A public hearing will be held in Rehoboth Beach on Dec. 2, on changes in voter eligibility for people who own a home through an artificial entity.
The term artificial entity is used to describe homes owned by a limited liability company (LLC).
LLCs are used to protect owners from liabilities related to the property. In the case of homes in resort communities, the ownership structure is used in cases where the home is rented out for part of the year.
Residents with 50 a percent of the LLC will be eligible to vote. Those who own multiple homes with LLC ownership would get only one vote. Residents wishing to register to vote and who have LLCs or revocable trust must sign an affidavit.
Residents living in rentals would be eligible to vote until 30 days before the election, rather than six months. The 30-day requirement conforms with state law.
Also, residents who do not vote in recent elections will not see their names purged from the rolls and all references to males and females were taken out of the proposed changes in the ordinance.
The Cape Gazette reported that new Mayor Paul Kuhns sought the changes in response to the fact that many property owners now use LLCs.
Rehoboth has less than 1,500 year-around residents.
See draft of the ordinance below:
[pdf-embedder url=”http://DelawareBusinessNow.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Draft-Ordinance-Charter-Elections-Rehoboth-Beach.pdf” title=”Draft Ordinance Charter-Elections Rehoboth Beach”]
