Can a chair, for a board of supervisors, assign seats to the other supervisors?

[Guest Guest]

Hi, 

Can the board chair assign seats to the other supervisors?

If so, if a supervisor ignores that assignment, can the chair have that individual removed from the meeting?

Thanks in advance. 

[Richard Brown]

This is a matter not covered in RONR and is a matter for the Board of Supervisors itself to determine.

[Josh Martin]

On 11/16/2022 at 12:49 PM, Guest Guest said:

Can the board chair assign seats to the other supervisors?

RONR grants no such authority to the board chair. The board may adopt its own rules on this matter if it wishes.

On 11/16/2022 at 12:49 PM, Guest Guest said:

If so, if a supervisor ignores that assignment, can the chair have that individual removed from the meeting?

No. Even in the event that the board's rules authorize the chair to assign seats, the chair, acting alone, lacks the power to order a member of the board removed from the meeting. Only the board itself may order a member to be removed from the meeting - and I am extremely skeptical that sitting in the wrong seat, in and of itself, is sufficient grounds for such an action.

"Although the chair has no authority to impose a penalty or to order the offending member removed from the hall, the assembly has that power. It should be noted in this connection that in any case of an offense against the assembly occurring in a meeting, there is no need for a formal trial provided that any penalty is imposed promptly after the breach (cf. 23:5), since the witnesses are all present and make up the body that is to determine the penalty." RONR (12th ed.) 61:13

Since it appears this may be a public body of some sort, I expect there may also be legal issues involved, particularly in regard to the second question. I would advise that the board seek legal advice.

Edited November 16, 2022 at 07:33 PM by Josh Martin

[Richard Brown]

On 11/16/2022 at 12:49 PM, Guest Guest said:

If so, if a supervisor ignores that assignment, can the chair have that individual removed from the meeting?

I overlooked this question in my original response so did not address it.  I agree with Mr. Martin's response. I did not mean to imply or to say that RONR has nothing to say about removing members from meetings!

[Gary Novosielski]

On 11/16/2022 at 1:49 PM, Guest Guest said:

Hi, 

Can the board chair assign seats to the other supervisors?

If so, if a supervisor ignores that assignment, can the chair have that individual removed from the meeting?

Thanks in advance. 

I don't know of any rules regarding seat assignment specifically, but the general rule [61:6] in RONR is that an assembly has control over its meeting hall, which suggests to me that seating assignments would fall under this umbrella.

In other words, a board chair would be unlikely to have such a power without some duly adopted rule.  It would be within the power of the board, by majority vote, to direct a seating arrangement, or to empower the chair to do so, but it's not something the chair could take upon himself. 

And the chair may not order a member to be removed, except in the case of disruption, and then only with the consent of the assembly.