Members attending board meetings

[Guest Marvins]

It has been common practice to consider a board meeting in our club as "open" to any members wishing to attend, but that is not specifically stated in the bylaws. We have an issue with a board member's spouse attending every meeting and voicing his opinion. Other board members have grown uncomfortable with this. Can I as club president ask him to stop attending? The intention of the board is to be "open" to members visiting, but not having a member become a permanent fixture.

[Guest Edgar]

Can I as club president ask him to stop attending?

No.

Well, you can ask but . . .

The fact that you're the club president is immaterial. But only board members have a right to attend meetings of the board, so the board can exclude any non-members (of the board) it chooses.

As a political (not parliamentary) matter, it might be easier to exclude all non-board members than to single out one board member's husband. But if you've got the votes, go ahead and make a motion to exclude Mr. Butinsky.

[Gary Novosielski]

Are you the presiding officer? If so, why do you recognize him, if he is not a member? (And by "member" I mean member of the board, which is the body in session. Whether he is a member of the society doesn't matter.)

Even if the meeting is "open" that doesn't give guests the right to speak. Or are you saying he speaks without being recognized?

In any case, the chair has the power to order any non-members to leave (or to be removed) if they are disturbing the conduct of business, even if the custom is to allow non-members to attend. This decision is, however, subject to appeal by any two members (a mover and a seconder) and can be overruled by a majority vote.