rlecats Posted October 5, 2020 at 06:46 PM Report Share Posted October 5, 2020 at 06:46 PM (edited) At my organization's annual meeting this past Saturday, proposed amendments to the bylaws were introduced by the Bylaws Committee. The presiding officer gave voting options of "yes" and "no" (although this parliamentarian advised her that "no" votes were irrelevant). As a result, she declared adoption upon a majority vote and not 2/3. When reading the minutes of the meeting today, this parliamentarian noticed that one amendment was declared "adopted" by majority vote when it had actually had failed by 2/3 vote (the 2/3 percentage of voting members present was never announced). My question is, can the amendment be considered failed after the fact or does the presiding officer's declaration of the majority vote during the meeting stand? Thank you! Edited October 5, 2020 at 06:48 PM by rlecats Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua Katz Posted October 5, 2020 at 07:01 PM Report Share Posted October 5, 2020 at 07:01 PM 13 minutes ago, rlecats said: The presiding officer gave voting options of "yes" and "no" (although this parliamentarian advised her that "no" votes were irrelevant). This sounds like a statement about elections. No votes are certainly relevant on main motions. 13 minutes ago, rlecats said: As a result, she declared adoption upon a majority vote and not 2/3. I don't see how that results from calling for the no votes. It's simply a mistake. 14 minutes ago, rlecats said: When reading the minutes of the meeting today, this parliamentarian noticed that one amendment was declared "adopted" by majority vote when it had actually had failed by 2/3 vote (the 2/3 percentage of voting members present was never announced). That's what the minutes say, but what happened at the meeting? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atul Kapur Posted October 5, 2020 at 08:27 PM Report Share Posted October 5, 2020 at 08:27 PM 1 hour ago, rlecats said: As a result, she declared adoption upon a majority vote and not 2/3. A Point of Order regarding this mistake by the chair needs to be raised in a timely manner. It is too late, now, to consider the amendment "failed after the fact." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted October 5, 2020 at 09:29 PM Report Share Posted October 5, 2020 at 09:29 PM 2 hours ago, rlecats said: The presiding officer gave voting options of "yes" and "no" Those are the correct options. 2 hours ago, rlecats said: (although this parliamentarian advised her that "no" votes were irrelevant) On what basis was this advice given? What is the exact wording in your bylaws for the requirement for adoption of bylaw amendments? 2 hours ago, rlecats said: My question is, can the amendment be considered failed after the fact or does the presiding officer's declaration of the majority vote during the meeting stand? The presiding officer's declaration that the motion was adopted stands. A Point of Order regarding this error would need to have been raised at the time. (This response assumes that the minutes are an accurate record of what happened at the meeting.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. J. Posted October 5, 2020 at 11:18 PM Report Share Posted October 5, 2020 at 11:18 PM Presumably, the vote was not taken by ballot? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Novosielski Posted October 11, 2020 at 12:48 PM Report Share Posted October 11, 2020 at 12:48 PM On 10/5/2020 at 2:46 PM, rlecats said: At my organization's annual meeting this past Saturday, proposed amendments to the bylaws were introduced by the Bylaws Committee. The presiding officer gave voting options of "yes" and "no" (although this parliamentarian advised her that "no" votes were irrelevant). As a result, she declared adoption upon a majority vote and not 2/3. When reading the minutes of the meeting today, this parliamentarian noticed that one amendment was declared "adopted" by majority vote when it had actually had failed by 2/3 vote (the 2/3 percentage of voting members present was never announced). My question is, can the amendment be considered failed after the fact or does the presiding officer's declaration of the majority vote during the meeting stand? Thank you! It sounds as though you're assuming that a 2/3 vote means 2/3 of the members present, which is not the case unless you have a bylaws provision you haven't mentioned. Otherwise, the No votes certainly would matter. If the vote count actually appeared in the minutes, what was the voting method used? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Brown Posted October 11, 2020 at 03:16 PM Report Share Posted October 11, 2020 at 03:16 PM @rlecats, We need additional information. Six days ago Josh Martin asked you for the exact wording in your bylaws as to the vote required for adoption of a bylaw amendment. You have not responded. Others have asked you for the manner in which the vote was taken. You have not responded to those questions either. In order to give you good advice and to tell you what was and was not done correctly, we need answers to some of those questions, particularly the EXACT WORDING from your bylaws regarding the vote required to adopt an amendment and also the manner in which this vote was taken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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