voting after a second to a motion

[Guest steve]

I recently watched a town council meeting where a council member made a motion to hire six firefighters. Two other council members made the second on the motion. Suddenly the township administrator, a non-voting position, halted the motion citing on-going negotiations with the union. The mayor, upheld the administrator's comment citing the negotiations.

Was this an illegal move once the motion received a second. Shouldn't it have gone to vote since the motion was not withdrawn, tabled or the meeting adjourned?

Thanks for your help.

[George Mervosh]

Maybe it wasn't in order at the time? Who knows.

[Rev Ed]

If the motion was out of order due to negotiations, then the Administrator was correct in bringing the issue to the attention of the Chairman and the council. If the council did not want to follow the Administrator's comments, then two members would have been correct in moving and seconding an appeal of the Chair's decision. However, it is now too late, and if the motion was truly out of order at the time then the comment and Chair's decision was correct.

[Kim Goldsworthy]

I recently watched a town council meeting where a council member made a motion to hire six firefighters.

Two other council members made the second on the motion.

Suddenly the township administrator, a non-voting position, halted the motion

citing on-going negotiations with the union.

The mayor upheld the administrator's comment citing the negotiations.

Was this an illegal move once the motion received a second?

Shouldn't it have gone to vote since the motion was not withdrawn, tabled or the meeting adjourned?

• Yes, if the motion was in order.

• No, if the motion was not in order.

I don't know WHY a motion regarding the hiring of firemen would be out of order.

But it is POSSIBLE that it was.

It is possible that the REASON was the ongoing negotiations.

But only you (or the mayor, or the town administer) know if that was the case.

Q. Was the motion in violation of some kind of rule?