Draft Minutes

[Tomm]

If the Minutes have been sent out prior to the meeting, and there are no corrections necessary but a Member requests that they be read anyway; Is the simple request all that's required to read them or is it necessary to vote on the request?

[Weldon Merritt]

Even if sent in advance, the minutes must be read on the demand on any member.

[Tomm]

I understand that they must be read if requested, but what I'm asking is, is a vote required or is the demand simply enough?

[Joshua Katz]

If you (or anyone) wants them read, the demand is sufficient. There is no need for a vote on reading the minutes.

[Weldon Merritt]

2 hours ago, Joshua Katz said:

If you (or anyone) wants them read, the demand is sufficient. There is no need for a vote on reading the minutes.

Not only is there no need for a vote, but taking a vote would be improper. Taking a vote carries the possibilty of rejection of the request, which would violate the member's right to have the minutes read on demand. 

[Rob Elsman]

2 hours ago, Weldon Merritt said:

Taking a vote carries the possibilty of rejection of the request, which would violate the member's right to have the minutes read on demand. 

RONR (11th ed.), p. 474, merely says, "... [the minutes] are not read unless this is requested by any member." Oddly enough, I think, the word used is "requested" instead of "demanded", which would have been the word I would have chosen, since "requested" leaves the impression that the assembly can properly turn down the request, even if the request is clearly for information.

[Guest Zev]

Perhaps this is helpful in some way.

Quote

• If the assembly does not wish to carry out the reading and approval of the minutes at the regular time, it may, by a majority vote without debate, "dispense with the reading of the minutes." The minutes can then be taken up by majority vote without debate at any later time during the meeting while no business is pending. If the minutes are not thus taken up before adjournment, they are read and approved at the following meeting, before the later minutes are taken up. A motion to "dispense with the reading of the minutes" is not a request to omit their reading altogether.
• A draft of the minutes of the preceding meeting can be sent to all members in advance, usually with the notice. In such a case, it is presumed that the members have used this opportunity to review them, and they are not read unless this is requested by any member. Correction of them and approval, however, is handled in the usual way. It must be understood in such a case that the formal copy placed in the minute book contains all corrections that were made and that none of the many copies circulated to members and marked by them is authoritative (see also p. 355).

RONR, 11th edition, page 474.

[Joshua Katz]

3 hours ago, Weldon Merritt said:

Not only is there no need for a vote, but taking a vote would be improper. Taking a vote carries the possibilty of rejection of the request, which would violate the member's right to have the minutes read on demand. 

Indeed.

8 minutes ago, Guest Zev said:

Not only is there no need for a vote, but taking a vote would be improper. Taking a vote carries the possibilty of rejection of the request, which would violate the member's right to have the minutes read on demand. 

The first bolded portion refers to, in effect, delaying both the reading and the approval of the minutes, which requires a majority vote. The second concerns the situation we are taking the OP to be asking about - distributing the minutes and then not reading them, but approving them without a reading instead. This procedure does not involve voting - if any member requests that the minutes be read, they must be read. It would then be in order, I would think, to move to dispense with the reading of the minutes, which requires a majority vote, but, as discussed above, also means they will not presently be approved.

In this discussion, it's worth keeping in mind that no vote is taken, either, on approving the minutes. Rather, once all amendments have been dealt with, they stand approved.

It seems to me, I must admit, that this is not a model of clarity. "Dispense with the reading of the minutes" sounds, to me at least, like it would be the same thing as approving them without reading them, but it is not. 

56 minutes ago, Rob Elsman said:

RONR (11th ed.), p. 474, merely says, "... [the minutes] are not read unless this is requested by any member." Oddly enough, I think, the word used is "requested" instead of "demanded", which would have been the word I would have chosen, since "requested" leaves the impression that the assembly can properly turn down the request, even if the request is clearly for information.

I agree.

[Gary Novosielski]

19 hours ago, Tomm said:

I understand that they must be read if requested, but what I'm asking is, is a vote required or is the demand simply enough?

They must be read on the demand of a single member.  End of story.  No vote required.