County of Los Angeles Department of Consumer Affairs New Consumer Laws 2007

Homeowners Associations:
Election Disclosures

Civil Code Sections 1363.03, 1365.2

The Davis-Stirling Common Interest Development Act provides the legal framework under which homeowner associations operate in common interest developments (CID).  In addition to the requirements of the Act, each CID is governed by a homeowner association (HOA) according to the recorded declarations, bylaws, and operating rules of the association.

The Davis-Stirling Act requires a vote of the association members for certain types of assessments and amendments to the governing documents.  Elections are also used in the selection of board members.  Legislation enacted in 2005 requires an association to adopt election rules that do all of the following:

• Provides equal access to association media, such as newsletters;
• Ensures free and equal access to common area meeting space;
• Specifies qualifications for candidates and procedures for nomination;
• Specifies qualifications for voting; and
• Specifies a method for selecting one or three independent inspectors.

The Act also requires that elections for board membership, assessments, amendments to the governing documents, and the granting of exclusive use of common areas be conducted by secret ballot and supervised by one or three independent inspectors.

This bill clarifies procedures for secret ballot elections and for accessing records. Specifically this bill:

• Requires that rules adopted by the HOA for elections specify when the polls open and close.
• Allows the inspector(s) of elections in an election to appoint additional persons to verify signatures and to count and tabulate votes.
• Clarifies that elections to recall members of the HOA board of directors must be conducted by secret ballot.
• Allows the inspector of election or his/her designated representative to verify the validity of member's signature and address on the ballot envelope prior to the meeting at which the ballots are tabulated.
• Requires in the case of a challenge to an election requiring a recount that the inspector of elections rather than the HOA will make the ballots available to the member or their authorized representative for review and inspection.
• Allows for the nomination of candidates in a membership meting or by any other manner.
• Allows an HOA to provide specified records that are requested by a member in electronic or machine readable storage media as long as the records can be redacted and are not alterable.

For more information:
County of Los Angeles Department of Consumer Affairs
B-96 Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration
500 W. Temple Street * Los Angeles, CA 90012-2706
Telephone (800) 593-8222 (within the County) * (213) 974-1452
web site: dca.lacounty.gov