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ROBERT's RULES of ORDER Simplified and Applied 6399-8_2 FM 6/20/02 11:05 AM Page iii ROBERT’S RULES of ORDER Simplified and Applied Second Edition by Robert McConnell Production 6399-8_2 FM 6/20/02 11:05 AM Page iv Robert’s Rules of Order: Simplified and Applied, 2nd edition Copyright © 2001 by Robert McConnell productions Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-750-8400, fax 978-750-4470, or on the web at www.copyright.com.You can contact the Publisher directly for permission by email at [email protected] or on the web at www.wiley.com/about/permission. Trademarks:Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo,Webster’s New World, and the Webster’s New World logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Wiley Publishing, Inc., in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission.All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associat- ed with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty:While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages. For general information on our other products and services or to obtain technical support please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993 or fax 317-572-4002. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2001092064 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 iv 6399-8 FM.F 7/30/01 1:43 PM Page v About the Author Robert McConnell Productions is a multimedia company pro- viding simplified information about parliamentary procedure in the form of videos, books, magazine articles, and a Web site: http://parli.com. The company published Robert’s Rules of Order: Simplified and Applied in 1998, a book designed to take the complexity and the mystery out of Robert’s Rules and to explain it to users in plain, easily understandable terms. The company also makes special interest videos in its own production studio. To date, the company has made five videos about parliamentary procedure. Parliamentary Procedure Made Simple: The Basics is an 80-minute video produced in 1993. It has sold more than 12,000 copies worldwide so far. The next video, produced in 1996, is All About Motions, a 140-minute video covering all the motions in Robert’s Rules of Order. The third and fourth videos are a 32-minute How to Conduct a Meeting and its Spanish companion version, the 46-minute Como Conducir Reuniones, the world’s first video about parliamentary procedure made in Spanish. The fifth video is Nominations & Elections, a video designed to keep organizations out of trouble by showing them how to do the electoral process correctly. The company markets these videos through a combination of direct mail brochures, targeted faxes, and a Web site, http://parli.com, which was the first Web site about parlia- mentary procedure on the Internet. The company also makes and markets videos about France, Russia, and Cuba, and produces custom-made videos for corporate clients. Robert McConnell Productions has been in business since 1993. v 6399-8 FM.F 7/30/01 1:43 PM Page vii Contents Preface . .xvii Introduction . .xix PART I: Meetings and Organizations 1 The Basics . .3 Structure of an Organization . .3 Applying Democratic Principles to Organizations . .4 Defining Parliamentary Procedure . .6 Importance of Parliamentary Procedures . .7 Basic Principles of Parliamentary Procedure . .7 Taking Up Business One Item at a Time . .8 Promoting Courtesy, Justice, Impartiality, and Equality . .9 The Rule of the Majority and Protection of the Minority . .11 2 The Order of a Business Meeting . .13 Planning and Using Agendas . .13 Accepted Order of Business . .14 Creating a Specific Agenda . .16 Adopting the Agenda . .18 Mailing an Agenda to the Members . .19 Consent and Priority Agendas . .19 Quorum . .20 How to Keep a Record of the Quorum . .22 What to Do When No Quorum Is Present . .22 A Business Meeting in Action . .23 Calling the Meeting to Order . .23 Reading and Approving the Minutes . .23 Reports of Officers . .25 Reports of Committees . .26 Unfinished Business and General Orders . .28 New Business . .28 Adjourning the Meeting . .30 3 Presenting Business to the Assembly . .31 Basic Steps in Presenting a Motion . .31 Making a Main Motion . .33 vii 6399-8 FM.F 7/30/01 1:43 PM Page viii viii Robert’s Rules of Order Discussing a Motion . .35 Taking the Vote . .37 Completing the Action on the Motion . .39 Important Points to Remember Before Making a Motion . .39 Resolutions . .43 4 Debating the Motion . .45 Rules of Debate . .46 Limitations on Debate . .49 Debatable Motions And Undebatable Motions . .49 5 Voting . .53 Procedure for Taking a Vote . .54 The Majority Rules . .55 Majority Vote Defined . .56 Modifications in Majority Vote . .56 A Two-Thirds Vote . .59 A Three-Fourths Vote . .59 The Tie Vote . .60 Ways the Vote Can Be Taken . .60 Taking a Vote by Voice . .61 Taking a Vote by Show of Hands . .61 Taking a Vote by Rising (Standing) . .62 Taking a Vote by Ballot . .62 Taking a Vote by Mail . .64 Taking a Vote by E-mail . .65 Taking a Vote by General or Unanimous Consent . .66 Doubting the Result of the Vote . .68 Calling for a Division . .68 Doubting the Result of a Ballot Vote or Roll Call Vote . .69 Other Voting Procedures . .69 Frequently Asked Questions About Voting . .70 PART II: Motions Simplified 6 Motions . .75 Classes of Motions . .75 Main Motions . .76 Secondary Motions . .78 6399-8 FM.F 7/30/01 1:43 PM Page ix Contents ix Motions That Bring a Question Again Before the Assembly . .81 Previous Notice of Motions . .82 The Ranking of Motions . .82 7 Using Subsidiary Motions to Help Adopt a Main Motion . .85 Postpone Indefinitely . .85 Amend . .87 Voting on Amendments to the Main Motion . .90 Refer to a Committee . .94 Committee (or Quasi-Committee) of the Whole . .95 Consider Informally . .96 Postpone to a Certain Time . .97 Postpone to a Certain Time Made into a Special Order . .98 Limit or Extend the Limits of Debate . .99 Previous Question (Close Debate) . .101 Lay on the Table . .104 Legitimate Uses of the Motion Lay on the Table . .105 8 Using Privileged Motions . .107 Calls for the Orders of the Day . .107 Raise a Question of Privilege . .109 Recess . .111 Adjourn . .112 Fix the Time to Which to Adjourn . .114 Fix the Time at Which to Adjourn . .115 9 Using Incidental Motions . .117 Point of Order . .117 Appeal from the Decision of the Chair (Appeal) . .118 Requests and Inquiries . .120 Request for Permission to Withdraw or Modify a Motion . .122 Request To be Excused from a Duty . .124 Object to Consideration of a Question . .125 Division of the Assembly . .126 Division of the Question . .127 Suspend the Rules . .128 6399-8 FM.F 7/30/01 1:43 PM Page x x Robert’s Rules of Order 10 Using Motions That Bring a Question Again Before the Assembly . .133 Take from the Table . .133 Reconsider . .134 Rescind and Amend.
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