Voting by email

[MapsStrauts]

I am looking to verify rules on a Board voting by email.

The constitution allows voting by email.

1. Does every member of the Board need to agree to vote by email for a vote to take place (knowing that the constitution allows voting by email)?

2. Is the President (who does not vote unless it is to break a tie) included in this request, to vote by email? i.e. can she alone, be the one person to say, I refuse to vote by email.

Thank you for your response.

[Richard Brown]

On 12/13/2022 at 4:33 PM, MapsStrauts said:

1. Does every member of the Board need to agree to vote by email for a vote to take place (knowing that the constitution allows voting by email)?

Not unless your own by laws or rules require it. What do your bylaws say about who can order an email Vote? Sometimes the board itself can order one  and sometimes the president alone can order one. Your own rules should address this issue.  

On 12/13/2022 at 4:33 PM, MapsStrauts said:

2. Is the President (who does not vote unless it is to break a tie) included in this request, to vote by email? i.e. can she alone, be the one person to say, I refuse to vote by email.

Again, that would depend upon your own rules. RONR does not address that specific issue. The president alone would not have the authority to prevent an email vote unless your own rules give her that authority. Any time an organization wants to permit email voting, it should adopt rules providing for how such votes shall be conducted and who may call for a vote by email. It is up to each organization to create its own procedures.
 

[Atul Kapur]

On 12/13/2022 at 5:33 PM, MapsStrauts said:

the President (who does not vote unless it is to break a tie)

This is not in RONR, so is only true if your rules specify this.

[Weldon Merritt]

On 12/13/2022 at 7:48 PM, Atul Kapur said:

This is not in RONR, so is only true if your rules specify this.

More specifically, RONR provides that the chair may vote whenever their vote would make a difference in the outcome. (This applies to whoever in in the chair at the time, who might or might not be the president on any particular occasion.)

[Gary Novosielski]

On 12/13/2022 at 5:33 PM, MapsStrauts said:

I am looking to verify rules on a Board voting by email.

The constitution allows voting by email.

1. Does every member of the Board need to agree to vote by email for a vote to take place (knowing that the constitution allows voting by email)?

2. Is the President (who does not vote unless it is to break a tie) included in this request, to vote by email? i.e. can she alone, be the one person to say, I refuse to vote by email.

Thank you for your response.

Those rules did not come from RONR, so I have to presume that you have adopted rules somewhere that cover that.   RONR simply prohibits voting by email.

[Josh Martin]

On 12/13/2022 at 4:33 PM, MapsStrauts said:

The constitution allows voting by email.

Hopefully your rules say more than that.

RONR has little to say on this subject.

On 12/13/2022 at 4:33 PM, MapsStrauts said:

1. Does every member of the Board need to agree to vote by email for a vote to take place (knowing that the constitution allows voting by email)?

Your rules should answer these sorts of questions. RONR does not have such a requirement, but RONR also does not permit voting by email.

On 12/13/2022 at 4:33 PM, MapsStrauts said:

2. Is the President (who does not vote unless it is to break a tie) included in this request, to vote by email? i.e. can she alone, be the one person to say, I refuse to vote by email.

Well, first you might want to double check to see if your rules in fact provide that the President "does not vote unless it is to break a tie." What RONR says on this matter is more nuanced. See FAQ #1.

After you resolve that, see my response to your first question.

Edited December 15, 2022 at 07:18 PM by Josh Martin

[Alicia Percell, PRP]

Just to add a citation and further emphasis to the advice given above, see the footnote on page 1 of RONR 12th ed.:

"A group that attempts to conduct the deliberative process in writing -- such as by postal mail, electronic mail (e-mail), or facsimile transmission (fax) -- does not constitute a deliberative assembly.  When making decisions by such means, many situations unprecedented in parliamentary law will arise, and many of its rules and customs will not be applicable (see also 9:30-36)."

If your constitution says you can do it, then it's up to your organization to also adopt rules about how it's done, and RONR isn't going to be a lot of help.  You can attempt to approximate concepts in RONR, but it gets messy!  Does it take only a motion and a second?  Or does it take a higher number of members to call for an email vote?  What if someone wants to amend the motion?  What if someone raises a point of order about the motion?  RONR says good luck with that!