Transcript Robert's Rules of Order - Student Government Association

Robert’s Rules of Order
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THE LAW
Members of the Senate
 Speaker of Senate: Presides over, manages, and directs the business of the
meeting
 Speaker Pro Tempore: Assists speaker of the senate in managing the meeting and
is in charge of taking over the duties of the speaker of the senate when speaker is
absent
 Sergeant at arms: “Direct those members who are deemed out of order to
correct previous actions, raise points of order during the meeting when correct
procedure is not being followed and in extreme circumstances request the Speaker
remove the member from the body, to exclusively handle all voting ballots of the
Senate, to represent the Senate when necessary and to perform any other duties as
assigned by these Bylaws or by action of the Student Senate.”
 Secretary: “keeping the records of the Senate, to call attendance at each meeting,
to assist the Speaker in counting votes and call names for all role call votes, to keep
and record accurate minutes of every meeting, to read the minutes when presented
in Senate, to bring all appropriate records to meetings and to send all notices of
meetings, agendas, legislation and correspondence to Senators previous to each
meeting within a reasonable time and to perform any other duties as assigned by
these Bylaws or by action of the Student Senate.”
 Senators: Body that writes and votes on legislation
Each committee is assigned different pieces of legislation
presented to the senate and is in charge of fixing it before
the senate votes on it
 Internal: Looks at legislation that concern the senate body and the
rules of the of that body
 External: Deals with any issues or projects outside of the Student
Government Association
 Student Affairs: looks at legislation having to do with the student body
as a whole
 Fiscal: look at legislation concerning money and make sure that it
complies with the budget for the fiscal year
Motions
What is a motion?
 A motion is a formal proposal by a member of the senate, in a
meeting, that the group take certain action
 Main motion: brings business before assembly- there should be
no debate on a matter before a motion regarding it has been
made.
Three steps to a motion being
recognized before the senate…
 To make a main motion, after obtaining the floor you simply
say, “I move that…” and then clearly describe the
proposal.
 When a member has made a motion a “second” is needed in
order for it to be considered by the group.
 Once a motion has been proposed and seconded the speaker
of the senate must state the question by saying “It has moved
and seconded that…” so that the group clearly understands
the motion at hand and that a new proposal is ready for
consideration
The Agenda
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.
Call to Order
Pledge
Guest Speakers
Roll Call
Approval of Past Minutes
Executive and Committee Reports
Unfinished Business
New Business
Appointments
Announcements
Adjournment
Amendments
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An amendment is a addition/subtraction to a current
resolution being presented during a senate session
The amendment can only be presented with a motion
An amendment may be in any of the following forms: (a) to
insert or add (that is, place at the end); (b) to strike out; (c) to
strike out and insert, or to substitute, as it is called, when an entire
paragraph or resolution is struck out and another is inserted.
An amendment cannot interrupt another speaker, must be
seconded, and finally to pass the amended it requires a twothirds vote to be adopted.
Amendments Continued
 However, 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 consensusbuilding process into procedure without endless debate over
amendments to amendments. However, it is required that the
proposer get consent from the author of the resolution.
What is a Resolution?
 It is a proposal that the assembly take certain action, or that it express itself as
holding certain views.
 Every resolution should be in writing, and the given to the presiding officer or
speaker. At this time it is Speaker Brown and he has the right to inquire about
the main motion, amendment, and can instruct the resolution to a committee.
 The resolution should answer the following basic questions:
 Who?
 What?
 When?
 Where
 How?
Resolution Continued
 Every Resolution should begin with the phrase “whereas”
 WHEREAS: Each organization should take an active role in the
promotion of diversity and equality throughout the university
 WHEREAS The UNT Ally Program extends only to students, faculty, and
staff and not to student organizations
 WHEREAS The phrase "equality and diversity" depicts a society where
fairness, justice, and civility are its primary goals. "Diversity" meaning
"variety" and "Equality" meaning "equality of opportunity," which both
go beyond race and ethnicity, to include class, gender, age, sexual
orientation, gender identity, religion, political affiliation, socio-economic
background, educational level, profession and other qualities.
 WHEREAS Several student organizations have homogeneous populations
that unintentionally segregate themselves from the growing number of
underrepresented persons on campus, thus, demoralizing diversity.
Resolution Continued
 Every resolution should end with “let it be resolved”
 LET IT BE RESOLVED THAT: Each organization should
develop a supportive environment for every potential or
eligible member to empower and encourage students to
participate fully by adding the following stipulation or clause
in their constitution regarding equality and diversity.
 “This organization will not discriminate against members or
prospective members on the basis of race, color, creed,
national origin, physical handicap, or sex. We will also
actively try to recruit or add students of the minority
percentage of the organization current to diversify our
population.”
Resolution Continued
 After you write a piece of legislation you must present the
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resolution in SGA format.
 www.unt.edu/sga
Must be signed and submitted by a current senator
After the resolution has been sent to committee, amended, and
debated the resolution is finally brought to a vote
A resolution needs a two-thirds vote of the present senators and
meet the required quorum numbers
If the resolution is passed then it goes into effect
If the resolution fails then it’s dead!
Frequently
Asked
Questions
Voting
Voting
What vote is required?
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Majority vote: normal bills and resolutions
Two-thirds vote: appointments, constitutional and bylaw
changes
Majority of the entire membership: special cases, specified in
bill
“Unanimous Consent” instead of a vote
 “Unanimous consent enables a motion to be adopted or
some action to be taken without the necessity of having
the chair state the question on a motion and put the
motion to a vote”
 It permits taking action without a motion being made at
all
 The chair asks if there has been any objections and if
there is none then the action has been agreed upon
Member’s right to vote
 “Any member whose right to vote has not been
suspended as the result of a formal disciplinary process
has the right to vote, even if dues are not paid.”
 A person should not vote on a question in which they
have direct personal attachment that the other members
do not have, although a person can not be compelled to
abstain because of such attachment or interest.
Chair’s participation in voting
The presiding officer of an assembly should remain impartial so
that members on both sides of any issue can feel comfortable.
The chair does not participate in any debate unless they give up
the chair until the issue is no longer being discussed.
The chair only votes when either:
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a)
b)
The vote is by ballot, in which case the chair votes along with and
at the same time as all others members or,
The chair’s vote will change the result of the vote.
More methods of voting
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Standing vote- “Those of the motion will rise. [Pause.] Be
seated. Those opposed will rise. [Pause.] Be seated.”
Show of hands- “The question is on the adoption of the motion
to [repeating the exact words of the motion]. Those in favor of
the motion will raise the right hand. [Pause.] Lower hands.
Those opposed will raise the right hand. [Pause.] Lower hands.”
Counted Vote- “I move that the vote be counted.” “Those in
favor of the motion will rise and remain standing until counted.
[Pause for count.] Be seated. Those opposed will rise and
remain standing until counted. [Pause for count.] Be seated.”
Ballot Vote- “I move that the vote be taken by ballot.” “Have all
voted who wish to do so?” “Since no one else wishes to vote,
[pause] the polls are closed.”
Questions…?