Aproval of amendments to bylaws

[Guest Don D]

Organization is organized under bylaws approved by majority vote of a quorum of the entire organization. Is it customary/required/normal/... to provide the precise wording of amendments to the bylaws as opposed to providing a paraphrase of the wording and reasons for change? Is it proper to do this orally or should it be done in writing?

[David A Foulkes]

Organization is organized under bylaws approved by majority vote of a quorum of the entire organization. Is it customary/required/normal/... to provide the precise wording of amendments to the bylaws as opposed to providing a paraphrase of the wording and reasons for change? Is it proper to do this orally or should it be done in writing?

I'll assume you are referring to providing notice of a proposed bylaw amendment.

"The notice should faily inform the members of the changes contemplated." (RONR 11th Ed. p. 596 ll. 27-28) See the section on that page for more details. The purpose of such a notice would be to give the members enough information about the proposed amendment that they can decide whether to attend the meeting. Clearly, the more information provided, the more informed a decision they can make.

"If previous notice is given at a meeting, it can be given orally unless the rules of the organization require it to be in writing - which is often the case with notice of amendments to bylaws." (RONR 11th Ed., p. 122 ll. 19-22)