Moving Hawaii Condo Law

As indicated earlier, we are moving this blog. Hawaii Condo Law can be found by clicking this link. If you've been using "hawaiicondominiumlaw.com" to access this blog, you don't need to do anything new. Most of the non-legislative articles have been ported to the new blog, but the old blog will remain active for some time. The newest article about the bills that have just been introduced are on the new site.

Legislative Session to Begin

On Wednesday, January 18, 2006, the Hawaii State Legislature will open at 10:00 a.m. and will adjourn after 60 legislative days. Due to weekends, holidays, and recesses, the Legislature will adjourn on May 4, 2006. The Legislative Timetable contains the various deadlines for the session. This is the second year of the biennial session. This means that any bills introduced last year can still be considered in the 2006 session. These are called "Carried Over Measures". In addition, new bills can be introduced. The deadline for introduction of bills is January 25, 2006. As I've done before, I'll provide information about the bills that affect community associations.

Most bills affecting community associations will be heard by the Senate Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Housing Committee chaired by Senator Ron Menor and the House Consumer Protection & Commerce Committee chaired by Rep. Robert N. Herkes. Rep. Herkes is the new chair of the committee after the resignation of former Representative Ken Hiraki. Other committees will also hear legislation that affects community associations.

It's difficult to predict what kinds of bills will be considered by the legislature. We are certain that a bill tweaking the Recodification will be heard by the Legislature. We've heard rumours that a bill to expand the Pilot Condo Court Project to apply to planned community associations will be introduced. Other than that, virtually anything is a possibility.

Auditor Recommends Against Certification of Condominium Association Managers

On May 3, 2005, the Hawaii Legislature adopted a resolution asking the Legislative Auditor to conduct a sunrise review of the certification of condominium association managers. This is the first step before a profession is regulated by the State of Hawaii.

On December 22, 2005, the Auditor transmitted a letter to the Hawaii Senate President informing him of the recommendation against the mandatory certification of managers. The actual report explains the reasons for the recommendation:

The proposed regulation is unnecessary for several reasons. We found little evidence that condominium association managers have presented a danger to the health, safety, and welfare of the public. Most of the complaints filed at the Regulated Industries Complaint Office related to problems between condominium owners and their boards. In addition, complainants have many remedies available to them. Mediation services are available from the Real Estate Commission and the Regulated Industries Complaints Office. The Legislature also established a Condominium Dispute Resolution Program that would allow cases that hand not been resolved through mediation to be heard by the Commerce Department's Office of Administrative Hearing.

The Legislative Auditor also stated that the Recodification will be effective in a few months and it would be premature to consider any regulatory changes until the new law comes into effect and its impact on condominium management can be assessed.

The Legislative Auditor's standard for evaluating whether a profession is to be regulated is whether there is a significant risk to the health, safety and welfare of the public. On that basis, the Legislative Auditor has taken the position that various professions should not be regulated. Despite these recommendations, the Legislature has decided to regulate many professions. So, there is still a possibility that the Legislature will approve legislation requiring certification of condominium association managers during the upcoming legislative session.