LostnIL

Mr.Katz Our Village code defines a Quorum below. H. Quorum: A majority of the Trustees shall constitute a quorum to do business, but no ordinance shall be passed except upon a favorable vote of a majority of the elected members, as provided by statute. There is no wording in our published code that would allow the mayor to substitute the vote of a Trustee. Does RONR allow that?

Mr. Brown, 1. There are 6 Trustees, a Clerk and a Mayor. This is the legal makeup of the Village Board. The Clerk doesn't vote and the Mayor historically only votes to break ties. 2. 6 Trustees, Mayor and a Clerk. Although, is the "board" only those who can vote? 3. He presides over meetings and votes if there is a tie. 4. That is a good question. I am new to government and these rules. He has only ever voted to break a tie until this last meeting? 5. Our Village code states "H. Quorum: A majority of the Trustees shall constitute a quorum to do business, but no ordinance shall be passed except upon a favorable vote of a majority of the elected members, as provided by statute." -- There were only 3 Trustees at the meeting. So, absent the Mayor's vote, only three trustees could have possibly voted. 3 doesn't constitute a majority of Trustees. 6. I believe the number 4, announced by the Mayor and the Village lawyer, was stated as the only way to reach a majority of the public body. There is nothing in our Village code that says the Mayor can vote in absence of a Trustee. I am new to the board, so I am having to learn as I go. I assume bylaws would need to be posted and made available. We do not have any bylaws that I am aware of that govern the above topic. It seems the Village admin and Mayor make rules as they go. Like today, we canceled a meeting via email. I was told there was a "consensus" to cancel the next meeting. No public vote was held, I said I wanted to have the meeting and yet it was canceled.

All, I apologize if the topic doesn't clearly describe what I am trying to ask, bare with me, I am new to RONR. Recently, we held a board meeting and we only had 3 Trustees (Out of 6) so the Mayor was voting. We needed a minimum of 4 votes for a motion to pass. There was a motion regarding public safety and closing of a road that I voted against. It failed because it didn't get the needed 4 votes. -- What options does the Board have under parliamentary rules to try and revive the failed vote to close a main road for a business event? I understand there is a procedure to reconsider, but that typically needs done the same day/meeting. Can they bring the SAME vote back up when more Trustees are in attendance to try and change the outcome of the failed motion?

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Mr. Brown, Yes, I am restricted by Illinois Open Meetings Act which requires 48 hour notice. However, the wording of the act itself, Sec. 2.02., seems to allow items to be added during the meetings. http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ActID=84&ChapterID=2 "An agenda for each regular meeting shall be posted at the principal office of the public body and at the location where the meeting is to be held at least 48 hours in advance of the holding of the meeting. A public body that has a website that the full-time staff of the public body maintains shall also post on its website the agenda of any regular meetings of the governing body of that public body. Any agenda of a regular meeting that is posted on a public body's website shall remain posted on the website until the regular meeting is concluded. The requirement of a regular meeting agenda shall not preclude the consideration of items not specifically set forth in the agenda." I had not previously asked the Mayor or Clerk if there was any written procedural rules, I will do so today. Barring any restriction from Illinois's OMA and any bylaws the Village may have it sounds like FAQ #14 is precisely what I am looking for. I would simply make a motion "I move that we record every public meeting" and then I would require a second and an up or down vote on the motion. A little background, we currently only record 1 meeting, the Board meeting and the departmental/committee meetings aren't. For transparency I want them all recorded.

Thank you Mr. Harrison

Hello, I am glad to have found this forum. I am a newly elected councilman in a small Illinois town. I am new to politics and parliamentary procedure. I have a question about new business and getting topics on the official agenda. I am having issues getting topics on our agenda. The city administrator continuously tells me to discuss it during "miscellaneous" business, but one of the topics is in reference to transparency and I want it listed as an agenda item that is posted publicly. How would a lowly Village Trustee (there is 6 of us) get something on an agenda? I have studied RO, but I am still unsure how I would introduce new business so that it appears on an agenda? I am roughly 6 months into my 4 year term. Thanks in advance,