Making Motions

[Guest d.cunningham]

If bylaws do not specify that email can be used to make, 2nd, and vote on a motion;however email has been used for years; what needs to occur for the sake of order?

[Chris Harrison]

Amend the bylaws to specifically authorize the use of voting by email. That will take care of future cases and I suppose you all could ratify any decisions made by email without bylaw authorization in the past .

[Guest Edgar]

Amend the bylaws to specifically authorize the use of voting by email.

Or don't.

RONR certainly doesn't endorse the idea.

[Josh Martin]

If bylaws do not specify that email can be used to make, 2nd, and vote on a motion;however email has been used for years; what needs to occur for the sake of order?

You should cease the practice of conducting business via e-mail unless and until your Bylaws are amended to authorize it. As for the actions that have already been voted on by e-mail, you can ratify them at an actual meeting.

If you do authorize conducting business by e-mail, you should be sure to develop appropriate rules to figure out how that works, since RONR doesn't address this topic.