Electronic Voting in BC Stratas: Rules and Best Practices

Before 2022, BC stratas were stuck in the in-person era. AGMs meant a packed room, paper proxies, and a quorum scramble when half the snowbird owners were in Arizona. The pandemic forced an emergency rewrite, and in 2022 the Strata Property Act was formally amended to permit electronic attendance and voting as a permanent feature. Four years in, electronic voting BC strata is now standard practice across the Sea to Sky. Almost every AGM we run has a hybrid attendance option, and a meaningful share of councils run their council meetings fully online. This guide covers what the law requires, where stratas still get it wrong, and the CRT decisions that have shaped best practice.

What the 2022 SPA updates actually changed

The amendments to s. 49 made three practical changes:

1. Electronic attendance is permitted as of right. A strata doesn't need a bylaw to allow it
2. Electronic votes count the same as in-person votes
3. Hybrid meetings (some in person, some online) are explicitly authorized

Before 2022, electronic attendance was a grey area. Some stratas allowed it, some refused, and disputes ended up at the CRT. The amendments removed the ambiguity. Now any owner who wants to attend remotely has the right to do so, as long as the strata provides reasonable means.

The strata corporation is responsible for providing the technology. That doesn't mean expensive enterprise platforms. A free Zoom account is fine for most Sea to Sky buildings. The corporation has to:

• Send a link or call-in number with the meeting notice
• Verify the identity of electronic attendees (name + unit number is sufficient)
• Allow electronic attendees to speak and vote on equal terms with in-person attendees
• Record votes accurately
• Keep electronic records as part of the corporate file under s. 35

Hybrid AGMs: what we recommend

After running dozens of hybrid AGMs across Squamish, Whistler, and Pemberton, here's what works:

• One screen, one camera, one room mic at the in-person venue
• Designated tech runner (often the strata manager) who manages the platform, mutes/unmutes, and runs the poll function for votes
• Pre-meeting tech check with electronic attendees 15 minutes before start
• Identity verification at sign-in. Owners give name, unit number, and confirm they're not voting on behalf of someone else without a proxy
• Visible vote tallies. Share the screen showing yes/no counts so everyone can see
• Recorded with consent announced at the open of the meeting

The cost of running a hybrid AGM is modest, typically $200 to $500 in tech and time on top of a normal AGM. The upside is higher turnout, especially for stratas with seasonal or out-of-province owners.

Council meetings online

Council meetings (as opposed to general meetings) are governed by s. 50, which has also been updated to permit electronic attendance. For most Sea to Sky councils, monthly meetings are now fully online. Saves driving time and works well for the kind of business council typically transacts (financials review, contractor decisions, bylaw enforcement).

The quorum rules still apply (majority of council under s. 19; see our quorum guide). Voting works the same, a show of hands becomes a poll or a verbal "yes/no" recorded by the secretary. Minutes are kept identically.

The one place councils trip up: making sure conflict-of-interest recusals are handled properly online. A councillor with a conflict has to actually leave the call during the vote, not just mute. We've seen council decisions challenged because a conflicted councillor stayed silent on a call instead of dropping off.

Voting mechanics: how to count electronically

Three common methods:

• Platform poll function (Zoom, Teams). Owners click yes/no/abstain. The platform displays the tally. Best for stratas under 80 units.
• Verbal roll-call. The chair calls each owner by unit number and records the vote. Slow but unambiguous. Works for stratas under 30 units.
• Dedicated voting platform. Tools like ElectionBuddy or specialized strata e-vote services let owners vote on individual motions, view results, and audit afterward. Best for large or contentious AGMs.

The key compliance point: every vote must be traceable to an individual eligible voter. Anonymous polls don't satisfy the SPA's requirement that the strata be able to verify the vote on request.

CRT decisions on electronic voting

The CRT has issued a steady stream of decisions on e-voting since 2022. A few patterns:

• Notice quality matters. If the meeting notice didn't make the electronic link visible enough, or if some owners didn't receive it, the decisions are voidable. The CRT has set aside bylaw amendments after owners proved they never received the meeting link.
• Identity verification is non-negotiable. Stratas that let anyone with the link join without verifying owner status have had results overturned.
• Vote tallies must be visible. Tallies that were calculated off-screen and announced verbally have been challenged where owners disagreed with the count.
• Recording isn't required but helps. Where there's no recording and minutes disagree with what owners remember, the CRT tends to give weight to the affidavits of multiple owners over disputed minutes.

The takeaway: clean process beats fast process. An AGM that takes 90 minutes with thorough verification is safer than a 45-minute meeting where corners were cut.

Security best practices

E-voting has a security dimension that paper voting doesn't. Some basics we follow:

• Don't share meeting links publicly. Email them only to eligible voters at the addresses on file.
• Use waiting rooms. The chair admits attendees one at a time after confirming identity.
• Disable screen sharing for non-hosts. Prevents accidental or malicious sharing during the meeting.
• Lock the meeting after start. Once attendance is taken and the meeting begins, new arrivals need to be admitted manually.
• Use a fresh meeting ID per meeting. Don't reuse links from previous AGMs.
• Store recordings securely. Recordings count as corporate records under s. 35 and must be retained.

When electronic voting doesn't work

Not every meeting belongs online. Heavily contested votes (major special levies, controversial bylaw amendments, council recall motions) often go better in person. The body language, the side conversations, and the ability to read the room all matter. We typically recommend in-person (with optional hybrid attendance) for any meeting where the outcome is genuinely uncertain.

For routine AGMs with a clean budget and an uncontested council election, fully electronic works fine.

Building the right e-voting habit

Three habits separate stratas that run e-voting well from those that struggle:

• Tech check before the meeting. Don't troubleshoot during the AGM.
• Clear written procedure. A one-page document showing how votes will be counted, distributed with the meeting notice.
• The same chair every time. Familiarity with the platform makes a huge difference.

For more on running disciplined meetings of any kind, see our council meeting guide and our voting thresholds explainer.

The bottom line

Electronic and hybrid meetings are now the norm in BC, not the exception. The legal framework is settled, the technology is mature, and turnout is consistently higher with a hybrid option. If your strata is still resisting electronic attendance, you're probably losing quorum opportunities every year. Reach out and we'll show you the hybrid-meeting setup we use across our Sea to Sky portfolio. It's simpler than most councils expect.