Reports of Ad-hoc committees Discussion Voting on Reports? The Business (3) Motions: Types Chart of motions...

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1 Procedure at Business Meetings Copyright, 2008 Revised September 2009 Prepared by Vic Brits, DTM

2 Table of Content Procedure at Business Meetings... 1 Terminology:... 1 Business meeting/ Executive meeting... 1 The Call of the Meeting... 1 The minutes... 2 Voting... 2 Unanimous consent... 2 Assembly... 3 Meeting... 3 Motion... 4 Before the meeting... 4 The invitation for motions... 4 The call... 4 The minutes... 5 The agenda... 5 The cement... 5 At the meeting... 5 The quorum... 5 The starting time... 6 The short recess... 6 Article IV... 7 Whose line is it, anyway?... 8 The Business (1)... 8 Acceptance of the agenda... 8 The minutes corrections and approval of... 9 What is recorded today?... 9 Unanimous consent vs. voting... 9 The Business (2): Reports Who must, who may? No report? i

3 Reports of Ad-hoc committees Discussion Voting on Reports? The Business (3) Motions: Types Chart of motions The main motion Seconders Amendments Discussion Interruptive actions Voting The End Unfinished business Next meeting? ii

4 Procedure at Business Meetings (All quotations in this presentation are from the newest Robert s Rules of Order, cited as RONR (10th ed.), p. 123, l Only page numbers and lines will be cited later on.) Terminology: Business meeting/ Executive meeting Call the meeting The minutes Voting Unanimous consent Assembly Meeting Motion SAA: Sergeant-at-Arms; person in charge of order at meetings. VPE, VPM, VPPR: Vice Presidents Education, Membership and Training. Business meeting/ Executive meeting The difference between these two meetings is that a business meeting is a formal meeting held, normally, within a club meeting, with as many members present as possible, meeting to hear reports from the Officers (the Executive) or to determine courses of action to be taken in the name of the club. The Executive meeting is held by the Officers only, at any suitable venue. The Call of the Meeting 1. Most organizations and societies have a Constitution and Bylaws governing their activities. Sometimes you might even find so called House Rules deduced from the Bylaws, but sometimes the Bylaws are the House Rules. 1

5 2. Always start with these documents to establish the correct way in which to call a meeting. Call is the recognized terminology for that activity which has as its purpose the getting together of a certain group of people to meet, debate and decide matters of mutual concern. The call of a meeting is a written notice of the time and place, which is distributed to all members of the organization a reasonable time in advance. (RONR, 10th ed. p. 5, l. 1-4). 3. It follows, therefore, that, even if a meeting time, date and place is announced at a previous meeting, it is not a call, since all who should be called might not have been present. The minutes they should contain mainly a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was said by the members. (p.451, l. 27). A motion which was adopted was done, since it required action by the meeting. Voting The purpose of voting is to establish the will of the majority. The Chairman is only interested in those with an opinion on the matter to be voted on. That is why he asks only for those for and against the matter to vote. The Chairman should not call for abstentions in taking a vote, since the number of members who respond to such a call is meaningless. To abstain means not to vote at all, and a member who makes no response if abstentions are called for abstains just as much as one who responds to that effect. (p.43, l ) There is, thus, nothing to record in the minutes in regard to those who choose to abstain. Unanimous consent 1. This is a method of dealing with decisions where there appears to be little or no opposition to the decision. A good example of this is where the minutes of a meeting are being discussed with a view to their adoption. The 2

6 Chairman will normally ask whether the minutes are a correct portrayal of the previous meetings proceedings. Somebody may raise a hand and point to a small mistake, which is then corrected in pen on the copy of the minutes which the Secretary will sign and keep in the clubs record book. [Incidentally, it is not advisable to retype the minutes. If you do, for whatever reason, make absolutely sure to keep the original (changed in pen) as well.] 2. Now the Chairman may simply say If there are no further corrections, the minutes stand [or are ] approved [or approved as read or approved as corrected ] (p. 343, l ) 3. Unanimous consent does not imply that every member is in favour of the proposed action---it simply means that the opposition feels that it is useless to oppose the matter. (p. 52, l ) 4. Unanimous consent must be distinguished from the somewhat archaic nem con (Latin: nemine contradicente ) meaning with no one dissenting. 5. If one person says I object a vote must be taken. 6. Unanimous consent for any matter can only be achieved with a quorum present at the time. Assembly A gathering of people who may intend having a meeting. Meeting The assembly, meeting to determine, in full and free discussion, courses of action to be taken in the name of the entire group. (my emphasis) (p. 1, l. 8-11). 3

7 Motion A motion is normally a written suggestion or proposal from someone to a meeting for the latter s consideration. It is the starting point for any exchange of thoughts, and it starts with the word that. It should normally be seconded to avoid time wastage on a matter of no importance, and should be read out aloud by the Secretary or Chairman to avoid confusion. When accepted, it becomes a resolution of the meeting. Before the meeting The invitation for motions It is good policy, especially in company where business meetings aren t commonplace, to remind members that motions for matters which require attention are awaited. An example of a correctly worded motion, possibly one already received, may be useful as accompaniment to the invitation. If this suggestion is followed, be very careful to leave enough time to distribute the agenda etc within the required time The call Further to the above note, the Secretary, who, on the relevant authority, normally the President, is the person who calls the meeting, must see to it that the contact list for everybody who may attend is in perfectly updated order. However, the onus is on individual members to see to it that the Secretary has their correct addresses. Written notification of changes to detail is the safe route. Nobody who should be invited must be overlooked. Improper or no notice can render the decisions taken at the meeting invalid. The documents must be posted or ed in good time (refer Call, point 2, italics, above.) Considerable trouble can be made by cantankerous parties who have not received a complete set of documents within the prescribed time before the meeting. A complete set of documents normally consists of the agenda of the forthcoming meeting, showing clearly in the exact wording the proposed motions which will be heard; all the minutes of previous meetings of 4

8 the same kind (AGM to AGM, normal club meeting to normal club meeting, etc.) as the proposed meeting, but which have not been confirmed and, lastly, any reports or documents that will save time if they are read beforehand. The minutes they should contain mainly a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was said by the members. (p.451, l. 27) The agenda 1. Approval of agenda. 2. Approval of the minutes as correct. 3. Matters arising from the minutes. 4. Reports of Officers. 5. Correspondence. 6. New business (the motions). 7. Closure and adjournment. The cement Contrary to popular belief, there is no provision in RONR for cancelling or otherwise re-scheduling a properly called (or regularly scheduled) meeting. If a quorum shows up at the appointed time they could, theoretically, conduct the business of the society. However, try to avoid this situation by phoning or e- mail, if at all possible, since it always creates unhappiness. At the meeting The quorum Depending on the scale and size of the meeting, there might be a Credentials Officer, such as at our AGM, whose job it is to register all those who may vote and compare that with the membership list to establish whether 50% of the members plus one person is present and has registered. That is a quorum, 5

9 meaning majority. Quorums are normally specified in the Constitution of the organization. It often happens that in organizations such as a governing body of owners in a large residential complex, the quorum is specified as less than mentioned above, because it is so difficult to get people to meetings. The danger is that the smaller the constitutionally allowed quorum, the bigger the chance of the threat to a minority by the tail wagging the dog. (See interruptive actions point 2, below). An example: In our club of 21 members, we have decided that a quorum of one-third is enough to allow binding business to be done. At a meeting just seven members are present, constituting a quorum. They debate an unpopular motion. A majority of four is required, and four vote in favour, thus adopting the motion. In this example four people bind 21 to an unpopular situation. In smaller meetings, such as that of a Toastmasters club, it is normally quite easy to establish whether a quorum is present by doing a head count. It is useful for the Chairman to have this information before the meeting starts, as it affords the opportunity to try to achieve a quorum if one isn t present, possibly by phoning a member or fetching one who might be elsewhere occupied in the building. The starting time When the time of a meeting has arrived, the presiding officer opens it, after he has determined that a quorum is present, by calling the meeting to order. (p.24, l. 12). In Toastmasters we normally have a Sergeant-at-Arms (SAA) who fulfils this duty. He is the presiding officer until he hands control of an orderly meeting to the President. As such, in the absence of a Credentials Officer, it is the SAA who must establish the presence of a quorum if a business meeting is to be held. The short recess Many an ordinary club meeting starts with the SAA declaring a short recess, whilst some incomplete preparation is completed. Is this allowed? Strictly 6

10 speaking not. The time and place of a regular club-or-business meeting is announced in terms of the club s bylaws. The Constitution states: Article IV Meetings and Notice Sec. 1. Regular meetings of this club, which shall include any business meeting of active individual members, shall be held as provided in the Bylaws of this club. The Bylaws, Article IV, state: Meetings: Sec. 1. Regular meetings of this club, which shall include any business meeting of active individual members, shall be held every, at such hour and place as this club from time to time shall designate. Article VII Amendments: Sec. 1. Subject to the review of Toastmasters International, and provided the proposed amendment is within the scope of permitted amendments, these Bylaws may be amended, including amendments to change the name or location of this club, at any duly called and noticed business meeting of this club at which a quorum is present, by the affirmative vote of at least twothirds of the active individual members present and voting. (my emphasis). So, the short recess is a transgression of the Bylaws, Art. IV, Sec. 1, which cannot be remedied at the meeting due to the duly called and noticed business meeting requirement. So what now? Just start late? That would be a transgression of 7

11 Meetings: Sec. 1. Regular meetings of this club, which shall include any business meeting of active individual members, shall be held every, at such hour (my emphasis) as this club from time to time shall designate. The only legitimate way out is A short intermission in a meeting, even while business is pending, can be proposed by moving (proposing) to Recess(20) for a specified length of time. (p. 65, l. 15). This requires a motion to Recess, which must be seconded, is not debatable, is amendable only as to the length of the recess, the amendment is not debatable, the motion requires a majority vote and cannot be reconsidered. (p. 224, l. 1-7) So, conferring with the Chairman, the SAA calls the meeting to order and proposes that we have a recess of minutes, stating, briefly, as a matter of courtesy and information, since a vote is going to be required, exactly the reason for the recess, and seeking a seconder, whom he has advised beforehand. He moves smartly to the vote unless interrupted with an amendment as to the length of the recess. Upon being adopted by majority vote, he bangs the gavel and declares the recess. Whose line is it, anyway? The meeting belongs to the assembly, having or assuming freedom to act in concert, meeting to determine, in full and free discussion, courses of action to be taken in the name of the entire group. (my emphasis) (p. 1, l. 8-11). Clearly, the Chairman is just a facilitator of this process, seeing to it that the majority rules, but that the minority is heard and, where necessary, protected. The Business (1) Adoption of the agenda It is customary to adopt an agenda or program for each session in organizations whose business sessions are separated by more than a quarterly time interval (p. 361, l. 2-5) This would be relevant to Toastmaster s Council 8

12 meetings and AGM s, but not to club meetings, where, in many instances, it has become an erroneous practice limiting participation and debate. The minutes corrections and approval of The Chairman will normally ask whether the minutes are a correct portrayal of the previous meetings proceedings. Corrections, in pen, are made on the copy of the minutes being corrected for the clubs record book. (Incidentally, it is not advisable to retype the minutes. If you do, make absolutely sure to keep the original.) Now the Chairman may simply say: If there are no further corrections, the minutes stand approved or are approved or are approved as read or are approved as corrected (p. 343, l ) using the method of unanimous consent (p. 52,l ) Unless there has been a dispute over the accuracy or propriety of something in the minutes, a motion to approve the minutes is normally unnecessary. (p. 343, l ) and they should be approved by unanimous consent. Minutes of previous meetings must always be adopted, since they are a record of binding decisions made by the club. What is recorded today? The actual correction is made in the text of the minutes being approved, and the minutes of the meeting making the correction merely state that a correction was made to the minutes of the prior meeting, without specifying what the correction was. (p. 343, l ). Unanimous consent vs. voting Voting follows a motion. Unless there has been a dispute over the accuracy or propriety of something in the minutes, a motion to approve the minutes is normally unnecessary and they should be approved by unanimous consent. 9

13 The Business (2): Reports Who must, who may? of Executive Officers, p. 459, l In addition to their annual reports, the president and vice-president from time-to time may (my emphasis) wish or need to report in connection with administrative duties. The italicized part above opens the door for such reports at every business meeting, should it be desired. Reports by the Treasurer At each meeting of a society, the chair may ask for a Treasurer s report, which may consist simply of a verbal statement of the cash balance on hand--- or this balance less outstanding obligations. Such a report requires no action by the assembly (p.459, l ). unless it is of sufficient importance, as an annual report, to be referred to the auditors. It goes on to say that the Treasurer should compile an annual report and gives the form for such a report. No report? Since only the President, Vice-President (Education) and Treasurer are mentioned above as possible officers who may report, the other officers may not. This could lead to a question from the floor on the no report of the, for example, Vice President Membership (VPM). To avoid this, and due to the infrequency of Business Meetings in so many clubs, and the members requirement for transparency by the Executive, it is advisable for all members of the Executive to report at all Business Meetings. Herewith an example of an easily prepared report. 10

14 Report of the Vice President Membership Duties: (and in Italics the actual comment by the VPM) Plan, organise and direct programs to ensure that the TM clubs membership is retained and grows the club is growing at a healthy pace. We might lose one or two members who, for work and family reasons, may not be able to renew. Minimum of 20 members achieved. Now 26. Run a competition for members to encourage visitors proposals from club members as to how and what prizes? Dinner for two? Ideas, please. Sell benefits of membership being done by club meetings all the time. How else? Toastmaster s Day? Visit companies? Prepare a visitor information pack busy with the help of the Pres. & VPE. Ensure that members, guests and visitors are welcomed being done all the time. Arrange new member inductions and brings applications to Business session for approval happening, members being inducted fortnight after joining. Contact members who miss meetings could be more diligent. Jack Jones, VPM. (Note: This way of doing the reports ensures that we get measured every time against the absolute minimum standard required by TMI as set out in our manuals. It also makes the report concise enough to require very little preparation time or reading time by the members. However, there is no prescribed form.) Reports of Ad-hoc committees These are Committees appointed for a specific purpose, such as to investigate and report on a new venue for club meetings. Once they have reported satisfactorily, the committee ceases to exist. Their recommendations for action by the parent assembly (the club), should be grouped at the end of their report in the form of proposed resolutions. The Chairman of the committee reports. 11

15 Discussion Discussion should be asked for and allowed after each report. The Chairman should be wary of speakers who go off the point, as well as the length of discussions. Motions arising from the discussion must be entertained by the Chairman. Voting on Reports? Such reports are usually for information only (my emphasis) but may sometimes contain recommendations calling for action (my emphasis) by the assembly. If the report is for information only, it requires no action. That means it does not have to be voted upon as voting upon a report is an action taken by the assembly. In fact, RONR refers to it as improper (p. 461, l. 23) in the case of the Treasurers report, unless that report was prepared for the auditors. Clubs do not have to have auditors. It has, however, been a long standing erroneous tradition in many clubs to vote on the reports of Officers. The Business (3) Motions: Types There are 86 types of motions listed in Robert s Rules of Order. Of those, 23 are used in business meetings where Parliamentarians compete to outwit each other. We will look at those which are used in a normal meeting to quite adequately conduct business. The following chart gives an idea of the order of importance, as well as affording us a look at terminology pertaining to motions. 12

16 Chart of motions Motion Type Interrup 2 nd Amend Debate Vote Purpose t 1 Fix the time at which to adjourn Priv N Y Y Y Maj To set time for continuation of meeting 2 Adjourn Priv N Y N N Maj To close a meeting 3 Take a recess Priv N Y Y N Maj To interrupt the meeting 4 Raise a question of Privilege Priv Y N N N - To request a personal privilege 5 Call for the orders of the day Priv Y N N N - To require adherence to the agenda 6 Lay on the Table Sub N Y N N Maj To interrupt business for some urgent reason 7 Previous Question (close debate) Sub N Y N N 2/3 To close debate on a pending motion 8 Limit or extend limits of debate Sub N Y Y N 2/3 To limit or extend debate 9 Postpone to a certain time (definite) Sub N Y Y Y Maj To postpone to another, specific time 10 Refer to committee Sub N Y Y Y Maj To send to a committee for further study 11 Amend Sub N Y Y Y Maj To alter or modify the wording of a motion 12 Postpone indefinitely Sub N Y N Y Maj To avoid a direct vote on a motion 13 Original main motion Main N Y Y Y Maj To introduce main motion 14 Point of order Incid Y N N N - To enforce rules and orders 15 Appeal Incid Y Y N Y Maj To reverse a ruling 16 Questions or points of information Incid Y N N N - Obtain answers to questions and seek information 17 Suspend the rules Incid N Y N N 2/3 Set aside rules that interfere with action 18 Object to consideration Incid Y N N N 2/3 To avoid unprofitable questions 19 Division of a question Incid N Y Y N Maj To divide a question 20 Consideration by paragraph -seriatum Incid N Y Y N Maj To consider by sections 21 Division of Assembly Incid Y N N N - To provide for a more accurate count of the vote 22 Rescind Bring N Y Y Y 2/3 To nullify a previously adopted 23 Reconsider Bring Y Y N Y Maj To bring back for review NOTES: In order of precedence for first 13 - no preference for last 10. Type of motions: Priv = Privileged; Sub = Subsidiary; Incid = Incidental; Bring = Bring back before assembly. Interrupt Can interrupt the speaker. 2 nd Requires a second. Amend - Amendable Debate Debatable Vote Type of vote required. Maj = Majority 13

17 1. A privileged motion has to do with special matters of immediate and overriding importance which, without debate, should be allowed to interrupt anything else. (p. 65, l. 10). It does not relate to pending business, that is to say business which is under consideration at that moment. An example: The meeting has been going on for three hours. A member makes, moves or offers a motion to recess, nr. 3 on the chart. On the chart we can see that it is a privileged motion, which means that it takes precedence over other motions, but may not interrupt a speaker (as may motions number 4 or 5), must be seconded, may be amended but not debated and requires a majority vote. 2. A subsidiary motion is always applied to another pending motion. The most frequently used one is the amendment (nr. 11), which is further described on the horizontal line. 3. Incidental motions relate to pending business and normally deal with questions of procedure. The point of order (nr. 14) or point of information (nr. 16) is the most frequently used. Due to them dealing with procedure, they may interrupt any business. 4. Lastly, the mostly used motion, the main motion. The main motion This is a motion whose introduction brings business before the assembly and can be made only while no other motion is pending. Its exact words must be on paper, signed by the proposer and seconder, (if the motion is made from the floor, the same rules apply) and sent to the Secretary of the organization for placement under new business on the agenda of the forthcoming meeting. The Secretary places motions in the order in which they were received. Any main motion starts with the word that. An example: I propose that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day. This motion may not interrupt another motion, must be seconded, may be amended and debated and requires a majority vote to be adopted, meaning 14

18 to become a resolution. To avoid confusion when voting occurs, a motion must always be positive, i.e. not that all Pretoria s Toastmasters don t participate in the Toastmasters open day. This could bring about a situation where those voting no could actually feel they are saying no, I don t want the club to participate and those voting yes saying yes, the club mustn t participate Just for information, there are, in fact, six steps dealing with a motion from start to end. They are: 1. A member, makes moves or offers a motion. 2. Another member seconds the motion. 3. The Chairman states the question on the motion, meaning that he states the exact motion and indicates that it is open to debate. Until the Chairman states the motion, it belongs to the maker, who can modify or even withdraw it without permission. After that, the motion belongs to the assembly and can be modified or withdrawn only with their consent. 4. The motion is debated. 5. The Chairman puts the question, that is, puts it to a vote. 6. The Chairman announces the result. Seconders The purpose of having a seconder is simply to ascertain that there is, in fact, interest in the subject being proposed. Frivolous matters often fall by the wayside in the face of no seconder being found. The Chairman must ensure that the meeting is aware that no seconder could be found before moving on to other business. It is in order to second a matter with which you are not in agreement just to get it before the meeting and out of the way. Should a 15

19 motion be debated, by some oversight, without it having had a seconder, the motion is in order and may be put to the vote. The logic behind this is that sufficient interest was shown for the matter to progress to debate stage. Amendments An amendment is a subsidiary motion in the sense that it also brings business before the assembly. It is used to alter or modify the wording of a motion. It may not interrupt another motion, meaning that the proposer must draw attention by raising his hand and being given the opportunity to speak, it must be seconded, may be amended again once only, and debated and requires a majority vote to be adopted, meaning to become a resolution. A motion can be amended by: 1. Inserting words or adding them to the end of the sentence or doing the same with a paragraph. Example; main motion: I propose that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day could become that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day which will be held in the Menlyn Centre. 2. To strike out words or a paragraph. Example: I propose that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day (original motion) could become that all Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day ( Pretoria s struck out). 3. To strike out and insert words. Example: that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day (original) could become that all Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day which will be held in the Menlyn Centre. ( Pretoria struck out, which will be held in the Menlyn Centre inserted. 4. To substitute the entire text by inserting another. Example: that Toastmasters day be postponed until after the long weekend. 16

20 The most important thing to remember is that any amendment must refer to the topic of the main motion, in this example the Toastmasters Open Day. For that reason the following amendment would be out of order: that Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the SPCA open day which will be held in the Menlyn Centre. Debate Discussion of, also referred to as debating a motion, is where the matter gets thrashed out by proposers, seconders, and opponents to the point where it appears to be in a form acceptable to be voted upon. The Chairman sees to a fair distribution and timing of speaking opportunities, also keeping participants to the subject of the motion. According to RONR, a speaker may speak for 10 minutes (p. 375, l. 26), but this is impractical in Toastmaster s business meetings. Other authorities state that normally a proposer is allotted 3 minutes to state and motivate his motion. The opposition leader is given the same and subsequent debaters are given 2 minutes. A speaker does not get a second opportunity until all who wish to participate, have spoken and then only if there is time left. There is no right of reply or summary, by the proposer as a last speaker, just before the matter is put to the vote. Interruptive actions A number of motions can be proposed, interrupting a speaker, whilst a matter is being debated. Some of them are, in order of importance on the chart: 1. Raising a question of privilege I rise to a question of privilege affecting the meeting, if, for instance, an open window is making it impossible to hear speakers, or to a question of personal privilege if, for instance, a speaker was speaking before a recess and should have continued afterwards but was accidently overlooked. The matter is remedied by the Chairman or becomes an ordinary motion, but is not amendable or debatable and is put to the vote immediately, requiring a simple majority. Members often confuse this motion with the point of order if they want a 17

21 window closed or another interruption, not pertaining to procedure, dealt with by the Chairman. 2. Calling for orders of the day I call for the orders of the day. If the agenda has been deviated from and the member requires adherence to the agenda, because, for instance, his previously allotted time to speak, has come, after which he needs to depart, he makes this call. The Chairman must immediately return to the agenda, unless someone, who wishes to continue the discussion then underway, calls for a vote. In that case, 2/3 of those with voting rights must vote against the caller of the orders of the day, otherwise he prevails and the Chairman returns to the time on the agenda. (This 2/3 is an example of protection of a minority in this case the person whose time to speak had arrived). 3. Making a point of order. This is probably the most widely used interruption in the meeting of ordinary people. When a member thinks that the rules of the assembly are being violated, he can make a Point of Order, by saying on a point of order, Mr. Chairman, thereby calling upon the chair for a ruling and an enforcement of the regular rules. (p. 240). It does not require a seconder, is not amendable or debatable and is ruled on by the Chairman. An example of its usage is when certain members persist in talking whilst a speaker has the floor. 4. Appealing in order to reverse a ruling of the Chairman. Chairmen make mistakes on procedural rules. But any two members have the right to Appeal from his decision on such a question. By one member making (or taking ) the appeal and another seconding it, the question is taken from the chair and vested in the assembly for final decision. (p. 247, l ) it requires a seconder, cannot be amended, can be debated and requires a simple majority to be carried. A wise Chairman and Parliamentarian don t argue this point. 5. Rising on a question or point of information. A Point of Information is a request directed to the chair, ( on a point of information, Mr. Chairman ) or 18

22 through the chair to another officer or member, for information relevant to the business at hand but not related to parliamentary procedure. (p. 282, l ) No seconder, amendment, debate or voting on is allowed. A parliamentary enquiry is handled exactly the same way, except that the Chairman has to answer the question. His advice need not be taken. 6. Objecting to the consideration of a certain matter or unprofitable question. This motion is used when there is a strong feeling in the assembly of the undesirability for the motion to come before the assembly. A member says: Mr. Chairman, I object to the consideration of the question. No seconder, amendment or debate is allowed and 2/3 of the voters must be in favour of the question not being allowed. An example of this is found under quorum above. 7. Rescind. This motion is used to nullify a previously adopted matter that has continuing force and effect. It can be applied to any bylaw, rule, policy, decision, choice, adopted motion or precedent set as a result of the ruling of the Chairman or even the result of an appeal against a ruling of the Chairman. It requires a 2/3 vote if made in the meeting, a majority vote if previous notice has been given, giving the full substance of the proposed change and a 2/3 vote plus such notice if the Constitution needs to be changed. This is a good example of the protection of minority rights. Voting The purpose of voting is to establish the will of the majority. The Chairman is only interested in those with an opinion on the matter to be voted on. The Chairman should not call for abstentions in taking a vote, since the number of members who respond to such a call is meaningless. The Chairman s instructions as well as the matter to be voted on must be clear and unambiguous so that the assembly knows what it is voting for and how. Sometimes there is a requirement for more than a simple majority of 50% plus one person in order to adopt a matter. This is normally the case where a person s rights or that of a minority might appear to be threatened like in the 19

23 case of expulsion from the club without trial, or changing the Constitution. Amending or rescinding something previously adopted also requires a 2/3 vote. The three most popular ways of voting are 1. by voice, where the assembly is asked those in favour say aye and then those against, say nay. The Chairman judges and announces the result, for instance the ayes have it. If one member objects, follow step by raising of hands, which are counted by at least two people when the Chairman asks those in favour and those against. 3. by ballot, where slips of paper are handed out and appropriately filled in and counted by a member from each side of the debate. When voting on a motion with amendments, the following procedure is followed. The example is the motion above that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day, (which, in the examples below is inserted between brackets, with the amendment underlined) First amendment: ( that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day) which will be held in the Menlyn Centre. Second amendment: ( that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day (which will be held in the Menlyn Centre) on Saturday, 3 rd May, Voting starts with the second amendment. The main motion is, effectively, forgotten about. The assembly applies its mind to one matter only: if, hypothetically, an open day is to be held, must it be on Saturday, 3 rd May, The Chairman employs one of the voting systems indicated above. Let s assume that the amendment is carried by a majority. 20

24 Now the matter to be voted on is the first amendment ( that all Pretoria Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day) which will be held in the Menlyn Centre modified by and married to the carried or accepted second amendment, thus: ( that all Pretoria Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day) which will be held in the Menlyn Centre on Saturday, 3 rd May, If this amendment is also accepted by majority vote, the main motion to be voted on becomes that all Pretoria Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day which will be held in the Menlyn Centre on Saturday, 3 rd May, However, should the first amendment, now married to the second amendment and thus remaining as one amendment only, fail, it dies, as does the second amendment, even though on its own, it was successful. That would leave only the original main motion that all Pretoria s Toastmasters participate in the Toastmasters open day, to be voted on. The End When? It all depends on exactly what you wish to end. 1. In the event of you wanting to end debate on a certain matter, you could use the established parliamentary term I move the previous question. A more informal way is simply to say I move we vote now (p. 194, l. 1). This brings that particular debate to an immediate end. This could, of course, be a threat to anybody who might still have wanted to speak, and thus it must be seconded, is neither amendable or debatable and a 2/3 vote is required to adopt the motion. 2. However, should you want the meeting to end, To adjourn means to close the meeting (p. 225, l. 18). The commonly used motion is I move to 21

25 adjourn, which must be seconded, is neither amendable nor debatable and will be carried by a simple majority. 3. The Chairman may close the meeting at a given hour if such a previously arranged and accepted time for closure had been decided, or if all the intended business has been dealt with. He may, however, not of his own accord, close the meeting while there is unfinished business, unless the meeting has become disruptive and out of control. Unfinished business Any unfinished business stands over to the next regular session, i.e. the same as the one being adjourned: club meeting to club meeting, AGM to AGM, except if the officers of the committee are replaced, or if the meeting does not fall within a quarterly interval of three months, in which cases the business falls to the ground (p. 229, l. 16). The principle is that no committee can task and bind a future committee with matters which they were unable to conclude. Should such a matter exist, it could be proposed as a motion by a member at the first meeting over which the new committee presides. Next meeting? Although, as previously discussed under the Call of the meeting, at point 3, it is quite in order to announce at the meeting being adjourned when the next meeting will take place, it must not be assumed that everybody has now been duly informed. A proper Call is required for each meeting. 22