alternate member of a committee

[Guest rblackburn361@outlook.com]

If someone is elected as an alternate member of a committee, what is that person's role.  Does the alternate member attend meetings of the committee, and have full voice and vote capabilities?  Or is the alternate member on "standby" to fill a vacancy, if one should occur?

[Rob Elsman]

The role of an alternate committee member is exactly what is defined in the organization's bylaws or the motion establishing the committee, and nothing more.  Nothing in RONR (12th ed.) gives such an alternate any particular role at all.

[Richard Brown]

Agreeing with Mr. Elsman, the answer to this question must be found in your own bylaws and rules. RONR grants an alternate no status.  However, I will add that it is rather customary for alternates to be permitted to sit in on the committee meetings, but the role that the alternate has is wholly dependent on your own rules and what authority the committee or the parent assembly wants to grant to the alternate.  An alternate who is just sitting in on a meeting can often be given the right to speak and to enter in debate, but cannot be given the right to vote unless he is sitting as a full member while replacing an absent member.

[Josh Martin]

On 4/7/2024 at 8:36 AM, Guest rblackburn361@outlook.com said:

If someone is elected as an alternate member of a committee, what is that person's role.  Does the alternate member attend meetings of the committee, and have full voice and vote capabilities?  Or is the alternate member on "standby" to fill a vacancy, if one should occur?

I have no idea, since RONR does not provide for "alternates" for committees. It will be up to your organization to interpret its own rules on these matters.

To the extent it is of assistance, RONR does discuss "alternates" in the context of a convention of delegates. In that context, the role of alternates is to fill in for absent delegates. Alternates in a convention are discussed further in RONR (12th ed.) 58:13-17.

On 4/7/2024 at 12:00 PM, Richard Brown said:

An alternate who is just sitting in on a meeting can often be given the right to speak and to enter in debate, but cannot be given the right to vote unless he is sitting as a full member while replacing an absent member.

We also can't necessarily assume that the role of "alternates" in the organization is to sit as a full member while replacing an absent member. That is (more or less) how alternates in a convention work, but RONR does not discuss "alternates" for a committee. Certainly, that is one possible arrangement, and I have seen that in some organizations.

Another arrangement I have seen in some organizations is that an alternate is on standby to automatically fill a vacancy, if a vacancy arises. However, the alternate does not have the power to fill in for an absent member.

Conceivably, there may be yet other arrangements for alternates.

Edited April 7, 2024 at 06:05 PM by Josh Martin