Guest Chris Hurd Posted August 21, 2010 at 11:34 PM Report Share Posted August 21, 2010 at 11:34 PM I am the Vice President of a Condo association who is also newly in charge of parliamentary procedures. I have been reading the rules and would like clarification where to find proper procedure. How do we, as a Board of Trustees, properly vote in our public session on actions that were taken in executive session? Specifically, we approved an improvement project for the community in executive session that will be completed before the next public meeting. Do we have to vote on it in public session, and if so, what would this action be classified as? Assistance where to find this in RONR would be greatly appreciated. Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hmtcastle Posted August 21, 2010 at 11:39 PM Report Share Posted August 21, 2010 at 11:39 PM How do we, as a Board of Trustees, properly vote in our public session on actions that were taken in executive session? Specifically, we approved an improvement project for the community in executive session that will be completed before the next public meeting. Do we have to vote on it in public session, and if so, what would this action be classified as?Nothing in RONR prohibits an assembly (e.g. a board) from doing in executive session what it can do in "open" session. And vice versa. No need to do it twice and no need for any "approval".As always, your rules may vary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chris Hurd Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:05 PM Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:05 PM Thank you for the reply, that is what I thought in the first place. One other question though. If we wanted to approve an action in our open or public session for the sake of transparency of what we do in executive session, what would we call that in our meeting agenda, would it be classified as new or unfinished business, and would a motion to approve have to be made? Thanks again for the clarifications. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hmtcastle Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:28 PM Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:28 PM If we wanted to approve an action in our open or public session for the sake of transparency of what we do in executive session, what would we call that in our meeting agenda, would it be classified as new or unfinished business, and would a motion to approve have to be made? Thanks again for the clarifications.I think it would be improper to make a motion to "approve" a motion that has already been adopted. What would happen, for example, if the motion to approve was defeated? I understand that probably wouldn't happen but, still, it's probably not a good idea.Why not simply announce the results of the motion in open session? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim Goldsworthy Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:46 PM Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:46 PM If we wanted to approve an action in our open or public session for the sake of transparency of what we do in executive session, what would we call that in our meeting agenda, would it be classified as new or unfinished business, and would a motion to approve have to be made?A few notes.1. The class of business has nothing to do with "executive session". You can hold executive session for any class of business: e.g., minutes approval; officer reports; etc.2. "A motion to approve" is bad form, in most cases. You would make the actual motion, which is meant to be "approved" (i.e., adopted). For example, you would never say, "I make a motion to approve the holding of a Fourth of July picnic." You would say, "I move that we hold a Fourth of July picnic."Remember, you are dealing with a rule which is not based on anything within Robert's Rules of Order. So any attempt at compliance with a rule NO ONE HAS READ is just about impossible. - You cannot obey what you don't know. The rule which requires you "to not vote" ought to specify how one *is* to vote on that which cannot be voted on in executive session.With that said, I will offer one possible scenario.Assuming "the rule you don't know" is worded like so: "You cannot vote in executive session"; then I think you should do NO VOTING AT ALL in executive session.That is, you discuss, discuss, and discuss, until you don't need to discuss any more, within executive session.And then you would adopt a motion to exit, or cease, executive session.And then you would conduct the vote, as if you never held executive session.Let me put the steps into a numbered form:1. You adopt a motion to go into executive session.2. You talk, to exhaustion of the issue, or talk to exhuastion of yourselves.3. You adopt a motion to leave executive session.4. The chair entertains the motion, just as if you never bothered with executive session.That is one way to obey such a rule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chris Hurd Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:54 PM Report Share Posted August 22, 2010 at 02:54 PM Thank you all for your help, this will make our sessions run much smoother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gary c Tesser Posted August 23, 2010 at 12:22 PM Report Share Posted August 23, 2010 at 12:22 PM Thank you all for your help, this will make our sessions run much smoother.As you're newly in charge of parliamentary procedures, let me urge you to get your copy of RONR - In Brief,and read it **today**. Let not the sun go down before you finish your first reading. Do not put this off: you are in charge of parliamentary procedures, you must have a grounding in them.And the RONR pages are p. 92 - 93. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David A Foulkes Posted August 23, 2010 at 06:09 PM Report Share Posted August 23, 2010 at 06:09 PM As you're newly in charge of parliamentary procedures, let me urge you to get your copy of RONR - In Brief,and read it **today**. Let not the sun go down before you finish your first reading. Do not put this off: you are in charge of parliamentary procedures, you must have a grounding in them.And the RONR pages are p. 92 - 93.Guesting now, Gary? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary c Tesser Posted August 24, 2010 at 07:56 PM Report Share Posted August 24, 2010 at 07:56 PM Guesting now, Gary?(I was on the road, and don't have my password memorized.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ann Rempel Posted August 25, 2010 at 03:38 AM Report Share Posted August 25, 2010 at 03:38 AM (I was on the road, and don't have my password memorized.)Write it on your hand before leaving again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hmtcastle Posted August 25, 2010 at 10:46 AM Report Share Posted August 25, 2010 at 10:46 AM Write it on your hand before leaving again.Or post it here and we'll remind you as needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Ralph Posted August 25, 2010 at 02:44 PM Report Share Posted August 25, 2010 at 02:44 PM If you want to publicize the adoption of some motion that was adopted in executive session, you could go into executive session again and adopt a motion that whatever part of the minutes of the meeting should be published on your website, or what-not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim Goldsworthy Posted August 25, 2010 at 07:09 PM Report Share Posted August 25, 2010 at 07:09 PM Or post it here and we'll remind you as needed.Yeah ... Sure ... Great idea ... Some web sites offer "clues" to prompt the user's memory.Let's do that!GcT's password is an amalgam of "Fluffy the Cat" and "Fahrenheit 451".But I dare not reveal the algorithm to combine the two elements! That wouldn't be right! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary c Tesser Posted August 26, 2010 at 12:03 PM Report Share Posted August 26, 2010 at 12:03 PM [Mr Mt:] Or post it here and we'll remind you as needed.Yeah ... Sure ... Great idea ... Some web sites offer "clues" to prompt the user's memory.Let's do that!GcT's password is an amalgam of "Fluffy the Cat" and "Fahrenheit 451".But I dare not reveal the algorithm to combine the two elements! That wouldn't be right! LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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