Action Plan item 3.2 Democratic Participation

Should Scouts Canada not have an be able to produce a list of all voting members?

The only reason I know any of this is because I've served on the board of a few not-for-profit corporations. Scouts Canada makes the information available but they don't go out of their way to educate leaders on governance. I can't say I blame them since it is pretty dry and has little to do with delivering good program to our youth. Unfortunately, the lack of education leaves some people feeling disenfranchised.

I don't think there's any reporting requirement to Scouts Canada to collect and publish the names of the Voting Members although it isn't supposed to be a secret either. I would hope the board secretary has the information. There may even be a reasonable approximation of a list in the minutes of the AGM since that's usually the only time being a Voting Member matters. I haven't done the math but I think the 60 VMs elected by council represent about two-thirds of those elegible to vote on any motion.

Voting for what?

Voting members are a requirement of the Corporations Act. When Scouts Canada incorporated it was obliged to comply and probably morphed whatever structures existed prior to incorporation to fit.

For most corporations, there are a number of housekeeping motions like accepting the minutes of the previous meeting, accepting the financial statements, and stuff like that. The most significant thing the Voting Members vote for is the officers of the corporation.

The full answer to your question is read the by-law.