Absents of the secretary

[Tomm]

In the absents of the secretary, who notifies the chair as whether a quorum is present?

I assume it's ultimately up to chair alone to determine that? 

[Richard Brown]

On 4/5/2023 at 4:34 PM, Tomm said:

In the absents of the secretary, who notifies the chair as whether a quorum is present?

I assume it's ultimately up to chair alone to determine that? 

It is up to the chair to determine whether a quorum is present. I can’t quote the section at the moment but it provides essentially that the chair shall call the meeting to order after determining that a quorum is present. 

[Tomm]

On 4/5/2023 at 3:17 PM, Richard Brown said:

I can’t quote the section at the moment

Found it.... 40:11

Thanks

[Richard Brown]

On 4/5/2023 at 5:18 PM, Tomm said:

Found it.... 40:11

Thanks

See also 30:15 3:15 (RONR 12 th Ed.) 

Edited April 6, 2023 at 02:04 PM by Richard Brown
Corrected citation as indicated

[Tomm]

On 4/5/2023 at 3:23 PM, Richard Brown said:

See also 30:15 (RONR 12 th Ed.) 

 My copy only goes up to 30:11 Hmmmm?

[Richard Brown]

On 4/6/2023 at 8:41 AM, Tomm said:

 My copy only goes up to 30:11 Hmmmm?

I’m sorry, I meant to type 3:15, not 30:15. 

[Gary Novosielski]

On 4/5/2023 at 5:34 PM, Tomm said:

In the [absence] of the secretary, who notifies the chair as whether a quorum is present?

I assume it's ultimately up to chair alone to determine that? 

The secretary may sometimes notify the chair how many members are present, after completing a roll call.

It is the chair who ultimately determines whether that number constitutes a quorum.

In the absence of the secretary, who takes that roll call?  Since a secretary is required, the assembly would presumably elect a secretary pro-tem as the first item of business, and that person would take the roll call and would take the minutes of that meeting.  Having no secretary at all is not an option.

[Josh Martin]

On 4/7/2023 at 5:14 PM, Gary Novosielski said:

The secretary may sometimes notify the chair how many members are present, after completing a roll call.

It is the chair who ultimately determines whether that number constitutes a quorum.

In the absence of the secretary, who takes that roll call?  Since a secretary is required, the assembly would presumably elect a secretary pro-tem as the first item of business, and that person would take the roll call and would take the minutes of that meeting.  Having no secretary at all is not an option.

I concur with all of this, although I would note that a roll call is not required by RONR, although it may well be this is required by rule or custom of the assembly.

In the absence of a roll call, quorum may be determined by other means. Often it is done simply by counting the number of members present. Depending on the size of the assembly and of the quorum, the presence of a quorum may even be readily apparent with a quick glance, and an exact count is not necessary.

Edited April 8, 2023 at 02:11 PM by Josh Martin