part of a newsletter, magazine or other organ regularly sent to members shall constitute written notice or report pursuant to this division when addressed and mailed
or delivered to the member, or in the case of members who are residents of the same household and who have the same address on the books of the corporation, when addressed and mailed or delivered to one of such members, at the address appearing on the books of the corporation.
As our Publishing Disclosure Notice (that is located on the second page of each publication) states: The Keys Breeze is still and will continue as the official monthly publication of the TKPOA, which is located at 356 Ala Wai Blvd, South Lake Tahoe CA 96150. Each membership parcel receives on subscription to a domestic address.
Cost to produce and distribute this publication is offset by advertising revenues and budgeted funds. The inclusion of advertising in this publication does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by the TKPOA or its Board of Directors of the projects, services or views contained therein.
To clarify in the last four years the Keys Breeze publication has “paid for itself” as it has done so in the past four, years and many of the previous years. Through the advertisers the Keys Breeze is published monthly to all TKPOA Property Owners free of charge. There are no line item expenses in the TKPOA Budget for the Keys Breeze production. The only cost to the TKPOA is the TKPOA Staff, and Board Members personal time in writing the articles and occasionally the cost for a special photograph, layout, or artwork, which is minimal.
With publication of this August 2022 Keys Breeze issue the TKPOA has completed over four years of monthly publications with our current publisher Just Imagine Marketing, Kathy Hess-Slocum. I would like to thank TKPOA Staff members, TKPOA Board members, Kathy Hess-Slocum, and her team for all of their hard work, writing, and editing each issue. This effort has provided
the monthly Keys Breeze Magazine to the 1528 Property Owners free of charge for the past four years.
I have personally received very positive and insightful feedback from many TKPOA members over the past few years. Many comments they now read the Keys Breeze cover to cover. If you miss an issue you can always catch up online via our TKPOA website: www.TKPOA.com where each monthly issue of the Keys Breeze is posted in digital format. The monthly Keys Breeze Magazine is printed on recycled paper with soy-based ink and has been for the past 10 years.
