What are the Budget Ratification Requirements? - Washington

The Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act (WUCIOA) took effect on July 1, 2018. WUCIOA is contained in the Washington State RCWs at 64.90 and governs all community associations created on or after that date. Generally, community associations created before July 1, 2018 will still be governed by the appropriate existing statues (“Acts”) unless they choose to adopt WUCIOA by amending their governing documents.

One “exception” is that ALL communities, whenever they were created, must follow the new budget ratification process as detailed in WA RCW 64.90.525. (This includes “Old Act” condominiums that have never been required to ratify a budget.)

Under WUCIOA (RCW 64.90.525), the board must:

1. Adopt a proposed budget.
2. Within 30 days of adoption, provide copies of the budget to the owners along with a budget summary.
3. Set a meeting between 14 and 50 days after providing the budget to the members.
4. Give owners an opportunity to vote on the budget at that meeting.
5. The budget is ratified unless a majority of the total votes in the association (not just the votes of the members present at the meeting) reject the budget. Even if there is no quorum, the budget is ratified.
6. If the budget is rejected, or if notice is not provided, the last budget to be ratified remains in effect until a new budget is ratified.

Specific information must be contained in the proposed budget, including:

 
• Projected income and common expenses
• The amount of assessments per unit
• The date assessments are due
• The amount of assessments budgeted for reserves
• The current balance of reserve funding per unit
• A statement of whether the association has a reserve study that meets WUCIOA’s requirements, and how close the budget is to meeting the recommendations of that reserve study

The source for the information in this FAQ is from a WUCIOA article written by Valerie Farris Oman, Esq. (Condominium Law Group) for the WSCAI Journal; September 2018