Colorado Law · Board Fundamentals · CCIOA · Nonprofit Corporation Act

Colorado HOA Board Member Governance Guide: The CCIOA Map for New Directors

A Colorado director takes on one statute that covers every kind of community, a set of nine written policies the law requires, a budget that owners can veto, fines capped by statute, and an association that must register with the state every year. This guide is the map: one short section per obligation, each pointing to the detailed CIC-SC guide for that topic.

By the CIC-SC Editorial Team Updated November 8, 2026 Reading time: ~12 minutes Audience: New Colorado Directors, Officers, Managers

Educational notice. This information is educational in nature and should not be construed as legal advice. Statutory references are to the Colorado Revised Statutes as published by the Colorado General Assembly at the time of writing; later amendments are possible. Consult qualified association counsel regarding legal interpretation specific to your jurisdiction.

Currency: verified against the Colorado Revised Statutes 2024 (Office of Legislative Legal Services printout) and the enrolled 2025 and 2026 bills named in the text, each with its effective date. Later amendments are possible.

Colorado’s General Assembly meets every year, and it has rewritten large parts of community association law since 2022: fines, collections, foreclosure, construction-defect claims, and the hand-off between management companies. This overview links to a detailed CIC-SC guide for each topic. The statutory text and the association’s governing documents control.

1. Which Law Applies: One Act, Split by Creation Date

The Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (CCIOA), C.R.S. §§ 38-33.3-101 to -402, governs condominiums, cooperatives, and planned communities together. Colorado does not separate HOA law from condominium law the way Texas and Florida do. Many associations are also nonprofit corporations, so the Colorado Revised Nonprofit Corporation Act (C.R.S. Title 7, Articles 121–137) supplies default rules on meetings, voting, proxies, and director conduct where CCIOA and the bylaws are silent. Older condominiums may also be governed in part by the 1963 Condominium Ownership Act (C.R.S. §§ 38-33-101 to -113).

The first question for any Colorado board is when the community was created. CCIOA applies in full to communities created on or after July 1, 1992. For older communities, only the sections listed in § 38-33.3-117 apply, each from a stated date:

From	Examples of sections that reach pre-1992 communities (§ 117)
July 1, 1992	§§ 105–111, 114, 118, 120, 122, 123, parts of 302, 311, 316, 316.3, 318, 319
July 1, 1995	§ 308(2)–(7): open board meetings and executive session (all communities)
January 1, 2006	§§ 124, 209.4–209.7, 301, 308(1), 310(1)–(2), 310.5, 317, 401
July 1, 2010	§ 209.5(1)(b)(IX): reserve-study policy
July 1, 2017	§ 303(4)(a): budget adoption and owner veto
September 1, 2017	§ 303.5: construction-defect owner vote (all communities)

A pre-1992 community may elect full coverage by amendment under § 118. In Accetta v. Brooks Towers Residences Condominium Ass’n, 2021 COA 87, the Court of Appeals held that § 118 is the exclusive way to make that election. Very small communities may be subject only to §§ 105–107 (§§ 116, 119; § 116 as amended by SB 24-021). Throughout this library, CIC-SC notes where a rule reaches pre-1992 communities. Which category a particular community falls in is a threshold question boards commonly put to association counsel.

2. Board Authority and the “Wanton and Willful” Standard

The executive board may act for the association in all instances except as limited by the declaration, the bylaws, or § 303(3) (§ 38-33.3-303(1)(a)). The board may not amend the declaration, terminate the community, elect board members, or set their qualifications or terms, though it may fill a vacancy for the unexpired term (§ 303(3)(a)). Every board member is entitled to all association information any other board member has, including monthly expenditure detail, contracts, and communications with the manager, attorney, or accountant (§ 303(1)(b)).

Colorado’s liability standard differs from the business-judgment frameworks used in Texas and Florida. A board member not appointed by the declarant “shall [not] be liable for actions taken or omissions made in the performance of such member’s duties except for wanton and willful acts or omissions” (§ 303(2)(b)). Declarant appointees must exercise the care required of fiduciaries of the unit owners (§ 303(2)(a)). For investing reserve funds, the nonprofit-act standard of § 7-128-401 applies: good faith, the care of an ordinarily prudent person in a like position, and a reasonable belief that the action serves the association’s best interests (§ 303(2.5)). In Colorado Homes, Ltd. v. Loerch-Wilson, 43 P.3d 718 (Colo. App. 2001), the court applied a good-faith, not-arbitrary test to an association’s covenant-enforcement decisions. CIC-SC’s research did not locate a published appellate decision applying § 7-128-401 to a CCIOA board, so how the two statutes interact outside reserve investment is unsettled. Section 117 does not list § 303(2) or (2.5), so their reach to pre-1992 communities is also a question for counsel. Questions about a director’s personal exposure belong with association counsel.

3. The Nine Responsible Governance Policies

Section 38-33.3-209.5(1)(b) requires every association to adopt written policies, procedures, and rules on nine subjects: (1) collection of unpaid assessments; (2) board conflicts of interest; (3) conduct of meetings; (4) enforcement of covenants and rules, including notice and hearing procedures and the schedule of fines; (5) inspection and copying of records; (6) investment of reserve funds; (7) adoption and amendment of policies, procedures, and rules; (8) procedures for addressing disputes between the association and owners; and (9) reserve-study disclosure. Section 124(1)(b) separately required a written dispute-resolution policy by January 1, 2007. The policies are association records (§ 317(1)(f)) and part of the annual disclosure (§ 209.4(2)). Pre-1992 communities: § 209.5 applies from January 1, 2006, and item 9 from July 1, 2010.

4. Meetings: Open Boards, Owner Comment, and a Short Executive-Session List

All regular and special board and committee meetings are open to members or their representatives (§ 38-33.3-308(2)(a)). Owners must be permitted to speak on an issue before the board votes, subject to reasonable limits (§ 308(2.5)). Executive session is limited to six topics (§ 308(4)), the chair announces the general topic first, no rule may be adopted in executive session, and the minutes note the session (§ 308(5)–(7)). Owners’ meetings are held at least annually, with notice 10 to 50 days in advance (§ 308(1)). Default quorums are 20 percent of the votes for owners’ meetings (10 percent above 1,000 owners) and 50 percent of the votes on the board (§ 309); § 309 is not on the § 117 list for pre-1992 communities. In the 2024 text, CCIOA has no general remote-meeting section; remote participation comes from Nonprofit Act defaults (§§ 7-127-108, 7-128-201(2)) unless the bylaws provide otherwise.

5. Elections, Proxies, and Removal

Votes for contested board seats must be by secret ballot, counted by a neutral third party or by owner volunteers who are not board members and, in a contested election, not candidates (§ 38-33.3-310(1)(b)). Proxies are void if undated, terminate 11 months after their date unless they state an earlier date (SB 22-059), and may be rejected on a good-faith, reasonable doubt about the signature (§ 310(2)). Owners may remove a board member, with or without cause, by 67 percent of those present and entitled to vote at a meeting with a quorum (§ 303(8)). Ballots and proxies are kept for one year (§ 317(1)(n)). Section 117 lists § 310(1) and (2) for pre-1992 communities from January 1, 2006, but not § 303(8); its reach to those communities is a question for counsel.

6. The Budget, the Owner Veto, Assessments, and Reserves

Within 90 days after adopting a proposed budget, the board delivers a summary to all owners and sets an owners’ meeting. Unless the declaration requires otherwise, the budget is deemed approved unless a majority of all unit owners vetoes it at that meeting, whether or not a quorum is present; on a veto, the last budget not vetoed continues (§ 38-33.3-303(4)(a)). Interest on past-due assessments may not exceed 8 percent per year (§§ 315(2), 209.5(8)(a); for pre-1992 communities only § 209.5(8)(a) is on the § 117 list, from January 1, 2006). An audit is required only if annual revenues or expenditures reach $250,000 and owners of one-third of the units request it (§ 303(4)(b)).

The 2024 text does not require an association to commission a reserve study or fund reserves to a set level. It requires a reserve-study disclosure policy (§ 209.5(1)(b)(IX)), a reserve-investment policy, and disclosure of reserve amounts (§ 209.4(2)). From August 12, 2026, HB 26-1099 requires a declarant to obtain and pay for an independent 30-year reserve study before turning over control (§ 209.2). Whether § 209.2 reaches communities already past turnover, or pre-1992 communities, has not been confirmed.

7. Enforcement, Fines, and Hearings

An association may levy reasonable fines only after notice and an opportunity to be heard (§ 38-33.3-302(1)(k)(I)), and no fine is valid unless the association has adopted and follows a written fine policy guaranteeing notice and an opportunity to be heard before an impartial decision maker (§ 209.5(2)). Since HB 22-1137 (effective August 10, 2022), § 209.5(1.7)(b) generally bars daily fines; for violations that do not threaten public safety or health it provides a 30-day cure period after certified-mail notice, caps total fines for the violation at $500, and requires two consecutive 30-day cure periods before legal action; for violations the association reasonably determines threaten public safety or health, the cure period is 72 hours. No published Colorado appellate decision construing these limits was located. If the owner is found not responsible, the association may not charge the owner its costs (§ 209.5(3)). Architectural decisions must follow documented standards and may not be arbitrary or capricious (§ 302(3)(b)).

8. Collections, Liens, and Foreclosure

Before referring a delinquency, the association contacts the owner by certified mail plus two other methods, and referral to a collector or attorney requires a majority board vote recorded at a meeting (§ 38-33.3-209.5(1.7)(a), as revised by HB 24-1233). The statute requires a good-faith effort to set up a payment plan of equal installments over at least 18 months (§ 316.3), bars foreclosure based on fines owed (§ 209.5(8)(c)), and conditions foreclosure on, among other things, a balance of at least six months of assessments, a separate recorded board vote on the specific unit (§ 316(11)), and a written 18-month repayment-plan offer (§ 209.5(7)). HB 24-1337 (debts accrued on or after August 7, 2024) generally conditions foreclosure on a unit an individual owns as a principal residence on a prior personal judgment, with listed exceptions (§ 316(10.5)–(10.6)), and caps association collection attorney fees at the lesser of $5,000 or 50 percent of the amount owed, inflation-adjusted, subject to a court exception (§ 123(1)). HB 25-1043 added further notices and an owner’s motion to stay a foreclosure sale, for enforcement actions instituted on or after October 1, 2025. The assessment lien has a priority over the first mortgage to the extent of six months of assessments (§ 316(2)(b)). Whether the conditions are met on a particular account is a question for association counsel; owners facing collection commonly consult their own attorney, and the DORA HOA Information and Resource Center publishes general information.

9. Records, Disclosure, and Owner Education

Owners may inspect and copy association records; the association may require a written request describing the records with reasonable particularity at least 10 days in advance, and may not require a statement of proper purpose (§ 38-33.3-317(2)(a)). Where inspection is not allowed within 30 calendar days after a certified-mail request and payment of fees, § 317(4.5) provides for a penalty of $50 per day from the 11th business day, up to $500 or the owner’s actual damages, whichever is greater. In Seaman v. Heather Gardens Ass’n, 2023 COA 125, the penalty claim was left for remand. Within 90 days after each fiscal year, the association makes its budget, assessments, financial statements, insurance list, governing documents, minutes, and policies available to owners (§ 209.4(2)). It also provides free owner education at least annually (§ 209.7), and the board may reimburse Colorado-specific governance education as a common expense (§ 209.6). Colorado has no director-certification mandate like Florida’s.

10. Annual DORA Registration and the State’s Role

Every association registers annually with the Division of Real Estate in the Department of Regulatory Agencies and updates its information within 90 days of a change (§ 38-33.3-401(1)–(2)). While registration is lapsed, the association’s right to impose or enforce its § 316 lien and to use § 123 enforcement mechanisms is suspended until it registers again; re-registration revives those rights without penalty (§ 401(3)). The HOA Information and Resource Center (C.R.S. § 12-10-801) publishes education and tracks complaints but, in the 2024 text, has no enforcement or adjudication power. SB 25-184 continued the Center until September 1, 2030.

11. Managers and Turnover

Colorado has no current community association manager license. Licensing was required from July 1, 2015, and the program ended on June 30, 2019; later licensing bills failed in 2022 and 2024. Since August 12, 2026, when an association ends or does not renew a management agreement, the former company must deliver all association property, records, accounts, passwords, and keys within 45 days at no charge, (§ 317(9)(a), HB 26-1099). Unless the association and the former company otherwise agree in writing, a company that misses the deadline is liable for resulting damages, owes $250 per business day of noncompliance, and owes treble actual damages if the violation is willful (§ 317(9)(b)). The duty does not apply to a self-managed association with no management company. Declarant control ends on the earliest of the dates in § 303(5), and the declarant’s turnover deliverables include an independently audited accounting at the declarant’s expense (§ 303(9)).

12. Protected Uses, Construction Defects, and Metro Districts

Section 38-33.3-106.5 and related sections protect a list of owner uses, including noncommercial flags and signs, xeriscape and water-wise landscaping, EV charging (§ 106.8), renewable energy devices (with § 38-30-168), fire-hardened materials, and home-based businesses, each subject to the reasonable rules the statute allows. Portable-scale solar devices join the protected energy-efficiency measures on January 1, 2027 (§ 106.7, HB 26-1007). Before a board files a construction-defect action, § 303.5 requires owner notice, a disclosure meeting, and owner approval, raised from a majority to at least 65 percent of the association’s votes by HB 25-1272 for claims brought on or after August 6, 2025 (certain votes, such as those of units owned by development parties and of owners deemed nonresponsive, are excluded from the count under § 303.5(1)(d)(III)). That procedure is not a substitute for counsel; associations typically engage counsel before considering a claim.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Colorado statute governs my HOA or condominium?

The Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (CCIOA), C.R.S. 38-33.3-101 and following, governs condominiums, cooperatives, and planned communities together. It generally applies in full to communities created on or after July 1, 1992; older communities are subject only to the sections listed in C.R.S. 38-33.3-117 unless they elected full coverage under section 118, and some small communities are subject to only a few sections (sections 116 and 119). Many associations are also nonprofit corporations under the Colorado Revised Nonprofit Corporation Act, and older condominiums may also be governed in part by the Condominium Ownership Act, C.R.S. 38-33-101 and following. Which provisions reach a particular community is a question for association counsel.

What is the liability standard for a Colorado HOA board member?

CCIOA states two standards. C.R.S. 38-33.3-303(2)(b) provides that a board member not appointed by the declarant shall not be liable for actions taken or omissions made in performing board duties except for wanton and willful acts or omissions; section 303(2)(a) requires declarant appointees to exercise the care required of fiduciaries of the unit owners. For reserve-fund investment, section 303(2.5) applies the nonprofit-act standard of C.R.S. 7-128-401. How these standards interact outside reserve investment has not been settled in a published decision CICSC has verified, and how they apply to any director’s conduct is a question for association counsel.

Do Colorado owners vote on the association budget?

C.R.S. 38-33.3-303(4)(a)(II) provides that, unless the declaration requires otherwise, the budget proposed by the board does not require owner approval and is deemed approved unless a majority of all unit owners vetoes it at the noticed meeting, whether or not a quorum is present. The procedure reaches pre-1992 communities from July 1, 2017, with an exception for some whose declarations cap assessments. How it applies under a particular declaration is a question for association counsel.

What limits does Colorado law put on HOA fines?

An association may levy reasonable fines only after notice and an opportunity to be heard, and no fine is valid unless the association has adopted and follows a written fine policy guaranteeing a hearing before an impartial decision maker (§§ 38-33.3-302(1)(k)(I), 209.5(2)). Since HB 22-1137, § 209.5(1.7)(b) generally bars daily fines and, for violations that do not threaten public safety or health, provides a 30-day cure period after certified-mail notice and caps total fines for the violation at $500. No published Colorado appellate decision construing these limits was located, and their application to a specific violation is a question for association counsel.

Does a Colorado HOA have to register with the state?

Under C.R.S. § 38-33.3-401(1)–(2), every association registers annually with the Division of Real Estate in the Department of Regulatory Agencies and updates its information within 90 days of a change. While registration is lapsed, the association’s right to impose or enforce its § 316 lien and to use § 123 enforcement mechanisms is suspended until it registers again, and re-registration revives those rights without penalty. Questions about a particular association’s registration status are best taken to association counsel.

Key Takeaways

CCIOA covers condominiums, cooperatives, and planned communities together; a community’s creation date decides which sections apply.
Non-declarant directors are liable only for wanton and willful acts or omissions; reserve investment follows the nonprofit-act prudent-person standard.
Every association adopts nine written governance policies under § 209.5.
The budget is deemed approved unless a majority of all owners vetoes it.
Under § 209.5, fines require a written policy with notice and an opportunity to be heard, are capped by statute at $500 per violation for violations that do not threaten public safety or health, and may not be imposed daily.
Collections referrals and foreclosure filings each require a recorded board vote.
Annual DORA registration is a condition of the association’s lien and enforcement rights.
Colorado has no current manager license, but 2026 law regulates management-company turnover.

References & Sources

Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 38 (Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act, §§ 38-33.3-101 to -402; Condominium Ownership Act, §§ 38-33-101 to -113; § 38-30-168), Office of Legislative Legal Services. crs2024-title-38.pdf
Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 7 (Colorado Revised Nonprofit Corporation Act, §§ 7-127-108, 7-128-201, 7-128-401). crs2024-title-07.pdf
Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 12 (§ 12-10-801, HOA Information and Resource Center). crs2024-title-12.pdf
HB 22-1137, HOA Board Accountability and Transparency (Session Laws 2022, ch. 367, eff. Aug. 10, 2022). leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb22-1137
SB 22-059, HOA Voting Proxy Limitations. leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb22-059
HB 24-1233, HOA Delinquency Payments Enforcement Procedures. leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb24-1233
HB 24-1337, Real Property Owner Unit Association Collections. leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb24-1337
SB 24-021, Exempt Small Communities from HOA Requirements. leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb24-021
SB 25-184, Sunset HOA Information & Resource Center. leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb25-184
HB 25-1043, Owner Equity Protection in HOA Foreclosure Sales (eff. Oct. 1, 2025). leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb25-1043
HB 25-1272, Construction Defects & Middle Market Housing. leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb25-1272
HB 26-1099, Protect Financial Condition of Homeowners’ Associations (Session Laws 2026, ch. 42, eff. Aug. 12, 2026). leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb26-1099
HB 26-1007, Improve Customer Use of Distributed Energy Resources. leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb26-1007
Accetta v. Brooks Towers Residences Condominium Ass’n, 2021 COA 87. Slip opinion
Colorado Homes, Ltd. v. Loerch-Wilson, 43 P.3d 718 (Colo. App. 2001). Caselaw Access Project
Seaman v. Heather Gardens Ass’n, 2023 COA 125. Slip opinion
DORA Division of Real Estate bulletins on the end of community association manager licensing (Apr. 17, 2018; June 4, 2019). June 4, 2019 bulletin

Related Resources & Additional Reading from the CIC-SC Library

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Tags: Colorado HOA governance · CCIOA · C.R.S. 38-33.3 · Colorado condominium · pre-1992 communities · wanton and willful · responsible governance policies · budget veto · HOA fines Colorado · DORA HOA registration · new board member Colorado

Disclaimer. This article is published by the Common Interest Community Standards Council for educational and informational purposes only. It is not legal advice and does not establish an attorney-client relationship. Statutory references and procedural frameworks are intended to support informed governance, not to substitute for advice from qualified Colorado legal counsel. Boards and managers should consult their association’s attorney about the application of any statute, governing-document provision, or governance decision to their specific circumstances. CIC-SC, its authors, and its members assume no liability for actions taken in reliance on this content.