May a fully empowered board suspend the chairman of the board from chairing a meeting of the board?

[Nathan Zook]

Bylaws provisions:

The Executive Board shall:
A. Manage the affairs of the Central Committee;
B. Exercise the powers and perform the duties of the Central Committee between
meetings of the Central Committee, except as expressly exempted by these Bylaws;

...

The Central Committee Chairman shall:
A. Be the Chief Executive Officer of the Central Committee and shall preside at all meetings
of the Executive Board and Central Committee;

...

 

A dispute arose between the bulk of the executive board and the chairman.  There was then a motion to suspend the rules and declare the chair vacant.

Is such a motion in order?  Certainly, it would be in order for the assembly to do so, but can a committee (in general)?  If a committee generally cannot, do the empowering provisions above suffice to allow the executive board to do so?

 

 

[Richard Brown]

On 11/17/2023 at 2:21 AM, Nathan Zook said:

Bylaws provisions:

The Executive Board shall:
A. Manage the affairs of the Central Committee;
B. Exercise the powers and perform the duties of the Central Committee between
meetings of the Central Committee, except as expressly exempted by these Bylaws;

...

The Central Committee Chairman shall:
A. Be the Chief Executive Officer of the Central Committee and shall preside at all meetings
of the Executive Board and Central Committee;

...

 

A dispute arose between the bulk of the executive board and the chairman.  There was then a motion to suspend the rules and declare the chair vacant.

Is such a motion in order?  Certainly, it would be in order for the assembly to do so, but can a committee (in general)?  If a committee generally cannot, do the empowering provisions above suffice to allow the executive board to do so?

 

 

If it is the regular presiding officer, a motion to declare the chair vacant is not in order. However, using the procedure described in 62:12 RONR (12th Ed.), a motion, to suspend the rules and remove the chair from presiding during all or part of a session is in order. 
 

here is the text of 62:12: “62:12 If the chair is not an appointed or elected chairman pro tem, a motion to declare the chair vacant is not in order. However, a motion can be made to Suspend the Rules so as to take away from him the authority to preside during all or part of a given session.5 When such a motion is made and seconded, after stating the motion he must turn the chair over to another following the procedure described in 43:29, and the remedy for refusal or failure to do so is that the motion may be put to a vote by its maker.”

[Gary Novosielski]

On 11/17/2023 at 3:21 AM, Nathan Zook said:

Bylaws provisions:

The Executive Board shall:
A. Manage the affairs of the Central Committee;
B. Exercise the powers and perform the duties of the Central Committee between
meetings of the Central Committee, except as expressly exempted by these Bylaws;

...

The Central Committee Chairman shall:
A. Be the Chief Executive Officer of the Central Committee and shall preside at all meetings
of the Executive Board and Central Committee;

...

 

A dispute arose between the bulk of the executive board and the chairman.  There was then a motion to suspend the rules and declare the chair vacant.

Is such a motion in order?  Certainly, it would be in order for the assembly to do so, but can a committee (in general)?  If a committee generally cannot, do the empowering provisions above suffice to allow the executive board to do so?

 

 

It should be understood that such an Executive Committee or Central Committee is not a true committee, but is actually a board in all but name, and is therefore subject to the rules of a board, i.e., an assembly, and not a committee.

Edited November 17, 2023 at 01:53 PM by Gary Novosielski

[Josh Martin]

On 11/17/2023 at 2:21 AM, Nathan Zook said:

A dispute arose between the bulk of the executive board and the chairman.  There was then a motion to suspend the rules and declare the chair vacant.

Is such a motion in order? 

The motion was in order, but worded improperly.

The motion to "declare the chair vacant" is used when a Chair Pro Tempore is serving.

When the regular presiding officer is chairing the meeting, a motion to suspend the rules is required, which takes a 2/3 vote for adoption. The terminology "declare the chair vacant" is not used in those circumstances.

On 11/17/2023 at 2:21 AM, Nathan Zook said:

Certainly, it would be in order for the assembly to do so, but can a committee (in general)?

Well, first of all, the Executive Board is a board, not a committee, so it doesn't matter what a committee can or can't do. Additionally, a board is a type of assembly.

In any event, my view is that the motion to suspend the rules and remove the regular presiding officer for the duration of the current meeting is in order in boards and committees. This is true, in my view, regardless of the extent of the authority granted to the board or committee. Choosing a chair for a particular meeting relates solely to the board's (or committee's) own operations.

On 11/17/2023 at 2:21 AM, Nathan Zook said:

If a committee generally cannot, do the empowering provisions above suffice to allow the executive board to do so?

N/A - see above.

Edited November 17, 2023 at 04:54 PM by Josh Martin