LinInTexas Posted December 16, 2019 at 02:07 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 02:07 PM Hi there, new member here, swimming in the seas of RONR - or maybe just treading water. Our bylaws state this about officers: ARTICLE IV. Officers All officers must be voting members in good standing (current in any dues, regular participant in corporate meetings and projects, and maintain Master Gardener Certification). Officers are elected at the Annual Meeting in November to serve a one-year term beginning January 1. Officers are elected by a majority vote of voting members when a quorum is present. Officers may serve two (2) consecutive terms in office. Should any officer be unable or unwilling to serve for three or more consecutive regular meetings that officer shall be replaced for the remainder of the term by a majority vote of the Executive Committee. An officer may be removed from office by a majority vote of the members present, proved there is a quorum at the meeting. My question is, if a person serves two consecutive one-year terms in an office (let's say president), can they later (after a year or more not in office) be eligible to be president again, or is two terms an absolute limit? Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Brown Posted December 16, 2019 at 02:57 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 02:57 PM (edited) 50 minutes ago, LinInTexas said: Hi there, new member here, swimming in the seas of RONR - or maybe just treading water. Our bylaws state this about officers: ARTICLE IV. Officers All officers must be voting members in good standing (current in any dues, regular participant in corporate meetings and projects, and maintain Master Gardener Certification). Officers are elected at the Annual Meeting in November to serve a one-year term beginning January 1. Officers are elected by a majority vote of voting members when a quorum is present. Officers may serve two (2) consecutive terms in office. Should any officer be unable or unwilling to serve for three or more consecutive regular meetings that officer shall be replaced for the remainder of the term by a majority vote of the Executive Committee. An officer may be removed from office by a majority vote of the members present, proved there is a quorum at the meeting. My question is, if a person serves two consecutive one-year terms in an office (let's say president), can they later (after a year or more not in office) be eligible to be president again, or is two terms an absolute limit? Thanks in advance! It is ultimately up to the members of your organization to interpret its bylaws. We cannot do that for you here. Our advice is based on the rules in RONR. However, The issue of term limits comes up frequently in this forum. My own personal opinion, which is simply my opinion and doesn’t really count since only the opinions of your members count, is that the quoted language does not prohibit serving additional terms as president after sitting out for a term. I interpret it as being permissive, i.e., that an officer may serve two consecutive terms. I do not interpret it as a prohibition against serving again in the future. Edited December 16, 2019 at 02:58 PM by Richard Brown Deleted a paragraph that somehow repeated itself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinInTexas Posted December 16, 2019 at 03:00 PM Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 03:00 PM Excellent, thanks so much! That is how I interpreted it, as did most of our members. There were a vocal few who disagreed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Mervosh Posted December 16, 2019 at 03:11 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 03:11 PM 8 minutes ago, LinInTexas said: Excellent, thanks so much! That is how I interpreted it, as did most of our members. There were a vocal few who disagreed. If he's elected again after sitting out a term, the vocal few can indeed raise a point of order at the time he is elected (assuming he is). The presiding officer shall rule on their point and his decision is subject to appeal, so as Mr. Brown notes, ultimately, the members will decide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted December 16, 2019 at 05:43 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 05:43 PM (edited) 8 hours ago, LinInTexas said: My question is, if a person serves two consecutive one-year terms in an office (let's say president), can they later (after a year or more not in office) be eligible to be president again, or is two terms an absolute limit? The latter former, in my view. The rule prohibits serving more than two consecutive terms. If this person is out of office for a year (or more), and is subsequently re-elected, the third term is not consecutive, and therefore does not violate the rule. Edited December 16, 2019 at 10:46 PM by Josh Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Brown Posted December 16, 2019 at 06:07 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 06:07 PM 23 minutes ago, Josh Martin said: The latter, in my view. Didn't you mean to say "The former", rather than "the latter"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Novosielski Posted December 16, 2019 at 09:45 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 09:45 PM 4 hours ago, Josh Martin said: The latter, in my view. The rule prohibits serving more than two consecutive terms. If this person is out of office for a year (or more), and is subsequently re-elected, the third term is not consecutive, and therefore does not violate the rule. But that's the former. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Mervosh Posted December 16, 2019 at 09:52 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 09:52 PM 3 hours ago, Richard Brown said: Didn't you mean to say "The former", rather than "the latter"? I'm blaming it on Josh's dictation app and heavy Minneapolis accent. Yours truly, Bob Mahvash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Novosielski Posted December 16, 2019 at 10:01 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 10:01 PM 7 minutes ago, George Mervosh said: I'm blaming it on Josh's dictation app and heavy Minneapolis accent. Yours truly, Bob Mahvash I have been told that Bob's my uncle. I was apparently misinformed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted December 16, 2019 at 10:44 PM Report Share Posted December 16, 2019 at 10:44 PM 4 hours ago, Richard Brown said: Didn't you mean to say "The former", rather than "the latter"? Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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