Some really creepy legislation is making its way through the California Legislature. Both bills are sponsored by the Community Associations Institute, and as you’ll see in a moment they almost criminalize the right for HOA homeowners to vote, and the right for them to vote secretly.
The first bill, AB-1360, is sponsored by the almost clueless Senator Norma Torres. It would allow Homeowners in HOAs to vote by electronic voting. HOA voting has an amazing history of scandal, and organized crime corruption. However, Torres is having trouble getting her fellow senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee to go along. The conclusion is obvious. Her fellow senators are much smarter that Ms. Torres, because they recognize the danger.
The clowns at CAI are also sponsoring AB-1360 and they’ve gotten their favorite brain-dead Senator to sponsor this one, as well. You see, CAI has a client who sells voting machines, equipment and software, and hundreds of millions or billions of dollars would be pouring into the messy hands of CAI & Co.
The next bill of note isn’t just stupid, it’s almost criminal in nature. AG-968 would mean no more secret ballots. The Office of the Inspector of Elections would no longer exist, meaning that if voters have a problem they have to run to our favorite private organization, the CAI.
California is one of the few states that allows homeowners to sue their HOAs in Small Claims Court. But to win in Small Claims, you have to have evidence. In this bill, all evidence from an HOA election will be lost. Gone. The CAI has essentially become the de facto Inspector of Elections.
If this isn’t Las Vegas style HOA corruption, then someone tell me what is!
BTW, Assembly Member Richard Gordon’s phone number is 1-916-319-2024.
With the 4th of July festivities just over, there’s an interesting YouTube video from a Kansas Homeowners Association I know well. The HOA has a thousand human residents and just as many dogs with 513 individually-owned units, many in a state of decay, and a board that runs the place like a Nazi concentration camp armed with ice cream socials and lawsuits a la mode.
