Voluteer Committees

I don't know what you mean by volunteer committees vs board committees.

I'm also unclear as to what some of these committees are for. If you have committees gathering bids and reviewing financials, what does the board do? Do you really need a standing committee for forms? How many forms do you need to develop?

So first I'd start with asking why you have these committees and whether they should exist at all.

Residents join committees because they want to make a difference - if their recommendations are always ignored or overruled they will quickly become frustrated and quit. So I try to give committees as much independent authority as possible. The social committee plans the events. Their overall budget is approved by the board but the specifics of what kind of cupcakes are served or how many easter eggs are hidden, etc is up to the committee. The landscape committee chooses the annual flowers and yard of the month winner. These are low-stakes decisions - the world's not going to end if someone didn't like the flowers this spring - but it gives the committee members purpose.

Yes, committee members will overstep sometimes. Create a charter that spells out what they can and can't do (spend funds without prior approval, sign contracts, etc) but make sure they have something to actually DO.