HOA in Georgia. I have applied a removable sticker that said "this is not an HOA sponsored event" on a fundraising poster that was placed on the Common Property by another resident. Our HOA requires such disclaimer and this poster did not have it. Next thing I know , I received $600 citation from the Board for vandalism. I checked our By-Laws and CC&Rs and there is absolutely no regulation that addresses vandalism, the citation did not include which regulation was violated ( as required by our governing documents), it just said for vandalism. When I had a meeting with the Board about it and HOA attorney was present, he quoted some chapter from state law about vandalism. First of all, I did not damage anything because the sticker was removable and the poster was plastic, but most importantly : can HOA use state law or federal law instead of governing documents to give members citations?
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State law may provide for criminal prosecution for vandalism, which could result in a fine or even imprisonment. The state can prosecute you, private individuals cannot. Fines imposed by a private organization are only enforceable through contracts, where damages could be recovered, but penalties cannot be assessed. ("Late fees" are in the class of "liquidated damages", where the agreement says what the late fee is – they don't just make up a number). Ga. Code § 44-3-223 does require you to "comply with all lawful provisions of the property owners' association instrument", but if it isn't in the instrument, you do not have to comply.
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