AN ACT CONCERNING LIMITATIONS ON THE PROVISION OF GIFTS TO THE EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS OF THE ASSOCIATION OF A COMMON INTEREST COMMUNITY.

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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 5433
February Session, 2026 LCO No. 2373

Referred to Committee on JUDICIARY

Introduced by:
(JUD)

AN ACT CONCERNING LIMITATIONS ON THE PROVISION OF GIFTS
TO THE EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS OF THE ASSOCIATION OF A
COMMON INTEREST COMMUNITY.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 47-245 of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 2
(a) Except as provided in the declaration, the bylaws, subsection (b) 3
of this section, or other provisions of this chapter, the executive board 4
may act in all instances on behalf of the association. In the performance 5
of their duties, officers and members of the executive board appointed 6
by the declarant shall exercise the degree of care and loyalty to the 7
association required of a trustee and officers and members of the 8
executive board not appointed by a declarant shall exercise the degree 9
of care and loyalty to the association required of an officer or director of 10
a corporation organized under chapter 602, and are subject to the 11
conflict of interest rules governing directors and officers under chapter 12
602. The standards of care and loyalty described in this section apply 13
regardless of the form in which the association is organized. 14

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(b) The executive board may not: 15
(1) Amend the declaration, except as provided in section 47-236; 16
(2) Terminate the common interest community; 17
(3) Elect members of the executive board, except that the executive 18
board may fill vacancies in its membership for the unexpired portion of 19
any term or, if earlier, until the next regularly scheduled election of 20
executive board members; or 21
(4) Determine the qualifications, powers and duties, or terms of office 22
of executive board members. 23
(c) The executive board shall adopt budgets as provided in section 24
47-261e. 25
(d) Subject to the provisions of subsection (e) of this section, the 26
declaration may provide for a period of declarant control of the 27
association, during which a declarant, or persons designated by the 28
declarant, may appoint and remove the officers and members of the 29
executive board. A declarant may voluntarily surrender the right to 30
appoint and remove officers and members of the executive board before 31
the period ends. In that event, the declarant may require, during the 32
remainder of the period, that specified actions of the association or 33
executive board, as described in a recorded instrument executed by the 34
declarant, be approved by the declarant before they become effective. 35
Regardless of the period provided in the declaration, a period of 36
declarant control terminates no later than the earlier of: (1) Sixty days 37
after conveyance of sixty per cent of the units that may be created to unit 38
owners other than a declarant, except that in the case of a master 39
planned community, control terminates no later than sixty days after 40
conveyance to unit owners other than the declarant of sixty per cent of 41
the maximum number of units that may be built, if that number is 42
specified, or, if no such number is specified, after conveyance to unit 43
owners other than the declarant of three hundred units; (2) two years 44

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after all declarants have ceased to offer units for sale in the ordinary 45
course of business; (3) two years after any right to add new units was 46
last exercised; or (4) the date the declarant, after giving notice in a record 47
to unit owners, records an instrument voluntarily surrendering all 48
rights to control activities of the association. 49
(e) Not later than sixty days after conveyance of one-third of the units 50
that may be created to unit owners other than a declarant, at least one 51
member and not less than one -third of the members of the executive 52
board shall be elected by unit owners other than the declarant. 53
(f) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (e) of section 47 -239, 54
not later than the termination of any period of declarant control, the unit 55
owners shall elect an executive board of at least three members, at least 56
a majority of whom shall be unit owners. Unless the declaration or 57
bylaws provides for the election of officers by the unit owners, the 58
executive board shall elect the officers. The executive board members 59
and officers shall take office upon election. 60
(g) A declaration may provide for the appointment of specified 61
positions on the executive board by either a governmental subdivision 62
or agency or a nonstock corporation exempt from taxation under 26 USC 63
501(c)(3) and 26 USC 4940(d)(2), as from time to time amended, during 64
or after the period of declarant control. A declaration may also provide 65
a method for filling vacancies in those specified positions, other than by 66
election by the unit owners, except that, after the period of declarant 67
control, appointed members (1) may not comprise more than one -third 68
of the board, and (2) have no greater authority than any other member 69
of the board. 70
(h) Within thirty days after unit owners other than the declarant elect 71
a majority of the members of the executive board, the declarant shall 72
deliver to the association all property of the unit owners and of the 73
association held by or controlled by the declarant, including without 74
limitation the following items: (1) The original or a certified copy of the 75

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recorded declaration as amended; the association articles of 76
incorporation, if the association is incorporated; bylaws; minute books 77
and other books and records of the association; and any rules and 78
regulations which may have been promulgated; (2) an accounting for 79
association funds and financial statements, from the date the association 80
received funds and ending on the date the period of declarant control 81
ends. The financial statements shall be audited by an independent 82
certified public accountant and shall be accompanied by the 83
accountant's letter, expressing either (A) the opinion that the financial 84
statements present fairly the financial position of the association in 85
conformity with generally accepted accounting principles or (B) a 86
disclaimer of the accountant's ability to attest to the fairness of the 87
presentation of the financial information in conformity with generally 88
accepted accounting principles, and the reasons therefor. The expense 89
of the audit shall not be paid for or charged to the association; (3) 90
association funds or control thereof; (4) all of declarant's tangible 91
personal property that has been represented by the declarant to be the 92
property of the association or, unless the declarant has disclosed in the 93
public offering statement that all such personal property used in the 94
common interest community will remain the declarant's property, all of 95
the declarant's tangible personal property that is necessary for, and has 96
been used exclusively in, the operation and enjoyment of the common 97
elements, and inventories of these properties; (5) a copy of any plans 98
and specifications used in the construction of the improvements in the 99
common interest community which were completed within two years 100
before the declaration was recorded; (6) all insurance policies then in 101
force, in which the unit owners, the association or its directors and 102
officers are named as insured persons; (7) copies of any certificates of 103
occupancy that may have been issued with respect to any improvements 104
comprising the common interest community; (8) any other permits 105
issued by governmental bodies applicable to the common interest 106
community and which are currently in force or which were issued 107
within one year prior to the date on which unit owners other than the 108
declarant took control of the association; (9) written warranties of the 109

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contractor, subcontractors, suppliers and manufacturers that are still 110
effective; (10) a roster of unit owners and mortgagees and their 111
addresses and telephone numbers, if known, as shown on the 112
declarant's records; (11) employment contracts in which the association 113
is a contracting party; and (12) any service contract in which the 114
association is a contracting party or in which the association or the unit 115
owners have any obligation to pay a fee to the persons performing the 116
services. 117
(i) During the period of declarant control, the declarant shall, at least 118
every six months, provide the unit owners with a current financial 119
statement of the association. The statement shall be on a cash basis and 120
need not be audited by an independent accountant. It shall include, 121
without limitation, (1) all income and expenses for the calendar year to 122
date; (2) all accounts payable and receivable, including the ages of those 123
accounts and showing all sums due to and from the declarant and 124
affiliates of the declarant; (3) the amount of any funded replacement 125
reserves; and (4) the balance of any other funds of the association. 126
(j) No person shall provide or offer to any executive board member 127
or a person seeking election as an executive board member, and no 128
executive board member or person seeking election as an executive 129
board member shall accept, any item of value based on any 130
understanding that the vote, official action or judgment of such member 131
or person seeking election would be or has been influenced thereby. No 132
person providing contracting services on behalf of the association may 133
directly or indirectly provide any item of value in excess of fifty dollars 134
per calendar year to an executive board member of the association. No 135
person serving as an executive board member of the association may 136
accept any item or combination of items valued in excess of fifty dollars 137
in the aggregate per calendar year. 138
(k) No managing agent of an association , [or] person providing 139
association management services to such association or person 140
providing contracting services on behalf of such association shall 141

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campaign for any person seeking election as an executive board 142
member. 143
(l) In the performance of their duties related to the conduct of any 144
election held by the association , officers , members of the executive 145
board and any person providing contracting services on behalf of the 146
association shall exercise the same degree of care and loyalty to the 147
association and the unit owners of the association when conducting 148
such election as that required of a trustee of a governmental body or 149
municipal official who is responsible for the conduct of a state or 150
municipal election. 151
(m) The Office of State Ethics and the State Elections Enforcement 152
Commission may adopt regulations in accordance with the provisions 153
of chapter 54 to carry out the purposes of this section. 154
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 October 1, 2026 47-245

Statement of Purpose:
To promote integrity in the conducting of elections held by the
association of a common interest community.

[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]