Condo Media - December 2019 - 26

Legislative Update

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New Hampshire is an exception. NHLAC
Chair Gary Daddario, a partner in Marcus, Errico, Emmer & Brooks, says his
committee's watch list includes several
"still active bills." Primary among them
is a measure that would establish a "Dispute Resolution Board" (DRB) to handle
condominium owners' complaints about
their community associations. Lawmakers have considered and rejected this
bill repeatedly, but it has a good chance
of passage this year, Daddario says,
because members of the legislature's
Association Law Subcommittee "are passionate about it. They seem to be under
the impression that New Hampshire is
chock-full of condominium owners who
are being unfairly persecuted by their
boards, and who can't afford to fight
them in court."
The NHLAC's major objection to
the DRB, although not the only one,
Daddario says, is that it is structured
as "a one-way street." Owners can file
complaints against association boards,
but boards can't bring complaints against
owners. Lawmakers have rejected that
argument, but they have been receptive
to another one-that boards should
be able to file a written response to an

26

CONDOMEDIA December 2019

owner's complaint. Under the bill as
originally drafted, the DRB would determine whether the owner's complaint had
merit and then hold a hearing, at which
both sides would present their arguments. Under that structure, the NHLAC
argued, with no input from the association board, "every owner's complaint will
appear to have merit." The bill's sponsors
have agreed to amend the bill to address
that concern.
Funding for the DRB, which has been
a major impediment to its passage in the
past, hasn't been resolved, Daddario contends. The bill's sponsors, he says, have
shrugged off arguments that the $250 fee
owners must pay to file a complaint won't
come close to covering the administrative expenses. The fee also undercuts the
bill's stated aim of providing a lower-cost
alternative to court action, according
to Daddario, who notes: "The cost of
bringing an action in small claims court
is about the same."
The bill's supporters have also dismissed another NHLAC concern about
the weight that would be given to DRB
decisions. If neither side appeals, a DRB
decision will be "certified" automatically
by a Superior Court, establishing it as
a precedent that can be used in future
litigation. "We think that is extremely
problematic," Daddario says.
The legislation has been sent to a
study committee for further review
and revision. If it is reported favorably,
it will go to the Senate for a vote.

Daddario predicts the bill's supporters
"will make something happen in the next
couple of months. They really seem to
want this thing to pass."
A bill that would have restricted the
ability of community associations to
regulate the installation of HAM radio
equipment in common areas died in
committee-a victory for the NHLAC,
which had opposed it. But the committee's top priority-legislation authorizing
associations to use the foreclosure
process to enforce the condominium
super lien-is likely to die again this year.
"It is still encountering heavy opposition
from the banking lobby," Daddario says,
and drawing opposition from housing
advocacy groups, warning that lenders
"will stop originating condominium
loans" in New Hampshire if the measure
is approved.
Also lining up with the bill's opponents,
the New Hampshire Housing Authority
is arguing that it will harm lower-income
home owners, who are most at risk of
foreclosure. "They fail to recognize that
[prolonged, unresolved] delinquencies
harm all condo owners," Daddario says,
including lower-income owners, who
must fill the funding gap created when
some owners don't pay their fees.
With the foreclosure bill likely facing defeat again this year, Daddario
repeats what has become mantra for
the NHLAC: "We'll try again next year,
and we'll keep trying" until the bill
becomes law.
Condo Media - December 2019

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