Hawaii Annual General Meeting Requirements for Condos, Co-Ops, and HOAs

The Hawaii Condominium Property Act governs condominiums created across the state. Applicable provisions of the Act that apply to annual meetings include, but are not limited to:

• Association meetings are to be held once per year
• The board may direct the use of electronic voting if the declaration or the bylaws do not prohibit it; however, all equipment must be isolated from the Internet or an external network 
• Notice of meetings must be given not less than 14 days before the meeting date
• Members may vote by proxy
• No unit owned by the association may cast votes

The bylaws of the association should define a quorum for the purpose of member meetings and other meetings.

Hawaii has a Cooperative Housing Corporations statute that governs housing co-ops. According to the statute, proxies are only valid for a specific meeting. The Board of Directors must meet at least once per year, and meetings are open to all shareholders. 

The statutes do not discuss the number of votes for a quorum at meetings or annual meetings. It states that the cooperative is subject to the Business Corporation Act, except where the provisions of the Business Corporation Act are inconsistent with the cooperative statutes.

The Hawaii Planned Community Associations Act applies to all planned community associations existing as of June 16, 1997. Applicable provisions of the Act that apply to annual meetings include, but are not limited to:

• Meetings of the members should be held annually
• At least 14 days before an annual meeting, notice should be sent to the members as provided by the bylaws or by two or more of the following means: hand delivery, U.S. mail, electronic mail, posting on the association’s website
• Voting by proxy is allowed, but is valid for only a specified meeting 

The bylaws and governing documents should provide voting requirements and quorum requirements.

Many of the homeowners’ associations in Hawaii are nonprofit corporations. Therefore, they may be subject to the provisions of the Nonprofit Corporations Act. Applicable provisions of the Act that apply to annual meetings include, but are not limited to:

• Meetings of members are to be held annually
• Members attending meetings remotely are deemed present in person for the meeting
• Actions may be taken by ballot if allowed by the article and bylaws and meet the requirements of the statute 
• Notice of meetings must be given in accordance with the bylaws and at least ten days in advance and no more than 60 days in advance of the meeting
• Unless otherwise provided by statute, bylaws, or articles, a quorum for a meeting of the members equals ten percent of the votes entitled to be cast at a meeting of members
• Proxy voting is permitted by the statute unless the bylaws or articles of the association state otherwise

The board of directors can refer to the organization’s documents and legal counsel to determine if the Nonprofit Corporations Act applies to their association.