ROBERT'S RULES FOR DUMMIES. 4th Edition
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Robert’s Rules
4th edition
by C. Alan Jennings, PRPRobert’s Rules For Dummies®, 4th Edition
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2021952532
ISBN: 978-1-119-82458-9
ISBN 978-1-119-82459-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-119-82460-2 (ebk)
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Part 1: It’s Parliamentary, My Dear: Participating Effectively in Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 CHAPTER 1: Following the Rules (Robert’s, That Is) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 CHAPTER 2: Defining the Organization: Bylaws and Other Rules . . . . . . . . . . . 23 CHAPTER 3: Meetings: Making Group Decisions 47 CHAPTER 4: Notice and a Quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 CHAPTER 5: Ordering Business: The Agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Part 2: Motions: Putting Ideas into Action . . . . . . . . . . 97 CHAPTER 6: Main Motions: Proposing Ideas for Group Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 CHAPTER 7: Debate: Discussing the Pros and Cons of Ideas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 CHAPTER 8: Making Group Decisions: Voting on the Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 CHAPTER 9: Subsidiary Motions: Helping to Process the Main Motion 175 CHAPTER 10: Privileged Motions: Getting through the Meeting 211 CHAPTER 11: Incidental Motions: Dealing with Questions of Procedure . . . . . 229 CHAPTER 12: Looking At Motions That Bring a Question Again Before the Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269 Part 3: Getting Involved in Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . 293 CHAPTER 13: Who’s Going to Do the Work? Following Nomination Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295 CHAPTER 14: Holding Elections and Making Appointments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311 CHAPTER 15: Running the Show: Officers and Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329 CHAPTER 16: Gearing Up for the Real Action: Committees 351 CHAPTER 17: Reporting to Your Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367 CHAPTER 18: Disciplining and Removing Officers or Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 CHAPTER 19: Starting a New Association . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401 CHAPTER 20: The Convention of Delegates: A Special Kind of Assembly . . . . . 415 Part 4: The Part of Tens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429 CHAPTER 21: Ten (Plus Two) Meeting Procedure Myths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431 CHAPTER 22: Ten Tips for Presiding Officers 441 CHAPTER 23: Ten Motion Mistakes to Avoid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449
Contents at a Glance
CHAPTER 24: Ten Custom Rules to Consider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457 CHAPTER 25: Ten Considerations for Electronic Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467 Appendix: Glossary of Parliamentary Terms . . . . . . . 475 Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491
Table of Contents v
of Contents INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 About This Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 (Not So) Foolish Assumptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Icons Used in This Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Beyond the Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Where to Go from Here . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Parliamentary procedure education in your area . . . . . . . . . . 6 Hiring a professional parliamentarian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 PART 1: IT’S PARLIAMENTARY, MY DEAR: PARTICIPATING EFFECTIVELY IN MEETINGS . . . . . . . . . 9 CHAPTER 1: Following the Rules (Robert’s, That Is) . . . . . . . . . 11 Keeping Things Informal 12 Making Meetings Meaningful . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 A Brief History of Robert’s Rules 13 Being Empowered at Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Understanding What Parliamentary Procedure Is . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 General parliamentary law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Principles of parliamentary law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Achieving Personal Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Experiencing Personal Success . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 CHAPTER 2: Defining the Organization: Bylaws and Other Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Covering the Rules about Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Classifying your rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Ranking the rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Laying down rule requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Uncovering Bylaw Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Breaking Down the Content of Bylaws 33 Making Sure Your Bylaws Are Complete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Express-permission needed bylaws 36 Special bylaw provisions for convention-holding organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Amending Your Bylaws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Setting the conditions for amending your bylaws 38 Giving notice of bylaw amendments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Handling a motion to amend bylaws 40
Table
vi Robert’s Rules For Dummies Interpreting Bylaws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Publishing Your Bylaws and Other Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 CHAPTER 3: Meetings: Making Group Decisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Defining the Deliberative Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 (Un)Tying the Hands of the Assembly in Future Sessions . . . . . 49 Understanding Types of Business Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Regular meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Special meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Adjourned meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Annual meetings 54 Executive session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Conducting Your Business 56 Giving notice and getting people to the meeting . . . . . . . . . . 56 Getting some help up front 57 Planning the work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Getting down to business 57 Participating in Meetings as a Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Addressing the presiding officer 59 Speaking through the chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Waiting for recognition before speaking 60 Presiding over Meetings with Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Relaxing the Rules at Meetings 61 Considering things informally . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Taking it easy in small boards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 Meeting Virtually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Amending your bylaws to make virtual meetings possible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Evaluating meeting platforms 66 Adopting special rules of order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 CHAPTER 4: Notice and a Quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Giving Notice of Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Regular meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Special meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 Selecting forms of giving notice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Protecting the rights of absentees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Quorum Defined . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Determining how many is enough for a meeting . . . . . . . . . . 78 Establishing a quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Counting ex-officio members in board and committee quorums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Knowing what you can do without a quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Handling emergencies quorumless . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Table of Contents vii CHAPTER 5: Ordering Business: The Agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Order of Business Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Approving the minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Hearing the reports of officers, boards, and standing committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 Receiving reports from special committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Taking up special orders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 Turning to unfinished business and general orders . . . . . . . 90 Calling for new business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 Using an Agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Understanding the agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 Using Robert’s Rules’ basic agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 PART 2: MOTIONS: PUTTING IDEAS INTO ACTION . . . . 97 CHAPTER 6: Main Motions: Proposing Ideas for Group Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 Understanding Motion Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Classifying motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Defining relationships between the classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Knowing when to use secondary motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Taking the Plunge with a Main Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Examining examples of main motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 Understanding the main motion’s purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 Putting your motion in writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Making your motion in proper form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Breaking Down the Types of Main Motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Original main motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Incidental main motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Giving Previous Notice of Motions 113 Working within Limits: Basic Rules for Main Motions . . . . . . . . 114 Avoiding Out-of-Order Main Motions 115 Handling a Main Motion in Eight Easy Steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Step 1: The member rises and addresses the chair 117 Step 2: The chair recognizes the member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Step 3: The member makes the motion 118 Step 4: Another member seconds the motion . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Step 5: The chair states the motion 120 Step 6: The members debate the motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 Step 7: The chair puts the question and the members vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 Step 8: The chair announces the result 122
viii Robert’s Rules For Dummies CHAPTER 7: Debate: Discussing the Pros and Cons of Ideas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 Understanding the Debate Process 126 To Debate or Not to Debate, That is the Question! . . . . . . . . . . 126 Presiding over the Debate 129 Starting the debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 Assigning the floor 130 Deciding who to recognize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 Refraining from debate 135 Handling an appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 Closing debate and taking the vote 135 Debating As a Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 Taking your turn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 Seeking recognition and obtaining the floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 Recognizing limitations on debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 Getting around the rules by changing the limits of debate 140 Knowing when it’s okay to interrupt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 Playing Nice: Decorum in Debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 Dealing with Disruption: Dilatory and Improper Motions . . . . 144 CHAPTER 8: Making Group Decisions: Voting on the Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 Knowing Your Voting Rights and Responsibilities . . . . . . . . . . . 148 Voting as a duty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 Abstaining from voting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 Voting for yourself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 Interrupting a vote 149 Explaining your vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 Changing your vote 150 Making your vote count — once! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 Deciding questions of procedure 150 Taking Your Pick of Voting Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 Unanimous consent 151 Voice vote (viva voce) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152 Rising vote 152 Counted vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 Roll-call vote 154 Voting by ballot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 Allowing Absentee Voting 160 Voting by proxy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 Voting by mail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 Voting online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Table of Contents ix Determining Voting Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168 Crossing voting thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169 Handling tie votes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 Challenging a vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172 CHAPTER 9: Subsidiary Motions: Helping to Process the Main Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 Disposing of a Main Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 Ranking the Subsidiary Motions 178 Let’s Vote but Say We Didn’t: Postpone Indefinitely . . . . . . . . . 180 Using the motion to Postpone Indefinitely 181 Six key characteristics of the motion to Postpone Indefinitely 183 Making a Change: Amend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 Six key characteristics of the motion to Amend 184 Amending by the book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 Understanding basic forms of amendments 186 Sending It to Committee: Commit or Refer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 Using the motion to Commit 194 Delegating authority to a committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 Six key characteristics of the motion to Commit 195 Dealing with It Later: Postpone to a Certain Time (Or Postpone Definitely) 196 Using the motion to Postpone to a Certain Time . . . . . . . . . 197 Limiting the time of postponement 197 Six key characteristics of the motion to Postpone to a Certain Time 199 How Long Can This Go On? Limit or Extend Limits of Debate 200 Using the motion to Limit or Extend the Limits of Debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 Additional information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201 Six key characteristics of Limit or Extend the Limits of Debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202 Enough Already! Previous Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Putting the damper on debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Using Previous Question to stop debate and vote immediately . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204 Six key characteristics of the motion Previous Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 Doing This Now: Lay on the Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207 Using the motion to Lay on the Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207 Six key characteristics of the motion to Lay on the Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
x Robert’s Rules For Dummies CHAPTER 10: Privileged Motions: Getting through the Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211 Ranking the Privileged Motions 212 Getting Back on Schedule: Call for the Orders of the Day . . . . 214 Using the motion to Call for the Orders of the Day 215 Setting aside the orders of the day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216 Six key characteristics of the motion to Call for the Orders of the Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216 It’s Cold in Here: Raise a Question of Privilege 217 Using the device Raise a Question of Privilege . . . . . . . . . . . 218 Six key characteristics of the device Raise a Question of Privilege . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220 Taking a Break: Recess 220 Using the motion to Recess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221 Six key characteristics of the motion to Recess 222 Time to Get Outta Here: Adjourn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222 Using the motion to Adjourn 224 Six key characteristics of the privileged motion to Adjourn 225 Finishing on Another Day: Fix the Time to Which to Adjourn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226 Using the motion to Fix the Time to which to Adjourn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 Six key characteristics of the motion to Fix the Time to Which to Adjourn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228 CHAPTER 11: Incidental Motions: Dealing with Questions of Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 Defining Incidental Motions 230 Using Incidental Motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231 Following the Rules: Point of Order 232 Rising to a point of order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 Beating the clock on points of order 235 Looking back in time: Precedent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 Six key characteristics of Point of Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 Sorry, but I Disagree: Appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 The appeal of the motion to Appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 Applying the motion to appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240 Six key characteristics of Appeal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 We Can’t Let That Stop Us: Suspend the Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 Moving to Suspend the Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 Knowing when you can’t suspend the rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244 Six key characteristics of the motion to Suspend the Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Table of Contents xi Oh, Come Now! Objection to the Consideration of a Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 Objecting to Considering a Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 Six key characteristics of the motion to Objection to the Consideration of a Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248 Too Much in One Fell Swoop: Division of a Question . . . . . . . . 248 Using Division of a Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249 Six key characteristics of the motion Division of the Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 Going Over This Carefully: Consideration by Paragraph . . . . . 251 Considering by paragraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Considering as a whole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Six key characteristics of the motion Consideration by Paragraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Being Sure about the Vote: Division of the Assembly . . . . . . . . 254 Using Division of the Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254 Six key characteristics of the motion Division of the Assembly 255 Deciding How to Decide: Motions Related to Methods of Voting and the Polls 255 Using motions related to methods of voting and the polls 256 Six key characteristics of motions related to methods of voting and the polls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257 Coming Up with Candidates: Motions Related to Nominations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Using motions related to nominations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Six key characteristics of motions related to nominations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259 I Can’t Take It Anymore! Request to Be Excused from a Duty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259 Requesting to Be Excused from Duty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 Six key characteristics of the Request to Be Excused from a Duty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Is It in Order To . . . ? Parliamentary Inquiry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Making a Parliamentary Inquiry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 Six key characteristics of Parliamentary Inquiry . . . . . . . . . . 262 Needing to Know More: Request for Information . . . . . . . . . . . 263 Using Request for Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263 Six key characteristics of Request for Information . . . . . . . . 264 Making Other Requests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 What was I thinking? Request to Withdraw or Modify a Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 Just let me read this: Request to Read Papers . . . . . . . . . . . 266 Six key characteristics of other requests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
xii Robert’s Rules For Dummies CHAPTER 12: Looking At Motions That Bring a Question Again Before the Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269 Been There, Done That! Preventing Revoting on Motions 270 Having Second Thoughts: Reconsidering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Understanding “Reconsider” as a parliamentary term 273 Using the motion to Reconsider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273 Knowing when not to use “Reconsider” 276 Using a special form of Reconsider: Reconsider and enter on the minutes 279 More considerations on the motion to Reconsider . . . . . . . 280 Identifying six key characteristics of the motion to Reconsider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281 Rescinding or Amending Something Previously Adopted 282 Using Rescind or Amend Something Previously Adopted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282 Knowing what motions you can’t rescind or amend . . . . . . 284 Identifying the six key characteristics of this motion 285 Discharging a Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285 Using the motion to Discharge a Committee 286 Identifying six key characteristics of the motion to Discharge a Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287 Examining What’s Left on the Table — Taking from the Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288 Using the motion to Take from the Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288 Understanding when you can’t take from the table . . . . . . 290 Knowing what’s before the assembly when a motion is taken from the table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290 Identifying the six key features of the motion to Take from the Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291 PART 3: GETTING INVOLVED IN LEADERSHIP . . . . . . 293 CHAPTER 13: Who’s Going to Do the Work? Following Nomination Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295 Nominations by the Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296 Nominations from the Floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297 Opening the floor for nominations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297 Handling nominations from the floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298 Debating nominations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299 Closing nominations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 Nominations by a Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302 Selecting the committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303 Working on the committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303 Handling the committee report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
Table of Contents xiii Nominations by Ballot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309 Nominations by Mail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309 Nominations by Petition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310 CHAPTER 14: Holding Elections and Making Appointments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311 Conducting Elections Like a Maestro 312 Electing by ballot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312 Electing by voice vote 317 Electing by roll call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318 Determining who wins 319 Contesting an election . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320 Dealing with incomplete elections 323 Filling Vacancies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324 Making Committee Appointments 324 Exploring the methods of appointing committees . . . . . . . . 325 Finding more ways to appoint committee members . . . . . . 327 CHAPTER 15: Running the Show: Officers and Directors 329 Perfecting Presidential Presence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331 Preparing to lead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331 Presiding with pizzazz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Maintaining magnanimity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334 Rounding out the job . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336 Playing (Not-So) Second Fiddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337 Waiting in the wings: Vice-president . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337 Keeping jots and tittles: Secretary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Balancing the books: Treasurer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342 Tackling Other Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343 Managing the business: Directors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343 Keeping the peace: Sergeant-at-arms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343 Guarding the gate: Doorkeeper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343 Continuing the saga: Historian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344 Shelving the tomes: Librarian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345 Stowing the scepter: Curator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345 Speaking words of wisdom: Chaplain 345 Managing the staff: Executive director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345 Advising on procedure: Parliamentarian 346 Filling Vacancies in Offices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346 Defining Terms of Office 348
xiv Robert’s Rules For Dummies CHAPTER 16: Gearing Up for the Real Action: Committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351 Defining the Ordinary Committee 352 Standing committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353 Special committees 354 Taking Stock of Committee Appointment Methods . . . . . . . . . 357 Appointing Committee Members 358 Making appointments for the right reasons . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359 Appointing special committees for investigations or deliberations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359 Picking the right mix for committees carrying out a specific task . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360 Selecting ideal members for standing committees 360 Following Committee Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360 Using small board rules 361 Unfettering the discourse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361 Easing up on minutes 362 Hearing from the masses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362 Working on a Committee 362 Hearing from the secretary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363 Presiding over a committee 363 Participating as a committee member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364 Adjourning committee meetings 365 CHAPTER 17: Reporting to Your Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367 Making Minutes Minute . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368 Styling your minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369 Composing your meeting’s minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369 Signing the minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373 Approving the minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373 Publishing a record of proceedings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375 First Things First: Filing the Treasurer’s Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376 Next Up: Hearing Reports of Other Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377 Wrapping Up Reporting: Boards and Committees . . . . . . . . . . 377 Hearing from the executive board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378 Handling committee reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378 Knowing What to Do with Reports and Recommendations . . . 381 Recognizing Members’ Rights to Consult the Records . . . . . . . 382 CHAPTER 18: Disciplining and Removing Officers or Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 Dealing with a Dictator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386 Putting a question from your place . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386
Table of Contents xv Removing the presiding officer from the chair . . . . . . . . . . . 387 Removing an officer permanently . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387 Disciplining Members Who Shame Your Group’s Name . . . . . . 388 Checking out the facts first . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390 Reporting findings of cause . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391 Holding a trial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392 Maintaining Order in Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395 Understanding rights of the group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396 Knowing what’s expected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396 Managing misbehaving members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396 Removing nonmembers from the hall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398 CHAPTER 19: Starting a New Association . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401 Preparing for an Organizational Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403 Inviting Prospective Members 403 Holding the First Organizational Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404 Electing temporary officers 405 Adopting your parliamentary authority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406 Adopting the resolution to form the association 406 Appointing a committee to draft bylaws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407 Before you call it a day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 408 Drawing Up Your Bylaws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409 Getting down to bylaw business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410 Appointing a subcommittee to write the first draft . . . . . . . 410 Reviewing the first draft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411 Holding Your Second Organizational Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411 Calling the meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411 Approving the minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412 Adopting the bylaws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412 Holding Your Charter Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413 Enrolling charter members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413 Electing permanent officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413 Handling other essential business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414 Adjourning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414 CHAPTER 20: The Convention of Delegates: A Special Kind of Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415 Defining the Convention of Delegates 416 Serving As a Delegate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417 Organizing the Convention Assembly 417 Deciding who can vote: Credentials committee . . . . . . . . . . 418 Establishing some rules: Committee on standing rules 420 Knowing when to do what: Convention program committee 423
xvi Robert’s Rules For Dummies Understanding Other Convention Committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424 Getting down to details: Convention arrangements committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425 Screening proposals for action: Resolutions committee . . . 426 PART 4: THE PART OF TENS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429 CHAPTER 21: Ten (Plus Two) Meeting Procedure Myths . . . . 431 Robert’s Rules Is Just a Guide You Don’t Have to Follow . . . . . . 432 Only One Motion Can Be on the Floor at a Time . . . . . . . . . . . . 432 The Presiding Officer Can Vote Only to Break a Tie 434 The Parliamentarian Makes Rulings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435 A Motion Not Seconded Is Void 436 Abstentions Count As Yes (or No) Votes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436 The Chair Must Ask for Unfinished Business 437 The Chair Must Call for Nominations Three Times . . . . . . . . . . 437 If the Winner Doesn’t Serve, Second Place Can Take Over 438 Officers Must Be Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439 Ex Officio Members Can’t Vote 439 Motions Don’t Take Effect Until Minutes Are Approved . . . . . . 440 CHAPTER 22: Ten Tips for Presiding Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441 Know Your Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441 Plan Your Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442 Start Your Meetings on Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443 Use Unanimous Consent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443 Use Committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444 Preside with Impartiality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444 Never Give up the Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446 Don’t Share Your Lectern . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446 Keep Your Cool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447 Use a Parliamentarian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447 CHAPTER 23: Ten Motion Mistakes to Avoid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449 “Reconsidering” a Vote . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449 Speaking without Recognition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450 Moving to “Table!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451 Calling the Question 452 Tabling It until Next Month . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 452 Offering a Point of Information 453 Offering Friendly Amendments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453 Making Motions to Accept or Receive Reports 454
Table of Contents xvii Dispensing with the Minutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 455 Wasting Breath on “I So Move” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 456 CHAPTER 24: Ten Custom Rules to Consider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457 Changing the Ten-Minute Speech Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458 Defining Your Quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458 Establishing Rules Related to the Quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459 Authorize your board to fill its vacancies to achieve a quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459 Authorize a mail or Internet vote to change an impossible quorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460 Electing by Voice instead of by Ballot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460 Adopting Special Vote Thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461 Authorizing a Committee to Adopt Its Own Rules . . . . . . . . . . . 462 Authorizing Spending When Adopting Budgets . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463 Requiring an Adopted Agenda by Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464 Adopting a Customized Order of Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464 Breaking a Tie in Elections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465 CHAPTER 25: Ten Considerations for Electronic Meetings 467 Developing Bylaw Provisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 468 Making Members Responsible for Connection and Access 469 Providing for a Quorum Call . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469 Obtaining Recognition to Speak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470 Interrupting a Speaker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470 Establishing Requirements for Motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471 Hearing “What Are We Voting on?” Less Frequently . . . . . . . . . 471 Covering Voting Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472 Noting Comings-and-Goings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473 Pulling the Plug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473 APPENDIX: GLOSSARY OF PARLIAMENTARY TERMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475 INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491
Introduction
Welcome to the fourth edition of Robert’s Rules For Dummies — a book with “Robert’s Rules” in the title that doesn’t pretend to be a substitute for Robert’s Rules! It’s written to serve as your personal guide to the principles of parliamentary procedure found in Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, (12th edition) and as found in Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief (3rd edition)
Just so you know, in this book, whenever I use the term “Robert’s Rules,” I’m referring to the 12th edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, not to one of the many other books with “Robert’s Rules” in the title. The 12th edition of Robert’s Rules is the current edition. It contains at least 90 changes of some sort from the 11th edition. And that is the big reason why I’ve updated Robert’s Rules For Dummies; I want you to be able to put two-and-two together with the latest, greatest, Robert’s Rules.
I doubt that you really want to know anything about parliamentary procedure. But I’m pretty sure you’re looking to get some quick information to help you participate more effectively in meetings, to serve in an office to which you’ve recently been elected, or both. Whatever your situation, if using parliamentary procedure is a must, then this book will go a long way toward helping you master the rules of Robert’s Rules.
I was in a similar situation in 1989 when I joined a local unit of the National Association of Parliamentarians in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I didn’t join because I wanted to be a parliamentarian or because I wanted to be a member of another organization; I joined because I wanted to learn enough to get a new organization off the ground. I needed some specific information, and I didn’t even realize that everything I needed to know but didn’t even know enough to ask about could be found in a book titled Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised (at that time, it was in its eighth edition, but the ninth edition was about to be published).
Introduction 1
At first glance, the real Robert’s Rules appeared to be naught but a tome of arcane spells to intimidate the masses and empower the erudite. But thanks to several very knowledgeable and experienced parliamentarians, I found that quite the opposite was true. Robert’s Rules is actually a great reference book that provides a proper procedure for practically any parliamentary predicament.
So, when I was offered the opportunity to write this book, I thought it would be nice to pay forward all the personal help I’ve received over the years from the parliamentarians in the Louisiana Association of Parliamentarians, the National Association of Parliamentarians, and the American Institute of Parliamentarians. If I’ve accomplished my goals for this book, then you can keep Robert’s Rules For Dummies handy and use it as if it were your own personal consulting parliamentarian.
But it comes with a very important caveat: When you need to make a point in a meeting, be prepared to cite the real Robert’s Rules. That is, Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised (12th edition) Whatever you do, please don’t go waving my book around to your presiding officer unless your bylaws say that your parliamentary authority is Jennings’s Robert’s Rules For Dummies (which they should not!). Of course, I’m delighted that you’ve bought this book, but it’s not a parliamentary authority. It’s a book about one.
About This Book
To get the most out of this new edition of Robert’s Rules For Dummies, use it to introduce yourself to the fundamental concepts that are covered in comprehensive detail in Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.
Don’t try to read this book cover to cover. Instead, dive right into the chapter containing the information you need. Read it and you’ll have a good and thorough overview of that particular topic. If I’ve done my job, you’ll be well oriented to the subject matter. When you turn to the corresponding pages in the 2020 edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, the in-depth treatment of a particular subject will make much more sense to you, and you’ll be able to apply it to your particular situation.
2 Robert’s Rules For Dummies
What’s new with this fourth edition? In particular, I include information about electronic meetings and using electronic voting in your in-person meetings. In this edition, I cover
» Meeting electronically.
» Voting using electronic keypads.
» putting together special rules for holding your business meetings electronically.
Other updates of note include the following:
» Rules governing the sending of meeting notices
» Clarification of the rules applicable to meeting in executive session
» Expansion of rules about when points of order can be raised
(Not So) Foolish Assumptions
Because you picked up this book, I assume a few things about you:
» You’ve heard of Robert’s Rules, but you have little (or no) formal training or study in parliamentary procedure.
» You’re a member of an organization that uses Robert’s Rules.
» You want to participate effectively in meetings.
» Much of what you know about parliamentary procedure is what you’ve picked up here and there in meetings.
» You may sometimes feel not confident about how to participate effectively at some point in a meeting, so you keep your mouth shut and later wonder what maybe you could have done if only you had known what to do and how to do it when it could count.
» You have to deal with others who attempt to minimize the importance of using proper procedures in meetings.
Introduction 3
» You want to have a better understanding of Robert’s Rules so that others can’t take advantage of you in meetings.
» If you’re an officer or director, you want to understand the proper way to handle your duties in the organization.
I also assume that you will not try to use this book as a substitute for Robert’s Rules. It’s not written to be a parliamentary authority. It’s written to give you the perspective you need to make the best use of the real Robert’s Rules when you need it.
That being the case, my final assumption is that you will obtain a copy of the real Robert’s Rules. The right book is the 12th edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised. Get a copy if you don’t already have one. You can pick up a copy at your favorite bookstore, or you can order it online from the National Association of Parliamentarians store at www.parliamentarians.org/.
Icons Used in This Book
Icons are these peculiar little pictures that surface in the margin from time to time in each chapter to let you know that the following topic is special in some way. Robert’s Rules For Dummies utilizes the following five icons:
When you see the Tip icon, you know you’re about to read a helpful hint or tip that can save you some time or trouble. The tip may make things easier for you when you’re in the thick of some difficult parliamentary situation.
When you see this icon, pay close attention. It lets you know that trouble, problems, or exceptions may be lurking, but you can avoid the trouble by taking the right precautions or paying heed to some advice born of experience in the school of hard knocks.
This one doesn’t get a lot of use here, because just about everything in this book qualifies as technical stuff. So if you see this icon, it’s sure to be the most technical of the technical stuff.
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I use this icon a good bit, but that’s only because there’s a lot to remember in this book. But the good news is that you don’t have to memorize it because you can flip to the page and go straight for the icon. But generally, this icon highlights key points of whatever discussion you’re reading.
An important aspect of knowing the rules is knowing the exceptions. Whenever there’s an important exception to an otherwise pretty hard-and-fast rule, I call it to your attention with this icon.
Beyond the Book
If you need more help with Robert’s Rules, I encourage you to check out additional resources available to you online:
» You can download the book’s Cheat Sheet at www.dummies. com. Just search for “Robert’s Rules Cheat Sheet.” It’s a handy resource to keep on your computer, tablet, or smartphone.
» I also include helpful forms and sample documents on Dummies.com. All you have to do is point your browser to www.dummies.com/go.robertsrulesfd4e, download the files you want, and they’ll show up on your computer ready for you to customize, save, and print.
Where to Go from Here
Get with it! You bought this book for a reason, so look up whatever it is you need to understand about Robert’s Rules. After you’ve read the discussion, turn to your copy of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised if you want or need to know more. Immerse yourself in an in-depth treatment of a topic as written by the somewhat droll but definitely learned authors. On the National Association of Parliamentarians website at www.parliamentarians.org, you’ll find a bookstore with a great collection of parliamentary procedure titles that you can order direct.
Introduction 5
Don’t stop there! It’s the very nature of parliamentary law that knowledge about one topic leads to interest in another. Learning a little more will make you that much more effective in your meetings and service as a leader. It feels good to gain a stronger grasp of the Robert’s Rules principles.
If I can help at any time, let me know. I can be reached by email through the contact page on my website. Go to www. alanjennings.com, click on “Contact,” and type in a message. I make every effort to respond to all my email, so please drop me a line if there’s something you need clarified or expanded upon.
Parliamentary procedure education in your area
If you really want to find out as much as you can, check with one or both of the following organizations and ask for information about the nearest local unit or chapter of parliamentarians. These local units have regular program meetings and offer educational programs in the community. They also usually have registered or professional members that can tailor-make a workshop for your group to help you have better meetings or develop leadership skills.
The National Association of Parliamentarians
213 South Main St.
Independence, MO 64050-3850
Phone: 888-627-2929
Website: www.parliamentarians.org
American Institute of Parliamentarians
1100 E. Woodfield Rd., Suite 350
Schaumburg, IL 60173
Phone: 888-664-0428
Website: www.aipparl.org
6 Robert’s Rules For Dummies
Hiring a professional parliamentarian
More and more groups are looking to professional parliamentarians for training, consulting, or on-site meeting services.
If you have a large group and want to have more orderly and productive meetings, or if your staff is overwhelmed when putting together your meetings and could use some help, you will probably benefit greatly by retaining a professional parliamentarian for specific services.
And even if your group is small and local and is just interested in fixing some bylaws, you save a lot of time and angst if you enlist the help of a local certified, registered, or professional parliamentarian.
No matter the size of your organization, when you find yourself in a rough situation and you just can’t get past a particular issue, you may be able to break the impasse by asking a professional parliamentarian to give you a consultation and advise you on how to proceed.
Introduction 7
It’s Parliamentary, My Dear: Participating Effectively in Meetings
1
IN THIS PART . . .
Discover the rules of parliamentary procedure.
Get familiar with the bylaws of any organization you belong to.
Understand the basic requirements for a valid meeting.
Follow the standard order of business.
IN THIS CHAPTER
» Uncovering the source of Robert’s Rules
» Defining parliamentary law
» Understanding the rules of parliamentary procedure
» Recognizing the personal benefits of learning Robert’s Rules
Chapter 1
Following the Rules (Robert’s, That Is)
Are you the kind of person who sees meetings as a wonderful and personally fulfilling activity that you look forward to with great anticipation?
I didn’t think so. If you were, you probably wouldn’t be reading this book. Truth is, I haven’t met many folks who love meetings and can’t wait for the next one. But I have met plenty of people who dread meetings and attend only because they’re afraid of what may happen if they’re absent. Attitudes like this develop most frequently when nobody in the group (especially the presiding officer) really knows how to run a good meeting.
Luckily for you, I’ve found a remedy for anti-meeting attitudes. Try out a well-run meeting conducted by a presiding officer who takes the time to learn and use the principles of parliamentary procedure in Robert’s Rules. It really does work wonders!
CHAPTER 1 Following the Rules (Robert’s, That Is) 11
Keeping Things Informal
For anyone reading this book who thinks that Robert’s Rules is all about being stiff and formal in meetings, I hope you disregard that notion right away. Robert’s Rules is about conducting good meetings without any more formality than is absolutely necessary to protect the rights of everyone and keep things orderly. The rules are there to help, not hinder, business. General Robert (though not a general at the time) said, in advising inexperienced chairmen in his original edition:
Know all about parliamentary law, but do not try to show off your knowledge. Never be technical, nor be any more strict than is absolutely necessary for the good of the meeting. Use your judgment; the assembly may be of such a nature, through its ignorance of parliamentary usages and peaceable disposition, that a strict enforcement of the rules, instead of assisting, would greatly hinder business; but in large assemblies where there is much work to be done, and especially where there is liability to trouble, the only safe course is to require a strict observance of the rules.
The general’s point must be taken to heart. Sprinkled throughout Robert’s Rules are details of procedures that are available when you need them. The key theme of Robert’s Rules For Dummies, as with Robert’s Rules in general, is that you don’t need to be any more formal than necessary. But you never want to be so informal that you compromise any rights — whether those of the individual, the minority, or the group as a whole.
Making Meetings Meaningful
One of the most marvelous points about Robert’s Rules is that it makes meetings meaningful. I first experienced a true understanding of how Robert’s Rules can really work to a group’s advantage in a meeting of my state association of parliamentarians many years ago.
12 PART 1 It’s Parliamentary, My Dear: Participating Effectively in Meetings
At that meeting, the president of the National Association of Parliamentarians, Kathryn Scheld, presented a workshop titled “Making Meetings Meaningful.” I was really taken with that presentation, and I have since made it my goal in service as a parliamentarian to help my clients see their meetings as events that can and should be meaningful experiences for the members who invest their time and money in attending and participating. Those three words — making meetings meaningful — so clearly describe the most immediate benefit to learning and applying the principles of parliamentary procedure contained in Robert’s Rules.
Using Robert’s Rules For Dummies as a handbook for making your meetings meaningful can give you a real edge on the knowledge that can help you put your organization on the fast track to greater success.
A Brief History of Robert’s Rules
Robert’s Rules is practically synonymous with parliamentary procedure. My colleagues conservatively estimate that more than 80 percent of all organizations use Robert’s Rules as their parliamentary manual. But Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised is just one of a number of parliamentary manuals. And because copyrights expire and the name Robert’s Rules has assumed a generic usage, many books are published with Robert’s Rules in their titles. But they’re not the real thing.
Robert’s Rules of Order was the cover title of a book first written in 1876 by Henry Martyn Robert. The actual title was Pocket Manual of Rules of Order for Deliberative Assemblies. The author was a civil engineer in the U.S. Army. In 1863, when he was 26 years old, he had been called on to preside at a church meeting. He was reluctant to decline, but he didn’t know how to properly preside. Despite his reservations, he accepted the duty, hoping that his lack of knowledge wouldn’t be an embarrassment to himself or a disservice to those at the meeting.
No one knows exactly what happened at that meeting that historians describe as “turbulent,” but Robert came away determined
CHAPTER 1 Following the Rules
Is) 13
(Robert’s, That
to learn something about parliamentary procedure before he even attended another meeting.
Some years later, Robert, who at the time held the rank of major, was stationed in San Francisco and found himself working with different organizations having memberships composed of persons from all over the country. Thanks to different local customs, wide disagreement arose over “correct” meeting procedures. Major Robert saw the need for uniformity and immersed himself in study of the parliamentary law of the day. He developed a pocket manual of parliamentary procedure that was published in 1876, known as Robert’s Rules of Order. Since then, the manual has seen two revisions in a total of 11 editions.
THE EDITIONS OF ROBERT’S RULES
“Robert’s Rules of Order” refers to the most current edition of the parliamentary authority described by any of the following titles:
• Robert’s Rules of Order (RO) (1st, 2nd, and 3rd editions)
• Robert’s Rules of Order Revised (ROR) (4th, 5th, and 6th editions)
• Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised (RONR) (7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th editions)
All the revised editions are revisions by the original copyright holder or his successor trustees of the copyrights. The original Robert’s Rules of Order is out of copyright and, consequently, has been republished or rewritten by numerous authors and sold with the name Robert’s Rules or Robert’s Rules of Order in the title.
This updated fourth edition of Robert’s Rules For Dummies is intended as your guide to the current (12th) edition of the work, which is now titled Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised. That book is based on the most current rules, not on the old and outdated rules of earlier editions.
14 PART 1 It’s Parliamentary, My Dear: Participating Effectively in Meetings