Calling Multiple Questions

[Lanie]

At a contentious meeting last night, there was a motion and a subsidiary motion on the floor.  One of the members was properly recognized and moved to "Call all the questions," to attempt shut down discussion of both motions.  Is that in order? 

[Rob Elsman]

"Call the question" is a non-standard form for making the subsidiary motion, Previous Question.  Previous Question can, indeed, be applied to a series of pending, debatable motions.  So, for example, if there were a main motion and a motion to amend pending, it would be in order for a member to obtain the floor and make the motion, "I move the Previous Question on all pending questions."

Just because the member made the motion using a non-standard form is not an excuse for ruling it out of order.

[Shmuel Gerber]

And don't forget that it requires a two-thirds vote on the motion for the Previous Question in order to close the debate. If this motion does not receive a two-thirds vote, then debate continues just as if the motion had not been made. 

[Lanie]

The motion failed, so it ended up being a non-issue.  I was just curious, because it seemed wrong to discuss multiple motions simultaneously, but now I know better.  Thank you! 

 

[Atul Kapur]

On 2/8/2024 at 3:33 PM, Lanie said:

it seemed wrong to discuss multiple motions simultaneously,

It is wrong to discuss multiple motions simultaneously. You should have been discussing just the amendment at that time (known as the "immediately pending" motion).

However, that does not prevent a motion to call the question on all pending motions (here, the amendment and the main motion). If that motion had been adopted, you would then have conducted two separate votes sequentially (not at the same time): first the vote on the amendment then -- immediately without any further debate, as per the terms of the Previous Question -- the vote on the main motion. 

[Josh Martin]

On 2/8/2024 at 12:01 PM, Lanie said:

At a contentious meeting last night, there was a motion and a subsidiary motion on the floor.  One of the members was properly recognized and moved to "Call all the questions," to attempt shut down discussion of both motions.  Is that in order? 

Yes, it is in order to move the Previous Question on all pending motions. If this is adopted by a 2/3 vote, debate would end and the assembly would immediately vote on the amendment, and would then immediately vote on the main motion (as amended or as originally moved, depending on the result of the vote on the amendment).

On 2/8/2024 at 2:33 PM, Lanie said:

I was just curious, because it seemed wrong to discuss multiple motions simultaneously, but now I know better. 

No, you were correct on that point. If the amendment is pending, the assembly should only be discussing the amendment, not other aspects of the main motion.