§ 4302. Powers of association.
(a) General rule.--Except as provided in subsection (b) and subject to the provisions of the declaration, the association may:
(1) Adopt and amend bylaws and rules and regulations.
(2) Adopt and amend budgets for revenues, expenditures and reserves, which budgets shall include, but shall not be limited to, the financial information listed in section 4403(a)(5) (relating to public offering statement; general provisions), and collect assessments for common expenses from proprietary lessees.
(3) Hire and discharge managing agents and other employees, agents and independent contractors.
(4) Institute, defend or intervene in litigation or administrative proceedings, or engage in arbitrations or mediations, in its own name on behalf of itself or two or more proprietary lessees on matters affecting the cooperative.
(5) Make contracts and incur liabilities.
(6) Regulate the use, maintenance, repair, replacement and modification of common elements and make reasonable accommodation or permit reasonable modifications to be made to units or the common elements to accommodate handicapped as defined by prevailing Federal, State or local statute, regulation, code or ordinance, proprietary lessees, residents, tenants or employees.
(7) Cause additional improvements to be made as a part of the common elements.
(8) (i) Acquire, hold, encumber and convey in its own name any right, title or interest to real or personal property other than common facilities; and
(ii) convey or subject all or part of the cooperative to a security interest only pursuant to section 4312 (relating to conveyance or encumbrance of cooperative).
(9) Grant easements, leases, licenses and concessions through or over the common elements. Any such easement, lease, license or concession that is not for the benefit of all or substantially all of the proprietary lessees shall not be granted without the same proprietary lessee approval that is required for an amendment to the declaration or that materially impairs any right or benefit that one or more proprietary lessees may have with respect to the common elements shall not be granted without the prior written approval of those proprietary lessees.
(10) Impose and receive any payments, fees or charges for the use, rental or operation of the common elements other than limited common elements described in section 4202(2) and (4) (relating to unit boundaries) and for services provided to proprietary lessees.
(11) Impose charges for late payment of assessments and, after notice and an opportunity to be heard, levy reasonable fines for violations of the declaration, bylaws and rules and regulations of the association.
(12) Impose reasonable charges for the preparation and recordation of amendments to the declaration, resale certificates required by section 4409 (relating to resales of cooperative interests) or statements of unpaid assessments. In addition, an association may impose a capital improvement fee on the resale or transfer the leasehold interest in units in accordance with the following:
(i) The capital improvement fee for any unit may not exceed the annual assessments for general common expense charged to such unit during the most recently completed fiscal year of the association, provided that:
(A) in the case of resale or transfer of the leasehold interest in a unit consisting of unimproved real estate, the capital improvement fee may not exceed one-half of the annual assessments for general common expenses charged to such unit during the most recently completed fiscal year of the association;
(B) in the case of resale or transfer of the leasehold interest in a unit which was created or added to the cooperative in accordance with section 4209 (relating to exercise of development rights) at some time during the most recently completed fiscal year of the association but was not in existence for the entire fiscal year, the capital improvement fee may not exceed one-half of the annual assessments for general common expenses charged to a unit comparable to such unit during the most recently completed fiscal year of the association; and
(C) capital improvement fees are not refundable upon any sale, conveyance or other transfer of the proprietary lease to a unit.
(ii) Capital improvement fees allocated by an association must be maintained in a separate capital account, may be expended only for new capital improvements or replacement of existing common elements and improvements on the common elements and may not be expended for operation, maintenance or other purposes.
(iii) No capital improvement fee may be imposed on any gratuitous transfer of a proprietary interest in a unit between any of the following family members: spouses, parent and child, siblings, grandparent and grandchild; nor on any transfer of a unit by foreclosure sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure to a secured lending institution as defined by the act of December 3, 1959 (P.L.1688, No.621), known as the Housing Finance Agency Law.
(iv) No fees may be imposed upon any person who:
(A) acquires a proprietary interest in a unit consisting of unimproved real estate and signs and delivers to the association at the time of such person's acquisition a sworn affidavit declaring the person's intention to reconvey such unit within 18 months of its acquisition; and
(B) completes such reconveyance within 18 months.
(13) Provide for the indemnification of its officers and executive board and maintain directors' and officers' liability insurance.
(14) Assign its right to future income, including the right to receive the payments made on account of common expense assessments. Reserve funds held for future major repairs and replacements of the common elements may not be assigned or pledged.
(15) Enjoin, abate or remedy by appropriate legal proceedings either at law or in equity any violation of the declaration, bylaws or this subpart by any proprietary lessee or other person.
(16) Terminate proprietary leases and all rights of proprietary lessees with respect to their cooperative interests and redeem cooperative interests of proprietary lessees in connection with the exercise of the association's remedies for nonpayment of assessments pursuant to section 4315 (relating to lien for assessments) or in connection with the association's remedies for other violations of the declaration, bylaws, proprietary lease or this subpart pursuant to section 4319 (relating to termination of cooperative interest), although the declaration may expressly require such termination to be subject to the approval of a specified vote of the proprietary lessees if the cause for such termination is of a type specified in the declaration or is for any cause if the declaration so specifies.
(17) Assign or delegate any powers of the association listed in this section to a master association subject to the provisions of section 4219 (relating to master associations) and accept any assignment or delegation of powers from one or more cooperatives or other incorporated or unincorporated associations.
(18) Exercise any other powers conferred by the declaration or bylaws.
(19) Exercise all other powers that may be exercised in this Commonwealth by legal entities of the same type as the association.
(20) Exercise any other powers necessary and proper for the governance and operation of the association.
(b) Restrictions on limitations in declaration.--The declaration may not impose limitations on the power of the association to deal with the declarant which are more restrictive than the limitations imposed on the power of the association to deal with other persons.
(Nov. 30, 2004, P.L.1499, No.190, eff. 60 days)
2004 Amendment. Act 190 amended subsec. (a)(4), (6), (8), (12) and (14).
Cross References. Section 4302 is referred to in sections 4102, 4203, 4219, 4315 of this title.
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