rollinsbl Posted February 19, 2012 at 12:31 PM Report Share Posted February 19, 2012 at 12:31 PM We have a service award in our dog club, presented annually since 1980 and once there were 3 winners, those 3 became the ones who accepted nominations for the next year. (earliest winner goes off and the newest winner becomes part of the 3 member committee, so it is a revolving group) They typically have a month to receive nominations from any club members and decide on a winner and get award engraved to present at banquet. Currently the most recent 3 winners have delayed their decision on a winner, frustrating our new awards chairman to no end. Now they have a winner picked but don't want to award it today, but wait until a future meeting. It has always been presented at banquet, even if winner absent. Does the President have authority to tell those 3 people that they need to announce the winner at our banquet? Need quick answer or opinions before some of our blood pressures go sky high.This is not a standing committee, just a special committee under the "direction" of the awards committee chair but they basically choose their winner amont the 3 of them and it is kept secret until the banquet.I'm a co-chair of the awards comm. and they refuse to give us any projection of "when" they will present the award, just at some point in the future (could that be next month or 3 mos. from now?). Do we release the most recent 2 plus the new winner from the next committee & rewrite the guidelines so it doesn't happen again. Only the oldest one goes off and we can deal with having the situation happen again with 2 of the 3 people on next committee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Wynn Posted February 19, 2012 at 02:04 PM Report Share Posted February 19, 2012 at 02:04 PM We have a service award in our dog club, presented annually since 1980 and once there were 3 winners, those 3 became the ones who accepted nominations for the next year. (earliest winner goes off and the newest winner becomes part of the 3 member committee, so it is a revolving group) They typically have a month to receive nominations from any club members and decide on a winner and get award engraved to present at banquet. Currently the most recent 3 winners have delayed their decision on a winner, frustrating our new awards chairman to no end. Now they have a winner picked but don't want to award it today, but wait until a future meeting. It has always been presented at banquet, even if winner absent. Does the President have authority to tell those 3 people that they need to announce the winner at our banquet? Need quick answer or opinions before some of our blood pressures go sky high.This is not a standing committee, just a special committee under the "direction" of the awards committee chair but they basically choose their winner amont the 3 of them and it is kept secret until the banquet.I'm a co-chair of the awards comm. and they refuse to give us any projection of "when" they will present the award, just at some point in the future (could that be next month or 3 mos. from now?). Do we release the most recent 2 plus the new winner from the next committee & rewrite the guidelines so it doesn't happen again. Only the oldest one goes off and we can deal with having the situation happen again with 2 of the 3 people on next committee.Unfortunately, no one on this site can know what authority the committee has been given. You'll have to find that in the documents of your organization: perhaps the bylaws, perhaps the minutes. A committee answers to a higher authority, though, and it can't make up its own rules, except to the extent expressly authorized to do so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trina Posted February 19, 2012 at 02:48 PM Report Share Posted February 19, 2012 at 02:48 PM It's an unusual situation, though, since membership in this committee is not rooted in appointment or election, so non-performing committee members can't be readily replaced.The problem looks somewhat analogous to the problems organizations run into when they establish an office of 'immediate past president' -- what do you do if that person has responsibilities specified in the bylaws, but does a rotten job?...This is not a standing committee, just a special committee under the "direction" of the awards committee chair but they basically choose their winner amont the 3 of them and it is kept secret until the banquet.I'm a co-chair of the awards comm. and they refuse to give us any projection of "when" they will present the award, just at some point in the future (could that be next month or 3 mos. from now?). Do we release the most recent 2 plus the new winner from the next committee & rewrite the guidelines so it doesn't happen again. Only the oldest one goes off and we can deal with having the situation happen again with 2 of the 3 people on next committee.How/where are the guidelines currently written about how this committee works (membership on the committee, and responsibilities of the committee)? Changing those guidelines sounds like a reasonable long-term solution, but that may take some time, especially if it involves amendment of the bylaws.You could certainly try having the president order the committee to cough up its report today -- maybe that'll impress them and get them to move. It's not at all clear, however, that there's anything to be done if the committee refuses to follow the order.In the case of an ordinary special committee, the body that formed the committee could vote to discharge the committee -- even then, though, that would not force the committee to produce a report prior to its demise... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Ed Posted February 19, 2012 at 05:00 PM Report Share Posted February 19, 2012 at 05:00 PM And seeing that it has responsibilities every year, it acts more like a Standing Committee than a Special Committee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tctheatc Posted February 20, 2012 at 01:03 AM Report Share Posted February 20, 2012 at 01:03 AM Why? A special committe cannot be formed annually? How about a Christmas tree decorating committee? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Ed Posted February 20, 2012 at 02:44 AM Report Share Posted February 20, 2012 at 02:44 AM I guess so, but at the same time just because it only operates once or twice a year does not mean that it is not always going to occur. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Edgar Posted February 20, 2012 at 01:12 PM Report Share Posted February 20, 2012 at 01:12 PM Why? A special committee cannot be formed annually? How about a Christmas tree decorating committee?How about our ol' friend the nominating committee? It ceases to exist upon the presentation of its report then rises, phoenix-like, at the beginning of the next election cycle. A special standing committee? A standing special committee? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted February 21, 2012 at 12:02 AM Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 at 12:02 AM How about our ol' friend the nominating committee? It ceases to exist upon the presentation of its report then rises, phoenix-like, at the beginning of the next election cycle. A special standing committee? A standing special committee?I think a nominating committee (and other "seasonal" committees) are in the nature of special committees which are appointed each year, often by virtue of the assembly's customized rules. Each instance of the committee is a new committee, as opposed to a standing committee, which has continuing existence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Ed Posted February 21, 2012 at 02:07 AM Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 at 02:07 AM Okay, I will defer to Josh for apurely RONR answer. However, this does not mean that 'ordinary' non-RONR versed people may see it that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted February 21, 2012 at 11:13 PM Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 at 11:13 PM Okay, I will defer to Josh for apurely RONR answer. However, this does not mean that 'ordinary' non-RONR versed people may see it that way.This is a very fair point, and leads me to add the caveat "unless the organization's rules provide otherwise," since I've certainly seen many committees of the type I've just described explicitly defined as "standing committees" in an organization's rules. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanh49 Posted February 22, 2012 at 06:43 AM Report Share Posted February 22, 2012 at 06:43 AM I think a nominating committee (and other "seasonal" committees) are in the nature of special committees which are appointed each year, often by virtue of the assembly's customized rules. Each instance of the committee is a new committee, as opposed to a standing committee, which has continuing existence.Even if the bylaws provide for a nominating committee?I always would have thought that any committee that was listed in the bylaws was be a standing committee even something like a February 29 party planning committee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trina Posted February 22, 2012 at 12:10 PM Report Share Posted February 22, 2012 at 12:10 PM Even if the bylaws provide for a nominating committee?I always would have thought that any committee that was listed in the bylaws was be a standing committee even something like a February 29 party planning committee. 'Standing committees are constituted to perform a continuing function, and remain in existence permanently or for the life of the assembly that establishes them.' (RONR 11th ed. p. 490 ll. 32-34).'Such other committees, standing or special, may be established by the Society as it shall from time to time deem necessary to carry on its work.' (p. 587 ll. 29-31, from the sample bylaws).Not all committees mentioned in the bylaws meet the description of a standing committee, nor is a specific listing in the bylaws a prerequisite for a standing committee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted February 22, 2012 at 11:59 PM Report Share Posted February 22, 2012 at 11:59 PM Even if the bylaws provide for a nominating committee?I always would have thought that any committee that was listed in the bylaws was be a standing committee even something like a February 29 party planning committee. 'Standing committees are constituted to perform a continuing function, and remain in existence permanently or for the life of the assembly that establishes them.' (RONR 11th ed. p. 490 ll. 32-34).'Such other committees, standing or special, may be established by the Society as it shall from time to time deem necessary to carry on its work.' (p. 587 ll. 29-31, from the sample bylaws).Not all committees mentioned in the bylaws meet the description of a standing committee, nor is a specific listing in the bylaws a prerequisite for a standing committee.I concur with Trina. The fact that a committee is listed in the Bylaws does not, in and of itself, make it a standing committee. Whether a committee is standing or special is determined by its nature, not by the level of rule that created it.Of course, if the Bylaws specifically state that the Nominating Committee or the February 29 Party Planning Committee are standing committees, then they are standing committees, as the Bylaws supersede RONR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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