Tuesday evening, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) sent out an email notification indicating that, effective immediately, certain measures that were in place during the COVID-19 pandemic have been eliminated.  The most notable changes relate to the temporary authorization that the PLCB granted to allow for the use of expanded outdoor seating areas and the sale of mixed drinks to go by retail licensees. What’s the genesis of this? Why is the rug seemingly being…

In the last installment of the series, I went through some of the terms that Associations need to know when a Unit Owner files for Bankruptcy.  This edition will talk about the “Automatic Stay” and how it affects Creditors like an Association. The first thing to remember is that Bankruptcy is a way to allow people who have debts to get a fresh start.  The Automatic Stay gives Debtors some cooling off time.  It…

Has your Board, especially if it has a financial professional on it, ever looked with dismay at the low interest that a Capital Reserve Fund is earning?  They may think that if they could get a better return on that Reserve Fund, then they could do more projects.  Or they could reduce assessments. This is when they ask about investing the Reserve Funds. Some of the questions that I get the most are: How can…

In the last installment of this series, I explained that Bankruptcy is a federal law designed to help people who owe money get a fresh start.  In this part, I want to explain some terms that are helpful to remember. These are going to be the way that I think of the terms – in plain English.  If you want to see the definitions in the official United States Bankruptcy Code, you can look …

Now that people who have been vaccinated are allowed to throw away their masks, the question on people’s minds is, “How do we enforce that?” Employers want to know if they can ask their employees for proof of vaccination. Surprisingly, yes. Most employers are allowed to ask their employees for proof that they have received vaccines. Asking for proof of a vaccine does not violate HIPAA or the ADA.…

Bankruptcy helps people who can no longer pay their debts get a fresh start. This is the statement that comes at the very top of the page for the United States Bankruptcy Courts. Every accountant and attorney who has ever taken a class on Bankruptcy has heard this said in the first five minutes of the first day of class. Bankruptcy is first and foremost a societal method to help a person who cannot pay…

Collection of assessments is one of the biggest headaches for many Community Associations.  Most of the time, collections follow a standard process.  It might be slow and take several steps.  But, since assessments are liens on the unit and since an Association can collect all of its attorneys’ fees and costs, an Association can collect all of its assessments most of the time. However, when a Unit Owner files for Bankruptcy, the collection process…