quorum

[Guest Debbie]

when you have three co-chairs, do they all count towards the quorum number or is it just one that counts

[Dan Honemann]

On 3/9/2023 at 9:04 AM, Guest Debbie said:

when you have three co-chairs, do they all count towards the quorum number or is it just one that counts

Each one of them who is a member of the body that is meeting counts in determining the presence of a quorum, even although, presumably, only one of them actually presides during the meeting.

[Guest Debbie]

Thank you for your response.  Do Ad hoc members of a committee count toward a quorum?

[Richard Brown]

On 3/14/2023 at 5:40 AM, Guest Debbie said:

Thank you for your response.  Do Ad hoc members of a committee count toward a quorum?

What do you mean by "Ad hoc members"?   Are you referring to ex-officio members?  I am not familiar with the term "ad hoc member".

If you are referring to ex-officio members, they GENERALLY count toward the quorum, but there are a few exceptions.  We need more information as to just who these ex-officio members are and how they came to be ex-officio members.  In particular, we need to know whether they are members of the society.

[Guest Debbie]

They are not ex-officio members but are members of the society.

[Richard Brown]

On 3/15/2023 at 8:40 AM, Guest Debbie said:

They are not ex-officio members but are members of the society.

You still haven’t told us what you mean by “ad hoc members“.  

Edited to add: that is not a term found in RONR. There are “ad hoc committees“, which are more commonly known as special committees, but there is no mention of “ad hoc members“. We do not know what you mean when you use that term.
 

Edited March 15, 2023 at 01:48 PM by Richard Brown
Added last paragraph

[Guest Debbie]

Thank you for your responses.  I will have to investigate further myself.  They are not an actual committee or special committee.  They have just always been listed on the membership list as ad hoc members and always vote on motions.  We have never been in a position when the quorum would depend on their attendance but was just thinking ahead to the time when  it would.

You have been very helpful.

[Josh Martin]

On 3/15/2023 at 11:00 AM, Guest Debbie said:

Thank you for your responses.  I will have to investigate further myself.  They are not an actual committee or special committee.  They have just always been listed on the membership list as ad hoc members and always vote on motions.  We have never been in a position when the quorum would depend on their attendance but was just thinking ahead to the time when  it would.

I do think it would be advisable to find out what on earth "ad hoc members" means.

For your present question, however, if these persons have the rights of membership, including the right to vote, I am inclined to think that these persons are "members" in the sense that term is used in RONR, and they would therefore be counted for purposes of determining the presence of a quorum, unless something in your rules suggests otherwise.