68.— (1) Before the end of the period specified in section 63 (1), the management company shall establish a building investment fund (in this Part referred to as a “sinking fund”) for the purpose of discharging expenditure reasonably incurred, in respect of the designated apartment complex concerned on—

(a) refurbishment,

(b) improvement,

(c) maintenance of a non-recurring nature, or

(d) advice from a suitably qualified person relating to paragraphs (a) to (c).

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), expenditure shall not be considered to be expenditure on maintenance of a non-recurring nature—

(a) where the expenditure relates to a matter in respect of which expenditure is generally incurred in each year,

(b) unless it is certified by the directors of the management company as being expenditure on maintenance of a non-recurring nature, and

(c) unless the expenditure is approved by a meeting of the members as being expenditure on maintenance of a non-recurring nature.

(3) (a) Before the end of the period specified in section 63 (1), and thereafter before the end of the first month of each financial year, the management company shall, subject to paragraph (b) prepare an estimate of the sum of moneys (referred to in this Part as the “sinking fund contribution” ) that it considers appropriate and prudent for addition to the sinking fund in the financial year concerned and, applying the method of apportionment specified in subsection (4) (a) or (b), as appropriate, calculate the amount equal to the proportion of the sinking fund contribution that would be attributable to each apartment in the designated apartment complex.

(b) The management company shall not prepare an estimate of the sinking fund contribution for the financial year concerned which, when apportioned between each apartment in the designated apartment complex in accordance with paragraph (a), results in the smallest amount attributable to any apartment being less than €200 or such other amount as may be prescribed for the purposes of this subsection.

(c) If, under the calculation set out in paragraph (a), the smallest amount attributable to any apartment in the designated apartment complex is equal to €200 or such other amount as may be prescribed for the purposes of this subsection, the management company may adopt its estimate under paragraph (a) as the sinking fund contribution for the financial year concerned.

(d) If under the calculation specified in paragraph (a), the smallest amount attributable to any apartment in the apartment complex is more than €200 or such other amount as may be prescribed for the purposes of this subsection, the sinking fund contribution for the financial year shall be adopted by a general meeting of members called for those purposes, provided that such contribution, when apportioned between each apartment in the designated apartment complex on the same basis as the apartment complex service charge, does not result in the smallest amount attributable to any apartment being less than €200 or such other amount as may be prescribed for the purposes of this subsection.

(4) The amount of the sinking fund contribution shall, as soon as practicable after its determination, be levied by the management company as a charge on each apartment in the designated apartment complex, the amount being apportioned between each apartment in the designated apartment complex on the same basis as the apartment complex service charge is apportioned—

(a) in accordance with section 67 (7), or

(b) in the case of a designated apartment complex where the housing authority has sold one or more than one apartment under section 90 of the Principal Act, in accordance with section 67 (8).

(5) The contributions made to the sinking fund shall be held in a separate account and in a manner which identifies such funds as belonging to the sinking fund and those funds shall not be used or expended on matters other than expenditure of a type referred to in subsection (1).

(6) The Minister may make regulations prescribing all or any one or more of the following:

(a) a class or classes of expenditure which may be incurred by a sinking fund;

(b) thresholds of expenditure (by reference to amounts of expenditure or by reference to the proportion of the sinking fund) which necessitate approval of the members;

(c) any other amount for the purposes of subsection (3) having regard to the average level of service charges in designated apartment complexes.