Kansas HOA Laws and Regulations

Homeowners associations in Kansas are required to be organized as corporations and must, therefore, follow all state Corporate Laws. In addition to corporate law, the Kansas Uniform Common Interest Owners Bill of Rights Act was passed to provide more specific regulations regarding the management of HOA communities.

The Kansas Uniform Common Interest Owners Bill of Rights Act was put into effect on January 1st, 2011 and applies to all HOAs, even community associations created before the bill was effective if they contain twelve or more units.

Homeowners Association’s Rights and Responsibilities

The primary purpose of an HOA is to protect property values and maintain common elements of the community. The association can impose regular fees upon the homeowners to build funds for necessary property maintenance. They may also regulate specific aesthetic aspects of units.

Duties And Restrictions

Duties and restrictions of the association board of directors are listed in Chapter 58-4608 of the Kansas Code. To maintain the community, the board of directors may:

• Adopt or amend bylaws pending approval of the homeowners.
• Adopt or amend the annual budget.
• Suspend any right or privilege for failed payments except access to the unit, the right to vote, and withholding services only if it would endanger health, safety, or property.

Community Records

It is the responsibility of the board of directors to maintain detailed records as described by Chapter 58-4616 and keep them on file for at least five years unless otherwise specified:

• Receipts and expenditures along with detailed accounting records.
• Minutes of all meetings excluding closed executive sessions.
• A record of unit owners with names, addresses, and several votes entitled to cast.
• Original association documents along with any amendments made.
• Financial statements and tax returns must be kept on file for at least three years.
• Any contracts that the association has entered.
• The voting records of all unit owners and board members must be kept on file for at least one year after an election.

All community records must be made available to homeowners at a convenient time and location upon request. The board of directors has ten days to produce documents after written notice from a homeowner. The board may charge reasonable fees for the reproduction and delivery of documents.

Annual Meeting

An annual meeting must be held by the board of directors to discuss any changes to the community budget. This meeting, as with all community meetings, must be open to all association members. The budget is ultimately adopted by the board of directors alone, but members may speak during the meeting; as many as is reasonable. Notice of the meeting must be given at least ten days before the meeting and notice of any changes to the budget must be given to homeowners.

In the case of an emergency, the homeowners’ association may impose additional special assessments to cover unexpected maintenance costs. To pass a special assessment, 2/3 of the board of directors must vote in favor. The notice must be sent to the homeowners with an explanation of the charges. The money collected may only go towards repairs described in the notice.

Homeowner Rights

Association members have the right to elect or remove representatives to/from the board of directors and can vote on any proposals made to change community bylaws. The board of directors may not make any changes to community regulations without first getting the majority approval from homeowners. Members of the board of directors may be removed for any reason with a majority vote at official member meetings.

Meetings

Member meetings must take place at least annually unless otherwise specified by community regulations. Special meetings may be called by the board president, a majority vote from the board of directors, or 10% of association members. If the board does not provide details on a meeting within 30 days of receiving a signed petition from at least 10% of the association members, a signer of the petition can set a time, date, and location of the meeting. Quorum is met when 20% of the voting power is present unless otherwise stated in community documents.

Homeowners have the right to attend and speak at all board meetings. The board of directors reserves the right to regulate the amount of time given to homeowners but may not prohibit it entirely. The board may also call for closed executive sessions when discussing sensitive matters regarding legal action or personal account details. No voting will take place at a closed session.

Kansas Uniform Common Interest Owners Bill of Rights Act