(a) Unless prohibited or limited by the declaration or bylaws, unit owners may vote at a meeting in person, by a proxy pursuant to subsection (c) of this section or, when a vote is conducted without a meeting, by electronic or paper ballot pursuant to subsection (d) of this section.
(b) At either a meeting of unit owners or in a vote conducted without a meeting the following requirements apply:
(1) If only one of several owners of a unit is present at a meeting of the association or participating in the vote without a meeting, that owner is entitled to cast all the votes allocated to that unit. If more than one of the owners are present at the meeting or participating in the vote without a meeting, the votes allocated to that unit may be cast only in accordance with the agreement of a majority in interest of the owners, unless the declaration expressly provides otherwise. There is majority agreement if any one of the owners casts the votes allocated to the unit without protest being made promptly to the person presiding over the meeting by any of the other owners of the unit.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, unless a greater number or fraction of the votes in the association is required by this chapter or other law or the declaration, a majority of the votes cast is the decision of the unit owners.
(3) Unless a greater number or fraction of the votes in the association is required by the declaration, bylaws or certificate of incorporation of the association, directors shall be elected by a plurality of the votes cast by the unit owners. If the declaration, bylaws or certificate of incorporation of the association requires any or all directors to be elected by unit owners of a specified group or class of units, then such directors shall be elected by a plurality of the votes cast by the unit owners of units of such group or class of units. The provisions of this subdivision shall not apply to directors who may be appointed by the declarant or under subsection (g) of section 47-245.
(4) If the declaration, bylaws or certificate of incorporation of the association provide for the election of officers by the unit owners, then unless a greater number or fraction of the votes in the association is required by the declaration, bylaws or certificate of incorporation of the association, officers shall be elected by a plurality of the votes cast by the unit owners. If the declaration, bylaws or certificate of incorporation of the association requires any or all officers to be elected by unit owners of a specified group or class of units, then such officers shall be elected by a plurality of the votes cast by the unit owners of units of such group or class of units. The provisions of this subdivision shall not apply to directors who may be appointed by the declarant or under subsection (g) of section 47-245.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in the declaration or bylaws, the following requirements apply with respect to proxy voting:
(1) Votes allocated to a unit may be cast pursuant to a directed or undirected proxy duly executed by a unit owner;
(2) The association may provide a proxy form to any unit owner who seeks to vote pursuant to a directed or undirected proxy. If the association provides a proxy form, the proxy form, (A) shall include a blank space reserved for the insertion of the name of the proxy holder, and (B) may include the name of a person designated by the association to be the default proxy holder, who shall be authorized to exercise the proxy in the event the unit owner fails to otherwise specify the name of the proxy holder subject to the limitations set forth in this subsection;
(3) 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;
(4) A unit owner may revoke a proxy given pursuant to this section only by actual notice of revocation to the person presiding over a meeting of the association;
(5) A proxy is void if it is not dated or purports to be revocable without notice;
(6) A proxy terminates one year after its date, unless it specifies a shorter term; and
(7) A person may not cast votes representing more than fifteen per cent of the votes in the association pursuant to undirected proxies.
(d) Unless prohibited or limited by the declaration or bylaws, an association may conduct a vote without a meeting. In that event, the following requirements apply:
(1) The association shall notify the unit owners that the vote will be taken by ballot;
(2) The association shall deliver a paper or electronic ballot to every unit owner entitled to vote on the matter;
(3) The ballot must set forth each proposed action or office to be filled and provide an opportunity to vote for or against the action or the candidate for office;
(4) When the association delivers the ballots, it shall also: (A) Indicate the number of responses needed to meet the quorum requirements; (B) state the percentage of votes necessary to approve each matter other than election of directors; (C) specify the time and date by which a ballot must be delivered to the association to be counted, which time and date may not be fewer than three days after the date the association delivers the ballot; and (D) describe the time, date and manner by which unit owners wishing to deliver information to all unit owners regarding the subject of the vote may do so;
(5) Except as otherwise provided in the declaration or bylaws, a ballot is not revoked after delivery to the association by death or disability or attempted revocation by the person that cast that vote; and
(6) Approval by ballot pursuant to this subsection is valid only if the number of votes cast by ballot equals or exceeds the quorum required to be present at a meeting authorizing the action.
(e) If the declaration requires that votes on specified matters affecting the common interest community be cast by lessees rather than unit owners of leased units: (1) This section applies to lessees as if they were unit owners; (2) unit owners that have leased their units to other persons may not cast votes on those specified matters; and (3) lessees are entitled to notice of meetings, access to records and other rights respecting those matters as if they were unit owners.
(f) Unit owners shall also be given notice of all meetings at which lessees are entitled to vote.
(g) Votes allocated to a unit owned by the association shall be cast in any vote of the unit owners in the same proportion as the votes cast on the matter by unit owners other than the association.
(h) For the purposes of this chapter, “fraction or percentage”, with respect to the unit owners or the votes in the association, means the stated fraction or percentage of unit owners of units to which at least the stated percentage or fraction of all the votes in the association are allocated, unless the provisions of this chapter provide that the “fraction or percentage” refers to a different group of unit owners or votes.
(P.A. 83-474, S. 53, 96; P.A. 09-225, S. 27; P.A. 10-186, S. 11; P.A. 13-289, S. 3; P.A. 14-215, S. 2.)
History: P.A. 09-225 redesignated existing Subsecs. (a) and (b) as Subsecs. (b)(1) and (c)(1) to (5), inserted new Subsec. (a) re voting in person, by proxy or by ballot, inserted new Subsec. (b)(2) providing that majority of votes cast is decision of unit owners unless otherwise required by chapter, other law or declaration, amended redesignated Subsec. (c) to add language re other provisions in declaration or bylaws re proxy voting, insert “directed or undirected” re proxy in Subdiv. (1), and insert new Subdiv. (6) limiting undirected proxies to 15% of votes, inserted new Subsec. (d) re vote without a meeting, redesignated existing Subsec. (c) as Subsecs. (e) and (f), deleted reference to manner provided in Sec. 47-250 re notice in said Subsec. (f), redesignated existing Subsec. (d) as Subsec. (g), inserted provision therein re proportion of votes, added Subsec. (h) to define “fraction or percentage”, and made technical changes, effective July 1, 2010; P.A. 10-186 made a technical change in Subsec. (h), effective July 1, 2010; P.A. 13-289 amended Subsec. (c) to add new Subdiv. (2) re association providing a proxy form to any unit owner seeking to vote pursuant to a directed or undirected proxy and re content of such proxy form, and to redesignate existing Subdivs. (2) to (6) as Subdivs. (3) to (7); P.A. 14-215 amended Subsec. (b) by adding references to vote conducted without a meeting, adding “Except as otherwise provided in this subsection,” in Subdiv. (2), adding Subdiv. (3) re election of directors by plurality of votes cast by unit owners and adding Subdiv. (4) re election of officers by plurality of votes cast by unit owners.