ex officio request by chair

[lipets]

We have a special committee of 7 the chair is requesting a certain person be added as ex officio member,

the bylaws appear to be silent on the issue other than to say the president is an ex officio on all committees.

This making 8 can result in tie.

How are ex officio members added?

Is it by the president who appointed the committee in the first place?

Is it by the chair without a vote of the members?

Several of us don't want this person on the committee with the power to vote.

Can someone be added just as a consultant (not in the bylaws)

In other words we don't mind anyone's input just not the power to make motions or vote.

We have a meeting tonight??????

tks

Jim

[hmtcastle]

This making 8 can result in tie.

Even a body with an odd number of members can have a tie vote. A member might be absent or a present member might abstain from voting. A tie vote simply defeats a motion so it's not a big deal anyway.

How are ex officio members added? Is it by the president who appointed the committee in the first place? Is it by the chair without a vote of the members?

Generally, by amending the bylaws.

But you may be misunderstanding the meaning of "ex-officio". See FAQ #2.

[lipets]

Sorry I don't fully understand how are they added?

What about bringing them in as a consultant to the committee?

[abcdave]

You can't add a "certain person" as an ex-officio member - you can only add a certain office - and this would have to be done through the bylaws.

The committee is free to consult with this individual - whether or not you name a "consultant".

Why not have this person appointed to the committee the same way the other members were appointed? As Mr. Mountcastle pointed out, there is no reason to require an odd number of members.

[Trina]

We have a special committee of 7 the chair is requesting a certain person be added as ex officio member,

the bylaws appear to be silent on the issue other than to say the president is an ex officio on all committees.

This making 8 can result in tie.

How are ex officio members added?

Is it by the president who appointed the committee in the first place?

Is it by the chair without a vote of the members?

Several of us don't want this person on the committee with the power to vote.

Can someone be added just as a consultant (not in the bylaws)

In other words we don't mind anyone's input just not the power to make motions or vote.

We have a meeting tonight??????

tks

Jim

How was the committee formed in the first place (i.e. what is the wording of the motion that brought the special committee into existence... or perhaps your bylaws dictate how special committees are to be populated)? If another member is to be added to the committee, then the appointing power remains the same as it was at the initial formation of the committee. If the wording of the motion forming the committee specifies the exact number of members to be 7, then that's that -- the motion would have to be amended before adding anyone.

Unless the chair of the committee was given sole power to appoint committee members (and it doesn't sound like it, from the facts you describe), he doesn't have any special rights in this regard.

If you don't really want another full voting member, the committee (like any assembly) is free to invite guests, and to give a guest permission to participate in discussion (but not to vote). Such an invitation is the choice of the assembly (the committee), not of the presiding officer (committee chair).

'Ex officio' doesn't really seem to have anything to do with the situation you're describing. And, as Mr. Mountcastle pointed out, don't worry about the odd versus even number of members in making your decision -- tie votes just aren't that big a deal -- a tie vote on a motion simply means that the motion is defeated (no confusion or ambiguity).

[Guest Jimbo2010-a]

I couldn't login on a different computer so I had to login this way

This is the error on 2 other computers???

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The committee was formed by the presidents appointment.

So I assumed the chair will ask the president to appoint him??

Wouldn't the committee chair need a majority vote of this committee in order to do that?

[hmtcastle]

The committee was formed by the presidents appointment. So I assumed the chair will ask the president to appoint him? Wouldn't the committee chair need a majority vote of this committee in order to do that?

If the president has the authority to appoint members to the committee, he can do so without the consent of the chair. The chair (or any member of the committee or anyone else) is free to ask the president to appoint additional members. The president is free to deny the request.

[Gary Novosielski]

The committee was formed by the presidents appointment.

So I assumed the chair will ask the president to appoint him?? Wouldn't the committee chair need a majority vote of this committee in order to do that?

Well, the fact that the president appointed the committee doesn't really tell us what we need to know. Where did his authority to do this come from? There are a few possibilities:

The bylaws may give the president the power to appoint committees whenever he wants. This would be pretty rare, but if you have it, you have it.

The membership may have created a committee of a certain number, to be appointed by the president. In that case the president can't increase the number.

The membership may have created a committee, but left all the details to the president, so that he could later decide to increase the size, and appoint someone new.

The committee could vote to request an additional member. The committee chair has no power to do that on behalf of the committee, but if he's got the president's ear, there's no rule against the two of them having a conversation, and convincing the president to act, but ONLY if the president really has the authority to do things like that.

And if you're appointing a particular person, that is the exact opposite of ex-officio, which does not depend on who the person is, only what office they hold.

[lipets]

Well, the fact that the president appointed the committee doesn't really tell us what we need to know. Where did his authority to do this come from? There are a few possibilities:

The bylaws may give the president the power to appoint committees whenever he wants. This would be pretty rare, but if you have it, you have it.

yes

The committee could vote to request an additional member. The committee chair has no power to do that on behalf of the committee, but if he's got the president's ear, there's no rule against the two of them having a conversation, and convincing the president to act, but ONLY if the president really has the authority to do things like that.

Wow you're on target here.

And if you're appointing a particular person, that is the exact opposite of ex-officio, which does not depend on who the person is, only what office they hold.

Well it was heated debate, none of us wanted voting or motion ability, bottom line is we agreed to have this person come onboard as a consultant.