Your community association may, or may not, have received a postcard from the Pennsylvania Department of State as it relates to filing a Decennial Report.   I’ve been getting some questions related to what this is all about, so I thought I would share my thoughts on this issue with you.

To begin, all domestic and foreign business corporations, including non-profit corporations (such as non-profit corporation community associations) that have not made a new or amended filing with the Pennsylvania Department of State’s (DOS) Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations from January 1, 2012 thru December 31, 2021 mustfile a report that they continue to exist.  This is true even if your community did not receive a postcard from the DOS.  This report must be filed during the calendar year in 2021. Fictitious names and trademarks are not required to make decennial filings.

Why is this required and why am I recommending that community associations take this seriously and file the Decennial Report?  Because if a community association fails to do so, the DOS may allow for the reissue of your association’s corporate name as the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania may believe that your association’s name is no longer being used by your association (I would also recommend trademarking your association’s name, for other reasons, but that’s a discussion for another day).    The end result in failing to file a Decennial Report would be that your association would no longer have exclusive use of its name on or after January 1, 2022. While the association, as a business entity, would continue to exist, the association’s name becomes available for any entity registering to do business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania which may request it.

 
To file the Decennial Report, a community association must complete and file a Decennial Report of Association Continued Existence and pay a filing fee of $70.00.  Should your community need assistance with filing its Decennial Report, please contact our office and we will be happy to assist. 

   
Edward Hoffman, Jr., Esq., CCAL

Hoffman Law LLC