Jump to content
The Official RONR Q & A Forums

Motion to Kill a previously adopted Motion


Guest Brenda R

Recommended Posts

The Main Body of our organization passed the creation of a new Program in a regular meeting. This program was brought to it as a recommendation from the Executive Committee of the organization. In the motion the Main Body authorized the creation and funding of the new program. They further directed the Executive Committee to work with the Outside Entity to create the framework of the program (involves executing an agreement and funding the program for which they appropriated funds) and then bring back to the Main Body, recommendations for guidelines to operate the new program. These guidelines will be approved by the Main Body.

At our last Executive Committee to finalize the paperwork with the outside Entity, a member prohibited a vote to have the Chair sign the agreement to create the Program. Additionally, they informed the Executive Committee that they will be introducing a motion at the next meeting of the Main Body to rescind the Program before the paperwork is executed. Our Main Body meets prior to the next Executive Committee meeting. This brings up several questions:

1) How should this be handled? Can’t the matter be referred back to the Executive Committee?

2) Where in Roberts Rules would we found how this should be handled?

3) Is there anything that can be done to stop this individual from bringing up this motion at the next meeting?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

At our last Executive Committee to finalize the paperwork with the outside Entity, a member prohibited a vote to have the Chair sign the agreement to create the Program.

Nothing in RONR allows a single member (it is unclear if this member is even a member of the Executive Committee) to prohibit a vote on anything. You all should have asked for a citation of some applicable rule granting this member such an awesome power and ignored such an absurdity and took the vote anyway if the cite could not be provided.

1) How should this be handled? Can’t the matter be referred back to the Executive Committee?

A motion to Rescind the adopted motion can be made (see RONR pp. 293-299) and the Main Body could re-Commit the motion to Rescind to the Executive Committee if they wanted to do so).

2) Where in Roberts Rules would we found how this should be handled?

See above answer.

3) Is there anything that can be done to stop this individual from bringing up this motion at the next meeting?

You all can try to talk the member out of making the motion. But there is no parliamentary way to stop the motion from being made. You all should have ignored this member's "prohibiting" the vote and took it anyway. But it is too late now to do that. You will have to deal with the motion at the Main Body meeting and hope you have the votes necessary to defeat the motion.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not sure what you mean by your question "can't the matter be referred back to the executive committee?". As others have pointed out, no single member has the ability to prohibit a vote by the executive committee under the rules of RONR. Therefore, it seems to me that the matter is still very much in the hands of the executive committee, which is duty-bound to carry out the directives given to it by the membership.

If the member who thought he could prohibit a vote wants to bring a motion to rescind the program to the next membership meeting, that is certainly his right. However, that should not in any way prevent the executive committee in the mean time from proceding to carry out the orders of the membership.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

However, that should not in any way prevent the executive committee in the mean time from proceding to carry out the orders of the membership.

Since the Main Body meets before the next Executive Committee meeting there probably isn't much that can be done unless the actions needed in order to proceed don't require action by the Executive Committee itself or a Special Meeting is called to deal with this (assuming the bylaws provide for Special Meetings of the Executive Committee).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Main Body of our organization passed the creation of a new Program in a regular meeting.

...

In the motion the Main Body authorized the creation and funding of the new program.

They further directed the Executive Committee to work with the Outside Entity ... and then bring back to the Main Body, recommendations for guidelines to operate the new program.

These guidelines will be approved by the Main Body.

At our last Executive Committee to finalize the paperwork with the outside Entity, a member prohibited a vote to have the Chair sign the agreement to create the Program.

Additionally, they informed the Executive Committee that they will be introducing a motion at the next meeting of the Main Body to rescind the Program before the paperwork is executed.

Our Main Body meets prior to the next Executive Committee meeting.

1) How should this be handled?

Can’t the matter be referred back to the Executive Committee?

What is there to handle?

The member will try to have the main body rescind what the main body adopted. It will likely fail. Big deal.

Granted, the main body could indeed rescind what it adopted. But that is within its right, as the body who did the adopting.

So all is well.

There is nothing to "handle".

2) Where in Roberts Rules would we found how this should be handled?

There is nothing to handle.

See the motion "Rescind", if you want details on the upcoming motion.

3) Is there anything that can be done to stop this individual from bringing up this motion at the next meeting?

No.

A motion to rescind is in order (I am assuming).

Just vote down the motion to rescind, and all will be normal. -- The new program goes on, just as it was approved to go on.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...