Suspend a meeting

[JacknTX]

Can an HOA board suspend a special meeting and reconvene the meeting  to a later date,at the call of the chair, allowing members sufficient time to  vote on an amendment to Governing documents?

[Richard Brown]

56 minutes ago, JacknTX said:

Can an HOA board suspend a special meeting and reconvene the meeting  to a later date,at the call of the chair, allowing members sufficient time to  vote on an amendment to Governing documents?

I think what you are referring to is an "adjourned meeting", which is a new meeting that is a continuation of the current session. If so, then yes, that is permissible.  See sections 9:17 - 9:19 and also section 22 (Fix the time to which to adjourn) n RONR (12th ed.).

Edited to add:  The motion to use is the motion to "fix the time to which to adjourn", or to set the time for an adjourned meeting.   It may be set to re-convene at the call of the chair rather than at a definite preset time.  It must be held prior to the next regular meeting.  If the intent is to essentially recess for an hour or so to permit voting, that can be done with a simple recess.  If the delay is to be a few days, an adjourned meeting should be set.

Edited March 5, 2021 at 08:26 PM by Richard Brown
Added last paragraph

[Bruce Lages]

Just for clarity, we are talking about a meeting of the board here, and not a meeting of the general membership?

[JacknTX]

It is a meeting of the general membership. However the board will pass a resolution to begin the voting. The intent is to suspend the meeting and a journey it at a later time at the call of the chair.

[Richard Brown]

3 minutes ago, JacknTX said:

It is a meeting of the general membership. However the board will pass a resolution to begin the voting. The intent is to suspend the meeting and a journey it at a later time at the call of the chair.

If it is a meeting of the general membership, the board has no authority over that meeting and has no authority to adjourn it to a future time unless your bylaws give it that authority.  The membership itself may do that at the meeting, however.  The board is in control at board meetings and the membership is control at membership meetings.   It would be most unusual for the board to have the authority to intervene in a membership meeting in any way at all.

Perhaps some more information will be helpful.

[Josh Martin]

33 minutes ago, JacknTX said:

It is a meeting of the general membership. However the board will pass a resolution to begin the voting. The intent is to suspend the meeting and a journey it at a later time at the call of the chair.

Based on this additional information, the answer to the original question is "no." The membership itself may adjourn the meeting to a later time at the call of the chair.

I'm not clear on how the board would adopt a resolution during a meeting of the general membership. The board isn't meeting. Even if it somehow does so, however, the board lacks the authority to adjourn a meeting of the general membership. I suppose an individual member of the board (if also a member of the society) could make the motion to adjourn to a later time, but the membership would vote on this motion (or it could be adopted by unanimous consent if no member objects).

Edited March 5, 2021 at 10:57 PM by Josh Martin

[J. J.]

The board could, in a report to the general assembly, suggest this course of action.  It would to that general assembly to approve that. 

[Gary Novosielski]

On 3/5/2021 at 5:23 PM, JacknTX said:

It is a meeting of the general membership. However the board will pass a resolution to begin the voting. The intent is to suspend the meeting and a journey it at a later time at the call of the chair.

If it is a meeting of the general membership, then the board is not in session and cannot pass any resolutions, nor would they have any weight if passed.

But the assembly is free to set a time for an adjourned meeting, and to adjourn to that time.