Part 6: Board Bylaw Provisions Authorizing a Commercial Information Exchange as a Committee of the Board

(Adopted 11/88)

Section 1—Authority: The Board of REALTORS® shall operate a Commercial Information Exchange for the use of its members, which shall be subject to the bylaws of the Board of REALTORS® and such rules and regulations as may be hereinafter adopted. M

Section 2—Purpose: The CIE serves as an information exchange. Participants who have been retained by sellers of commercial or industrial property to market those properties may submit information on those properties to the CIE and Participants who have been retained by buyers of commercial or industrial property may submit information on the type(s) of property sought to the CIE. Any compensation agreements related to property included in the Exchange compilation must be made on an individual basis outside the CIE between the Participants involved.

A Commercial Information Exchange is not a Multiple Listing Service. No offers of cooperation and compensation are communicated by filing information on a property with the CIE. (Amended 4/92) M

Section 3—Participation: Any REALTOR® of this or any other Board who is a principal, partner, corporate officer, or branch office manager acting on behalf of a principal, without further qualification, except as stipulated otherwise in these bylaws, shall be eligible to participate in the Commercial Information Exchange upon agreeing in writing to conform to the rules and regulations thereof and to pay the costs incidental thereto.¹ However, under no circumstances is any individual or firm, regardless of membership status, is entitled to CIE participation or membership unless they hold a current, valid real estate broker’s license, Participator licensed or certified by an appropriate state regulatory agency to engage in the appraisal of real property.² Use of information developed by or published by a Board CIE is strictly limited to the activities authorized under a Participant’s licensure(s) or certification and unauthorized uses are prohibited. Further, none of the foregoing is intended to convey “participation” or membership” or any right of access to information developed by or published by the Exchange where access to such information is prohibited by law.

The key is that the Participant or potential Participant actively endeavors to make or accept offers of cooperation and compensation with respect to properties of the type that are listed on the CIE in which participation is sought. This requirement does not permit a CIE to deny participation to a Participant or potential Participant that operates a “Virtual Office Website” (VOW) (including a VOW that the Participant uses to refer customers to other Participants) if the Participant or potential Participant actively endeavors to make or accept offers of cooperation and compensation. A CIE may evaluate whether a Participant or potential Participant actively endeavors during the operation of its real estate business to offer or accept cooperation and compensation only if the CIE has a reasonable basis to believe that the Participant or potential Participant is in fact not doing so. The membership requirement shall be applied in a nondiscriminatory manner to all Participants and potential Participants. (Adopted 11/08)

Optional Provision for Establishing Nonmember Participatory Rights (“Open Exchange”) *

A nonmember applicant for CIE participation who is a principal, partner, corporate officer, or branch office manager acting on behalf of a principal, shall supply evidence satisfactory to the membership committee that he has no record of recent or pending bankruptcy; has no record of official sanctions involving unprofessional conduct; agrees to complete a course of instruction (if any) covering the CIE rules and regulations and computer training related to CIE information entry and retrieval, and shall pass such reasonable and non-discriminatory written examination thereon as may be required by the CIE; and shall agree that if elected as a Participant, he will abide by such rules and regulations and pay the CIE fees and dues, including the nonmember differential (if any), as from time to time established. Under no circumstances is any individual or firm entitled to CIE participation or membership unless they hold a current, valid real estate broker’s license, or are licensed or certified by an appropriate state regulatory agency to engage in the appraisal of real property. Use of information developed by or published by a Board CIE is strictly limited to the activities authorized under a Participant’s licensure(s) or certification and unauthorized uses are prohibited. Further, none of the foregoing is intended to convey participation or membership or any right of access to information developed by or published by a Board CIE where access to such information is prohibited by law. 

Note 1: The requirements of (1) no record of recent or pending bankruptcy; (2) no record of official sanctions involving unprofessional conduct; and (3) completion of a course of instruction on the CIE rules and regulations and computer training related to CIE information entry and retrieval may be deleted from this Section at the option of each Board/Association. In states where law requires non-Board members be admitted to the CIE of a Board of REALTORS®, any limitations or restrictions imposed on participation or membership shall be no more stringent than permissible under the National Association’s Membership Qualification Criteria. However, in states where non-Board member access to the CIE is not a requirement of state law, Boards may, at their discretion, establish additional qualifications for non-Board member participation and membership in the CIE. (Amended 11/96)

Note 2: Boards may also choose to have the Membership Committee consider the following when determining a nonmember applicant’s qualifications for CIE participation or membership:

• all final findings of Code of Ethics violations and violations of other membership duties in any other Association within the past three (3) years
• pending ethics complaints (or hearings)
• unsatisfied discipline pending
• pending arbitration requests (or hearings)
• unpaid arbitration awards or unpaid financial obligations to this or any other Association or Association CIE M

Section 4—Supervision: The Exchange shall be operated under the supervision of the CIE Committee in accordance with the rules and regulations, subject to the approval of the Board of Directors of the Board of REALTORS®. R

Section 5—Appointment of Committee: The President shall appoint, subject to confirmation by the Board of Directors, a Commercial Information Exchange Committee of __________ REALTOR® members. All members of the Committee shall be Participants in the Exchange except, at the option of the local Board, REALTORS® or REALTOR-ASSOCIATE®s licensed with Participants may be appointed to serve in such numbers as determined by the local Board. The Committee members so named shall serve staggered two (2) year terms.³ The Committee shall select its Chairperson from among the members thereof. (Optional provision: A Board may choose to have the appointment of the Chairperson made by the President of the Board of REALTORS®.) R

Section 6—Vacancies: Vacancies and unexpired terms shall be filled as in the case of original appointments. R

Section 7—Attendance: Any Committee member who fails to attend three (3) consecutive regular or special meetings of the Committee, without an excuse acceptable to the Chairperson of the Committee, shall be deemed to have resigned from the Committee and the vacancy shall be filled as herein provided for original appointees. R

Section 8—Subscribers: Subscribers (or users) of the CIE include non-principal brokers, sales associates, and licensed and certified appraisers affiliated with Participants. (Optional provision: Subscribers also include affiliated unlicensed administrative and clerical staff, personal assistants, and individuals seeking licensure or certification as real estate appraisers who are under the direct supervision of a CIE Participant or the Participant’s licensed designee.) (Adopted 4/92) R

Boards are not required to establish prerequisites for CIE participation beyond holding REALTOR® (principal) membership in a Board. However, if the Board wishes to establish prerequisites for CIE Participation or access to the CIE-generated information, the requirement of attendance at an orientation program is the most rigorous prerequisite that may be required. (Amended 2/94)

²Generally, Boards of REALTORS®, when there is more than one principal in a real estate firm, define the chief principal officer of the firm as the CIE “Participant.” Brokers or salespersons other than principals are not considered “Participants” in the Exchange, but have access to and use of the Exchange through the principal(s) with whom they are affiliated.

³Boards have the option of establishing a longer or shorter term for service on the committee and need not provide for staggered terms for committee appointments