Can we discuss an item before Call to Order

[David Rowan]

Just had a President resign for a reason. Rumors speculate there are OTHER reasons, but can I as the newly appointed President address the elephant in the room BEFORE I CALL MEETING TO ORDER that we shouldn't live off rumors as to why he resigned, and to take him at his word, etc., and then call the meeting to order?

[David Rowan]

I will also add that his resignation is not a current agenda item.

[Rob Elsman]

Why bother?  A motion to accept the president's resignation is debatable, so your group can parade the whole zoo during the business meeting like Aida in the Baths of Caracalla.

[David Rowan]

RATS. We didn't add an agenda item to accept his resignation. Should have done that. Not sure what to do about that.

I would say the reason is due to rumors and speculation and they are wanting answers so when their regions that elected them to the board ask, they can know some of the reasons. I don't think anyone will debate his resignation. 

[Joshua Katz]

1 minute ago, David Rowan said:

RATS. We didn't add an agenda item to accept his resignation. Should have done that. Not sure what to do about that.

 

You haven't adopted the agenda yet, presumably. 

[Rob Elsman]

While parading the elephants your group can also do away with the agenda and it acts--I mean items.  It is not customary for assemblies meeting as often as the quarterly time interval to adopt an agenda for each meeting or restrict the transaction of business to those items that are in an agenda.  Do without it.  Use the standard order of business, instead.

[Richard Brown]

20 minutes ago, David Rowan said:

Just had a President resign for a reason. Rumors speculate there are OTHER reasons, but can I as the newly appointed President address the elephant in the room BEFORE I CALL MEETING TO ORDER that we shouldn't live off rumors as to why he resigned, and to take him at his word, etc., and then call the meeting to order?

RONR has nothing to say about what happens outside of a meeting. It seems to me that would include the time prior to the meeting being called to order. Although it might seem a bit unorthodox, I don’t think there’s anything in RONR that prohibits the president from making a statement prior to the meeting being called to order. Whether the members will consider such action to be unbecoming of a member of the organization or detrimental to it and worthy of discipline is a separate issue.

[David Rowan]

Is it okay if I ask the board if it is okay if we add an item to the agenda since we are using an agenda right now? 

[David Rowan]

NM...I think I found it that I will ask them if okay that I add this item. As long as I have 2/3 approval (no prob) then we can get motion, have discussion, vote. I agree with others, prob not best we adopt agenda. 

 

I appreciate all of your wisdom.

[Guest Puzzling]

4 hours ago, David Rowan said:

NM...I think I found it that I will ask them if okay that I add this item. As long as I have 2/3 approval (no prob) then we can get motion, have discussion, vote. I agree with others, prob not best we adopt agenda. 

 

I appreciate all of your wisdom.

An agenda that is not adopted by the meeting (yet) can be changed and adopted by a majority vote. 

The 2/3 approval is only needed to change an already adopted agenda.

Also a suggestion do the whole discussion information debate about the resignation in executive session. (This does need a 2/3 vote)

The vote to accept the resignation can  be done in normal session , (even this can be done in executive session but I see no reason for doing so)

 

[Richard Brown]

44 minutes ago, Guest Puzzling said:

Also a suggestion do the whole discussion information debate about the resignation in executive session. (This does need a 2/3 vote)

Where do you get that going into executive session requires a two-thirds vote? RONR is clear that it only takes a majority vote.

Edited to add: see section 9:24:  “A motion to go into (or out of) executive session is a question of privilege and is adopted by a majority vote“.

Edited March 10, 2021 at 08:55 PM by Richard Brown
Added last paragraph

[Atul Kapur]

2 hours ago, Guest Puzzling said:

An agenda that is not adopted by the meeting (yet) can be changed and adopted by a majority vote. 

The 2/3 approval is only needed to change an already adopted agenda.

Not quite.

"At a session that already has an order of business, an agenda can be adopted by a majority vote only if it does not create any special orders and does not conflict with the existing order of business; otherwise, a two-thirds vote is required (see also 25:12)." RONR (12th ed.) 41:61

If the organization meets at least as frequently as quarterly, and has adopted RONR as its parliamentary authority, then it has an "existing order of business" and an agenda that conflicts with that requires a 2/3 vote.

Or, in other words, "In organizations that have adopted this book as parliamentary authority and that have not adopted a special order of business, this series of headings is the prescribed order of business for regular meetings, unless the periods intervening between consecutive regular meetings are usually more than a quarterly time interval (see 9:7)." 41:6

[In my experience, agenda is the most common area where I see organizations operating differently from what is in the text, by custom].

 

[Gary Novosielski]

12 hours ago, David Rowan said:

Is it okay if I ask the board if it is okay if we add an item to the agenda since we are using an agenda right now? 

If you are operating under small board rules, the chair can make motions.  I assume that's what you meant by "ask"--to move that the item be added.

Or just move to accept the resignation under New Business.

Edited March 11, 2021 at 03:37 AM by Gary Novosielski