tabling motions/issues

[Guest wesley]

when a presiding officer tables an issue, who untables the issue? Is it the presiding officer who tables it or can it be a member of the organization who makes a motion to untable it?

Thanks in advance

[jstackpo]

The presiding officer does NOT have the unilateral power to table (or "untable" - AKA Take from the table).  Both are a majority decision of the assembly.  Any member can move either motion if appropriate. (It very rarely is.)

[Chris Harrison]

The presiding officer has no authority (under RONR) to "table" anything.  Such authority (to lay on the Table or take it from) rests with the assembly.

[Richard Brown]

First off, be sure you are not confusing the motion to "lay on the table" with the motion to "postpone" to a definite time.  The motion to lay on the table (there is no such thing as a motion "to table") should be used only to set something aside temporarily while in a meeting to take up something more pressing.  It should not be used to postpone a motion.

 

The chair does not have the power to lay anything on the table on his own, but he can ask for unanimous consent to do so.

 

Without unanimous consent, the motion to lay something on the table requires a motion and a second.  It is not debatable.  It requires a majority vote for passage.

 

An item is removed from the table by a "motion to take from the table".  Unless it is done by unanimous consent at the suggestion of the chair, it requires a motion and a second and a majority vote.  Any member can move to take a tabled motion from the table.

 

If not taken from the table by the end of the next session, the motion dies.

 

Those are the general rules.  There are some exceptions.

[Edgar Guest]

See also FAQs #12 & #13.