How to Run an Effective Meeting

Parliamentary ProcedureIntended to keep meetings running smoothly

and efficiently.Based on protecting the rights of several

groups:MajorityMinorityIndividual MembersAbsentee Members

Most of the rules can be understood by remembering these basic principles.

General Practices and ProceduresProcedures

A member makes a motion which must be seconded by another member (with some exceptions).

The motion is stated by the chair and the floor is open to debate (when the motion is debatable).

The chair puts the motion to a vote, and the motion is either adopted or lost.

Other motions may be made which take precedence over the original motion – these must be dealt with first.

FormalitiesAvoid referring to members by name and be

respectful.All questions are guided through the chair.Chair speaks in the third person.

Other Rules of Debate and VotingDebate

Two speeches of ten minutes each on each motion.Must be germane to the immediately pending

motion.Must not attack the motives of another member.May not speak on a prior action not pending.May not speak against own motion.May not read from papers without permission.

VotingAlways round up to the next whole number.Majority vote – more than half.Abstentions generally do not affect the result.

Types of MotionsMain Motion – Brings business before the assembly.Subsidiary Motions – Affects the pending motion.

Amend, Postpone, etc.Privileged Motions – Motions of special importance.

Adjourn, Recess, etc.Incidental Motions – Relates to specific instances.

Point of Order, Suspend the Rules, etc.Motions that Bring a Question Again Before the

AssemblyReconsider, Rescind, etc.

The Main MotionThe most basic type of motion.Brings business before the assembly.Can be anything from spending money to taking a

stance on an issue.Debatable, majority vote required.Example: “Move to allocate $50 from the

Refreshments line item to buy pizza and pop for the Student Senate Retreat.”

Try to make main motions specific to avoid confusion. “Move to buy pizza and pop” leaves too many unanswered questions – how much money? Where is the money coming from? What is the pizza for?

Subsidiary MotionsAmend

Modifies the language of a motion in some way.Must be germane to the motion.Is debatable and amendable (amendments to

amendments are not amendable for everyone’s sanity). Not debatable if it is amending something undebatable. Majority vote.

Three main forms of amendment.Insert or AddStrikeStrike and Insert (Substitute)

Filling blanksUsed when there are many different proposals for a

variable, such as amounts of moneyProposals are taken and voted on in order until one

receives a majority vote (or you can vote by ballot)

Postpone IndefinitelyDisposes of the motion when you don’t want

to take a direct vote on itUseful to make way for a better motion, or to

dispose of a highly political issueDebate may extend into the merits of the

main motion.Debatable, not amendable, majority vote.

Commit or ReferSends the motion to a committee to report

back at a later meeting.Can be a standing committee (called for in

the Constitution or Bylaws) or a special/ad-hoc committee (created for a specific purpose)

Useful when you need a small group to study a complex issue.

Debatable, amendable, majority vote.

Postpone DefinitelyPostpones the motion to the next meeting or

to a specific time later in the same meetingCannot be postponed to the next meeting if

it’s more than a quarterly interval away, or beyond the next meeting

Cannot postpone a motion if it would effectively kill it

Useful if you need more time to think about an issue

Amendable and debatable, majority vote

Limit/Extend Limits of DebatePrevious Question

Limit/Extend Limits of Debate Can change the debate rules in any number of ways

– number of speeches, time of speeches, number of speakers, etc.

Useful if you have limited timeAmendable, not debatable, 2/3 vote.

Previous Question (Call to Question)Immediately proceed to a vote on pending motion(s)Useful if debate is lengthy and not making progressNot amendable, not debatable, 2/3 vote

Lay on the TableLays a motion aside until later in the same

meeting or the next meeting (if within a quarterly interval) until it is taken from the table

Useful for putting a question aside to take up an issue of pressing importance

Not amendable, not debatable, majority voteShould NOT be confused with Postpone

Definitely or Postpone Indefinitely

Privileged MotionsCall for the Orders of the Day

Brings the meeting back to the topic called for in the agenda or order of business

Useful if the meeting has become distracted on a tangent

Not debatable, not amendable, does not require a second, does not require a vote – only the demand of a single member

Setting aside the topic called for in the agenda or order of business requires a 2/3 vote

Raise a Question of PrivilegeBrings the assembly’s attention to an issue that

affects either an individual (point of personal privilege) or the assembly (point of privilege of the assembly) in relation to the society or the meeting

Generally useful in dealing with uncomfortable or inconvenient conditions (ex. room is too hot)

Not amendable, not debatable, does not require a second, no vote taken

Chair either directs the situation to be remedied or calls for a member to make a main motion

Some specialized uses, such as executive session

RecessTakes a brief break from the meeting, either

for a period of time or to the call of the chairUseful to discuss the details of a motion or just

to take a breakAmendable, not debatable, majority vote

AdjournFix the Time to Which to Adjourn

AdjournEnds the meetingNot amendable, not debatable, majority vote

Fix the Time to Which to AdjournSets up an adjourned meeting which is a

continuation of the current meetingAmendable, not debatable, majority vote

Incidental MotionsPoint of Order & Appeal

Point of OrderCalls the chair’s attention to a violation of the rulesNot debatable, not amendable, no second required, not

voted uponRuled on by the chair as “well taken” or “not well

taken”Must be made at the time of the violation (with a few

exceptions)Appeal

Used to overturn a ruling of the chairChair speaks in debate to explain his reasoningQuestion put as “Shall the decision of the chair be

sustained?”Debatable (with a few exceptions), not amendable,

majority vote in the negative overturns ruling

Suspend the RulesUsed to do something normally not allowed by

the rulesThe motion should state the specific purpose for

suspending the rulesNot amendable, not debatable, 2/3 voteSome rules cannot be suspended

Constitution/Bylaws (unless they say otherwise or in nature of rule of order)

Fundamental principles of parliamentary lawRules protecting absentees or individual members

Objection to the Consideration of a Question

Prevents a question from being considered at all

Must be made before debate has begunUseful when a motion would damage

relationships in the assembly even to discuss it

Not amendable, not debatable, no second required, 2/3 vote against consideration needed

Division of a QuestionConsideration by Paragraph

Division of a QuestionSeparates a motion into two separate motions,

debated and voted on individuallyCan only be used if each motion can stand on its

ownAmendable, not debatable, majority voteMotions containing unrelated topics can be divided

by the demand of a single memberConsideration by Paragraph or Seriatim

Keeps the motion intact, but debate each paragraph/section/article one at a time

Useful to keep on track for lengthy documents such as a Constitution

Amendable, not debatable, majority vote

Division of the AssemblyForces a rising vote after a voice vote is

inconclusiveNot debatable, not amendable, no second

required, no vote taken – demand of a single member

If it is still inconclusive, the vote may be countedNot debatable, not amendable, majority vote

Either of these should rarely be necessary - the chair should do it on his own initiative

Motions Relating to Methods ofVoting and the Polls; NominationsMotions Relating to Methods of Voting and the Polls

Used to take the vote by a different method than the standard voice vote or to close or reopen the polls for a ballot vote Show of hands, rising vote, ballot vote, roll call vote

Amendable, not debatable, majority vote (2/3 vote to close the polls)

Motions Relating to NominationsChange the method of nominations

By the chair, from the floor, by a committee, by ballot, by mail

Close or reopen nominationsAmendable, not debatable, majority vote (2/3 vote to

close nominations)

Request to be Excused from a DutyRequests and Inquiries

Request to be Excused from a DutyUsed to be excused from duties imposed on members

by the Constitution/Bylaws or to resign from officeAmendable, debatable, majority vote

Requests and InquiriesParliamentary Inquiry – question about parli-proRequest for Information – question about something

elseRequest to Withdraw/Modify MotionRequest to Read PapersRequest for Other Privilege – ex. Make a presentationQuestions not debatable, not amendable, no second, no

voteOther requests are not debatable, not amendable,

majority vote

Motions that Bring a Question Again Before the Assembly

Take from the TableFor a question laid on the table, brings it back for

discussionMust be done by the next regular meeting (or by end of

same meeting if next meeting is not within a quarterly interval)

Not amendable, not debatable, majority voteDischarge a Committee

Takes a motion out of the hands of a committee and brings it up for debate or forces a committee to report

Debate can go into merits of the main motionDebatable, amendable, 2/3 vote, majority of the

membership, or majority vote with prior noticeMajority vote without notice is sufficient if committee

fails to report when instructed

Rescind/Amend Something Previously Adopted

Revoke or modify a motion already adopted.Can be made by any member.Cannot undo something that is already completed

– if you spent money, you can’t unspend it.Debatable, amendable, 2/3 vote, majority of the

membership, or a majority vote with prior noticeRescind and Expunge from the Minutes

Rescinds the action and it is noted as expungedUsed to express extreme disapprovalRequires a majority of the membership

ReconsiderBrings a topic back up for considerationMust be done at the same meetingMust be made by a member who voted on the

prevailing sideDebatable, not amendable, majority voteReconsider and Enter on the Minutes

The motion to reconsider is made but cannot be brought up until the next meeting.

Useful when a bare quorum is present that is unrepresentative of the full assembly.

QuorumQuorum is the number of members that must be

physically present to conduct businessDesigned to protect against an unrepresentative

minority taking action in the name of the organization

Should be set at how many people can be reasonably expected to show up except in extreme circumstances (weather)

Without quorum, only certain procedural motions are in order

Members who abstain still count toward quorum so long as they remain in the meeting room