HOA Voting Rules in Pennsylvania

Yes. Pennsylvania Act 115 of 2022 (effective May 2023) explicitly authorizes electronic voting for condominiums, cooperatives, and planned communities. This means Pennsylvania associations have clear statutory support for conducting elections online. vote.direct provides the secure, verified electronic voting platform that supports these requirements.

Under both acts the default quorum is 20% of the votes which may be cast for election of the executive board, present in person or by proxy at the beginning of the meeting, unless the BYLAWS provide otherwise — and the bylaws may require a larger percentage or a smaller one, but never below 10% (68 Pa.C.S. §3309(a)(1), §5309(a)(1)). If the association misses quorum at two subsequent meetings, §3309(a)(2) and §5309(a)(2) let it fall back on 15 Pa.C.S. §5756(b), under which those who attend a meeting previously adjourned for lack of a quorum are themselves a quorum for electing directors. Online voting can help achieve quorum by making participation easier.

Pennsylvania regulates condominiums under the Uniform Condominium Act (68 Pa.C.S. §3101 et seq.) and planned communities under the Uniform Planned Community Act (68 Pa.C.S. §5101 et seq.). Act 115 of 2022 (effective May 2023) explicitly authorizes electronic voting for condominiums, cooperatives, and planned communities. Both Acts provide comprehensive governance rules while deferring many details to association governing documents.

For larger communities, yes. Under 68 Pa.C.S. §3303(e)(3) (condominiums) and §5222(e) (planned communities), a unit owner's vote in an executive board election must be submitted to an independent reviewer, who tallies the results and certifies them to the board and the owners; the board then presents the reviewer's certification at a meeting and enters it in the meeting records. That requirement is mandatory for communities with at least 500 units, and a smaller community may opt in by a vote of at least 51% of the votes collected in person, electronically or by absentee ballot. An independent reviewer must be a Pennsylvania CPA, a Pennsylvania-licensed attorney, or a vote management system, and must have no ownership interest, family relationship or shared financial interest with the declarant, an owner or the community manager (68 Pa.C.S. §3103, §5103).

Quorum in Pennsylvania: Unless the bylaws provide otherwise, a quorum is present throughout any association meeting if persons entitled to cast 20% of the votes which may be cast for election of the executive board are present in person or by proxy at the beginning of the meeting; the bylaws may require a larger percentage, or a smaller percentage no lower than 10% (68 Pa.C.S. §3309(a)(1) for condominiums, §5309(a)(1) for planned communities). Act 115 of 2022 added a relief valve at §3309(a)(2) and §5309(a)(2): if the association fails to meet quorum at two subsequent meetings, it may use 15 Pa.C.S. §5756(b), under which the members who attend a meeting previously adjourned for lack of a quorum are themselves a quorum for electing directors — unless the declaration or bylaws provide otherwise. Executive board quorum is 50% unless the bylaws specify a larger percentage. If a vote falls short, most bylaws allow the meeting to be adjourned and reconvened, often at a reduced threshold on the second attempt. Check your declaration for the exact procedure, because the fallback rule is usually in your governing documents rather than in statute. Online voting is the most direct fix: members vote from a phone or laptop instead of attending in person, and Vote.Direct tracks quorum progress live and reminds the members who haven't voted yet.

Under 68 Pa.C.S. §3308(a), the bylaws must specify an officer who, not less than ten nor more than 60 days in advance of any meeting, causes notice to be hand delivered or sent prepaid by United States mail to the mailing address of each unit or to any other mailing address the unit owner designates in writing. Notice may be delivered by electronic means if the unit owner has agreed in writing to accept it that way, or where the bylaws permit electronic notices. The notice must state the time and place of the meeting and the items on the agenda, including the general nature of any proposed amendment to the declaration or bylaws, any budget or assessment changes, and any proposal to remove an executive board member or officer where owner approval is required. 68 Pa.C.S. §5308 is the same for planned communities. Act 115 of 2022 also added §3308(c)/§5308(c), which treats participation by conference telephone or other remote electronic technology as in-person attendance, and §3308(d)/§5308(d), which requires a candidates' session at least seven days before a contested executive board election. Your governing documents can require more notice than the statutory floor, never less. Count the notice window backwards from your meeting date before you open voting, and keep a copy of the notice and its delivery date with the election record.

Pennsylvania permits proxy voting under both acts. Votes allocated to a unit may be cast under a proxy duly executed by the unit owner. A proxy is void if it is not dated or purports to be revocable without notice, and it terminates one year after its date unless it specifies a shorter term — an association cannot write a longer one. An owner may revoke a proxy only by actual notice of revocation to the person presiding over the meeting (68 Pa.C.S. §3310(b) for condominiums, §5310(b) for planned communities). Proxies are not barred in board elections. Act 115 of 2022 added §3310(e) and §5310(e): unless the declaration or bylaws expressly prohibit it, an owner may vote in person or by proxy at a meeting, by absentee or electronic ballot, or by any other method the governing documents expressly provide. An absentee or electronic ballot counts toward quorum, and is superseded if the owner attends and votes in person — which makes verified online voting a cleaner alternative to collecting paper proxies. Proxies exist mainly to solve an attendance problem. When members can cast a verified ballot online during a multi-day voting window, most communities find proxy use drops sharply, along with the disputes about whether a given proxy was valid.