Texas Property Code § 209.0051: Open Board Meetings, Notice and Closed-Session Rules

Quick Answer

Texas Property Code § 209.0051 requires regular and special board meetings of a residential property owners' association to be open to owners, except for listed topics the board may take up in closed executive session. Notice is either mailed to each owner between 60 and 10 days before the meeting, or posted and emailed at least 144 hours ahead for a regular meeting and 72 hours ahead for a special meeting. Fifteen listed subjects, including fines, budgets and amendments to dedicatory instruments, may not be considered or voted on outside an open, noticed meeting. The current text was last amended by SB 1588, effective September 1, 2021.

At a Glance

What the Law Says

What counts as a board meeting

Subsection (b) defines "board meeting" as "a deliberation between a quorum of the voting board of the property owners' association, or between a quorum of the voting board and another person, during which property owners' association business is considered and the board takes formal action." It does not include a quorum at a social function unrelated to association business, or at a convention, ceremonial event or press conference, "if formal action is not taken and any discussion of association business is incidental."

Open meetings and executive session

Subsection (c) says regular and special board meetings "must be open to owners." The board may adjourn and reconvene in closed executive session to consider "actions involving personnel, pending or threatened litigation, contract negotiations, enforcement actions, confidential communications with the property owners' association's attorney, matters involving the invasion of privacy of individual owners, or matters that are to remain confidential by request of the affected parties and agreement of the board."

After an executive session, any decision made there "must be summarized orally and placed in the minutes, in general terms, without breaching the privacy of individual owners, violating any privilege, or disclosing information that was to remain confidential." The oral summary "must include a general explanation of expenditures approved in executive session."

Location and electronic meetings

Under (c-1), except for an electronic or telephonic meeting, a board meeting must be held in a county where part of the subdivision lies or in an adjacent county. Under (c-2), a meeting may be held by electronic or telephonic means if each board member can hear and be heard by every other member; owners in attendance can hear all board members (outside executive session); owners may listen by any method a board member uses or is expected to use; and the notice includes instructions for owners to access those methods.

Minutes

Subsection (d): the board "shall keep a record of each regular or special board meeting in the form of written minutes." Meeting records, including approved minutes, must be available to a member for inspection and copying on written request to the managing agent at the address on the most recently filed management certificate, or to the board if there is no managing agent.

Notice

Subsection (e) requires notice of "the date, hour, place, and general subject" of the meeting, "including a general description of any matter to be brought up for deliberation in executive session." The notice must be either:

• "mailed to each property owner not later than the 10th day or earlier than the 60th day before the date of the meeting"; or
• provided "at least 144 hours before the start of a regular board meeting and at least 72 hours before the start of a special board meeting" by both posting it (on common property, on privately owned property with the owner's consent, or on an association or management company website available to members) and emailing it to each owner who registered an email address.

Subsection (f) makes it "an owner's duty to keep an updated e-mail address registered."

Recesses and action outside a meeting

Under (g), if the board recesses a meeting to continue the following regular business day, no new posting is required if the recess is taken in good faith and not to circumvent the section. If it is continued again to another day, notice of the continuation must be given by posting within two hours after adjourning.

Under (h), the board may act outside a meeting, including by electronic or telephonic vote, without prior owner notice if each board member has a reasonable opportunity to express an opinion to the others and to vote. Such action must be summarized orally, with any known or estimated expenditures, and documented in the minutes of the next meeting. But the board may not consider or vote on the following "unless done in an open meeting for which prior notice was given":

• fines and damage assessments;
• initiation of foreclosure actions;
• initiation of enforcement actions (excluding temporary restraining orders or violations involving a threat to health or safety);
• increases in assessments and levying of special assessments;
• appeals from a denial of architectural control approval;
• a suspension of an owner's right before the owner has an opportunity to attend a board meeting and present a position;
• lending or borrowing money;
• adoption or amendment of a dedicatory instrument;
• approval of an annual budget or an amendment to it;
• sale or purchase of real property;
• filling a board vacancy;
• capital improvements other than repair, replacement or enhancement of existing ones; and
• election of an officer.

Development period

Under (i), during the development period the section applies only to meetings held to adopt or amend governing documents, increase regular assessments or adopt or increase a special assessment, elect non-developer board members or set their election process, or change members' voting rights.

What This Means in Practice

For boards and managers

Pick one notice method per meeting and document it. If you use the 144-hour or 72-hour option, subsection (e)(2) calls for both posting and email, so a website post alone does not meet it as written. Count the hours from the start of the meeting, not the date.

Keep the agenda honest. The notice must include a general description of executive session matters, and the later summary of executive decisions must be oral and in the minutes. Treat the (h) list as a hard line: if a topic is on it, put it on a noticed agenda even if the board agrees by email. See HB 614 and § 209.007 for the fine and hearing rules that interact with it.

For owners

You can attend regular and special meetings and ask for minutes from the managing agent. Register an email address with the association, since the email leg of the short-notice method depends on it. Our reading: the section gives owners no right to attend executive session, since it carves that session out of the open-meeting rule.

What the section does not say, and open questions

• It does not say owners may speak at meetings. It requires meetings to be "open to owners," not that owners have a forum. Check the bylaws and any open-forum rule.
• It does not set the electronic meeting platform or recording requirements beyond (c-2).
• Our reading: "enforcement actions" appear in both the executive-session list and the (h) list, so the board may discuss enforcement in executive session but should initiate enforcement actions only in a noticed open meeting. Confirm with counsel.
• The text does not define "general subject" in detail. A specific agenda is safer.
• Owner voting at member meetings is a separate topic. See owner voting and board elections.

Timeline

Related Texas Law

• SB 1588: 2021 omnibus bill
• § 209.006: notice before enforcement
• § 209.007: owner hearing before the board
• § 209.005: owner records requests
• SB 2629: electronic meetings and voting
• Chapter 209 overview
• Texas HOA laws complete guide

Board Checklist

• Choose a notice method for each meeting: mail 10 to 60 days ahead, or post and email 144 hours (regular) or 72 hours (special) ahead.
• Include date, hour, place, general subject and a general description of any executive session matter.
• Maintain a current list of owner email addresses for the posting-and-email method.
• For electronic meetings, confirm every board member can hear and be heard and put owner access instructions in the notice.
• Keep written minutes of every regular and special meeting and make approved minutes available on written request.
• Keep the (h) list subjects (fines, budgets, assessments, amendments, ARC appeals and others) on noticed open-meeting agendas.
• After executive session, summarize decisions orally and in the minutes, with a general explanation of expenditures.
• Record any email or phone action in the minutes of the next meeting.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much notice must a Texas HOA give before a board meeting?

Either mailed notice no later than the 10th day and no earlier than the 60th day before the meeting, or posted and emailed notice at least 144 hours before a regular meeting or 72 hours before a special meeting (§ 209.0051(e)).

Can the board meet in closed session?

Only for the listed topics: personnel, pending or threatened litigation, contract negotiations, enforcement actions, attorney communications, owner privacy matters, or confidential matters by request and agreement (§ 209.0051(c)). Decisions must be summarized afterward.

Can the board vote by email?

Yes for most matters, if each member has a reasonable opportunity to express an opinion and vote and the action is later summarized in the minutes. Not for the 15 subjects listed in (h), such as fines, budgets and assessment increases, unless done at an open meeting with prior notice.

Can a Texas HOA board meet by video or phone?

Yes, if the (c-2) conditions are met: board members can hear and be heard, owners can listen, and the notice explains how to access.

Where must the board meet in person?

In a county where part of the subdivision lies or an adjacent county (§ 209.0051(c-1)).

Can an owner get meeting minutes?

Yes. Subsection (d) provides for inspection and copying of meeting records, including approved minutes, on written request to the managing agent or the board.

Does this apply to my condominium association?

Chapter 209 does not apply to a condominium as defined by Section 81.002 or 82.003 (§ 209.003(d)). Check Chapter 82 and your bylaws.

Where This Comes From

We read the current text of § 209.0051 as compiled in the 2025 Texas Statutes (Justia mirror of the Texas Property Code), including its amendment history notes. The official statute site is at statutes.capitol.texas.gov. We did not compare earlier versions, so we do not describe what each amendment changed.

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Legal disclaimer: This article is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and associations differ. Confirm the current statute text and how it applies to your governing documents with a licensed Texas attorney before acting.