Who signs minutes if Secretary does not attend the Board Meeting?

[Guest Tiffany]

At our last Board Meeting our Board Secretary was absent. As Executive Assistant, I always take/write the minutes anyway, and then have our Secretary sign off on them. Since the Secretary was absent from the meeting however, what should I do? Should I still have the Secretary sign off, or do I have someone else sign off as Secretary Pro Tem? If so who is the correct person to sign as Secretary Pro Tem?

[Chris Harrison]

At our last Board Meeting our Board Secretary was absent. As Executive Assistant, I always take/write the minutes anyway, and then have our Secretary sign off on them. Since the Secretary was absent from the meeting however, what should I do? Should I still have the Secretary sign off, or do I have someone else sign off as Secretary Pro Tem? If so who is the correct person to sign as Secretary Pro Tem?

The Secretary pro tem would sign the minutes. The Secretary pro tem is whoever the assembly elects.

[Guest Tiffany]

Thank you, Chris.

[Kim Goldsworthy]

At our last Board Meeting our Board Secretary was absent.

As Executive Assistant,

I always take/write the minutes anyway,

and then have our Secretary sign off on them.

This is the source of your conflict.

Under Robert's Rules of Order, it is NOT the case that

(1.) the person who takes minutes signs the document he created;

(2.) and hands off that document to a middle man (your elected Secretary), who signs it, likewise;

(3.) and then, the elected Secretary presents the minutes to the assembly, for reading and for approval.

Under Robert's Rules, anyone is absent (like the president or the secretary) does NOT sign any in-meeting document.

There ought to be only two people's marks, maximum, on a set of minutes. The minimum is one person's markings.

(a.) the person who took the minutes SIGNS HIS WORK, like any report's author.

(b.) when the minutes are approved, the person is acting as the secretary at the moment of approval (which will either be the elected Secretary, or the secretary pro tem), will put his initials on the hard copy, and add a date.

(c.) OPTIONAL: It is a popular practice, BUT NOT A RULE, that the president, or the chair pro tem, add his initials or his signature to the minutes upon approval.

[Gary Novosielski]

[D]o I have someone else sign off as Secretary Pro Tem?

Yes.

If so who is the correct person to sign as Secretary Pro Tem?

The correct person to sign as Secretary Pro Tem is the person who actually was secretary pro tem at that meeting.

[Guest Acting Secretary]

The board secretary was absent at board meeting today and I was elected Secretary pro tem, since I am responsible for taking the minutes at all meetings anyway. My question is related to the signing of the minutes. As Secretary pro tem do I sign the minutes of the previous meeting which the board approved today while I was the acting Secretary, or do I sign the minutes of the meeting that was conducted for which I was the acting Secretary (today's meeting)?

[Guest Acting Secretary]

I just want to point out that there are conflicting responses on this page. Kim says that the Secretary pro tem signs the minutes that are approved while you are acting secretary. But then, Gary says that the Secretary pro tem signs the minutes for the meeting of which you were the acting secretary.

Does anyone know which is correct or where I can find the answer?

[Josh Martin]

46 minutes ago, Guest Acting Secretary said:

The board secretary was absent at board meeting today and I was elected Secretary pro tem, since I am responsible for taking the minutes at all meetings anyway. My question is related to the signing of the minutes. As Secretary pro tem do I sign the minutes of the previous meeting which the board approved today while I was the acting Secretary, or do I sign the minutes of the meeting that was conducted for which I was the acting Secretary (today's meeting)?

As I noted in your other thread on the subject, you would sign the minutes you actually took, and you would initial the minutes which were approved while you were the Secretary Pro Tem.

But if you take all of the minutes anyway, then so far as RONR is concerned, you are the recording secretary, and you should be signing all of the minutes.

[Guest Eric Alan]

I was the secretary for a non-profit, and have fallen behind in the minutes due to the frequency of special meetings. Now we have new board members  and I am no longer secretary to the Board, though still on the board. How should documentation and approval of these minutes occur? Only the board members that were on the board at that time approve? Both secretary's sign?

[Gary Novosielski]

The person preparing the draft minutes signs the draft minutes.   Minutes are initialed as approved at the time of approval by the then-secretary.

Anyone who is a member may participate in approval of minutes, whether they were present at the time of the original meeting or not.  

[Guest Ange]

So if I normally take minutes at board meetings (I'm the administrative assistant to the ED) and sign as the "recorder" and the Secretary also signs if present, then when the Secretary is not present is my signature the only signature that should be on the minutes? Or should one other board member who was present sign in addition to me?

 

[jstackpo]

A position of "recorder" of minutes is not found in RONR, so whatever your organization would prefer is up to the members to specify  --  a "Standing Rule" is a good thing to adopt to do the specification.

[Guest Who's Coming to Dinner]

Would that not be a special rule of order?

[jstackpo]

I dunno fer sher; how does a signature relate to "the orderly transaction of business in meetings"?  (unless it would be to avoid arguments in the meeting as to who is supposed to sign - )

[Guest Who's Coming to Dinner]

It relates to the duties of an officer in regard to the orderly transaction of business, I think.

[Josh Martin]

11 hours ago, Guest Ange said:

So if I normally take minutes at board meetings (I'm the administrative assistant to the ED) and sign as the "recorder" and the Secretary also signs if present, then when the Secretary is not present is my signature the only signature that should be on the minutes? Or should one other board member who was present sign in addition to me?

It seems to me that you’re the only person that needs to sign the minutes.

10 hours ago, jstackpo said:

A position of "recorder" of minutes is not found in RONR, so whatever your organization would prefer is up to the members to specify  --  a "Standing Rule" is a good thing to adopt to do the specification.

RONR does, however, have a position of “recording secretary,” which seems to be what this person is.