Is a Recording secretary essential?

We have a situation, our secretary has volunteered to perform all other duties that are required by a secretary for our association except for the minutes of the meetings. She will resign altogether without some assistance and no one else on the board is willing to be secretary. Our Bylaws allow for an assistant secretary and the Planned Community Act which was adopted a few years ago by our membership stipulates that the meetings are to be conducted according to Robert's Rules which allow for a Recording Secretary and a Corresponding secretary.

A few people on the board have suggested that the committees supply the president with the various documents for the minutes and the president will compile these docs for the minutes along with working in google docs with board member's input to create the minutes. The minutes have been signed lately "submitted by the board".

I don't mind this type of situation for emergency measures but to rely on this process "long term" I think is problematic. I have written to the board that I believe we need a recording secretary, someone who performs as a scribe, a witness who records the meeting's actions. I also understand that RRs state that actions are mainly what is essential for the recording of the minutes, and perhaps this method may be okay, but somehow it doesn't seem appropriate for a Landowners' association to not have a recording secretary.

Thanks for your help and opinions!

Oh, on another subject, we are at the stage of a Covenant violation where we need to send "notice of hearing letter"(the third)setting up a hearing for the violating landowners, with time, date and place for the hearing, before we can impose fines.

Does anyone have a boiler plate letter for "notice of hearing", you could get to me?

Thanks!!

Robin,
Follow the requirements in your Bylaws. However, it is only essential to make sure someone does record the minutes. As the managing agent I am often requested to take minutes and when I do they are emailed to all Board members the following day with a request to advise on any changes.

Then perhaps you should agree to take minutes or canvas the membership for someone to volunteer to take minutes (perhaps a spouse).


See attached.
It's a little lengthy but many items are required by our enforcement policy.

The main things to include are: Time, Date, location, violations with pictures (as it allows everyone to see what specifically is the issue), citation of covenants/rule/reg being violated and potential outcome.

Yes, perhaps you can write the draft minutes.-- good idea. The point is that you must have minutes written and then approved. I the really isn't too important who writes them, so, since your bylaws allow it, get someone--anyone to draft them.

If you have a property mgr., often it's in their contract to write the draft minutes.

I don't know about NC, but CA corps. code, unlike AZ, does have a requirement for certain officers and so do our bylaws.

But I don't know what you mean about the "various documents" that go in the minutes. The minutes--along with the basic info about where the mtg. was held, the date, who was present, who was absent, only are about the motions and actions taken at meetings. I guess the minutes could say see attached documents with a list of their titles & dates.

Put another way, the minutes pretty much are aligned with the agenda.

How many are on your board? In your HOA?

Thanks great template! And thanks to all for your suggestions and comments!