IEEE Standards and Roberts Rules of Order

IEEE Standards and Roberts Rules of Order l History l Principles l Definitions l Order of Business l Motions l Precedence of Motions l Application of Roberts Rules of Order

History l A.D. Early Anglo-Saxon tribes meet l 1066 Great Councils began after Norman Conquest l 1258 "Parliament" was first used l Journal of the House of Commons l 1801 Jeffersons Manual of Parliamentary Practice l 1845 Cushing's Manual of Parliamentary Practice & Rules of Proceeding and Debates in Deliberative Assemblies

Who was Robert? l Henry Martin Robert l An engineering officer in the Army l Interest sparked when asked to preside over a meeting l Pocket Manual of Rules of Order for Deliberative Assemblies published

Principles Underlying Parliamentary Law l Justice tempered by courtesy must be afforded to all equally l Balance of rights l The majority to decide l The minority to be heard l Absentees to be protected

Deliberative Assembly l Determines courses of action l Group size demands formality l Members are free to act l Members present have equal weight l Members are free to disagree l Members present act as a whole l The will of the majority, determined by vote, is accepted as the decision of the assembly

Board/Committee l Derives power and authority from another body by an instrument of law, such as bylaws l Does not function autonomously l An administrative, managerial or quasi-judicial body of elected or appointed persons l Has the character of a deliberative assembly l No minimum size

Meeting l A single official gathering of members l In one room (area) l To transact business l No cessation of proceedings l Members do not separate, except for a recess

Rules of Order l Written rules of parliamentary procedure l Formally adopted l For the orderly transaction of business l IEEE uses Robert's Rules of Order; however, superior documents take precedence

Precedence of Documents for IEEE Standards l New York State Not-for-Profit Law l IEEE Certificate of Incorporation l IEEE Constitution l IEEE Bylaws l IEEE Policy l IEEE Board of Director Resolutions l IEEE Standards Association Operations Manual l IEEE-SA Standards Board Bylaws l IEEE-SA Standards Board Operations Manual l IEEE Standards Style Manual l Sponsor Operating Procedures l Robert's Rules of Order l IEEE Standards Companion

Quorum l Can be set by the bylaws; otherwise, a simple majority l If no quorum exists a meeting can be called to order; however, the only acceptable actions are l Adjourn l Recess and take measures to obtain a quorum

Quorum (cont.) l Once a meeting begins, a quorum is presumed to exist until the chair or a member notices a quorum no longer exists l Chair must announce loss of a quorum before taking a vote l Member may question the presence of a quorum by making a point of order l Once loss of a quorum is confirmed, business can no longer be transacted

Order of Business 1. Notice 2. Call to order --Quorum 3. Order of business --Agenda 4. Approval of minutes 5. Report of officers

Order of Business (cont.) 6. Report of standing committees 7. Report of special committees 8. Special orders --Motions previously postponed 9. Unfinished business and general orders --Items interrupted by adjournment --Motions to be taken from the table --Motion to reconsider an earlier action 10. New business 11. Adjourn

Agenda l Unofficial agenda accompanies notice l May be modified before adoption l Once approved, it is property of assembly l Changes to order of business require a two-thirds vote l Consent agenda

Motion l A formal proposal by a member that the assembly take a certain action l Business is brought before an assembly by the motion of a member l Basic form is a main motion l Sets a pattern from which other motions are derived l Other motions may be made and are considered with respect to the main motion

Making a Motion l Member makes the motion l Uses the word "move" l Another member seconds the motion l Not required for motions from committees l The chair "states the question" l Ensure clarity by re-stating the motion l Only the chair can place business before the assembly l Prior to the chair stating the question, the motion can be amended l By same maker, seconder must agree l By another member, second is not necessary if maker accepts

Considering a Main Motion Debate l Once the question is stated, the motion is pending and open to debate l At this point, the motion belongs to the assembly l Maker of motion has the right to speak first l Chair assigns floor l Floor can be assigned to a member again after all wishing to speak have done so l There may be a time limit

Considering a Main Motion Debate (cont.) l Debate is confined to the merits of the pending motion l Debate cannot be closed by the chair as long as any member wishes to speak l Except by order of the assembly: l Motion to call the question l Not debatable, requires majority l Speakers cannot be interrupted so long as rules are not violated l Speakers should address the chair l Speakers should not attack or allude to the motives of members

Considering a Main Motion The Vote l Putting the question l Chair assumes unanimous consent l Are you ready for the question? l Take vote l Voice l Show of hands l Roll call l Announce result l "Carried," or "adopted" l "Lost," or "rejected"

Order of Precedence of Motions l Main motions l Can be made only when no other motion is pending l Only one main motion at a time l Secondary motions l Subsidiary motions l Privileged motions l Incidental motions l Only one question can be considered at a time l Main motions rank lowest, therefore l Main motions are last in sequence (not importance) and l Secondary motions are considered before main motions

Order of Precedence of Motions (cont.) l Unclassified motions l Bring a question again before the assembly l Reconsider l Remove from the table l Are considered as main motions, but cannot be amended

Secondary Motions Privileged Motions l Questions of privilege take precedence over all other motions l Do not relate to pending business l Are not debated l Examples: l Question of privilege l Request executive session l Recess/adjourn l Stick to the agenda (orders of the day)

Privileged Motions Executive Session l Executive session: l Any meeting or portion of a meeting at which the proceedings are secret l Only members are entitled to attend l Minutes are not recorded l Good standards practice requires openness and precludes use of executive session

Secondary Motions Subsidiary Motions l Can be made and considered while a main motion is pending l Assists in treating or disposing of the main motion l Examples: l Amend l Divide the question l Refer to committee l Postpone until _____ l Limit debate/call the question/lay on the table l Are in order from the time the question is stated until the vote begins l If the vote has been ordered, only a motion to lay on the table is proper

Secondary Motions Incidental Motions l Deal with procedure arising out of: l A pending motion l Another motion or item of business l Usually they are related to the main question in such a way that they must be decided immediately, before business can proceed l Most are not debatable l Examples: l Maker withdraw his/her motion l Point of order l Request procedural information l Object to taking a vote

Application of Roberts Rules of Order l Guideline for chair to handle business l Discretionary degree of formality l Good format for order of business l Amending motions l An IEEE practice friendly amendments l General consent l If there is no objection.... l Useful in managing changes to the agenda during the meeting l Should not be used in place of voting on motions

Summary l History l Principles l Definitions l Order of Business l Motions l Precedence of Motions l Application of Roberts Rules of Order