Roberts Rules of Order

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Roberts Rules of Order
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General

• Please Stand up when addressing the chair
• Please no food and drink in the meetings
• Please try not to interrupt a person who has the
  floor
• This includes whispering to your neighbors

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General

• Minutes
• Does anyone read them?
• Remember that the chapter minutes can be used in
  court incase we ever get sued or anything.
• So it might be a good idea to look at them

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Quorum

• This is the minimum number of members who must be
  present in order to conduct business
• For us this is Two-thirds of the chapter
• If Two-thirds of the chapter is not at a meeting
  then we cannot do anything

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Voting

• People have three options when a vote is being
  taken
• Affirmative
• Negative
• Abstention

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Voting

• Affirmative
• You are voting yes for the motion on the floor
• For a motion to pass a majority of brothers must
  vote yes for the motion.

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Voting

• Negative
• This is when brothers vote no on the motion on
  the floor
• If the majority of the chapter votes no on a
  motion then it is dead

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Voting

• Abstention
• This means not to vote
• A member is not voting yes or voting on a motion
• However,
• This can be used to kill a motion if there is no
  majority voting yes is not a majority

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Debating

• When a motion is on the floor then there is
  usually debate on it.
• Rules for debate
• Every member has a right to speak
• To speak the chair must allow the member to have
  the floor
• The person who is making the motion has first
  right to speak on the motion

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• Rules cont.
• People can speak twice only if everyone who
  wishes to speak has spoken
• Everyone who speaks must direct their comments to
  the chair
• Debate must be relevant
• Use your common sense

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• Rules cont
• Do not attack other members. That is why you
  direct your comments to the chair
• No Profane Language
• General members must refer to officers by their
  title
• Person must state whether or not they support or
  are against a motion

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• Debatable motions
• Main Motions
• Postpone indefinitely
• Amend
• Refer to a committee
• Postpone to a certain time
• Appeal from the decision of the chair
• Rescind
• Amend something previously adopted

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• Debatable motions cont.
• Reconsider
• Recess (as in incidental main motion
• Fix the time to adjourn (as incidental main
  motion)

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• Unbeatable Motions
• Limit or extend the limits of debate
• Previous question (close debate)
• Lay on the table
• Take from the table
• Call for the orders of the day
• Raise a question or privilege
• Recess (as a privileged motion)
• Adjourn

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• Unbeatable motions cont.
• Fix the time to which to adjourn (as a privileged
  motion)
• Point of order
• Withdraw a motion
• Object to consideration of the motion
• Division of the assembly or of the question
• Incidental motions relation to voting, when the
  subject is pending

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Motions

• Classes
• Main
• Secondary
• Subsidiary
• Privileged
• Incidental
• Motions that bring a question again before the
  assembly

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Main Motions

• These are used to present new business
• This is the lowest level of motion
• Terminology
• I move that
• I move to
• It needs a second
• Must be made while not business is pending
• Only one can be pending at a a time
• Debatable

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Incidental Main Motions

• This deals with a procedural question arising out
  of pending motions or business
• Presented when no new business is pending

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Secondary Motion

• Helps assembly decide what to do with the main
  motion or how to get things done in the meeting
• Allows one motion to be pending at the same time

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Subsidiary motion types

• Postpone Indefinitely
• Purpose
• To kill the main motion for the duration of the
  meeting without taking a direct vote on it.
• Needs a second
• Not amendable
• Debatable
• Majority vote required to adopt
• Members can reconsider only and affirmative vote

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Subsidiary Motion Types

• Amend
• Purpose
• To change the pending motion before it is acted
  upon proposed amendments must be relevant to the
  main motion
• Needs a second
• Amendable
• Only if amend is related to the primary amendment
• Majority vote required
• Can be reconsidered

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Subsidiary Motion types

• Refer to a Committee
• Purpose
• Have a committee investigate a proposal
• Needs a second
• Debatable
• Majority vote required to adopt
• Can be reconsidered if committee hasnt started
  considering the motion.

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Subsidiary Motion Types

• Postpone to a Certain Time
• Purpose
• To put off or delay a decision
• Needs a second
• The time element is amendable
• Debatable
• Majority Vote required to adopt
• Can be reconsidered

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Subsidiary Motions types

• Limit or Extend the Limits of debate
• Purpose
• To limit or extend the length of debate or the
  number of times a person can speak in debate or,
  to put a time limit on a particular motion
• Needs second
• Time element is amendable
• Not debatable
• 2/3 vote to adopt
• Can reconsidered an affirmative vote with out
  debate before the time limit expires

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Subsidiary Motion types

• Previous Question
• Purpose
• To stop debate and immediately take the vote.
• Needs a second
• No amends, or debate
• Requires a 2/3 vote to adopt

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Subsidiary motion types

• Lay on the table
• Purpose
• To set the main motion aside temporarily in order
  to take up something of immediate urgency.
• Needs a second
• No Amend or debate
• Requires a majority to adopt
• No reconsideration

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Privileged motions

• These do not relate to the main motion but they
  are of immediate importance

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Privileged motion types

• Call for the orders of the day
• Purpose
• To make the assembly conform to the agenda or
  order of business, or to make assembly take up a
  general or special order
• One member can call for the orders of the day
• NO second, amend, debate, vote, reconsideration
• I call for the orders of the day

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Privileged motion types

• Raise a question of privilege
• Purpose
• Permits a member to make a request or a main
  motion relating to the rights and privileges of
  the assembly or an individual member and to
  consider it immediately b/c of urgency, while
  other business is pending
• No second, debate
• Chair rules on the request
• I rise a question of privilege concerning the
  assembly

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Privileged motion types

• Recess
• Purpose
• To take a break, can be brought up while business
  is pending
• Needs second
• Length of recess is amendable
• Not debatable
• Requires a majority vote to adopt
• No reconsideration
• I move that the meeting recess until
• I move to recess

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Privileged motion types

• Adjourn
• Needs second
• No amend, or debate
• Requires Majority vote

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Privileged Motion types

• Fix the Time at which to adjourn
• Purpose
• To set the time to adjourn the meeting
• Needs second
• Time is amendable
• Debatable
• Requires a majority vote
• No reconsideration

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Incidental Motions

• Motions that concern questions of procedure
  related to pending business
• No rank

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Incidental Motions

• Point of order
• To correct a breach in the rules
• No second or debate, or vote
• Chair rules on the point
• Used to correct something the chair fails to
  correct
• I rise to a point of order

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Incidental Motions

• Appeal from the Decision of the chair
• Purpose
• To disagree with the chairs ruling and let the
  members decide the disagreement by taking a vote.
• Needs a second
• Must be made at the time the ruling was made
• Debatable only if it is not relates to rules of
  speaking, priority of business, or a ruling on an
  undebatable motion.
• No amends
• Majority or tie vote sustains the decision of the
  chair
• I appeal from the decision of the chair

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Incidental Motions

• Request for Permission to withdraw or modify a
  Motion
• Purpose
• Withdraw or modify a motion with out taking a
  vote
• No second if withdrawing, Needs a second to
  modify
• No debate
• Vote by general consent when asking permission to
  withdraw

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Incidental Motions

• Object to Consideration of a Question
• Purpose
• To prevent the main motion from being considered
• No second, or debate
• Needs a 2/3 vote
• In the negative
• Only negative vote can be reconsidered

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Incidental Motions

• Division of Assembly
• Purpose
• To doubt the result of the vote
• No second or debate
• Result
• The vote is immediately retake in different way
  than it was originally taken

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Incidental Motions

• Division of the question
• Purpose
• To divide a motion that has several topics that
  can stand as separate motions. Members can apply
  this motion to main motions and their amendments.
• Needs second
• Amendable
• No debate
• Majority Vote
• Cant be reconsidered

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Motions that Bring Questions

• Bringing motions back before the assembly
• I move to

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Motions that Bring Questions

• Take from the Table
• Purpose
• To take a motion from the table
• Needs a second
• No debate
• Requires a majority to adopt
• No reconsidering

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Motions that Bring Questions

• Reconsider
• Purpose
• To reconsider a vote on a motion
• Only a member from the prevailing side can make
  the motion
• Needs second
• Debatable if the type of motion it reconsiders is
  debatable
• Requires a majority vote
• No reconsideration

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Motions that Bring Questions

• Rescind and Amend Something Previously Adopted
• Purpose
• To change something previously adopted either by
  striking out the entire action or by changing
  part of it
• Needs a second
• Amendable
• Debatable
• If no previous notice is given then you need 2/3
  to pass it. If there is previous notice then you
  need a majority vote

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