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Amending By-Laws


Guest Tammy

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On Friday we have called a special meeting of our club to propose an amendment to our by-laws. This amendment would change the definition of a "member" from "couple" to "single or couple". This meeting on Friday is the mandatory 30-day notice and we will vote on December 17 at our next quarterly meeting. Some club members are saying that we must have discussion at this meeting, and some are saying it takes place at the meeting where we actually vote. I am inexperienced with the rules of order, so please give me some feedback. Do we open the meeting for discussion now or in 30 days when we have the vote? Thanks.

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On Friday we have called a special meeting of our club to propose an amendment to our by-laws. This amendment would change the definition of a "member" from "couple" to "single or couple". This meeting on Friday is the mandatory 30-day notice and we will vote on December 17 at our next quarterly meeting. Some club members are saying that we must have discussion at this meeting, and some are saying it takes place at the meeting where we actually vote. I am inexperienced with the rules of order, so please give me some feedback. Do we open the meeting for discussion now or in 30 days when we have the vote? Thanks.

You're looking for trouble if you define a "member" as sometimes one person and sometimes two. In RONR a member is a person. It may be impossible to interpret a large plurality of rules if that assumption is invalidated.

Good luck.

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This meeting on Friday is the mandatory 30-day notice and we will vote on December 17 at our next quarterly meeting.

If the special meeting was called to give notice then all you can do at the special meeting is give notice. I trust the bylaws permit/require giving notice at a special meeting. Otherwise you could have just mailed the notice.

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We meet twice/month, so for our purpose, meeting at the 2nd dance of the month for a vote at the 2nd dance of the next month IS considered 30 days' notice.

Thank you

Just gotta go on record as saying I like this thinking. Not sure how it would hold up to a Point of Order, but who cares..... there's dancin' in the ol' town tonight! (or in a couple nights, anyway)

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On Friday we have called a special meeting of our club to propose an amendment to our by-laws.

We meet twice/month, so for our purpose, meeting at the 2nd dance of the month for a vote at the 2nd dance of the next month IS considered 30 days' notice.

Is this a special meeting or a regular meeting?

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Is this a special meeting or a regular meeting?

It's a regular dance (3rd Friday), but we generally would not have a meeting (which takes place at the last dance of the calendar quarter). Called meetings always take place at a regularly scheduled dance. So it's a regular dance, with a called special meeting, this Friday. Next month's meeting is a scheduled regular meeting. Does that make a difference to this issue? I'm totally in the dark about this. Thanks for your help.

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Just gotta go on record as saying I like this thinking. Not sure how it would hold up to a Point of Order, but who cares..... there's dancin' in the ol' town tonight! (or in a couple nights, anyway)

Ha! You would be amazed at how indignant some of those square dancers get when you step out of line on something like a by-laws change. I'm just paddling to keep up! Thanks for all the comments - they are very helpful.

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We meet twice/month, so for our purpose, meeting at the 2nd dance of the month for a vote at the 2nd dance of the next month IS considered 30 days' notice.

It's a regular dance (3rd Friday), but we generally would not have a meeting (which takes place at the last dance of the calendar quarter). Called meetings always take place at a regularly scheduled dance. So it's a regular dance, with a called special meeting, this Friday. Next month's meeting is a scheduled regular meeting. Does that make a difference to this issue?

Common sense would suggest 30 days is 30 days. Setting that aside, however, the motion will be open to debate at the meeting when it is pending, not when notice is provided.

Whether the meeting is a special or regular meeting doesn't make a difference for this purpose so far as RONR is concerned.

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