California HOA Open Meeting Act Notice Calculator

How this calculator works

This is a notice-window and agenda-permissibility tool for California HOA meetings. Given the meeting type, proposed meeting date, and list of agenda topics, it returns the latest permissible posting date, the earliest permissible posting date for member meetings, the required delivery method (general under § 4045 or individual under § 4040), and a per-topic permissibility assessment that flags items requiring executive session under § 4935.

Use the calculator before drafting and posting a meeting notice; use it to audit a past meeting where a notice timing question has been raised. The output is grounded in the Common Interest Development Open Meeting Act (Cal. Civ. Code §§ 4900-4955) and the related § 5000 (member meetings) and §§ 5100-5135 (elections) provisions.

The relevant Davis-Stirling statute

The Open Meeting Act is the article of Davis-Stirling that governs meetings within a California common-interest development. It imposes notice windows that vary by meeting type, defines what constitutes "general delivery" versus "individual delivery," limits the topics that may be addressed in executive session, and provides a § 4955 civil enforcement mechanism with prevailing-party attorney fees.

The notice windows:

• § 4920(a) — 4 calendar days for an open-session board meeting.
• § 4920(b) — 2 calendar days for an executive-session board meeting.
• § 4910 / § 4920 — 4 calendar days for a committee meeting with decision-making authority.
• § 5000(a) — 30-90 days for an annual member meeting (bilateral window).
• § 5000(b) — 30-90 days for a special member meeting (bilateral window).
• §§ 5100-5135 — 30 days pre-election notice + 30 days balloting (total 60 days minimum for an election).

The delivery methods:

• General delivery (§ 4045) — posting in a prominent location accessible to all members, plus EITHER first-class mail OR email per member-elected method. Default for board, executive-session, and committee notices.
• Individual delivery (§ 4040) — hand, first-class mail, or email if the owner has individually elected email delivery in writing. Required for the § 5660 pre-lien notice, § 5705 foreclosure notices, election ballots, and the § 5000 member-meeting notices.

The executive-session topic limitations under § 4935:

• (a) Pending or anticipated litigation.
• (b) Formation, modification, or termination of a contract.
• (c) Member discipline (with the disciplinary subject given written notice and opportunity to attend).
• (d) Personnel matters.
• (e) Owner-personal matters (foreclosure decisions under § 5705(c), individual payment plans, individualized assessment disputes).

§ 4935(e) requires the board to report any action taken in executive session in the publicly-disclosed open-session minutes of the next subsequent meeting — summarized to describe the action without leaking owner-personal detail.

Key thresholds and gotchas

The 30-90 day window for member meetings is BILATERAL. Notice given less than 30 days in advance is statutorily insufficient — the meeting cannot proceed without re-noticing. Notice given more than 90 days in advance is statutorily INEFFECTIVE — the notice does not count, and re-notice is required within the 90-day window. The two-sided window is designed to balance member preparation time against staleness; a notice 6 months out is treated as not having been given. Practical compliance: post the notice exactly 45-60 days before the meeting, comfortably inside both bounds.

The 4-day window is calendar days, not business days. A board meeting on Monday at 7pm requires the notice posted no later than the previous Thursday at 7pm — weekends count. The 2-day executive-session window similarly counts weekends.

Mixing general and individual delivery is a procedural defect. A § 5000 member-meeting notice posted by general delivery only (without individual mail or email to each member of record) is voidable, even if all members happened to see the posted notice. Similarly, a § 4920 board-meeting notice individually mailed to members does NOT cure a failure to post — both elements are required.

Executive-session topic limits are STRICT. § 4935 enumerates exactly five categories. Topics not on the list cannot be moved to executive session even if the board wishes them to be private. A board that discusses general financial planning, member surveys, or vendor evaluation in executive session violates § 4935 and exposes the association to § 4955 fee liability.

The § 4935(e) summarized-action-reporting requirement is ongoing. Every open-session board meeting agenda should include a standing "reports from executive session" item; failure to report executive-session action in subsequent open-session minutes is a separate § 4955 violation, distinct from the executive-session topic question.

The § 4923 emergency-meeting exception is narrow. The matter must require action faster than the standard notice window permits AND postponement would substantially harm the association. The § 4923 minutes MUST describe the emergency in writing. § 4923 may not be invoked retroactively to cover a notice mistake.

Worked example: open-session board meeting

Meeting type: Board (open session). Proposed date: 2026-06-15 (Monday) 7pm.

• Notice required: 4 calendar days (§ 4920(a)).
• Latest permissible posting date: 2026-06-11 (Thursday) 7pm.
• Required delivery: general delivery under § 4045 (post + mail-or-email per member-elected method).

If today is 2026-05-16, the secretary has 26 days until the posting deadline — plenty of time. If today is 2026-06-12, the posting deadline has been missed by 1 day; the board must either reschedule the meeting to a date that allows the full 4-day notice window, or — if the matter qualifies — invoke the § 4923 emergency-meeting exception with written description of the emergency.

Worked example: executive-session foreclosure approval

Meeting type: Executive session. Proposed date: 2026-06-15. Agenda includes "Approve foreclosure on Unit 12B [owner-personal]."

• Notice required: 2 calendar days (§ 4920(b)).
• Latest permissible posting date: 2026-06-13.
• Required delivery: general delivery (members receive notice that an executive-session meeting is scheduled; the topics are described in general terms without owner-personal detail).
• Topic permissibility: PERMISSIBLE in executive session under § 4935(b) / § 5705(c).

§ 5705(c) requires the foreclosure decision to be approved at an executive-session meeting, so noticing it for executive session is the correct procedure. The board takes the vote in executive session; the action is later summarized in the next open-session board meeting under § 4935(e) — the open-session minutes record "the board voted to authorize foreclosure of a member account" without identifying the specific unit or owner.

Worked example: annual member meeting

Meeting type: Annual member meeting. Proposed date: 2026-09-15.

• Notice required: at least 30 days, no more than 90 days (§ 5000(a)).
• Latest permissible posting date: 2026-08-16.
• Earliest permissible posting date: 2026-06-17.
• Required delivery: INDIVIDUAL delivery under § 4040 — first-class mail to each member of record, plus email if individually elected.

The board secretary should aim to mail the notice 45-60 days before the meeting — comfortably inside both bounds. A notice mailed in March (more than 90 days out) is statutorily ineffective; a notice mailed September 1 (fewer than 30 days out) is statutorily insufficient.

Worked example: open-session board meeting with impermissible agenda item

Meeting type: Board (open session). Agenda includes "Discuss pending Smith v Association lawsuit [litigation]."

• Notice required: 4 days.
• Topic permissibility: NOT permissible at an open-session board meeting. Litigation matters require executive session under § 4935(a).

The calculator flags the topic and recommends moving it to the executive-session agenda. The board may discuss general litigation status (case is pending; counsel has been engaged; insurance has been notified) at the OPEN session, but the strategy, settlement posture, and case-specific defenses must be discussed in executive session. The open-session minutes record that a litigation update was given; the substantive discussion is in executive session minutes retained by counsel.

What this calculator does NOT model

The calculator computes notice timing and topic permissibility only. It does NOT validate the full content of the meeting notice — the notice must include the date, time, location, agenda, and (for member meetings) the proposed actions; review the actual notice text against the statute. It does NOT model the candidate-nomination procedures under §§ 5100-5135 — those require the full election procedure checklist (election rules adoption, inspector-of-elections appointment, candidate qualifications, write-in procedures). It does NOT model the § 5103 election-rule amendment 28-day notice or the AB 502 / SB 323 election-rule overhaul.

It also does NOT model the § 4923 emergency-meeting exception in detail (the calculator simply notes when the standard notice window has been missed and flags the § 4923 option). It does NOT model the § 4925 member-attendance and speaking-rights compliance. It does NOT model the publicly-recorded-minute access rights under § 5215.

Counting conventions

The notice windows under § 4920 and § 5000 are CALENDAR days, not business days. Weekends and holidays count. The standard California convention is to exclude the trigger day and include the deadline day; the calculator implements that convention via UTC-midnight date arithmetic. The 4-day notice for a Monday meeting must be posted no later than the previous Thursday (Monday minus 4 days = Thursday).

The 30-90 day bilateral window for member meetings is also calendar days; the maximum is exactly 90 days (a notice 91 days out is ineffective), and the minimum is exactly 30 days (a notice 29 days out is insufficient).

Sources

Last reviewed: 2026-05-16 against:

• Cal. Civ. Code § 4040 (individual delivery method definitions).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4045 (general delivery method definitions).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4900 (Open Meeting Act scope and purpose).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4910 (open-meeting requirement for committees).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4920(a) (4-day notice for board meetings).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4920(b) (2-day notice for executive-session meetings).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4923 (emergency-meeting exception).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4925 (member attendance and speaking rights).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4935 (executive-session topic limitations).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4935(e) (summarized-action-reporting requirement).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 4955 (civil enforcement of Open Meeting Act).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 5000(a) (annual meeting notice 30-90 days).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 5000(b) (special meeting notice 30-90 days).
• Cal. Civ. Code §§ 5100-5135 (election balloting procedures).
• Cal. Civ. Code § 5705(c) (executive-session foreclosure approval).
• CACM Community Manager Manual (current edition) — practitioner reference for Open Meeting Act compliance.
• Wittenberg v. Beachwalk Homeowners Assn., 217 Cal. App. 4th 654 (2013) (improperly-noticed board action voidable; § 4955 attorney-fee award).