Violation hearing can be held in open HOA meeting

Q: Since Nevada Revised Statutes 116.31085 allows a person to attend a board meeting hearing (not executive), are there guidelines, please?

Are they placed on the agenda-name-address-violations, etc? I can find nothing in the governing documents regarding this, and in 45 years, no one has requested an open hearing from this homeowners association. Is the decision including the fines assessed then placed in the minutes and published?

Since a homeowner’s privacy is protected by being heard in a closed executive session it seems that most people desire this protection.

It appears to be a really unwise move on the part of that person, i.e., for the entire complex to know that a person has no regard for the governing documents he/she agreed to follow as a homeowner purchasing property in an HOA. Most homeowners heed the courtesy letter, especially when a photograph clearly shows the violation. So far this HOA has nearly 98 percent adherence to the covenants, conditions and restrictions. Many thank the board for keeping the community attractive and protecting the property values of this aging complex.

A: You are correct. There is a state law that a homeowner who has been called to a hearing violation can inform the board of directors they want a hearing to be brought before the membership in an open meeting. Why? I have seen this happen one time at one of my associations. In this case, the homeowner believed the board would render a more favorable decision. For some homeowners, they want to show to the membership that they think the alleged violation was petty and that a hearing would cast individual board members in a poor light or to show that there is a conflict of interest by one or more board members.

Most likely, the hearing would be placed as the last agenda item. Homeowners who are asked to attend a hearing, whether it be in a closed or opened meeting, must be accorded due process. They are entitled to attend all portions of the hearing related to the alleged violation including the presentation of any evidence or the testimony of any witnesses. Homeowners have the right to have legal counsel, the right to present witnesses and the right to present information relating to any conflict of interest of any member of the hearing panel.

Neither the homeowner nor the membership attending the hearing at the open board meeting is entitled to attend the deliberation of the board, that would occur after the adjournment of the meeting. Any decision rendered by the board would be confidential. Only the homeowner involved in the hearing would receive the decision.

Barbara Holland is a certified property manager, broker and supervisory certified association manager. Questions may be sent to holland744o@gmail.com.