Recall Petition...

Discussion in 'Sun City General Discussions' started by BPearson, Sep 18, 2021.

  1. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    Heard a rumor today there may be an effort to recall at least one of the board's officers. My initial instinct was to blow it off, but then i decided i would provide a public service to both those reading this blog and those who think it might be a worthwhile endeavor. So we are clear, there is no way to sneak up on this action. The Articles of Incorporation give the members the right to do so, the by-laws make it damned near impossible.

    I will post both, starting with the Articles of Incorporation, everything has to start with them. Here is what the Articles say:
    Article IX

    Removal of any elected or appointed Director may be done in either of the following ways:


    A. By a vote of two-thirds (2/3) of the members of the Board of Directors after a member of the Board is absent from three (3) or more consecutive regular meetings of the Board or who, in the opinion of such two-thirds (2/3) of the Board members, is unwilling or incapable of performing his or her share of the duties and responsibilities of a Director.


    B. The Members may remove any elected or appointed Director in the following manner, and any vacancy so created may be filled in the following manner:


    1. A petition for a removal election of one or more Directors, specifying by name or names the occupants of the seats whose removal is desired, signed by not less than ten percent (10%) of the voting Members of the Corporation as of the preceding July 1st, may be filed with the Secretary of the Corporation not less than ten (10) days preceding a regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Directors. At such meeting, the Board shall then schedule an election for the purpose of voting on the removal and replacement of any Directors whose removal is sought, said election to be held not later than forty-five (45) days and not less than thirty-five (35) days after such aforesaid meeting, and said election shall be conducted in accordance with the Bylaws of the Corporation regarding election of Directors. Appropriate announcement thereof shall be made by the Board of Directors on the bulletin boards of the Corporation.


    2. Balloting at such removal elections shall proceed in the same manner as specified in Article X of the Bylaws, except that at least fifty percent (50%) of the members of the Balloting Committee shall be selected from those signing the removal petition.


    3. Any member of the Corporation in good standing and who is qualified under Article IV, Section 2, of the Bylaws may become a candidate for election to the Board to fill the position of a specified Director whose removal is being sought, by filing a petition signed by not less than one hundred (100) of the voting Members in good standing, and such petition and other material, as required by Article IX of the Corporate Bylaws, shall be filed with the Chairman of the Elections Committee not later than fifteen (15) days preceding the date set for the election
    .

    Pretty healthy list of hoops to jump through but clearly doable. But wait, it gets more interesting in the next post.
     
  2. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    Just for shirts and giggles feast your eyes on this pile of manure from the by-laws:

    ARTICLE IX – INITIATIVE, REFERENDUM AND RECALL PETITIONS

    Per the Articles, any initiative, referendum, or recall petition must have a total number of signers not less than ten percent (10%) of the voting Members of the Corporation as of the preceding July 1. All signers must have signed in person and they must provide their Property address, Member Card number and the expiration date thereof. The completed petition will be filed with the Secretary of the Corporation.

    A recall petition will set forth the name of the Board of Director whose removal is desired and the reasons for the recall.

    A referendum petition must set forth the existing policy or regulation that is being challenged in clear and precise language that will allow the challenge to be determined by a “YES” OR “NO” vote. Any proposition will be subject to the requirements and limitations of the Corporate Documents.

    Before an initiative petition is filed, the party or parties intending to circulate and file such a petition, will submit to the Board the proposal in the exact language that the initiative will contain. The Board will have sixty (60) days from the date of submission to accept or reject the proposal. If the proposal is accepted, the petition will be assigned a petition control number by the Secretary of the Corporation.

    If issues can be resolved without the petition process, the Board and the Members will achieve savings in terms of cost and time while avoiding disharmony and divisiveness in Sun City, Arizona.

    SECTION 1: STEPS TO TAKE BEFORE CIRCULATING A PETITION
    1. Consider alternatives before beginning the petition process:
      1. Bring the issue to the attention of the Board at Board meetings or in other direct communication with the Board.
      2. The Board will consider the issue and provide in writing their consensus regarding such. If the Board approves, action will be taken accordingly. If the Board disapproves, proponents may initiate the petition process.
    2. File request to circulate your petition with the Secretary of the Corporation.
      1. Submit:
        1. The names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the petition organizers.
        2. The organization, if any, supporting the petition.
        3. The text of the proposed petition on the official petition form as required.
      2. Receive from the Secretary of the Corporation:
        1. Written notice of approval or disapproval of petition as submitted.
        2. If approved, official petition with control number for use by all Circulators.
        3. If approved, petition regulations.
        4. If approved, your petition start and completion dates.
    3. Copy official, numbered petitions.
      1. Copy as many copies of the official, numbered petition, as needed to circulate your petition. No other petition form is acceptable. Number each page. Each page should have:
        1. The exact wording of the petition as approved by the Board.
        2. The control number as assigned by the Corporation.
        3. The Certification on the back of each page.
    4. Select and orient Circulators to the regulations and procedures to follow in circulating petitions.
    SECTION 2: ACCEPTABLE PRACTICES DURING THE PETITION’S CIRCULATION
    1. All Circulators:
      1. Must be Members in good standing.
      2. May not use intimidation, misleading statements or payments in securing signatures.
      3. Obtain signatures of current Members only. Privilege Cardholders are not eligible to vote or sign a petition.
      4. Must certify, as their legal obligation requires, that he/she witnessed the signatures of each individual signing.
    2. Petitions will not be:
      1. Circulated within or at RCSC
    3. Signers of the petition, in addition to being current Members, must:
      1. Be the actual person, a wife may not sign for husband or vice versa.
      2. Legibly sign in ink. A printed “signature” is not acceptable, unless that is the usual way the person signs.
      3. Indicate date on which they signed; otherwise signature is voided.
      4. Write legibly their Property address, Member Card number and expiration date thereof.
      5. Legibly print their name below their signature.
    4. Signers of the petition may withdraw their signatures at any time during the validation process.
    SECTION 3: POST-PETITION CIRCULATION PROCEDURES
    When petition circulation is complete:

      1. File completed petitions with the Secretary of the Corporation in book form, including:
        1. A cover page specifying the quantity of individual official petition forms filed, the total number of signatures claimed, and the date submitted.
        2. Number each signed official petition submitted.
        3. A cover page to verify each group of petitions submitted and certified by each Circulator.
      2. The Corporation will:
        1. Provide a dated receipt for submitted petitions.
        2. Initiate the petition verification process.
      3. The petition verification process will include, but is not limited to, the following:

        1. Investigation of Circulators:
          1. Circulator must be a current Member in good standing.Circulator must witness every signature.
          2. Circulator must sign the affidavit of Circulator on the reverse side of the last official petition form submitted in a group.
          3. Irregularities, including false or misleading statements by the Circulator, in obtaining, verifying and certifying signatures will result in rejection of all petitions of the Circulator.

            1. Inspection of signatures for:
              1. Legibility
              2. Printing instead of signing.
              3. Absence of dated signature, Property address, and Member Card number.
              4. Duplication
            D. Time required for petition verification:

            1. Once the completed petition is filed with the Corporation, the Corporation will have thirty (30) days from the filing to determine and announce whether or not the required number of signers has been obtained.

            E. Upon completion of the verification process:

            1. If the number of verified signers is insufficient, the petition is declared invalid.
            2. If the number of verified signers is sufficient, the Board will set the date to present the petition to the Members for their vote which will be conducted by the Election Committee within sixty (60) days of the validation announcement.


    I shit you not, this is what they want you to go through should you want a recall of one of them. On the other hand, they walked into a meeting the end of June and 7 board members fired a person we elected to represent us. Rules for thee, but not for me.
     
  3. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    Historically, to my knowledge, there's been two recall attempts. In 1981 they targeted the board president and vice president, which failed when they went to a mail-in ballot (first time ever) and in the 90's when the were going to recall the president and vice president for trying to build an RCSC administration building where the Bocci courts are at Sun Dial rec center. The vice president quickly changed his mind, the president, Art Williams didn't. The vice president survived the vote based on his waffling off the building while Art became the first and only board member to be recalled.

    Of course both these happened when the members were able to do so on RCSC property and without all the bullshit hoops that now exist in the language. If you have taken the time to read the by-laws posted above, you will see you have to explain the reason for the recall and list all of the people who will be getting signatures amongst a host of other obligations. Then there is that little gem at the beginning: The board must approve the petition to start with.

    You've got to freaking love it don't ya?
     
  4. FYI

    FYI Well-Known Member

    I don't know if that's quite true?

    Step 1, "Steps to take before circulation of petition", has that little sentence, "If the Board disapproves, proponents may initiate the petition process."

    I would interpret that to say that even IF the board disapproves those in favor of proceeding may do so!?!?!?
     
    OneDayAtATime likes this.
  5. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    I had to go back and reread it FYI and you may be right. The problem comes that everything after that is an absolute by the board as far as process goes. After everything that has happened, it wouldn't surprise me if they just said they wouldn't accept the petition for recall. In the end, it always comes down to if they just do what they want, the only remedy is to bring suit for recourse. It's pretty damned clear they don't care what we think or say.
     
  6. FYI

    FYI Well-Known Member

    Well, I think they would need a damn good reason because once the petition of signatures is complete I would say they are obligated by their own bylaws to complete the process. But of course you're right; they simply do what's best for them and not necessarily the community.

    What do you think is going to happen here? Have we reached a milestone and the community is going to continue to be outraged or will this just simply fade away as the board apparently hopes and why they keep dragging out these bogus excuses?

    It just might be time for some arbitration or lawsuit or else things will continue to deteriorate. These are not the types of issues you want those considering to buy in Sun City too read about....especially if they keep on raising the PIF fee!
     
  7. OneDayAtATime

    OneDayAtATime Active Member

    IMHO, I think we wait until more Snowbirds are back but continue to attend the meetings and ask questions. I'm hoping to see the attendance grow at each and every meeting! Got to think positive!!
     
  8. CMartinez

    CMartinez Well-Known Member

    Our brightest hope for the immediate future is a change in board members with this years elections. We, as members, need to be involved in the selection of the appropriate candidates who can bring about the positive and evocative changes the RCSC needs. We are in dire need of people who see the members as the most valuable resource the RCSC has, and have an extremely stong desire to return the "corporate stinking thinking" to one of inclusion and vibrance of the community.

    The court processes are slow, and am sure the management of the RCSC would love to see a suit that drags on forever. In this way, they can hope interest is lost and additonal elections are held to place those on the board they favor.

    Keeping the members engaged in real dialogue is key, and the way the RCSC functions, they do not do any kind of advancement of or for the members.

    It is a shame to hear of another board member to be removed, but as the "new" bylaws have been written, it the BOD wants it, then it shall be, no matter what anyone one of says.
     
  9. FYI

    FYI Well-Known Member

    In my opinion, the Board could go a long way if they would simply remove the following from their petition requirements:

    2. Petitions will not be:
    1. Circulated within or at RCSC


    I believe it would allow the Members to regain some sort of respect back for the Board, and it would help keep the Board in-check knowing that it would be easier for the Members to collect the necessary signatures for an initiative, referendum, or recall petition.

    We, the Members, should be respected enough to have and allow our concerns to influence the manner in which the corporation spends our money!
     
  10. BPearson

    BPearson Well-Known Member

    Their argument rings hallow FYI; "if we allow that when we would have to allow all kinds of other petitions." The answer of course is, not really. Simply allow all petitions regarding electing or recalling board members on RCSC grounds. End of story. I get it, they don't want to deal with recalls, but when your actions include getting up and walking out of a room filled with members or firing board members we elect...what do you expect?
     

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