The holder of each S03T permit may vote for one candidate for each seat. This group of fishermen is qualified to vote in this election due to the group’s prior approval of a 1% assessment on their harvests.
Voters are registered for the election by being the legal holder of a current S03T salmon drift gillnet interim-use or entry permit as determined by Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission (CFEC) on December 15, 2018 (the cutoff date used for nominations). Ballots and self-addressed return envelopes are sent to the permit holders at the addresses on this CFEC list.
All voting must be done by mail. Hand delivered or emailed ballots cannot be accepted. Members owning two permits may vote each permit using separate envelopes. A permit may only vote once for each seat. No voting information will be available until after all ballots are counted.
Ballots will not be counted if postmarked after April 5, 2019, or if received after April 12, 2019. Ballots must be returned in the self-addressed envelopes provided and postmarked prior to midnight, April 5, 2019.
Ballot packets are sent to permit holders using their mailing addresses as listed on the CFEC records mentioned above. Each ballot packet contains:
1. Official Ballot
2. Ballot Envelope
3. Identification Envelope
4. Return Envelope
5. Candidate Statements and Questionnaires
Voters must mark the Official Ballot and seal it in the Ballot Envelope. (No photocopies will be accepted; only Official Ballots will be.) The Ballot Envelope must be put in the Identification Envelope, which is then sealed.
The information requested on the rear of the Identification Envelope must be completed (name, CFEC permit number, and voter signature). Take care to ensure that the proper CFEC permit number is used and not, for example, a vessel number. Ballots without this information will not be counted.
The Identification Envelope must be completed clearly, properly, and fully. If the accounting firm cannot determine voter eligibility from the Identification Envelope, that envelope will not be opened and the ballot will not be counted. The identification envelope must be sealed in the Return Envelope and then mailed to the independent accounting firm, Thomas, Head & Greisen, APC (THG) – the address on the Return Envelope.
Votes are anonymous. THG directly receives all Return Envelopes containing the Identification Envelope and the Ballot Envelope. As Return Envelopes are received, the Return Envelopes will be opened by THG and the information on the outside of the Identification Envelope will be compared to the CFEC list of eligible voters.
Identification Envelopes are stored unopened in a locked cabinet until April 15, 2019 at the office of THG. On April 15, 2019, THG personnel will remove the unopened Ballot Envelopes from the Identification Envelopes, and the Ballot Envelopes will be set aside unopened, and shuffled before counting.
The Ballot Envelopes will be opened on April 15, 2019 and the votes recorded for each eligible ballot on one or more tally sheets. If more than one ballot is contained in a Ballot Envelope, none of the ballots in that envelope will be counted. Voters must clearly mark their choice of candidate. No changed votes will be counted. Voters may only vote for one candidate for each seat.
The winning candidate for each seat will be that candidate receiving the greatest number of votes. After the vote count is reviewed by THG, the results will be sent in writing to the Executive Director of the BBRSDA.
Should the results of the election result in a tie for one or more seats, the winner of the election for the seat(s) will be decided by a coin toss conducted by THG.
New board members will be seated at the BBRSDA board meeting held immediately following the Membership Meeting in June 2019.
