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HOA Nominating Committee


Guest Puffin

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1 hour ago, Puffin said:

Preparing a ballot is something else.

Mr. Honemann,

  To date, our ballot just listed the names of nominees and  we checked off the names of members we wanted to vote for.   Please, can you expand if there is more to it? 

Try pp. 412 - 419, and 439 - 442.

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Please know, that the Florida Law Chapter 720 (HOA Associations) is not very specific in protecting owners’ rights. When the BODs do not comply with the bylaws or any governing documents the members have no place to go except hiring an attorney, not a pleasant alternative. Many, if not all HOAs do not follow Robert’s Rules. 
Why could not Robert’s rules expand to protect HOAs? Is it a question of funds? Or, is there another reason?
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The title of this topic is “HOA Nominating Committee”.

We are told that the bylaws state only that:

“A nominating committee of three (3) members shall be appointed by the Board of Directors not less than thirty (30) days prior to the annual member’s meeting. The committee shall nominate one person for each director then serving. Other nominations may be made from the floor.”

We are assured that no other guidelines for the committee are provided, and the question asked is: “Can all eight candidates be listed on the ballot or only those five nominated by the committee can be listed?” 

As is so often the case, the question asked was correctly answered in the initial response. “After the committee reports, nominations from the floor are taken.  All nominees, both from the committee and from the floor are listed on the ballot.” This response assumes, of course, that the names of any nominees at all are to be listed on the ballot. As so often happens when nominations are permitted to be made from the floor at the meeting at which the election is to be held, the ballot handed out to voters consists of nothing but a blank sheet of paper.

Based solely upon what has been posted, it seems clear that the only duty to be performed by the Nominating Committee is to nominate one person for each position on the Board to be filled. That’s all. Nothing which has been posted indicates that it is a duty of the Nominating Committee to prepare a ballot. As a matter of fact, the committee will have submitted its report and will have been automatically discharged before anyone knows who all the nominees will be.

Nothing whatsoever has as yet been posted which would indicate that the way in which things have been done in the past, as described here, was proper.

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Thank you, again, for your detailed evaluation. As you and Mr. Mervosh described, the Nominating Committee is to release their report at the Annual Meeting, not before.  Consequently, the current BOD has no authority to ask the committee for their report prior to the Annual Meeting and mail out  the ballot listing those persons nominated. Am I correct?  

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2 minutes ago, Puffin said:

Thank you, again, for your detailed evaluation. As you and Mr. Mervosh described, the Nominating Committee is to release their report at the Annual Meeting, not before.  Consequently, the current BOD has no authority to ask the committee for their report prior to the Annual Meeting and mail out  the ballot listing those persons nominated. Am I correct?  

Nothing which you have posted so far indicates that the board can require the Nominating Committee to release its report prior to the Annual Meeting.

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21 minutes ago, Daniel H. Honemann said:

Nothing which you have posted so far indicates that the board can require the Nominating Committee to release its report prior to the Annual Meeting.

I agree that nothing in the bylaws indicates that the board can require the nominating committee to release its report prior to the annual meeting. However, I think they may REQUEST that the committee to do so, they simply cannot REQUIRE the committee to do so.

I don't see anything in the bylaws that prohibits the nominating committee from releasing its report voluntarily prior to the annual meeting. I don't even see anything that specifically requires that it be released AT the annual meeting. Is there anything that prohibits the nominating committee from voluntarily releasing its report prior to the annual meeting?

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24 minutes ago, Richard Brown said:

I agree that nothing in the bylaws indicates that the board can require the nominating committee to release its report prior to the annual meeting. However, I think they may REQUEST that the committee to do so, they simply cannot REQUIRE the committee to do so.

I don't see anything in the bylaws that prohibits the nominating committee from releasing its report voluntarily prior to the annual meeting. I don't even see anything that specifically requires that it be released AT the annual meeting. Is there anything that prohibits the nominating committee from voluntarily releasing its report prior to the annual meeting?

Yes, of course the board can request that the nominating committee release its report prior to the annual meeting. So can you. So can I. So what? :)

There is certainly nothing in RONR that prohibits the Nominating Committee from voluntarily releasing its report prior to the annual meeting, but I think it rather clear that, unless the assembly's rules establish some other procedure, the formal report of the Committee must be made at a meeting of the membership, and in this instance that meeting will obviously be the annual meeting at which the election is to be held.

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Yes,  we need to amend our bylaws which I have been advocating since 2009. There are just many ambiguous articles.  Let's assume - for a second- the Nominating Committee will release their report prior to the meeting. Would the current board have the authority to list the nominees on the ballot and mail it all owners? I realize that is not a fair question but  I truly hope that will not happen because it would most likely jeopardize nominations from the floor.

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37 minutes ago, Daniel H. Honemann said:

As best I can determine, there is nothing wrong with your bylaws as currently written. You've just been failing to obey them.

 

7 minutes ago, Richard Brown said:

You've seen ALL of her bylaws?  Lucky you!  :)

No, I haven't seen them all, which is why I said that as best I can determine there is nothing wrong with them.

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We are simply not qualified to interpret many articles in our bylaws. As I previously mentioned, recent boards always went to an attorney for an advice which was not only costly but also turned out to be quite confusing since their legal opinions varied.

You may know, that Florida Condominium Association Law, does not permit nominating committees.   Even though nominating committees are still permitted for HOAs they seem to quite rare. Personally, I think that nominating committees is small associations just complicate the voting process.

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13 minutes ago, Puffin said:

We are simply not qualified to interpret many articles in our bylaws. As I previously mentioned, recent boards always went to an attorney for an advice which was not only costly but also turned out to be quite confusing since their legal opinions varied.

You may know, that Florida Condominium Association Law, does not permit nominating committees.   Even though nominating committees are still permitted for HOAs they seem to quite rare. Personally, I think that nominating committees is small associations just complicate the voting process.

With all due respect, Mr. Puffin, I'm afraid that you evidence little, if any, understanding of what you're talking about.

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Your statement  is hard to swallow specially if not justified. I came to this forum  to ask for opinions not insults.  Did my statement  that Nominating Committee was creating complication in a small Assn upset you?  

Please do realize that not nominating our  friends/neighbors  can cause a lot of tension in a small community like our. NOT worth it. This is why hardly anyone – including me - want to serve this year (except maybe the current bod members).

 Am trying to find a reasonable way that would not cause bad blood while protecting owners’ rights. Is that so hard to understand?

But again, many of you gave me the best advice for which I am grateful. 

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1 hour ago, Puffin said:

Please do realize that not nominating our  friends/neighbors  can cause a lot of tension in a small community like our. NOT worth it. This is why hardly anyone – including me - want to serve this year (except maybe the current bod members).

Actually.... in my neighborhood HOA, I am usually grateful when I am NOT nominated (or elected).  HOA members are just lightening rods that draw the wrath of often angry homeowners.  So if you want to settle accounts with anyone, volunteer to serve on the Nominating Committee and then nominate that person.    

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4 hours ago, Puffin said:

We are simply not qualified to interpret many articles in our bylaws. As I previously mentioned, recent boards always went to an attorney for an advice which was not only costly but also turned out to be quite confusing since their legal opinions varied.

You may know, that Florida Condominium Association Law, does not permit nominating committees.   Even though nominating committees are still permitted for HOAs they seem to quite rare. Personally, I think that nominating committees is small associations just complicate the voting process.

According to RONR, nobody but the membership is qualified or has the authority to  interpret their own bylaws.  Based on the experiences of many visitors here, I'd say that an attorney is probably not the best solution nor, as you have noted, the most affordable.    A professional parliamentarian, however, should be better able to help you interpret articles that you're having trouble with.

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Guest Who's Coming to Dinner
6 hours ago, Puffin said:

Let's assume - for a second- the Nominating Committee will release their report prior to the meeting. Would the current board have the authority to list the nominees on the ballot and mail it all owners? I realize that is not a fair question but  I truly hope that will not happen because it would most likely jeopardize nominations from the floor.

Perhaps, but whatever they mail out is informational and has no bearing on the election, which will take place at the meeting and not by mail. I think it may help to point out that "the ballot" could be just a blank slip of paper handed out at the meeting. There is no requirement for it to be preprinted with the names of all the candidates. And, as you fear, a preprinted ballot will likely prejudice voters against nominations from the floor.

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4 hours ago, Guest Who's Coming to Dinner said:

And, as you fear, a preprinted ballot will likely prejudice voters against nominations from the floor.

Or energize the members to make nominations from the floor when they see what an awful collection of nominees are on the printed ballot.

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Sadly, most members are intimidated to challenge or even question the bod. As a result, the bod does whatever they want to and all their decisions are made behind the closed door, am sorry to say. But, that is our problem.

As you are suggesting – when in doubt- interpretation of our bylaws ought to be done by professional parliamentarian and sent to all members so we all are on the same page. But no way the current board is going to seek such opinion.   Not sure if a parliamentarian would work with members who are not on the board or, officially appointed to serve on a committee.  

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Not to be too crass about it, but a parliamentarian would work for anybody with a checkbook, as long as things remained ethical.

But it would still be up to the member(s) to raise whatever points of order (or other matters) were appropriate (after discovering them with the parliamentarian's help) in a meeting context.

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Here's a couple of (generic) contacts (fees vary...)


Contact either (or both) the ...

National Association of Parliamentarians
213 South Main St.
Independence, MO  64050-3850

Phone: 888-627-2929
Fax: 816-833-3893;  
e-mail: hq@NAP2.org  
<<www.parliamentarians.org>>

or

American Institute of Parliamentarians
618 Church Street, Ste 220
Nashville, TN 37219

phone: 888-664-0428
e-mail: aip@aipparl.org
<< www.aipparl.org >>


for a reference or information.  Both organizations offer training and contacts with local parliamentarians.

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