New Administration

[Guest Diana]

Question was posed:   Roberts Rules state that when you have a new administration and officers are installed, all motions from the previous year are null and void.   I do not find anything to prove this true.

[Joshua Katz]

I would suggest asking the person who says that RONR says this for a citation.  I don't think one will be provided, though.

[Richard Brown]

5 hours ago, Guest Diana said:

Question was posed:   Roberts Rules state that when you have a new administration and officers are installed, all motions from the previous year are null and void.   I do not find anything to prove this true.

 

5 hours ago, Joshua Katz said:

I would suggest asking the person who says that RONR says this for a citation.  I don't think one will be provided, though.

Perhaps Guest Diana is thinking about this provision on page 237 of RONR regarding the adjournment of a body that will end the term of some of its members:  "When the adjournment closes a session in a body that will not have another regular session within a quarterly time interval (see pp. 89–90), or closes a session that ends the term of all or some of the members (as may happen in an elected legislative assembly or in a board): Matters temporarily but not finally disposed of, except those that remain in the hands of a committee to which they have been referred (see p. 90, l. 9 to p. 91, l. 16), fall to the ground.* They can, however, be introduced at the next session, the same as if they had never before been brought up. "

That provision does not mean that all motions previously adopted suddenly become null and void.  It means simply that most unfnished business falls to the ground and may be introduced anew at the next session.  Motions which might have been postponed from the last session of the outgoing officers, for example, do not carry over to the next session but fall to the ground.  The same could be said for items laid on the table.  Matters which have been referred to a committee for further study, however, do carry over.

[Josh Martin]

On 5/8/2018 at 1:30 PM, Guest Diana said:

Question was posed:   Roberts Rules state that when you have a new administration and officers are installed, all motions from the previous year are null and void.   I do not find anything to prove this true.

It’s not true, which would explain why you can’t find it. Unless the motion itself or your rules provide otherwise, adopted motions remain in effect indefinitely.