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Rescind and Expunge


Guest Bob B

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The use of "rescind and expunge" seems to be the "nuclear' option if you don't like a motion that was made at a previous meeting. I'm associated with a federation where a represenative of each state is on the "policy making" board but the membership consists of 24,000 agencies. The board voted on something that we believe would strongly be rejected by the membership. A motion to "rescind and Expunge" would require a vote of the entire membership. Would such a motion only require a second from a board member???

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A motion to "rescind and Expunge" would require a vote of the entire membership. Would such a motion only require a second from a board member???

The motion to rescind and expunge requires a second (from a member of he body that adopted the motion) and the vote of a majority of the entire membership of the body that adopted the motion (not necessarily the entire membership of the organization).

But see also Official Interpretation 2006-13 (though I'm not sure if the general membership's authority to rescind an act of the board extends to rescinding and expunging a motion from the board's minutes, so I'm going to stay tuned).

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The use of "rescind and expunge" seems to be the "nuclear' option if you don't like a motion that was made at a previous meeting....The board voted on something that we believe would strongly be rejected by the membership....

Keep in mind that 'rescind and expunge' does not erase the evidence of the unpopular motion. Rather, the offending words in the minutes are circled, or stricken with a single line (NOT made illegible), and the notation is added that those words were 'rescinded and ordered expunged' (see RONR p. 299). So, it expresses disapproval, but it does not obliterate what was previously done. Rather the opposite, in fact.

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Keep in mind that 'rescind and expunge' does not erase the evidence of the unpopular motion. Rather, the offending words in the minutes are circled, or stricken with a single line (NOT made illegible), and the notation is added that those words were 'rescinded and ordered expunged' (see RONR p. 299). So, it expresses disapproval, but it does not obliterate what was previously done. Rather the opposite, in fact.

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The motion to rescind and expunge requires a second (from a member of he body that adopted the motion) and the vote of a majority of the entire membership of the body that adopted the motion (not necessarily the entire membership of the organization).

But see also Official Interpretation 2006-13 (though I'm not sure if the general membership's authority to rescind an act of the board extends to rescinding and expunging a motion from the board's minutes, so I'm going to stay tuned).

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I'm confused how you can say "of the body that adopted the motion." in this reference. Roberts is specific that "Even a unanimous vote at a meeting is insufficient if that vote is not a majority of the entire membership." Seems to me, someone makes the motion to "Rescind and Expunge from the minutes", someone seconds it and the question then needs to go to the entire membership - not just of the board that voted for the original motion that you're seeking to rescind and expunge.

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I'm confused how you can say "of the body that adopted the motion." in this reference. Roberts is specific that "Even a unanimous vote at a meeting is insufficient if that vote is not a majority of the entire membership." Seems to me, someone makes the motion to "Rescind and Expunge from the minutes", someone seconds it and the question then needs to go to the entire membership - not just of the board that voted for the original motion that you're seeking to rescind and expunge.

A majority of the entire membership is a majority of the total number of those who are members of the voting body at the time of the vote. (Thus, in a society that has both a general membership and an executive board, a "majority of the entire membership" at a board meeting refers to a majority of the membership of the board, not of the society.)

RONR pp. 390-391

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I'm confused how you can say "of the body that adopted the motion." in this reference.

Roberts is specific that "Even a unanimous vote at a meeting is insufficient if that vote is not a majority of the entire membership."

Seems to me, someone makes the motion to "Rescind and Expunge from the minutes", someone seconds it and the question then needs to go to the entire membership - not just of the board that voted for the original motion that you're seeking to rescind and expunge.

Actually, it doesn't "need to go" anywhere.

The rule addressing the vote requirement is for in-meeting voting, not outward bound (mail?) voting.

To elaborate:

If a board were the body of interest, then a unanimous vote of that board (i.e., those present and voting, but with some absent board members away from this meeting) may not be sufficient if the vote is not simultaneously a majority of the membership of that board.

Example:

A board of 20, with a quorum of (say) 10, might vote on the motion "Rescind and Expunge from the Minutes", and achieve a unanimous vote: 10 affirmative, 0 negative.

Yet this unanimous vote is insufficient.

Q. Is this vote of 10-0 "a majority of the membership" of the board?

A. No.

A majority of the membership of the board would be 11.

The unanimous vote (10-0) was short of the threshold, per the rule of Rescind And Expunge From The Minutes.

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