1. |
Definitions
| a) |
"Assembly" means meetings of the Executive or of Council or a general membership meeting;
|
| b) |
"main motion" means a motion made to bring any particular subject before the Council for its consideration;
|
| c) |
"majority vote" means fifty percent (50%) plus one or more of the votes cast;
|
| d) |
"member" means a voting member of the Assembly;
|
| e) |
"two‑thirds" vote means two-thirds (2/3) or more of the votes cast. |
|
2. |
Agenda
| a) |
The agenda shall outline the order of business of the Assembly;
|
| b) |
Once accepted, the agenda shall not be departed from except by the unanimous consent of the members present and voting;
|
| c) |
Motions on business not on the agenda shall be brought up under New Business. |
|
3. |
Adjournment
| a) |
Any member may move that the Assembly adjourn by rising and saying, "I move that this Assembly do now adjourn".
|
| b) |
If made during debate, such a motion shall not be debated and the question shall immediately be put.
|
| c) |
If business is pending, such a motion is debatable.
|
| d) |
Such a motion shall not be amended.
|
| e) |
If no business is pending, the meeting shall be adjourned by the Presiding Officer |
|
4. |
Amendments
| a) |
Any member may move an amendment to a motion, except the mover and seconder of the motion it is proposed to amend.
|
| b) |
A member may move only one amendment, but may speak to an amendment moved by another member.
|
| c) |
A motion to amend shall be relevant to the motion.
|
| d) |
A motion to amend shall not negate the motion.
|
| e) |
Motions to amend shall propose to leave out and/or add words.
|
| f) |
A motion to amend, once defeated, shall not be proposed a second time.
|
| g) |
The mover of a motion to amend shall speak only once to the motion to amend. |
|
5. |
Amendments to the Amendments
| a) |
When a motion to amend has been proposed, any member, except the mover and the seconder of the amendment, may move a motion to amend the amendments.
|
| b) |
A motion to amend the amendment shall deal only with the matter of the wording of the amendment and not with other aspects of the main motion. |
|
6. |
Debate
| a) |
A member desiring to speak shall raise a hand to be recognized by the Presiding Officer.
|
| b) |
The Presiding Officer shall call upon the member to speak, in turn, as recognized by the Presiding Officer.
|
| c) |
Before speaking, every member shall be identified by name and electoral unit, where applicable.
|
| d) |
A member speaking shall confine remarks to the question under debate.
|
| e) |
A member shall not speak twice to a motion except, at the discretion of the Presiding Officer, to explain a material part of the speech which may have been misunderstood.
|
| f) |
A member who moves a motion may speak a second time but will be closing debate.
|
| g) |
A member may ask questions as often as recognized by the Presiding Officer.
|
| h) |
Where the Presiding Officer wishes to enter debate he or she shall request another member to assume the Chair. |
|
7. |
Committee of the Whole
| a) |
Any member may move that the Assembly go into the Committee of the Whole to discuss a specific subject or subjects by stating, "I move that we go into the Committee of the Whole to discuss [state specific subject(s)]".
|
| b) |
The chairperson of the Committee of the Whole shall be appointed by the Presiding Officer who then becomes a member of the Committee.
|
| c) |
The Committee of the Whole may only discuss the subject(s) referred to it.
|
| d) |
Any member of the Committee of the Whole may speak as often as recognized by the Chair.
|
| e) |
A motion or amendment in Committee of the Whole does not need a seconder.
|
| f) |
The proceedings of the Committee of the Whole shall not be recorded in the minutes of the Assembly.
|
| g) |
Any member of the Committee may move, except during a vote or when another member is speaking, that the Committee rise and report. The motion shall not be debated or amended.
|
| h) |
If the motion to rise and report is carried, the Chair then reports the decision of the Committee to the Presiding Officer and the report shall be recorded in the minutes.
|
| i) |
Any member may make a motion to concur with the report of the Committee of the Whole. |
|
8. |
To Table a Motion
| a) |
Any member may move a motion to table the question under consideration by rising and saying, "I move that this motion be tabled".
|
| b) |
Such a motion is not debatable and shall be put to the vote immediately.
|
| c) |
If carried, the pending question, and everything adhering to it, is placed in charge of the Recording Secretary.
|
| d) |
A tabled question may, by motion, be brought again before the Council. The debate on the question will resume where it was interrupted.
|
| e) |
A tabled question that is not raised from the table before the closing of the Assembly is no longer a valid motion. |
|
9. |
To Raise From the Table
| a) |
A tabled motion may be raised from the table by any member at any time subject to "Precedence of Motion".
|
| b) |
To remove a question from the table, the member states, "I move that (state motion) be raised from the table". A motion to raise from the table shall not be debated or amended.
|
| c) |
A motion to raise from the table may not be made immediately after the original motion to table.
|
| d) |
If a motion to raise from the table is defeated, it shall not be proposed again until such time as some other business is decided.
|
| e) |
When the motion passes, debate resumes where it was interrupted at the time it was tabled. |
|
10. |
To Refer or To Refer Back
| a) |
Any member of any Assembly may move a motion to refer a question:
| i) |
to one of the Assembly's constituent committees; or
|
| ii) |
from:
- General meeting to any Assembly;
- Council to Executive; or
|
| iii) |
to the President. |
|
| b) |
The motion is debatable as to the advisability to refer.
|
| c) |
The motion may be amended.
|
| d) |
A motion to refer cannot be tabled or postponed except in connection with the main question.
|
| e) |
Any question referred shall be placed on the agenda of the next Assembly as an item of Business Arising from the Minutes. |
|
11. |
To Postpone to a Definite Time
| a) |
Any member may move that a question be postponed to a definite time ("time" shall include position in the order of business) by rising and saying "I move that further consideration of this question be postponed until (state the time)".
|
| b) |
This motion is debatable and amendable in respect to time.
|
| c) |
When the specified time is reached, the question shall have priority.
|
| d) |
A question postponed can only be considered at an earlier time by a two-thirds vote. |
|
12. |
To Withdraw a Motion
| a) |
A mover of a motion may request that the motion be withdrawn (with the permission of the seconder) (before voting has begun) by rising and saying, "I request permission to withdraw (state the motion)".
|
| b) |
If no objection is made, the motion is withdrawn.
|
| c) |
If any member should object, the motion shall be withdrawn only upon a motion duly passed. |
|
13. |
To End the Debate
| a) |
Except as provided hereafter, any member may move to end debate by rising and saying, "I move that this question be now put".
|
| b) |
A member who has spoken on the main question shall not move or second a motion to put the question.
|
| c) |
A motion to put the question shall be made to any motion.
|
| d) |
A motion to put the question is not debatable, and requires for passage a two‑thirds vote.
|
| e) |
If carried, the question is put; if not, the debate resumes where it left off. |
|
14. |
Time Limit on Debate
| a) |
Any member may, as a Question of Privilege, move that time limits be set either for individual speakers or for the length of the debate on any question. To be carried, such a motion requires a majority of the Assembly present and voting.
|
| b) |
A motion to limit debate can be debated or amended. |
|
15. |
Voting Procedure
| a) |
When debate appears to have closed the Presiding Officer shall ask, "Are you ready for the question?" If no member should object, the question shall be put.
|
| b) |
The question will be read, unless it has been read recently.
|
| c) |
Any member may request a recorded vote before the voting takes place.
|
| d) |
Members shall vote by raising their hands.
|
| e) |
Any member may request a division (standing vote). |
|
16. |
Division (Standing Vote)
| a) |
Any member may call for a division on a question after the question has been put and before another motion has been stated by calling out "Division".
|
| b) |
The vote shall then be taken again with a standing vote. Members may be asked to assist in counting the vote.
|
| c) |
The result is announced by declaring the question carried or lost.
|
| d) |
Any member may request that the number voting be announced and recorded. |
|
17. |
To Rescind a Motion
| a) |
Any motion may be rescinded.
|
| b) |
Any member may move that a motion be rescinded by rising and saying, "I move that the motion (state it) be rescinded".
|
| c) |
Such a motion is debatable.
|
| d) |
For passage, the motion requires two‑thirds majority.
|
| e) |
A motion to rescind may not interrupt a motion under debate. |
|
18. |
To Reconsider a Motion
| a) |
A member may move that a motion be reconsidered by rising and saying, "I move that the defeated motion (state it) be reconsidered".
|
| b) |
A motion for reconsideration cannot be called up until a subsequent meeting of that Assembly.
|
| c) |
A motion to reconsider shall be called up before it may be debated or voted upon.
|
| d) |
A motion to reconsider shall have the same status as the motion it is proposed to reconsider.
|
| e) |
For passage a simple majority is required.
|
| f) |
A motion to reconsider takes priority over all other motions.
|
| g) |
If a motion to reconsider is passed, the original motion shall be open to free debate regardless of speeches made during its original consideration. |
|
19. |
Precedence of Motion
Each motion on the list has precedence of those below and is superseded by those above:
| a) |
to reconsider a motion
|
| b) |
to adjourn
|
| c) |
to a motion on a question of privilege
|
| d) |
to table
|
| e) |
to raise from the table
|
| f) |
to put the question
|
| g) |
to postpone to a specified time
|
| h) |
to refer
|
| i) |
to amend
|
| j) |
to the main motion
|
| k) |
to rescind |
|
20. |
Order
| a) |
Any member may point out a breach of the rules of procedure by rising and saying, "I rise to a point of order".
|
| b) |
The member may interrupt the speaker.
|
| c) |
When the member is asked, the point of order will be stated, and the Presiding Officer will rule on it. |
|
21. |
To Appeal From the Decision of the Chair
| a) |
Any member may object to a decision of the Presiding Officer by rising and saying, "I appeal from the decision of the chair", and stating the appeal.
|
| b) |
An appeal from the decision of the chair is not debatable.
|
| c) |
The chair may, by way of reply, explain the ruling and ask the Assembly for a decision on the appeal. This decision is made by majority vote. |
|
22. |
Privilege
| a) |
Any member may raise a question of privilege by rising and stating, "I rise to a question of personal privilege". The member is then asked to state the question.
|
| b) |
The Presiding Officer rules whether it is a point of privilege.
|
| c) |
The motion arising from the privilege then becomes the pending question.
|
| d) |
The Assembly continues, where interrupted, when the question of privilege is disposed of. |
|
23. |
Suspension of the Operation of this Bylaw
| a) |
Any member may move the temporary suspension of any specific provision of this bylaw, except as noted hereunder, by rising and saying, "I move that (Section/sub‑section) of Bylaw II be suspended to enable (here state the purpose of the suspension)".
|
| b) |
A motion to suspend any provisions of this bylaw is debatable.
|
| c) |
Such a motion requires, for passage, unanimous consent of the members present and voting.
|
| d) |
The following provisions of this bylaw shall not be suspended in any circumstances:
| i) |
this section in its entirety.
|
| ii) |
any provision stipulating a two‑thirds vote.
|
| iii) |
any provision stipulating unanimous consent. |
|
|
