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Agenda for annual meeting


wilyoung

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Our bylaws are a bit sketchy on requirements for our annual (only scheduled membership) meeting. It requires a notice to be delivered to every member but doesn't specify the content of that notice. It goes on to say "Any petition which has been posted in the clubhouse and signed by 35 members and stating that it is to be considered at the next Annual Meeting and then presented to the Board of Directors, will be considered at the next Annual meeting." (Yes, that is actually how it is worded.) Nothing else is said about the agenda in the "Annual Meeting" section of the bylaws. For instance it doesn't say anything like, "Only items submitted by petition will be considered ..."

However, the sections on amending the bylaws and standing rules do require that these proposed amendments be included in the meeting notice.

Without any other restrictions on the agenda, can a member move to amend the agenda to add other items which are not proposed by the BoD at the time of the meeting without going through the petition and notification process? Ref. FAQ Question 14

Thanks for your help

Wil Young

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I'd say that things are clear as to what is required - agenda-wise: a 35-sig petition is guaranteed to come up.

But that's it. Since a prior-prepared agenda is not required by RONR nor, apparently, by your rules, you are free to take up whatever else is appropriate.

And, as ever, remember that the final authority on bylaw interpretation belongs with your association, not some parl-geek on the Internet.

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I realize the final authority on bylaws interpretation is up to the membership (Although our Board tries to reserve that to themselves without bylaws authority to do so.) And I wouldn't rely solely on an internet parl-geek's opinion. A few of us have been scouring the RONR (our bylaws designated parliamentary reference) for help in making that interpretation. What I was hoping for was a RONR cite that we may have missed which would be more definitive.

On a side note, I believe there should be a sticky at the top of this discussion forum that requests that responders give RONR cites whenever answering inquiries. Without such a cite ones opinion doesn't cary much weight.

Wil

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I realize the final authority on bylaws interpretation is up to the membership (Although our Board tries to reserve that to themselves without bylaws authority to do so.) And I wouldn't rely solely on an internet parl-geek's opinion. A few of us have been scouring the NONR (our bylaws designated parliamentary reference) for help in making that interpretation. What I was hoping for was a NONR cite that we may have missed which would be more definitive.

On a side note, I believe there should be a sticky at the top of this discussion forum that requests that responders give NONR cites whenever answering inquiries. Without such a cite ones opinion doesn't hold much weight.

Wil

This forum is for Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised (10th Ed.) which may or may not be your parliamentary authority (I don't know if by "NONR" you are referring to RONR). If RONR is indeed your parliamentary authority I would direct you to Principle of Interpretation #1 which is on RONR pp. 570-571.

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On a side note, I believe there should be a sticky at the top of this discussion forum that requests that responders give RONR cites whenever answering inquiries. Without such a cite ones opinion doesn't cary much weight.

While some responders are more scrupulous than others when it comes to citing RONR, the answers to many (if not most) questions will be found in the bylaws of the particular organization which, as I'm sure you know, can only be properly interpreted in their entirety. Citing a generic rule in RONR that's superseded by a rule in the bylaws would serve no useful purpose.

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On a side note, I believe there should be a sticky at the top of this discussion forum that requests that responders give RONR cites whenever answering inquiries. Without such a cite ones opinion doesn't cary much weight.

It just takes extra time to look up citations when we can answer all but the most obscure queries from memory, and we occasionally wonder if the posters here care about citations. We are always be happy to provide a citation if someone asks for one. Nevertheless, your reminder should help me get back in the habit for a little while.

Our bylaws specify "latest edition", which I understand is the 10th. However, I hear rumors that an 11th edition may be released soon.

You are correct on both counts. The current edition is the 10th, and the 11th edition is expected to be unveiled at the NAP convention in late September.

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