Regulatory Changes to Virginia's CICB-Mandated Complaint Procedures

Regulatory Changes to Virginia's CICB-Mandated Complaint Procedures

In 2008, legislation pertaining to the Virginia Common Interest Community Board (CICB) was enacted that included a requirement that all community associations adopt an internal complaint procedure to handle complaints against the association (or its board or managing agent) over alleged violations of state laws or regulations governing community associations.  This requirement was then implemented through state regulations in 2012.  Effective August 1^st of this year, those regulations governing the CICB-mandated “complaint procedure” were amended.  While most of the regulatory amendments were just clarifications or non-substantive in nature, there are several important substantive amendments.  Boards of directors should consider amending their association’s existing complaint procedure to benefit, for instance, from the following changes:

1.         Associations can now have up to 14 days (instead of seven days) to provide a written acknowledgement to the complainant that their complaint was received.  

2.         Regarding permissible methods of sending complaint-related notices, the revised regulations removed the reference to sending notices by registered or certified mail (changing the language to just “mail”) and added “third-party courier with proof of delivery” as another acceptable method.

3.         After a board of directors reviews and decides on a response to the complaint, the association’s “notice of final determination” (which must be sent to the complainant) no longer needs to include citations to applicable provisions of the association’s governing documents given that they are beyond the scope of the complaint process.

If you have any questions about these revised regulations or amending your community association’s complaint procedure, we encourage you to contact your association’s legal counsel for guidance.