Payment portals on HOA websites not required

Q: I’m writing to you about your recent column and Senate Bill 378. If I read the bill correctly, it is now optional for a homeowners’ association to provide online electronic assessment payments. Your report said otherwise.

Also, (I understand) the costly cyber-insurance is unnecessary if there is no online assessment payment offered by the association. I am wondering, if this is only the debit card or credit card transactions.

If the law no longer requires our association to provide online electronic payments, I will be pushing the board to eliminate it from our website, and cancel the cyber insurance that increased our insurance bill by $900.

A: Per SB378, entities processing homeowner payments are now required to maintain a minimum of $5 million in cybersecurity insurance that provides coverage for losses arising out of or relating to data breaches, unauthorized intrusions into an information system, computer viruses, ransomware, identity theft and similar exposures. Associations offering online payment services, even when offered through a portal that is processed by an insured bank, must also maintain certain minimum cyber-insurance amounts to protect the association and its members from any cyber-theft-related claims. ($250,000 for an association of 150 units or fewer, units from 150 to 250 $500,000, and units 250 units or more $1 million.)

SB378 also expressly imposes data protection requirements under Nevada Revised Statutes 603A.010 to NRS 603A.290. SB378 imposes the protection for personal information requirements such as bank account numbers, credit card numbers, usernames and unique identifiers including passwords combined with e-mails.

NRS 603A.040 defines personal information to mean a natural person’s first name or first initial and last name in combination with any or more of the following data elements when the name and data elements are not encrypted, such as social security number, driver’s license or identification card and medical identification number.

Under SB378, an association will no longer be forced to use an online payment portal for association payments. Instead, SB378 expressly requires an association board to perform a cost-benefit analysis as to whether an online payment system makes sense for a particular association. An analysis would involve considering such issues as cost of obtaining cybersecurity insurance, benefits of online payment accessibility, liabilities for cyber-theft claims, expenses of maintaining such systems and other related concerns.

In your case, before eliminating a cost of $900 for cyber-insurance (in my opinion, that is a good deal for the protection), your board should review the laws with legal counsel and their CPA representative.

Q: We live in a gated age-qualified community in Mesquite. We were recently awakened by landscapers with loud blowers at 6 a.m. I contacted the management company and was told that the landscapers were starting at 5 a.m. to avoid the heat. Is there anything that can be done about this?

A: Unless Mesquite or Clark County has an ordinance that prohibits contractors for starting work earlier than 6 a.m., the landscapers can begin their work in your community. Given the heat dome and the higher than normal heat for June, it is in the best interest for the landscapers to start their work earlier. It may be inconvenient for homeowners, but it definitely is in the interest of the workers’ health.

Barbara Holland, CPM, is an author, educator and expert witness on real estate issues pertaining to management and brokerage. Questions may be sent to holland744o@gmail.com.