Bill Text: TX HB2501 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to voting in property owners' association elections.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-04-11 - Left pending in committee [HB2501 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-HB2501-Introduced.html
82R9086 AJA-F | ||
By: Thompson | H.B. No. 2501 |
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relating to voting in property owners' association elections. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Chapter 209, Property Code, is amended by adding | ||
Section 209.00593 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 209.00593. VOTING; QUORUM. (a) The voting rights of | ||
an owner may be cast or given: | ||
(1) in person or by proxy at a meeting of the property | ||
owners' association; | ||
(2) by absentee ballot in accordance with this | ||
section; | ||
(3) by any method of representative or delegated | ||
voting provided by a dedicatory instrument; or | ||
(4) by electronic ballot in accordance with this | ||
section. | ||
(b) An absentee or electronic ballot: | ||
(1) may be counted as an owner present and voting for | ||
the purpose of establishing a quorum only for items appearing on the | ||
ballot; | ||
(2) may be withdrawn by an owner if the owner attends a | ||
meeting at which votes on the ballot items are cast; and | ||
(3) may not be counted, except for quorum purposes, on | ||
the final vote of a proposal if the motion was amended at the | ||
meeting to be different from the exact language on the absentee or | ||
electronic ballot. | ||
(c) A solicitation for votes by absentee or electronic | ||
ballot must include: | ||
(1) an absentee or electronic ballot that contains | ||
each proposed action and provides an opportunity to vote for or | ||
against each proposed action; | ||
(2) instructions for delivery of the completed | ||
absentee or electronic ballot, including the delivery location; and | ||
(3) the following language: "By casting your vote via | ||
absentee or electronic ballot you will forgo the opportunity to | ||
consider and vote on any action from the floor on these proposals, | ||
if a meeting is held. This means that if there are amendments to | ||
these proposals your votes will not be counted on the final vote on | ||
these measures. If you desire to retain this ability, please attend | ||
any meeting in person. You may submit an absentee or electronic | ||
ballot and later choose to attend any meeting in person, in which | ||
case any in-person vote will prevail." | ||
(d) For the purposes of this section, "electronic ballot" | ||
means a ballot: | ||
(1) conveyed in an electronic manner and format | ||
prescribed by the property owners' association board; | ||
(2) for which the identity of the property owner | ||
submitting the ballot can be reasonably established; and | ||
(3) for which the property owner may receive a receipt | ||
of the electronic transmission and receipt of the owner's ballot. | ||
(e) If an electronic ballot is posted on an Internet | ||
website, a notice shall be provided to each owner that contains | ||
instructions on obtaining access to the posting on the website. | ||
(f) The property owners' association board has the sole | ||
authority to prescribe or cause to be prescribed all proxy and | ||
ballot forms. | ||
(g) This section supersedes any contrary provision in a | ||
dedicatory instrument. | ||
(h) Except as provided by Subsection (i), this section | ||
applies to all property owners' associations and controls over any | ||
other law not specifically applicable to a property owners' | ||
association. | ||
(i) This section does not apply to a property owners' | ||
association that is subject to Chapter 552, Government Code, by | ||
application of Section 552.0036, Government Code. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 209.00593, Property Code, as added by | ||
this Act, applies to a provision in a dedicatory instrument enacted | ||
before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |