How will the Condominium Management Services Act affect proxy collection?

by Lisa Leung

Once the Condominium Management Services Act (CMSA) comes into effect, the CMSA will require that condominium management providers and condominium managers to be licensed in order to provide services. This new legislation will bring new mandatory educational requirements as well as operational guidelines for condo managers.

We’ve been closely following the proposed changes that will come into effect once Bill 106, Protecting Condominium Owners Act, 2015 (PCOA) and CMSA are enforced. Though the Ontario government is still considering the input from the condominium community for PCOA, the draft CMSA is currently available and is proposed to go into effect transitionally July 1, 2017.

So what does this mean for proxy collection?
Condominium property managers play a crucial role in the successful execution of Annual General Meetings through the collection of proxies and circulation of the meeting packages. The new CMSA legislation will impose new restrictions on how condominium managers can handle proxies. Under the CMSA, a property manager cannot solicit proxies for a meeting of owners if the subject matter of the meeting is directly related to the property manager, and the election or removal of at least one of the condominium board’s directors.

Though the CMSA has these restrictions in place, property managers will still be allowed to:

  • Collect or hold proxies, or provide a location to collect or hold proxies;
  • Notify or remind owners or mortgagees to submit proxies if they are unable to attend an owner’s meeting;
  • Make information available on how to submit a proxy;
    Provide proxy forms as part of anything that a client gives to owners or mortgagees; or,
  • Provide proxy forms to owners or mortgagees on request.

These proposed changes to the property manager’s role in the handling proxies came about as a means to prevent any undue influence on voting.

Will the CMSA affect electronic proxies?
The CMSA will not affect the process of collecting electronic proxies as owners or mortgagees are free to submit their proxy if they are unable to attend an owner’s meeting. The benefit of using electronic proxies is that the process is secure and free of influence. Property managers will still be able to send reminders, provide and collect paper proxies, and distribute meeting packages.

If your corporation would like to start using electronic proxies or would like to learn more about electronic proxies contact us today.