Staff seating

[theg333]

I sit on a District Council. Our Corporate Officer is responsible for ensuring accurate minutes and advising on meeting process.  We are a five member Council. There is no elected official designated as Secretary. Under RONR does this mean that our CAO should be seated next to the presiding officer.  This seating was the pattern for years prior but the CAO left the table when it was reoriented so Council faced the public.  The table has now been returned to its original position so we can see one another and I would like to have the CAO return to the table when I am presiding chair.  This may be opposed by colleagues.

[J. J.]

Does your CAO take the minutes? 

[theg333]

The Deputy CAO manages the video recording, minute taking and also is called upon for process questions. 

[Gary Novosielski]

Whoever is serving in the role of recording officer should be seated adjacent to the presiding officer.  

What possible objection do you anticipate?

Edited November 17, 2023 at 01:57 PM by Gary Novosielski

[theg333]

Our procedural bylaws are silent on the topic (but in this case we revert to RONR).  Perhaps that some other local Councils arrange seating differently (but not sure of their procedural rules and bylaws).  Is this not within the prerogative of the presiding chair if not in RONR specifically?  

[Josh Martin]

On 11/17/2023 at 11:14 AM, theg333 said:

Our procedural bylaws are silent on the topic (but in this case we revert to RONR).  Perhaps that some other local Councils arrange seating differently (but not sure of their procedural rules and bylaws).  Is this not within the prerogative of the presiding chair if not in RONR specifically?  

We are told this person "is responsible for ensuring accurate minutes and advising on meeting process." So this person is effectively serving as the secretary and as the parliamentarian. RONR advises that both of these persons should be seated near the presiding officer, so they can do their jobs. So what you are asking for, in this instance, is "in RONR specifically."

"The secretary's desk should be placed so that papers can easily be passed to him from the chair during the meeting." RONR (12th ed.) 3:7

"The parliamentarian should be assigned a seat next to the chair, so as to be convenient for consultation in a low voice, but the chair should try to avoid checking with the parliamentarian too frequently or too obviously." RONR (12th ed.) 47:53

However, the wording of these statements leads me to believe they are in the nature of advice rather than a parliamentary rule. So if the assembly wishes to vary from this seating arrangement, it is free to do so. Any seating arrangements beyond the presiding officer, secretary, and parliamentarian are entirely at the discretion of the assembly and are not addressed in RONR.

These matters are not the prerogative of the presiding officer. They are at the discretion of the assembly. I personally think the presiding officer's opinions should be given a great deal of weight in this matter (at least with respect to these offices specifically), but ultimately, the council has the authority to make such determinations as it wishes in regard to seating arrangements, even against the wishes of the presiding officer.

Edited November 17, 2023 at 06:19 PM by Josh Martin

[theg333]

Thank you JoshMartin, Gary Novoseilski and J.J.  Very helpful.

 

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