What does section 55 require strata managers to provide to owners?

Section 55, as a refresher, requires a strata managing agent who exercises either a function of the owners corporation or of the chairperson, secretary or treasurer of the owners corporation to make a record of the function that was exercised and how it was exercised. The strata manager must do this immediately after exercising the function.

You are correct. There is a statutory requirement that the strata manager, every six months, provide the owners corporation with a copy of the records setting out any exercise of a function during the past six months. There is no need for a report to be sent for section 55 purposes every month.

The Macquarie Dictionary has this definition for the word provide when it is a verb: “1 to furnish or supply.” I’m going to assume the report is available for all lot owners, not just the strata committee, to review. The question then is whether putting a document on a portal is to furnish or supply when not all lot owners may want to or even be able to access the portal. The Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 allows the use of technology for meetings, requiring that, if there is to be an electronic meeting, the owners corporation takes reasonable steps to ensure a person can attend. It is not a big step to stretch this reasonable allowance requirement to requiring documents to be provided through an online portal. If it were my practising certificate on the line, I would email the section 55 report (or, if there is no email address for service, send it) to all lot owners every six months, rather than relying on lot owners being able to access it.

The second consideration goes to frequency and charged costs. For this, you need to look at your management agreement with your strata manager. Did the owners corporation agree to monthly reports and the fees? If so, your strata manager has the obligation under the agreement to send the report each month and the right to charge the fees specified. Any variation of the management agreement will need to be the subject of an ordinary resolution at a general meeting and be agreed to by your manager.