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Adopting "small board" rules


Calion

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Two questions:

  1. P. 16, RONR 11th says, "A society with a small assembly—such as one having a dozen or fewer members—may wish to adopt a rule that its meetings will be governed by some or all of the somewhat less formal procedures applicable to small boards (see pp. 487–88)." How would such a rule be worded? Is there an example somewhere?
  2. Is there a way to word this rule such that if the assembly grows to more than a dozen people—or if meetings sometimes attract more than that number, for instance at annual meetings—the assembly could revert to more formal rules, either automatically or at the discretion of the Chair? What would such wording look like?
Edited by Calion
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4 hours ago, Calion said:

How would such a rule be worded?

"The business meetings of BSA Troop (whatever number) shall be governed by the small board rules as explained in Robert's Rules Of Order Newly Revised, 11th edition, pages 487-488."

4 hours ago, Calion said:

...the assembly could revert to more formal rules...

I would not do this for the reason that the formal rules are much more complex and any attempt to make teenagers abide by them would probably result in confusion.

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1. RONR (11th ed.) does not contain an example of such a rule. It would be the responsibility of the society to carefully craft one and adopt it after (hopefully) thorough and thoughtful deliberation.

2. The possibility and practicality of going back and forth between the rules for small boards and those for larger assemblies has been discussed before on this forum—with mixed opinions. RONR (11th ed.) does not discuss this.

My own sense of it is that most bodies do not have the kind of familiarity and facility with both to be able to move from one to the other without likely confusion and possible frustration. 

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3 hours ago, Rob Elsman said:

RONR (11th ed.) does not contain an example of such a rule. It would be the responsibility of the society to carefully craft one and adopt it after (hopefully) thorough and thoughtful deliberation.

Which is why I'm asking for suggestions or existing examples from the experts here. 

3 hours ago, Rob Elsman said:

My own sense of it is that most bodies do not have the kind of familiarity and facility with both to be able to move from one to the other without likely confusion and possible frustration. 

Hm. That may be a good point. Perhaps better to change the rules of order if business starts to drag down from too much informal discussion. 

Though in practice, it seems to me that the Chair (in a relatively small body) can be more lax or firm with the rules at his discretion without causing too much trouble. 

Edited by Calion
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16 hours ago, Calion said:

Two questions:

  1. P. 16, RONR 11th says, "A society with a small assembly—such as one having a dozen or fewer members—may wish to adopt a rule that its meetings will be governed by some or all of the somewhat less formal procedures applicable to small boards (see pp. 487–88)." How would such a rule be worded? Is there an example somewhere?
  2. Is there a way to word this rule such that if the assembly grows to more than a dozen people—or if meetings sometimes attract more than that number, for instance at annual meetings—the assembly could revert to more formal rules, either automatically or at the discretion of the Chair? What would such wording look like?

Regarding question 2, I would just point out that much depends on how much more than a dozen people you expect this assembly might grow to. RONR, I believe very deliberatively, states the small board rules as applying when "not more than about a dozen members present" (my emphasis). If you think this assembly is only going to grow by a handful of people - some of whom may not be present at every meeting - then it seems to me clearly not worth the hassle and confusion of cycling back and forth between small board rules and regular assembly rules. I would only consider abandoning the small board rules if you think this assembly is going to grow substantially above the 'about a dozen' figure - in both total membership and membership attending meetings.

Edited by Bruce Lages
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I think the chair should have discretion in how much formality to employ, based on the perceived need at the time.  Sensing how much discussion without a motion is too much is a good example.  When it is obvious that a given dead horse has been well and truly beaten, the chair should encourage the assembly to propose a motion or move on.  While RONR permits some discussion without a motion, this is not license to filibuster.

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