October 2009 Developments - 43

Montana Simplifies Timeshare Law ARDA submitted comments on Montana SB 269 in February, seeking a number of corrections to the bill that simplified the fairly basic timeshare law in Montana. ARDA pointed out that, if the bill were enacted as introduced, with a provision eliminating the special timeshare sales license, all timeshare sales people would be forced to have full real estate licenses. This oversight was corrected before the bill left the Senate. SB 269 passed and went into effect as of April, with this correction included. Additional changes included simplification of the financial statements required; the addition of some disclosures to the developer public offering statement, particularly association budget information; extension of the rescission period from three to seven days; and elimination of the advertising filing requirement, among other sections repealed. The law is administered by the Board of Realty Regulation. Working to Pass Non-Judicial Forfeiture in Massachusetts Beginning in early 2008, the State Affairs team, working in conjunction with the ARDA- New England Committee, began moving forward a comprehensive two-year strategy to educate elected officials and key stakeholders in Massachusetts on the need to pass nonjudicial forfeiture legislation. Among others, this list of officials includes the Attorney General, House and Senate leadership, legislators representing all districts comprising the Cape and Islands region and the Berkshires, representatives of the Real Estate Bar Association, the Community Association Institute, the Boston Bar Association, the Massachusetts Bar Association, and the respective chairs of the Joint Committee on Housing, Financial Services, and the Judiciary. The benefits of this protracted educational strategy culminated on Tuesday, June 30, when representatives of ARDA and the ARDA-New England Committee testified in support of ARDAbacked HB 1287 before the Massachusetts Joint Committee on The Judiciary. While the bill has yet to be officially refereed out of committee, we remain hopeful that it will move in early fall. If passed, this legislation will save timeshare HOAs operating in the Commonwealth tens of millions of dollars. (See sidebar on pp. 4246 for details on this action.) Onerous New Hampshire HOA Amendments Defeated This year, HB 376 was introduced and proposed changes that would have negatively impacted timeshare HOAs and their boards of directors. Specifically, the bill proposed substantive changes that would have impacted budget preparation, bylaws amendment, meeting notices, and board election. Fortunately, due to the efforts of our lobbying team, HB 376 passed without these onerous provisions. • Laura Brandow, partner with the law firm of Marcus, Errico, Emmer, and Brooks—she is here today representing a variety of timeshare HOAs and as a technical adviser to ARDA’s Resort Owners Coalition. On behalf of all us, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to speak in support of HB 1287. We have all agreed to keep our comments to 3 minutes each. 2. Consensus-building, Issue Awareness. ARDA has pursued a year-and-a- half-long process to educate elected officials and key stakeholders in Massachusetts on the need to pass non-judicial forfeiture legislation for uncontested timeshare interests. This includes the Attorney General, House and Senate leadership, legislators representing all districts comprising the Cape and Islands region and the Berkshires, and the respective chairs of the Joint Committee on Housing, Financial Services, and the Judiciary. During the summer of 2009, we also arranged a resort tour and issue briefing on Cape Cod to educate all elected officials on the Cape and Islands of the many benefits of our proposed legislation. Lastly, we have met with representatives of REBA, the Community Association Institute, the Boston Bar Association, and the Massachusetts Bar Association. Commonwealth is represented by residents and nonresidents alike. The Berkshires and Cape Cod have experienced tremendous economic growth due to the timeshare industry. With an 80% satisfied consumer base and favorable demographics, the industry is expected to continue its strong contribution to the U.S. economy. 1. Who Is the American Resort Development Association (ARDA)? The American Resort Development Association (ARDA) is the Washington, D.C.-based national trade association, representing the interests of the timesharing and vacation ownership industry. Founded in 1969, ARDA represents more than 1,000 timeshare development and related service corporations. It is the mission of ARDA to foster and promote the growth of the timeshare and vacation ownership industry and to serve its members through education, public relations and communications, legislative advocacy, membership development, and ethics enforcement. ARDA is unique in the world of associations in that we also represent the interests of the owners of our product. In fact, on this particular issue, ARDA’s efforts are supported and funded 100% by more than 800,000 individual timeshare owners from around the country (including Massachusetts) through ARDA-Resort Owners Coalition (ARDA-ROC). Through ARDA-ROC, we advocate on a wide variety of legislative issues affecting owners and timeshare homeowners associations, wherever the need exists. 4. Characteristics of Timeshares. Timeshare ownership enables owners to enjoy a vacation experience over the course of many years. Timeshares, however, are not primary (or homestead) residential dwellings and cannot be used as such; they are vacation properties used for limited periods of time during a given year (one week, three weeks, etc.). Timeshare interests are not a financial investment—they are intended for recreational use, i.e., vacation experiences. 3. Timeshare is a Vital Component of Massachusetts’s Hospitality Industry. The timeshare industry is a vital component of the Massachusetts hospitality industry. In 2007 alone, more than 450,000 timeshare owners visited Massachusetts. There are currently 47 timeshare resorts offering approximately 3,863 total units operating throughout the state. In total, the Massachusetts timeshare industry supports an estimated $240 million in annual consumer spending; 8,700 full- and part-time jobs; and more than $196 million in tax revenues derived from property taxes, occupancy taxes, and employee taxes. Timeshare ownership in the 5. Non-judicial Forfeiture Issue Explanation, Importance of HB 1287. What is the relationship between non-judicial forfeiture, consumer protection, and the long-term health of Massachusetts’s timeshare industry? The relationship is stronger than you might think. Many timeshare resorts in Massachusetts are structured to give timeshare owners’ associations the responsibility to maintain, repair, and replace their common elements. The common elements will vary by resort but generally include recreational amenities that are available for the use and October 2009 • Developments

October 2009 Developments

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2009 Developments

October 2009 Developments - 1
October 2009 Developments - C1
October 2009 Developments - I1
October 2009 Developments - I2
October 2009 Developments - I3
October 2009 Developments - I4
October 2009 Developments - 4
October 2009 Developments - 5
October 2009 Developments - 6
October 2009 Developments - 7
October 2009 Developments - 8
October 2009 Developments - 9
October 2009 Developments - 10
October 2009 Developments - 11
October 2009 Developments - 12
October 2009 Developments - 13
October 2009 Developments - 14
October 2009 Developments - 15
October 2009 Developments - 16
October 2009 Developments - 17
October 2009 Developments - 18
October 2009 Developments - 19
October 2009 Developments - 20
October 2009 Developments - 21
October 2009 Developments - 22
October 2009 Developments - 23
October 2009 Developments - 24
October 2009 Developments - 25
October 2009 Developments - 26
October 2009 Developments - 27
October 2009 Developments - 28
October 2009 Developments - 29
October 2009 Developments - 30
October 2009 Developments - 31
October 2009 Developments - 32
October 2009 Developments - 33
October 2009 Developments - 34
October 2009 Developments - 35
October 2009 Developments - 36
October 2009 Developments - 37
October 2009 Developments - 38
October 2009 Developments - 39
October 2009 Developments - 40
October 2009 Developments - 41
October 2009 Developments - 42
October 2009 Developments - 43
October 2009 Developments - 44
October 2009 Developments - 45
October 2009 Developments - 46
October 2009 Developments - 47
October 2009 Developments - 48
October 2009 Developments - 49
October 2009 Developments - 50
October 2009 Developments - 51
October 2009 Developments - 52
October 2009 Developments - 53
October 2009 Developments - 54
October 2009 Developments - 55
October 2009 Developments - 56
October 2009 Developments - 57
October 2009 Developments - 58
October 2009 Developments - 59
October 2009 Developments - 60
October 2009 Developments - 61
October 2009 Developments - 62
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com