ballots & proxies in WA State.

Hi Everyone. I am new to this. I want to take advantage & maximize the use of ballots & proxies. I know they are different but I want this discussion on what are the common practices both are applied in your HOA. Below are my governing docs & WA state law to save time for experience ones on regards to legality. Any great input would greatly appreciate it. Thank you for your patience.

Bylaws:Section 2: Initial Election of Directors by Members. At such time as the Declarant
shall no longer be able to act or appoint the board of directors in accordance with the Declaration,
the Declarant shall appoint a nominating committee consisting of the Declarant and at least one other
member or more as determined by Declarant, which members are not present members of the board
of directors, who shall make as many nominations for election to the board of directors as it shall
in its discretion determine but not less than the number of directors previously been appointed by
the Declarant. Once the nominating committee has made its nominations, then a list of the
nominations together with a ballot shall be sent to all members by regular mail and shall then vote
by mail as to who shall constitute the initial board of directors to be elected by the members. Said
ballots by mail shall be returned to such person or entity as may be designated by the nominating
committee at such time but in any event no longer than two weeks from the date of mailing. Those
persons receiving the largest number of votes shall be elected to the vacant director positions. They
shall then constitute the initial elected board of directors until the next annual meeting of the
members.

Bylaws:Section 5: Proxies. At all meetings of Members, each Member may vote in person or
by proxy. All proxies shall be in writing and filed with the secretary. Every proxy shall be
revocable and shall automatically cease upon conveyance by the Member of his Residential Lot.

CCR:Section Four: Voting. This Declar~iionrriay·l,e _iimeaded at any annual meeting of the
Association, or at a special meeting called for such,pw:pbseJ if sixty-seven percent (67%) or
more of the Owners vote for such amendment,'._or'·withqut_.~u.c;h meeting if all Owners are
notified in writing of such amendment, and if sf}tty--s~Ven perc:ent ( 67%) or more of the
Owners vote for such amendment by written ballot. Nqtice·cif arty proposed amendment shall
be given to all Owners not Jess than ten (10) days prior to the·date·6.fthe annual meeting or of
any special meeting at which the proposed amendment shall-1,l::-conider.ed. Notwithstanding
any of the foregoing, fifty-one percent (51%) of all Instituti.6nal,-F1i:st"1\1ortgagees who have
requested notification of amendments must give prior writt~r(ap_prliyal·-to any material
amendment to the Declaration or Bylaws, including any ofthe'{o. Hq.· wiiig:

WA STATE:RCW 64.34.340
Voting—Proxies.
(1) If only one of the multiple owners of a unit is present at a meeting of the association or has delivered a written ballot or proxy to the association secretary, the owner is entitled to cast all the votes allocated to that unit. If more than one of the multiple owners are present or has delivered a written ballot or proxy to the association secretary, the votes allocated to that unit may be cast only in accordance with the agreement of a majority in interest of the multiple owners, unless the declaration expressly provides otherwise. There is majority agreement if any one of the multiple owners casts the votes allocated to that unit without protest being made promptly to the person presiding over the meeting by any of the other owners of the unit.
(2) Votes allocated to a unit may be cast pursuant to a proxy duly executed by a unit owner. If a unit is owned by more than one person, each owner of the unit may vote or register protest to the casting of votes by the other owners of the unit through a duly executed proxy. A unit owner may not revoke a proxy given pursuant to this section except by actual notice of revocation to the person presiding over a meeting of the association. A proxy is void if it is not dated or purports to be revocable without notice. Unless stated otherwise in the proxy, a proxy terminates eleven months after its date of issuance.
(3) If the declaration requires that votes on specified matters affecting the condominium be cast by lessees rather than unit owners of leased units: (a) The provisions of subsections (1) and (2) of this section apply to lessees as if they were unit owners; (b) unit owners who have leased their units to other persons may not cast votes on those specified matters; and (c) lessees are entitled to notice of meetings, access to records, and other rights respecting those matters as if they were unit owners. Unit owners must also be given notice, in the manner provided in RCW 64.34.332, of all meetings at which lessees may be entitled to vote.
(4) No votes allocated to a unit owned by the association may be cast, and in determining the percentage of votes required to act on any matter, the votes allocated to units owned by the association shall be disregarded.

Sorry, just realize CCR is messed up. Here the correct one.

Section Four: Voting. This Declaration may be amended at any annual meeting of the
Association, or at a special meeting called for such purpose if sixty-seven percent (67%) or
more of the Owners vote for such amendment, or without such meeting if all Owners are
notified in writing of such amendment, and if sixty seven percent (67%) or more of the
Owners vote for such amendment by written ballot. Notice of any proposed amendment shall
be given to all Owners not less than ten (10) days prior to the date of the annual meeting or of
any special meeting at which the proposed amendment shall be considered. Notwithstanding
any of the foregoing, fifty-one percent (51%) of all Institutional First Mortgagees who have
requested notification of amendments must give prior written approval to any material
amendment to the Declaration or Bylaws, including any of the following:
1. Voting rights;
2. Assessments, assessment liens and subordination of such liens;
3. Reserves for maintenance, repair, and replacement of Common Areas;
4. Insurance or fidelity bonds;
5. Responsibility for maintenance and repair;
6. Contraction of the project or the withdrawal of property from the properties;
7. The boundaries of any Lot;
8. Leasing.bf Housing Units other than as set forth herein;
9. Imposition of any restrictions on the right of an Owner to sell or transfer his or her lot;
10. Any decision by the Association to establish self-management when professional management has been required previously by an institutional First mortgagee;
11. Restoration or repair (after hazard damage or partial condemnation) in a manner other than that specified in this Declaration.
12. Any action to terminate the legal status of the properties after substantial destruction or condemnation occurs; or
13. Any provisions which are for the express benefit of Institutional First Mortgagees.

First of all if you want to know the legalities of anything, it's best to go to a private attorney, not the internet. Different states have different rules and even if you think one is doing a great job, you still need to look at your own state as well as your documents to see what can be adapted.

But for what it's worth, here's how ballots and proxies work in my community.

Proxies are used at our annual meeting - if an owner can't attend, he/she/they can name someone on the proxy to attend the meeting on their behalf and cast a vote or designate the board president to do so. The proxies are generally used for board elections. If the community votes on most other issues, ballots are used. If the unit is owned by more than one person, those owners have to decide among themselves who will complete and sign the proxy and turn it in. The proxies are opened and counted at the beginning of the annual meeting, as they're also used to help establish quorum - if we get 10% or more owners to attend or mail in a proxy, the meeting and subsequent board election is held. If someone mails in a proxy, but decides later to attend the meeting, it's cancelled and the owner can cast a vote as usual.

We haven't tried amending our documents in years (the last time was a dismal failure), but we would use a type of ballot where the homeowner would state whether he/she approved or disapproved of the proposed amendment(s). The ballot would have to be signed, dated and notarized for it to be valid. One vote per unit, just as with the use of proxies.

Personally, I think it comes down to determining what you want to do, checking your documents to see what's required and then encouraging everyone to participate. I like people attending meetings where they can see and hear the arguments for or against a specific issue or issues and then cast a vote, so whatever you can do to encourage attendance should be tried. In fact, if the subject is controversial, it may be best to have one meeting where you discuss the pros and cons and then send everyone home to ponder what they want to do, then call another meeting to hold the vote. I'm not a fan of using proxies for amending documents - that is one time where no one should be allowed to hide, so if you can't attend, send in a ballot, and count them in front of everyone. Have independent people count the ballots and notify people in advance if they won't be eligible to vote (usually because of delinquent assessments). That way, they can resolve problems before the election.

Technically, isn't the responsibility already with the owners?

The owners pay the assessments that should be funding the reserves to replace the roofs.
At least having the HOA maintain the roofs, you don't get into an issue were someone who has shared responsibility thinks the roof can last longer or can't afford to replace it when it needs it.

To clarify, the HOA is responsible for roof repair and/or replacement so replacing is the cost. 40 one story duplex homes, 32 standalone, single and two story homes. 25 year shingles with average life expectancy of 20 years in the SC sun/heat. 72 structures, 112 owners.

The bottom line is the present dues structure will not cover the work. Based on proposals from two roof companies, work commencing in 2028 (oldest roofs will be 21 years old), and spread out over 7 years, we would have to raise the due from $600 per year to about $1,000 commencing in 2019. We are informing owners of this potential dues increase with spreadsheets showing it. If owners turn down the Covenant change we will raise the dues. The BOD has the power to do so without owner approval.

Our attorney informs use there is a clause in our Covenants where the ARC (which is the BOD) can control when and how the roof(s) is replaced. Granted that could come to push and shove especially for a duplex getting both owners to do so at the same time.

We will present it to our fellow owners and let them vote on it. Their choice. The BOD will act accordingly.

How about this, Jay: you tell us the difference between proxies and ballots. That way, we'd know what actual question(s) you have.

On one of your many other posts, I think someone or more than one gave your some resources to read. Have you read them??