ROBERT'S RULES

Introduction to Robert's Rules of Order

What Is Parliamentary Procedure?
          It is a set of rules for conduct at meetings, that allows everyone to be heard and to make
          decisions without confusion.

Why is Parliamentary Procedure Important?
         Because it's a time tested method of conducting business at meetings and public gatherings.
         It can be adapted to fit the needs of any organization. Today, Robert's Rules of Order newly
         revised is the basic handbook of operation for most clubs, organizations and other groups. So
         it's important that everyone know these basic rules!

 

Organizations using parliamentary procedure usually follow a fixed order of business. Below is a typical example:

 

1. Call to order.
2. Roll call of members present.
3. Reading of minutes of last meeting.
4. Officers reports.
5. Committee reports.
6. Special orders --- Important business previously designated for consideration at this meeting.
7. Unfinished business.
8. New business.
9. Announcements.
10. Adjournment.

 

The method used by members to express themselves is in the form of moving motions. A motion is a proposal that the entire membership take action or a stand on an issue. Individual members can:

1. Call to order.

2. Second motions.

3. Debate motions.

4. Vote on motions.

There are four Basic Types of Motions:

1. Main Motions: The purpose of a main motion is to introduce items to the membership for their consideration. They cannot be made when any other motion is on the floor, and yield to privileged, subsidiary, and incidental motions.
2. Subsidiary Motions: Their purpose is to change or affect how a main motion is handled, and is voted on before a main motion.
3. Privileged Motions: Their purpose is to bring up items that are urgent about special or important matters unrelated to pending business.
4. Incidental Motions: Their purpose is to provide a means of questioning procedure concerning other motions and must be considered before the other motion.

How are Motions Presented?

1. Obtaining the floor
1. Wait until the last speaker has finished.
2. Rise and address the Chairman by saying, "Mr. Chairman, or Mr. President."
3. Wait until the Chairman recognizes you.
2. Make Your Motion
1. Speak in a clear and concise manner.
2. Always state a motion affirmatively. Say, "I move that we ..." rather than, "I move that we do not ...".
3. Avoid personalities and stay on your subject.
3. Wait for Someone to Second Your Motion
4. Another member will second your motion or the Chairman will call for a second.
5. If there is no second to your motion it is lost.
6. The Chairman States Your Motion
1. The Chairman will say, "it has been moved and seconded that we ..." Thus placing your motion before the membership for consideration and action.
2. The membership then either debates your motion, or may move directly to a vote.
3. Once your motion is presented to the membership by the chairman it becomes "assembly property", and cannot be changed by you without the consent of the members.
7. Expanding on Your Motion
1. The time for you to speak in favor of your motion is at this point in time, rather than at the time you present it.
2. The mover is always allowed to speak first.
3. All comments and debate must be directed to the chairman.
4. Keep to the time limit for speaking that has been established.
5. The mover may speak again only after other speakers are finished, unless called upon by the Chairman.
8. Putting the Question to the Membership
1. The Chairman asks, "Are you ready to vote on the question?"
2. If there is no more discussion, a vote is taken.
3. On a motion to move the previous question may be adapted.

 

Voting on a Motion:

The method of vote on any motion depends on the situation and the by-laws of policy of your organization. There are five methods used to vote by most organizations, they are:

1. By Voice -- The Chairman asks those in favor to say, "aye", those opposed to say "no". Any member may move for a exact count.
2. By Roll Call -- Each member answers "yes" or "no" as his name is called. This method is used when a record of each person's vote is required.
3. By General Consent -- When a motion is not likely to be opposed, the Chairman says, "if there is no objection ..." The membership shows agreement by their silence, however if one member says, "I object," the item must be put to a vote.
4. By Division -- This is a slight verification of a voice vote. It does not require a count unless the chairman so desires. Members raise their hands or stand.
5. By Ballot -- Members write their vote on a slip of paper, this method is used when secrecy is desired.

 

There are two other motions that are commonly used that relate to voting.

1. Motion to Table -- This motion is often used in the attempt to "kill" a motion. The option is always present, however, to "take from the table", for reconsideration by the membership.
2. Motion to Postpone Indefinitely -- This is often used as a means of parliamentary strategy and allows opponents of motion to test their strength without an actual vote being taken. Also, debate is once again open on the main motion.

 

Parliamentary Procedure is the best way to get things done at your meetings. But, it will only work if you use it properly.

1. Allow motions that are in order.
2. Have members obtain the floor properly.
3. Speak clearly and concisely.
4. Obey the rules of debate.
5. Most importantly, BE COURTEOUS.

 

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Roberts Rules Made Simple

Points

The following three points are always in order:
1. Point of Order: a question about process, or objection and suggestion of alternative process. May include a request for the facilitator to rule on process.
2. Point of Information: a request for information on a specific question, either about process or about the content of a motion. This is not a way to get the floor to say something you think people should know. People misusing points of information in this fashion will be defenestrated, or otherwise sanctioned forcefully.
3. Point of Personal Privilege: a comment addressing a personal need - a direct response to a comment defaming one’s character, a plea to open the windows, etc.

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Motions

All motions must be seconded, and are adopted by a majority vote unless otherwise noted. All motions may be debated unless otherwise noted. Motions are in order of precedence: motions may be made only if no motion of equal or higher precedence is on the floor (i.e., don’t do a number 5 (move to end debate) when the body is discussing a number 4 (move to suspend rules).
1. Motion to Adjourn: not debatable; goes to immediate majority vote.
2. Motion to Recess: not debatable. May be for a specific time.
3. Motion to Appeal the Facilitator’s Decision: Not debatable; goes to immediate vote. Allows the body to overrule a decision made by the chair.
4. Motion to Suspend the Rules: suspends formal process for dealing with a specific question. Debatable; requires 2/3 vote.
5. Motion to End Debate and Vote or Call the Question: applies only to the motion on the floor.
Not debatable; requires 2/3 vote.
6. Motion to Extend Debate: can be general, or for a specific time or number of speakers. Not debatable.
7. Motion to Refer to Committee: applies only to the main motion. Refers question to a specific group with a specific time and charge.
8. Motion to Divide the Question: breaks the motion on the floor into two parts, in manner suggested by mover.
9. Motion to Amend: must be voted for by a majority to be considered and by a 2/3 to be passed.
If amendment is accepted as “friendly” by the proposer of the amendment then many bodies will allow it to be accepted without a formal vote; this is a way of including a consensus-building process into procedure without endless debate over amendments to amendments. Strictly speaking, however, once the main motion is made it is the property of the body to amend.
10. Main Motion: what it is you’re debating and amending.

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Other Meeting Guidelines:

1. When a topic is first introduced or a main motion is made, allow all questions for information purposes to be asked before opening to debate.
2. Discourage the repetition of arguments. Attempt to call on people who have not yet spoken before those who have already spoken. Discourage dialogues that start up between two individuals in debate.
3. If debate carries on too long, impose time limits on speakers.
4. Discourage people from talking in initials - spell them out.

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Robert’s Rules of Order:

4.  Robert’s Rules Tid-Bits Page references are provided from Robert’s Rules of Order, Revised (1915 edition), the standard for this document.

•     Motions to limit or close debate usually require at least a two- thirds majority, and like all but a handful of secondary motions, an individual must be recognized by the chair before he or she may propose the motion. These motions are summarized in §§29 and 30.
•     The Moderator is not under an obligation to entertain a motion, even if it is in order. §40 of Robert’s Rules states that absurd, obstructive, offensive, or trivial motions may be ruled invalid by the chair, regardless of whether or not they have been seconded by the membership. This applies to all motions, including secondary motions whose obvious intent is to defeat the purpose of the main motion with a motion not designated by Robert’s Rules to do so. [40]
•     Do not object to the consideration of an unsuitable main motion unless it is clearly offensive to the Society or to a particular member or guest (in which case the acting Moderator should not have allowed it in the first place). Instead, move to postpone it indefinitely. The latter requires only a majority vote (while the former requires two-thirds), and the latter is debatable, providing you with the opportunity to quickly and forcefully argue against any further consideration of the main motion. (Objecting to consideration is not debatable, even though it is not always clear why an individual objects.)
•     Robert’s Rules call an amendment to an amendment a secondary amendment, or an amendment in the second degree. §33, pp. 135 and 147 forbid amendments in the third degree: that is, there can be no amendment to an amendment to an amendment, or anything worse.
•     The most effective way to commit a question is to amend one’s own motion to commit to specify that the question be referred to a standing committee. In this way, the motion is more likely to receive immediate consideration within an established setting.
•     The Society’s once-per-semester membership committee meeting, the Committee of the Whole, is a special case of a motion to commit, and receives extended treatment in §55. It should be noted that Robert’s Rules are applied differently in the Committee of the Whole than they are in a general meeting. In particular, business is conducted less formally, with more opportunity for members to offer debate. In the past, the Philomathean Society has deviated from Robert’s Rules §55 in the following ways: during Committee of the Whole, the Membership Committee is in executive session--that is, nonmembers are asked to leave the chamber, and no part of its proceedings may be discussed outside of the committee; debate may be limited, extended, or closed by a two-thirds vote; and the committee is permitted to recess or caucus by majority vote or general consent.
•     Robert’s Rules refer to Philospeak’s ‘calling the question’ as the previous question; this is another phrase for moving to dose debate immediately and calling a vote on the current motion.
•     A ‘friendly amendment’ is a special kind of amendment, not explicitly referenced in Robert’s Rules, whereby a motion is amended by general consent if the main motion’s sponsor agrees to the proposed amendment. This is covered by one of the standing rules in the By-Laws, as well as in §27, pp. 100-101.
•      Philospeak’s ‘point of personal privilege’ is a question of privilege in Robert’s Rules. §19, p. 68 invites, but does not require, a question of privilege to include a motion. Using a point of personal privilege to raise a procedural motion that does not have the right to interrupt the floor--e.g., to move to table or to move to close debate--is dilatory and should not be entertained by the chair, per §40.
•     There may be some confusion over the motion with the highest precedence, that of fixing the time to which to adjourn. The object of the motion to set a time--and sometimes the place--for the start of the next meeting to continue business. It is for this reason that it is given the highest precedence, so that it can be executed while a motion to adjourn is pending. See §16, p. 59 of Robert’s Rules.
•     A point of order applies only to a current violation of parliamentary procedure; it may not be applied to a past decision or action. Past violations must be appealed, rescinded, or censured. See §21, 37 and 72. Reconsiderations only apply to reconsiderable votes taken within the same meeting; see §36.
•     An objection to consideration of a motion is in order even after the motion has been seconded, as long as debate on it has not commenced. See §23, p. 87.
•     A point of information has come to be used as a way to quickly volunteer information (without being recognized by the Moderator) regarding a question of fact before the Society, which is not what Robert’s Rules §27 intended it for--it should be used only to ask a question.
•     The acting Moderator should take care when offering debate to limit his or her      comments to those of a factual nature and should avoid betraying his or her own opinions on the matter at hand. If the chair through its debate can be shown to be partial toward one side or the other on a particular issue, Robert’s Rules state that the chair must step down for the remainder of the debate.
•     Per Robert’s Rules §4, p. 32, the following motions are in order even when another individual has the floor: call for the orders of the day, division of the question, point of inquiry or information, point of order, point of personal privilege, motion to withdraw, objection to consideration, motion to appeal. All other motions (except some obscure ones) are in order only when their sponsor has obtained the floor by being recognized by the acting      Moderator. [41]
•     Per Robert’s Rules §45, p. 187, the following motions are not debatable: motion to adjourn or recess, call for the orders of the day, lay on the table, objection to consideration, point of order, call the question, point of personal privilege, motion to withdraw, suspend the rules, take from the table, extend or limit debate, reconsideration. All other motions (except for rare motions and special cases of common ones) are debatable by the Society. [42]

Per Robert’s Rules §33, pp. 146-147, the following motions are not amendable: motion to adjourn, call for the orders of the day, lay on the table, objection to consideration, call the question, motion to withdraw, suspend the rules, take from the table, appeal, postpone indefinitely, and all points of order, privilege, inquiry, and information. All other debatable motions (except for some uncommon exceptions) are amendable by the Society.

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