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nepotism


Guest joyce

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this has been a year ago,i have just discovered the possiblity of nepotism. the council paid this persons son money because of help in decorating the town and no one else. this was the son of one of the city council,his father is on the board and voted to give him money for his donation of time to the city.it was voted by all of the councilmen on the board. i didn't think it was right but it has bothered me,i wasn't sure.

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this has been a year ago,i have just discovered the possiblity of nepotism. the council paid this persons son money because of help in decorating the town and no one else. this was the son of one of the city council,his father is on the board and voted to give him money for his donation of time to the city.it was voted by all of the councilmen on the board. i didn't think it was right but it has bothered me,i wasn't sure.

So far as RONR is concerned, the member should have abstained but he cannot be compelled to do so. Public bodies often have more elaborate "conflict of interest" rules. You might wish to consult an attorney.

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  • 2 years later...
Under Roberts rules can a President who acts as a tie breaker have a wife who is on the board in which he presides?

I'll assume this is not a question about the appropriateness of a marriage proposal.

There is no rule in RONR that prohibits relatives from serving on the same board.

Also, I would hope that this president is not so much a "tie breaker" as he is one who does not exercise his right to vote except when his vote would affect the outcome.

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I just wanted to clarify that what you are saying is that the president who acts as tie breaker for a split board can have a wife on that board? Doesnt seem right.

Well, enough members thought it was okay that they (presumably) elected a wife and husband.

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I just wanted to clarify that what you are saying is that the president who acts as tie breaker for a split board can have a wife on that board? Doesnt seem right.

If your organization wishes to formalize that this isn't right, they can place a requirement in the bylaws that you can't have a married couple on the board (but be careful of how you word it). RONR leaves it up to the members to decide when voting - the power of democracy.

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I just wanted to clarify that what you are saying is that the president who acts as tie breaker for a split board can have a wife on that board? Doesnt seem right.

If you're asking whether it's prohibited according to RONR, no, it's not. Apparently, the General believed that If it doesn't seem right to the voters, they will vote accordingly.

But just to continue to clarify, presidents do not merely act as "tie breakers" according to RONR either, so it's entirely possible that according to the rules of your organization, things are different. We'd have no way of knowing that.

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When the board of directors is split, the president does act as a tie breaker. The members do not vote for a COB just the board does...

Are you Guest_Joyce or Guest_John, providing more insight/input to either of the questions posed by them? Or are you just Guest_Guest adding a little personal insight of your own, that requires no response?

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Also, I would hope that this president is not so much a "tie breaker" as he is one who does not exercise his right to vote except when his vote would affect the outcome.

What Tim is cryptically telling you is the chair could also vote to cause the tie. If the vote ends in a tie, the motion is not adopted.

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And when there is a tie vote, the chair can leave it there and the motion is defeated. He does not have to "break the tie" at all, since no tie needs to be broken. And the concept applies appropriately to any voting threshold where the chair's single vote could possibly affect the result, not just "tie votes."

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When the board of directors is split, the president does act as a tie breaker.

It's more complicated than that. See FAQ #1.

The members do not vote for a COB just the board does...

I'm assuming "COB" stands for "Chairman of the Board," or something to that effect. This is not necessarily correct. Whether the Chairman of the Board is elected by the board or by the society will depend on the society's rules.

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And when there is a tie vote, the chair can leave it there and the motion is defeated. He does not have to "break the tie" at all, since no tie needs to be broken. And the concept applies appropriately to any voting threshold where the chair's single vote could possibly affect the result, not just "tie votes."

Good point.

For instance, if the Vote was 3-2 in Favor, the Chair could Vote No to cause the tie (and defeat) of the motion.

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When the board of directors is split, the president does act as a tie breaker. The members do not vote for a COB just the board does...

Are you saying that that's what the rules of your society say, or are you saying that's the way you've always done it?

In either case, that's not what RONR says, so again, you have to interpret your own rules.

Do you have any questions on what's in RONR?

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What Tim is cryptically telling you is the chair could also vote to cause the tie. If the vote ends in a tie, the motion is not adopted.

Less cryptically, I will say that not all questions require a majority vote, so a "tie" and the concept of "tie breaking" may not apply at all, but the chair may still have the opportunity for his vote to affect the outcome.

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