OCEAN PINES – Ocean Pines Association officials opted to postpone a vote on proposed changes to the election process.
On Saturday, the Ocean Pines Association (OPA) board of directors agreed to delay a vote on the second reading of changes to Resolution M-06. The changes, first discussed last year, are designed to increase transparency and improve the association’s annual election procedures.
“We have plenty of time to pass the motion,” said Director Slobodan Trendic, who introduced it. “I think it’s reasonable to make sure that from a legal perspective the language is bulletproof so I’m OK with postponing the motion.”
It was Director Ted Moroney who suggested the postponement. He said he thought members of the Bylaws and Resolutions Advisory Committee wanted to take another look at the changes.
“They’d like to take a look at it at their next meeting,” he said.
While the remainder of the board didn’t object to deferring the motion to next month’s meeting, some did voice their concern with the changes proposed for Resolution M-06. The three changes include announcing annual board election results as soon as ballots are counted, giving the Elections Committee freedom to adjust seating arrangements at candidate forums and changing the ballot deadline.
The controversial change is the idea of announcing election results after ballots are counted as opposed to at the annual meeting, held on the second Saturday in August. In the past, certified election results have been kept in a locked cabinet until they’re announced at the annual meeting. The proposed resolution calls for results to be announced as soon as the ballot count is complete. Director Cheryl Jacobs said she’d opposed the concept last year and continued to oppose it.
Director Tom Herrick agreed and said the board had already discussed it.
“As recently as nine months ago the board did an exhaustive review of this particular resolution,” he said. “We debated the merits at length.”
He said he didn’t see any new evidence that would convince him to support announcing the election results following the ballot count.
Trendic, however, pointed out that the board changed every year and said the Elections Committee continued to want to see the changes implemented.
“Let’s be clear about this issue,” he said. “What the committee’s asking is what the community asked, that is for transparency.”
He agreed, however, to withdraw the motion to approve the changes so that the Bylaws and Resolutions Advisory Committee could review Resolution M-06.
