Overview
A proposal to amend A.R.S. §§ 33-1248(A) and 33-1804(A) to require boards of directors that record their meetings to keep a copy of the recording for at least six months and to make the unedited recording available to any member of the association upon request.
Key Changes
Current Law
No statutory requirement exists for boards to retain recordings of meetings or make them available to members.
Proposed Amendment (Passed Into Law)
- Recording Retention Requirement: Boards of directors that record meetings open to members must keep a copy of the recording for at least six months.
- Member Access to Recordings: Boards must make unedited recordings of open meetings available to any member of the association upon request.
- Compliance with Records Statutes: Meeting recording retention requirements must comply with statutory requirements relating to the availability and purchase of records.
- Limited to Open Meetings: The recording retention requirement applies only to recordings made of meetings that are open to members.
Legislative Timeline
- March 31, 2025 – Signed by Governor
- March 25, 2025 – Transmitted to Governor
- March 24, 2025 – House Third Read; Approved by House 54-2-4
- March 17, 2025 – Passed out of the House Committee on Rules with a “Constitutional and in Proper Form” determination
- March 12, 2025 – Passed out of House Committee on Government with a “Do Pass” recommendation
- March 4, 2025 – House Second Read
- March 3, 2025 – House First Read; Assigned to House Committee on Government and House Committee on Rules
- February 27, 2025 – Senate Third Read; Passed 28-0-2 as amended and transmitted to House
- February 12, 2025 – Passed out of COW with a “Do Pass as Amended” recommendation
- February 11, 2025 – Amendment proposed.
- The amendment proposed specifies that meeting recording retention requirements must comply with statutory requirements relating to the availability and purchase of records.
- January 27, 2025 – Deemed Proper for Consideration by Senate Committee on Rules
- January 15, 2025 – Senate Second Read; Passed out of Senate Committee on Government with a “Do Pass as Amended” recommendation
- January 14, 2025 – Senate First Read; Assigned to Senate Committee on Government and Senate Committee on Rules; Amendment proposed by Senator John Kavanagh.
- The amendment proposed specifies that the requirement for a board to keep a recording only applies to recordings made of meetings that are open to the members.
Impact
The law creates transparency and accountability for boards that choose to record open meetings. The six-month retention period provides a reasonable window for members to request recordings of meetings they may have missed or wish to review. The requirement that recordings be unedited prevents boards from selectively removing portions of meetings before providing them to members. The limitation to open meetings means executive session recordings are not subject to these requirements. Boards must comply with existing statutory requirements for records availability and purchase, which may allow associations to charge reasonable copying or administrative fees. Boards that do not currently record meetings are not required to begin recording, but those that do record must maintain and provide access to those recordings.