Guest guest Posted July 15, 2012 at 05:37 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 05:37 PM In my Fire Department out By-Laws state that proper process for a proposed By-Laws change be brought up to the floor at the monthly meeting, then sent to the Board of Directors for any recommendations, then back to the floor for voting at the next monthly meeting. We had one proposed and sent to the Board of Directors and the Board of Directors changed it from original proposal,it was not a unanimous vote for it to pass but non the less it was passed with changes.When it was presented to the floor for voting the floor voted to suspend discussion until next month due to non agreement and further research. When it is taken off the table next month can the floor vote down the recommendation from the Board of Directors and vote on Original By-Laws change proposal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Ed Posted July 15, 2012 at 05:53 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 05:53 PM Well, it technically should have been "Postponed until the next meeting" not laid on the table. However, the Board is making a recommendation which can either be accepted or rejected. First vote on the amendment/recommendation to the Board, and then on the By-law either as orginally worded (if the amendment fails) or the newly worded By-law (if the amendment passes.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Todd Wynn Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:28 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:28 PM In my Fire Department out By-Laws state that proper process for a proposed By-Laws change be brought up to the floor at the monthly meeting, then sent to the Board of Directors for any recommendations, then back to the floor for voting at the next monthly meeting. We had one proposed and sent to the Board of Directors and the Board of Directors changed it from original proposal,it was not a unanimous vote for it to pass but non the less it was passed with changes.When it was presented to the floor for voting the floor voted to suspend discussion until next month due to non agreement and further research. When it is taken off the table next month can the floor vote down the recommendation from the Board of Directors and vote on Original By-Laws change proposal?This is not a RONR question. This is a question about your bylaws. You will need to check your bylaws for the amendment process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:31 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:31 PM our by-laws do not state weather or not youcan vote on original proposal, i was told it could be done per roberts rules, i was hoping to get clarification on it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gRTEsT Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:34 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:34 PM our by-laws do not state weather or not youcan vote on original proposal, i was told it could be done per roberts rules, i was hoping to get clarification on it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Wynn Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:49 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 06:49 PM our by-laws do not state weather or not youcan vote on original proposal, i was told it could be done per roberts rules, i was hoping to get clarification on itI hate to rain on your parade, but the answer to that will depend on the wording of your bylaws. Your organization will have to determine the meaning of the provision for amendment. Perhaps the board only makes recommendations; perhaps the board has to approve any proposed amendments; perhaps the board can make amendments to the proposed amendment. None of us knows, since the governing rule is contained in your bylaws, and reviewing bylaws is beyond the scope of this forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David A Foulkes Posted July 15, 2012 at 08:14 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 08:14 PM our by-laws do not state weather or not youcan vote on original proposal, i was told it could be done per roberts rules, i was hoping to get clarification on itWhat you will get from RONR is:"The bylaws should always prescribe the procedure for their amendment, and such provision should always require at least that advance notice be given in a specified manner, and that the amendment be approved by a two thirds vote. If the bylaws contain no provision for their amendment, they can be amended by a two-thirds vote if previous notice (in the sense defined on page 121) has been given, or they can be amended by the vote of a majority of the entire membership." (RONR 11th Ed, p. 580 ll. 25 - p. 581 l. 7 emphasis added)Since your bylaws do contain a provision for their amendment, the standard procedure outlined in RONR will not apply. Your bylaws supersede RONR in this, and thus need to contain the explanatory details for the process, such as those about which you are asking. This will involve interpreting your bylaws, which (as noted) is beyond the scope of this forum. You may find some help on pages 588-591 (RONR 11th Ed.) in figuring out the answer(s) to your question(s). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David A Foulkes Posted July 15, 2012 at 08:16 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 08:16 PM ........Seems to be a Wynn-Wynn situation here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 15, 2012 at 08:45 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 08:45 PM Thank You all for the replies it was very helpful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shmuel Gerber Posted July 15, 2012 at 10:08 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 10:08 PM What you will get from RONR is:"The bylaws should always prescribe the procedure for their amendment, and such provision should always require at least that advance notice be given in a specified manner, and that the amendment be approved by a two thirds vote. If the bylaws contain no provision for their amendment, they can be amended by a two-thirds vote if previous notice (in the sense defined on page 121) has been given, or they can be amended by the vote of a majority of the entire membership." (RONR 11th Ed, p. 580 ll. 25 - p. 581 l. 7 emphasis added)Since your bylaws do contain a provision for their amendment, the standard procedure outlined in RONR will not apply.I don't agree that that's necessarily the case. For example, if RONR is the parliamentary authority and the only thing the bylaws say about their amendment is "These bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting except the annual meeting," that would not imply that the requirement is no longer "a two-thirds vote if previous notice ... has been given, or ... the vote of a majority of the entire membership." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David A Foulkes Posted July 15, 2012 at 11:08 PM Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 at 11:08 PM I don't agree that that's necessarily the case. For example, if RONR is the parliamentary authority and the only thing the bylaws say about their amendment is "These bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting except the annual meeting," that would not imply that the requirement is no longer "a two-thirds vote if previous notice ... has been given, or ... the vote of a majority of the entire membership."I sit corrected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trina Posted July 16, 2012 at 12:18 PM Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 at 12:18 PM In my Fire Department out By-Laws state that proper process for a proposed By-Laws change be brought up to the floor at the monthly meeting, then sent to the Board of Directors for any recommendations, then back to the floor for voting at the next monthly meeting. We had one proposed and sent to the Board of Directors and the Board of Directors changed it from original proposal,it was not a unanimous vote for it to pass but non the less it was passed with changes.When it was presented to the floor for voting the floor voted to suspend discussion until next month due to non agreement and further research. When it is taken off the table next month can the floor vote down the recommendation from the Board of Directors and vote on Original By-Laws change proposal?I agree that this is a question of bylaws interpretation for your organization (and that would mean looking at the exact language of the bylaws, and looking at the bylaws in their entirety).However, if a proposed bylaws amendment is to be "sent to the Board of Directors for any recommendations", and if 'recommending' is really all the Board is supposed to do according to bylaws, then what the Board sent back to the membership would seem to be in the nature of a proposed amendment (to the original bylaws amendment). This sounds similar to what a committee might come back with when an assembly refers a motion to committee for further review. There is nothing in RONR that requires the assembly to simply accept any proposed amendment that is recommended in this way; the assembly remains free to decide one way or the other.Whether this analogy is applicable in your situation depends on a careful reading of your bylaws (something that is beyond the scope of this forum, as has been previously noted). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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