Wrong People Heard the Request for Dues Increase?

On some date before the November 12, 2024 Annual Meeting of the Board of Directors (BOD), a presentation of the Proposed 2025 Budget was made to the BOD.

The directors at that time (before November 12th) were:

Danny Trapp, Pres.
Brenda Bryant, VP
Tanisha Holmes, Secretary
Linda Potter, Treas.
Patricia Pollin
Dennis Rybicki

Who did not want to increase the dues (besides Danny Trapp)? Pollin would have sided with Trapp. The other four should have been in favor.

A 3-3 vote on a dues increase would fail. A 4-2 vote would pass. But there shouldn't have been any vote at that meeting, because it was not a public, open, official board meeting!

There should have been seven directors, but Danny Trapp and the Board had failed to announce the resignation of Tommy Williams in May 2024 and had failed to appoint a successor director, leaving the unannounced vacancy until the November 12 election.

The Proposed Budget should have been presented in public at the November 12th monthly board meeting. The Board certainly could have heard a preview of it and discussed it at a pre-board meeting, but no decision about the Budget or a dues increase should have been made in the private, secret, closed, pre-board meeting.

The Budget Sub-Committee is, according to the PRM, supposed to present the proposed budget to the board (in a public meeting). Instead, Linda Potter, Treasurer at the time (November 12), merely announced that there is a Budget and that the dues will not be increased.

After the November 12th meeting started and before Potter's announcement about the Budget, the two new directors (who had already been seated) should have been formally introduced and officially seated, AND the new officers of the board should have been elected.

Last year the BOD did not increase the dues, nor did Boards for several years before that. The 2024 Budget was over-spent by almost $150,000 by October 31, 2024.

A 10% dues increase was fully warranted.

The BOD should have heard a Motion on November 12th  from the Treasurer for a dues increase. The increase should have been fully discussed. Then the new board (of seven) should have voted on it.

However, the two new directors on the Board (Adams and Bates) were likely hearing about the 2025 Budget for the first time and had never examined it. How could they vote on it? The vote should have been scheduled for December 3rd).

As of the November 12th election (and the private, closed officer-election at the November 15th Organizational Meeting), the BOD is

Danny Trapp, Pres.
Tanisha Holmes, VP
Ciara Bates, Secretary
LaToya Adams, Treas.
Brenda Bryant
Linda Potter
Patricia Pollin

Who of these seven would have voted - responsibly - in favor of a 10% dues increase? 

On January 7, 2025 the Board should call for a full discussion of the original 2025 Proposed Budget, which justified a dues increase, hear the reasons that a 10% dues increase had been recommended, discuss what was chopped out of the budget after the Board informally denied an increase, and vote in public on the 10% dues increase that had been recommended.

The 2025 Approved Budget was finally posted on the HOA's website on December 13. 

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