ctaylor1079 Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:05 AM Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:05 AM If a resolution is read on the floor and then a member stands up and makes a motion to adopt the resolution, yet this person has a direct conflict of interest in the resolution, can the motion to adopt be valid? Should the Chairman call it out of order when it is a direct conflict? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:08 AM Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:08 AM If a resolution is read on the floor and then a member stands up and makes a motion to adopt the resolution, yet this person has a direct conflict of interest in the resolution, can the motion to adopt be valid? Yes. Should the Chairman call it out of order when it is a direct conflict? No. See FAQ #9 for information on a related issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor1079 Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:15 AM Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:15 AM Thank you for the reply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor1079 Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:20 AM Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:20 AM Our current Constitution and By Laws states that in order to amend our bylaws then we must "notify our membership of the upcoming vote in Writing, or in newsletter, or local newspaper at least two weeks in advance of said vote to change by laws..." This was done by simply adding a line item to the calendar of events in the newsletter that stated "upcoming vote to amend by laws JAN XX, 20XX" Would this constitute "notifying the membership and would we need to list WHAT we were amending? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:33 AM Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:33 AM Our current Constitution and By Laws states that in order to amend our bylaws then we must "notify our membership of the upcoming vote in Writing, or in newsletter, or local newspaper at least two weeks in advance of said vote to change by laws..." This was done by simply adding a line item to the calendar of events in the newsletter that stated "upcoming vote to amend by laws JAN XX, 20XX" Would this constitute "notifying the membership and would we need to list WHAT we were amending? "Amend by laws" is certainly not specific enough. "Unless the rules require the full text of the motion, resolution, or bylaw amendment to be submitted in the notice, only the purport need be indicated; but such a statement of purport must be accurate and complete—as in "to raise the annual dues to $20"—since it will determine what amendments are in order when the motion is considered. The notice becomes invalid if the motion is amended beyond the scope of the notice (see also 35, 57)." (RONR, 11th ed., pg. 122) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor1079 Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:43 AM Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:43 AM When this meeting comes around would it be proper to raise this issue at the beginning of the meeting or once they call the vote? In the past the way it has been done is it is considered a Tabled Motion therefore the chair will go straight to the vote under old business. Wouldn't we still be open for debate at that point in time? And if still under debate, the motion to amend would be removed due to improper notification? Sorry, I'm new to all of this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:53 AM Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 02:53 AM When this meeting comes around would it be proper to raise this issue at the beginning of the meeting or once they call the vote? In the past the way it has been done is it is considered a Tabled Motion therefore the chair will go straight to the vote under old business. Wouldn't we still be open for debate at that point in time? And if still under debate, the motion to amend would be removed due to improper notification? The best time to raise a Point of Order regarding this issue would be when the motion first comes before the assembly. Apparently, this is when the chair calls for the vote, which is another problem. The motion should actually be made and seconded first, at which time the chair would state the question and it would be open to debate. Based on the facts provided, however, the chair should rule the point well taken that the motion is out of order due to improper notification. If this was being done properly, I would advise raising the Point of Order when the motion is made. Additionally, RONR uses the term "Unfinished Business," not "Old Business," the assembly is probably confusing Lay on the Table with Postpone to a Certain Time (see FAQ #12), and even if one of those motions had been adopted (which does not seem to be the case here), the assembly would not proceed directly to a vote when the motion came before the assembly again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor1079 Posted August 28, 2014 at 10:29 AM Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 10:29 AM Ok. This helps so much! One other question I had was in regards to who can actually vote. Out Bylaws state we must have 5 officers and 5 members to have a quorum. Since our officers are actually members they would still have a vote when it comes to motion wouldn't they? We have always had our Chair be a tie breaker but allowed the other officers to vote. Thanks for all the replys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor1079 Posted August 28, 2014 at 10:42 AM Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 10:42 AM Also in regards to FAQ #13, tonremove a motion it mentions postpone indefinitely and such... Is it possible to make these motions while under debate of the current motion? I was under the understanding that no other motions could be made while under debate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jstackpo Posted August 28, 2014 at 10:54 AM Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 10:54 AM Also in regards to FAQ #13, tonremove a motion it mentions postpone indefinitely and such... Is it possible to make these motions while under debate of the current motion? I was under the understanding that no other motions could be made while under debateI fear your understanding is a misunderstanding. A fairly substantial number of motions can and, as necessary, should be made when a main motion is on the floor for discussion:Postpone Indefinitely, Amend, send to a committee, &c. are some of the more common -- see the initial 5 Chapters of RONR for (full!) details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgar Guest Posted August 28, 2014 at 12:19 PM Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 12:19 PM One other question I had was in regards to who can actually vote. Out Bylaws state we must have 5 officers and 5 members to have a quorum. Since our officers are actually members they would still have a vote when it comes to motion wouldn't they? We have always had our Chair be a tie breaker but allowed the other officers to vote. Thanks for all the replys. Assuming your officers are also members of your organization, they have the same right to vote as any member of the organization. This goes for the chair as well though, in order to preserve the appearance of impartiality, the chair should usually not exercise that right. See FAQ #1. Note that it's not up to anyone to "allow" a member to exercise his right to vote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgar Guest Posted August 28, 2014 at 12:24 PM Report Share Posted August 28, 2014 at 12:24 PM I was under the understanding that no other motions could be made while under debate No other main motions can be made but, as Mr. Stackpole indicated, there are any number of subsidiary and/or incidental motions that can be made while a main motion is pending. Most common, perhaps, is a motion to amend the pending motion (this is sometimes referred to as "perfecting" the main motion). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctaylor1079 Posted September 8, 2014 at 07:38 PM Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2014 at 07:38 PM What is the proper way to defeat this vote. It is a vote to amend our by-laws. Our bylaws state the we must notify the membership of any by laws change and have a 2/3 majority vote. The current officers simply but a notice in the newsletter that we were voting on a bylaws change. They were not specific in the language that was being changed. does R.R.o.O. specify that the changes need to be put into the notification? I dont feel the notification was specific enough. To simply say.. "There will be a vote to amend the by laws on Sep.xx,2014" is that adequate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Mervosh Posted September 8, 2014 at 07:40 PM Report Share Posted September 8, 2014 at 07:40 PM What is the proper way to defeat this vote. It is a vote to amend our by-laws. Our bylaws state the we must notify the membership of any by laws change and have a 2/3 majority vote. The current officers simply but a notice in the newsletter that we were voting on a bylaws change. They were not specific in the language that was being changed. does R.R.o.O. specify that the changes need to be put into the notification? I dont feel the notification was specific enough. To simply say.. "There will be a vote to amend the by laws on Sep.xx,2014" is that adequate? No. See RONR (11th ed), p. 596. You can raise a point of order when the matter comes up, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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