Copying and Distributing Emails, Politicking, Planning and Preparation

Recently, the President of the board objected when I quoted several of her emails on this blog. This gave me an opportunity to review the use of email, courtesy and protocol.

But first, let me state this. Our board has a fiduciary responsibility to the unit owners. That means, among other things and as one unit owner recently stated to me, "there should be no politics in this association". They then went on to acknowledge that there is politics, that this is a recent change and that for many years it wasn't that way.

Most of the questions I ask the board are specifically designed to be those any unit owner should be asking, and the answers affect all of us. If a board member sends me an email pertaining to the workings of this association and specifically to my questions as a unit owner, and the subject is the association at large, as far as I am concerned, that's a response to the unit owner body. If a board member sends me a specific response "tailered" to me, or designed to tell me what I want to hear, or what they think I should hear, that's BS and a breach of fiduciary duties. I am going to take this opportunity to remind this board that that they do, in fact, have fiduciary duties. Politicking is unacceptable.

Yes, we have an election coming up. So now I suppose it's time to stop working and crank up the BLMH vote gathering machine. But I suppose we can only expect our elected representatives to do that which they are best at, and if that is running for office and spreading donuts and coffee, so be it. Or perhaps you are unaware of the economic situation in this country? It does and will continue to affect each and every one of us, and this association.

A piece I wrote was recently published (Reference 1). In it I asked a question which I paraphrase here: "How are you going to handle this problem: Suppose this economy sputters along as it is for another 5, 6, or more years?"

That's a question we should all be asking. "How will this association deal with another 6 or more years of economic malaise?"  I'm not talking about the current state of affairs. I'm talking about the evolving situation and consequences of another 5 or more years of this economy. An economy in which people who are tapped financially, do finally run out of resources, where real estate continues to flounder and people are trapped in their homes or condos. What happens when the nearly $450 billion in ARMs (adjustable rate mortgages) reset between now and 2012? How does the association deal with a sudden inflationary increase, should that occur?

I know, you may say that we are currently in what is called very low "inflation" or "deflation" and many prices are stable or increasing at a low rate of 2% annually. However, this situation will not continue indefinitely, and prices don't always conform to that low rate of increase. So, how do we deal with a situation where energy prices again "spike". For example, effective July 14, ComEd raised the price of electricity by an average $9 per month per residential customer. My average bill is $55.36 per month. A $9 monthly increase is about 16.4%! ComEd has also petitioned for an delivery price increase, and that review will be completed in the spring of 2011.

My point? The electricity cost of running the stream pumps, hall and street lighting has increased. Where will that come from? Our board voted in a 0% fee increase, so they obviously expected costs to decrease or stay the same.

Now, what happens when we do get other "price increases?" For example, the contractor for the driveway project awarded last year withdrew his bid. Why? because he could not honor the price he provided to the association last year, I have been told. What does that mean to the association? Any driveways completed this year will be at a cost greater than that quoted and planned, last year.

We have no money in our budget for price increases which affect day to day operations. We do have substantial reserves. So we can absorb price increases for driveways. Or can we? The problem is, it will cost more to do the driveways than was budgeted. That means, we're not collecting and saving enough. So how does the board adjust spending to avoid raising fees and at the same time complete all of the necessary, planned and unplanned projects. A lack of planning DOES NOT constitute an emergency.

These price increases will continue. It's the normal course of events. However, while prices may increase at an "average" rate of 3 to 5% per year, there are short term discontinuities. As for example, the 16% ComEd increase I noted above. Other "spikes" occur from time to time in oil. As a consequence, the price of delivery, and the price of manufacturing many things increases. Asphalt is made from oil. Certain roofing shingles also contain oil byproducts. So when energy and specifically oil prices increase, the price of all kinds of goods also increase.

Are we prepared for a shift from "deflation" to "inflation"? Well, that may be a concern to you but in fact there is very little you can do about this except ask your elected representatives on the board the hard questions. They are the ones with the duty and responsibility to make things work and get the job done. They also have the authority to do so.

So are we prepared? I say "No" we are not.

Have we done all that we can do to prepare? I say "No" we have not.

Do we have a plan? I say "No" we do not.

That's the way it is.

Our Landscaping Director has investigated reducing or "turning off" the lights, to save energy, or so he has stated during association meetings. Previous boards ran afoul of unit owners who didn't like the subject of "service cuts". The concept is acceptable to some unit owners, as long as they are not affected. Our Communications Director asked for a tree planting in "her" back yard during the August association meeting. The Manager had to remind her that we have only $30,000 remaining in the entire landscaping budget for this year. Her solution? She stated that she and her neighbors are willing to pay for the tree. Great. Rome is burning and what is the issue? "Taking care of Number One." We have many unresolved issues, and there are storm clouds on the horizon. We have a fully staffed board. What will it take?

Returning to the Email topic of this post:

Here is a tip to all. Emails are not secure. When you send an email, it is stored, somewhere in the "world wide web" on a computer or computers called "servers". Emails can be intercepted, altered, and viewed by others, including technicians, law enforcement officials, governments and "secret agents." For that reason, it is best to consider that emails may be intercepted or occasionally routed to the wrong individuals, and may be viewed by others. Mistakes or errors sometimes occur, and your email may be incorrectly delivered. Emails may be corrupted; that means information may be altered or deleted, or several emails may be combined.

You have no way of knowing if emails are properly delivered, intact to the intended recipient and to only that person.

So what to do?

First, never send personal information in emails. By that I mean things such as birth dates, social security numbers, drivers license information, bank information, passwords, etc. Second, it is prudent to have a statement as a footer or signature on each email you send. Many email providers and software such as Microsoft Outlook provides a means to do that. Even Google's GMail has provisions for a signature, which is included automatically on each email that you send.

Most of my emails contains a footer, which is an explicit statement. I include it as a notice to the recipient. However, compliance is voluntary and my statement is sometimes ignored. Let's be realistic; there is no way to know exactly who sees our emails. How many forwarded jokes and so on do you get in a day? Also consider the possibility that emails can contain malicious code, or programs, designed to infect your computer for the purpose of stealing your information and even sending your keystrokes to others. That's right, "they" may actually know what that password is that you enter, as you enter it. Nothing like a "zombie" infected computer to make life interesting. .

If a message is really confidential or sensitive, I probably shouldn't send it via email. Many of my clients still send really sensitive information via facsimile for that very reason. If speed is not of the essence, then U.S. Mail works fine.

Security is a practice and a discipline. Keep your anti-virus and spamware up to date, scan incoming and outgoing emails.

Here is the footer I use. It's on 99% of my emails, even the stuff that doesn't require it. That's the problem with automation. You get the same result time after time after time! So, sometimes I take a few seconds to remove it and at other times, I'll include it in the body of my text, provide a specific statement giving permission to forward or copy the email, with instructions. Why? Because it's easier to add that statement than remove this footer:

This email and attachments is confidential and may contain legally privileged information, under international, federal, or state laws.

Unauthorized forwarding, printing, copying, distribution or such use of information is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you are not the intended recipient, you should not copy, distribute, disclose or use the information it contains. Please e-mail the sender immediately and delete this message from your system.

Please be aware that E-mails are susceptible to corruption, interception and unauthorized amendment; we do not accept liability for any such changes, or for their consequences.

Comments, Corrections, Omissions, References
=============================

Reference (1):
I recently wrote a piece and the title selected by the publisher was: "Take Control of Your Finances".

Note:
1. I'm not certain of the exact percentage increase in my electricity bill. I'll have to run an analysis after a complete bill under the new rates.