Membership in the Council is voluntary. It is made up of participating Civic or Homeowners' Association from throughout the City of Fort Lauderdale.

The Council shall consist of one duly appointed person in good standing from each member association. This may be the President of an association, or such other person as an association's membership may designate and certify, in writing, as its representative to the Council. Each association also designates an alternate, in writing, to serve at Council meetings when the appointed representative is unable to attend.

Each association shall have but one (1) vote.

To ensure as closely as possible a representative Council, each Member Association shall be a member in good standing and operate under minimum guidelines:

1. They are governed by a set of written bylaws and/or charter,
2. They have contiguous geographic and civic interests within well-defined boundaries,
3. They shall have had an organizational meeting and general membership meeting, and have or provide for regularly scheduled membership meetings,
4. They shall have a disciplined means of communicating between association officers and their membership such as a regularly published, widely distributed newsletter,
5. They shall have membership as provided in their bylaws,
6. They shall have officers or directors elected by the general membership, and
7. Any other conditions or qualifications for membership as established by the Council.

A qualified Civic or Homeowners' Association shall be defined as a residential organization representing a separate and distinct geographical area of Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, Florida, with a membership in good standing.

The Council will recognize only one Civic or Homeowners' Association in a distinct geographical area. In the event that two or more Civic or Homeowners' Associations purport to represent the same geographical area, The Council will request that the residents in the contested area work through the existing organization to solve their differences on a neighborhood level. If at the end of the fiscal year there has been no resolution, then the existing member association shall prevail.

An individual living in an area where no Civic or Homeowners' Association exists may become a non-voting member of the Council by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members, provided a quorum is present as defined herein and payment of approved dues.

An associate non-voting membership is available to incorporated business/merchant groups, sponsored by a member association who is in good standing with the Council.