Robert's Rules of Order Part 4

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should be voted upon in the order announced, until one receives a vote sufficient for an election.

26. Renewal of a Motion. When any Princ.i.p.al Question [-- 6] or Amendment has been once acted upon by the a.s.sembly, it cannot be taken up again at the same session [-- 42] except by a motion to Reconsider [-- 27]. The motion to Adjourn can be renewed if there has been progress in debate, or any business transacted. As a general rule the introduction of any motion that alters the state of affairs makes it admissible to renew any Privileged or Incidental motion (excepting Suspension of the Rules as provided in -- 18), or Subsidiary motion (excepting an amendment), as in such a case the real question before the a.s.sembly is a different one.

To ill.u.s.trate: a motion that a question lie on the table having failed, suppose afterwards it be moved to refer the matter to a committee, it is now in order to move again that the subject lie on the table; but such a motion would not be in order, if it were not made till after the failure of the motion to commit, as

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the question then resumes its previous condition.

When a subject has been referred to a committee which reports at the same meeting, the matter stands before the a.s.sembly as if it had been introduced for the first time. A motion which has been withdrawn has not been acted upon, and therefore can be renewed.

27. Reconsider. It is in order at any time, even when another member has the floor, or while the a.s.sembly is voting on the motion to Adjourn, during the day* [In Congress any one can move a reconsideration, excepting where the vote is taken by yeas and nays [-- 38], when the rule above applies. The motion can be made on the same or succeeding day.]

on which a motion has been acted upon, to move to "Reconsider the vote"

and have such motion "entered on the record," but it cannot be considered while another question is before the a.s.sembly. It must be made, excepting when the vote is by ballot, by a member who voted with the prevailing side; for instance, in case a motion fails to pa.s.s for lack of a two-thirds vote, a reconsideration must be moved by one who voted against the motion.

A motion to reconsider the vote on a Subsidiary [-- 7] motion takes precedence of the main question. It yields to Privileged [-- 9]

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questions (except for the Orders of the Day), and Incidental [-- 8]

questions.

This motion can be applied* [It is not the practice to reconsider an affirmative vote on the motion to lie on the table, as the same result can be more easily reached by the motion to take from the table. For a similar reason, an affirmative vote on the motion to take from the table cannot be reconsidered.] to every question, except to Adjourn and to Suspend the Rules. It is debatable or not, just as the question to be reconsidered is debatable or undebatable [-- 35]; when debatable, it opens up for discussion the entire subject to be reconsidered, and can have the Previous question [-- 20] applied to it without affecting any thing but the motion to reconsider. It can be laid on the table [-- 19], and in such cases the last motion cannot be reconsidered; it is quite common and allowable to combine these two motions (though they must be voted on separately); in this case, the reconsideration like any other question, can be taken from the table, but possesses no privilege.** [In Congress this is a common method used by the friends of a measure to prevent its reconsideration.] The motion to reconsider being laid on the table does not carry with it the pending measure. If an amendment to a motion has been either adopted or rejected, and then a vote taken on the motion as amended, it is not in order to reconsider the vote on the amendment until

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after the vote on the original motion has been reconsidered. If anything which the a.s.sembly cannot reverse, has been done as the result a vote, then that vote cannot be reconsidered.

The Effect of making this motion is to suspend all action that the original motion would have required until the reconsideration is acted upon; but if it is not called up, its effect terminates with the session [-- 42], provided,* [In Congress the effect always terminates with the session, and it cannot be called up by any one but the mover, until the expiration of the time during which it is in order to move a reconsideration.] that in an a.s.sembly having regular meetings as often as monthly, if no adjourned meeting upon another day is held of the one at which the reconsideration was moved, its effect shall not terminate till the close of the next succeeding session. [See note at end of this section.] While this motion is so highly privileged as far as relates to having it entered on the minutes, yet the reconsideration of another question cannot be made to interfere with the discussion of a question before the a.s.sembly, but as soon as that subject is disposed of, the reconsideration, if called up, takes precedence of every thing except the motions to adjourn, and to fix the time to which to adjourn. As long as its effect lasts (as shown above), any one can call up the motion to reconsider and have it acted upon--excepting that when its effect extends beyond the meeting at which the motion was made, no one but the mover can call it up at that meeting. But the reconsideration of an Incidental [-- 8] or Subsidiary [-- 7]

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motion shall be immediately acted upon, as otherwise it would prevent action on the main question.

The Effect of the adoption of this motion is to place before the a.s.sembly the original question in the exact position it occupied before it was voted upon; consequently no one can debate the question reconsidered who had previously exhausted his right of debate [-- 34] on that question; his only resource is to discuss the question while the motion to reconsider is before the a.s.sembly.

When a vote taken under the operation of the previous question [-- 20] is reconsidered, the question is then divested of the previous question, and is open to debate and amendment, provided the previous question had been exhausted [see latter part of -- 20] by votes taken on all the questions covered by it, before the motion to reconsider was made.

A reconsideration requires only a majority vote, regardless of the vote necessary to adopt the motion reconsidered. [For reconsidering in committee see -- 28].

Note On Reconsider.--In the English Parliament a vote once taken cannot be reconsidered, but in our Congress it is allowed to move a reconsideration of the vote on the same or succeeding day, and after the close of the last day for making the motion, any one can call up the motion to reconsider, so that this motion cannot delay action more than two days, and the effect

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of the motion, if not acted upon, terminates with the session. There seems to be no reason or good precedent for permitting merely two persons, by moving a reconsideration, to suspend for any length of time all action under resolutions adopted by the a.s.sembly, and yet where the delay is very short the advantages of reconsideration overbalance the evils.

Where a permanent society has meetings weekly or monthly, and usually only a small proportion of the society is present, it seems best to allow a reconsideration to hold over to another meeting, so that the society may have notice of what action is about to be taken. To prevent the motion being used to defeat a measure that cannot be deferred till the next regular meeting, it is provided that in case the society adjourn, to meet the next day for instance, then the reconsideration will not hold over beyond that session; this allows sufficient delay to notify the society, while, if the question is one requiring immediate action, the delay cannot extend beyond the day to which they adjourn.

Where the meetings are only quarterly or annual, the society should be properly represented at each meeting, and their best interests are subserved by following the practice of Congress, and letting the effect of the reconsideration terminate with the session.

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Art. IV. Committees and Informal Action.

[---- 28-33.]

28. Committees. It is usual in deliberative a.s.semblies, to have all preliminary work in the preparation of matter for their action, done by means of committees. These may be either "standing committees" (which are appointed for the session [-- 42], or for some definite time, as one year); or "select committees," appointed for a special purpose; or a "committee of the whole" [-- 32], consisting of the entire a.s.sembly.

[For method of appointing committees of the whole, see -- 32; other committees, see commit, -- 22.] The first person named on a committee is chairman, and should act as such, without the committee should see fit to elect another chairman, which they are competent to do. The clerk should furnish him, or some other member of the committee, with notice of the appointment of the committee, giving the names

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of the members, the matter referred to them, and such instructions as the a.s.sembly have decided upon. The chairman shall call the committee together, and if there is a quorum (a majority of the committee, see -- 43,) he should read or have read, the entire resolutions referred to them; he should then read each paragraph, and pause for amendments to be offered; when the amendments to that paragraph are voted on he proceeds to the next, only taking votes on amendments, as the committee cannot vote on the adoption of matter referred to them by the a.s.sembly.

If the committee originate the resolutions, they vote, in the same way, on amendments to each paragraph of the draft of the resolutions, (which draft has been previously prepared by one of their members or a sub-committee); they do not vote on the separate paragraphs, but having completed the amendments, they vote on the adoption of the entire report. When there is a preamble, it is considered last. If the report originates with the committee, all amendments are to be incorporated in the report; but, if the resolutions were referred, the committee cannot alter

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the text, but must submit the original paper intact, with their amendments (which may be in the form of a subst.i.tute, -- 23) written on a separate sheet.

A committee is a miniature a.s.sembly that must meet together in order to transact business, and usually one of its members should be appointed its clerk. Whatever is not agreed to by the majority of the members present at a meeting (at which a quorum, consisting of a majority of the members of the committee, shall be present) cannot form a part of its report. The minority may be permitted to submit their views in writing also, either together, or each member separately, but their reports can only be acted upon, by voting to subst.i.tute one of them for the report of the committee. The rules of the a.s.sembly, as far as possible, shall apply in committee; but a reconsideration [-- 27] of a vote shall be allowed, regardless of the time elapsed, only when every member who voted with the majority is present when the reconsideration is moved.*

[Both the English common parliamentary law and the rules of Congress prohibit the reconsideration of a vote by a committee; but the strict enforcement of this rule in ordinary committees, would interfere with rather than a.s.sist the transaction of business. The rule given above seems more just, and more in accordance with the practice of ordinary committees, who usually reconsider at pleasure. No improper advantage can be taken of the privilege, as long as every member who voted with the majority must be present when the reconsideration is moved.] A committee (except a committee

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of the whole, -- 32] may appoint a sub-committee. When through with the business a.s.signed them, a motion is made for the committee to "rise"

(which is equivalent to the motion to adjourn), and that the chairman (or some member who is more familiar with the subject) make its report to the a.s.sembly. The committee ceases to exist as soon as the a.s.sembly receives the report [-- 30].

The committee has no power to punish its members for disorderly conduct, its resource being to report the facts to the a.s.sembly. No allusion can be made in the a.s.sembly to what has occurred in committee, except it be by a report of the committee, or by general consent. It is the duty of a committee to meet on the call of any two its of members, if the chairman be absent or decline to appoint such meeting. When a committee adjourns without appointing a time for the next meeting, it is called together in the same way as at its first meeting. When a committee adjourns to meet at another time, it is not necessary (though

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usually advisable) that absent members should be notified of the adjourned meeting.

29. Forms of Reports of Committees. The form of a report is usually similar to the following:

A standing committee reports thus: "The committee on [insert name of committee] respectfully report," [or "beg leave to report," or "beg leave to submit the following report,"] etc., letting the report follow.

A select or special committee reports as follows: "The committee to which was referred [state the matter referred] having considered the same respectfully report," etc. Or for "The committee" is sometimes written "Your committee," or "The undersigned, a committee."

When a minority report is submitted, it should be in this form (the majority reporting as above): "The undersigned, a minority of a committee to which was referred," etc. The majority report is the report of the committee, and should never be made out as the report of the majority.

All reports conclude with, "All of which is

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respectfully submitted." They are sometimes signed only by the chairman of the committee, but if the matter is of much importance, it is better that the report be signed by every member who concurs. The report is not usually dated, or addressed, but can he headed, as for example, "Report of the Finance Committee of the Y. P. A., on Renting a Hall."

30. Reception of Reports. When the report of a committee is to be made, the chairman (or member appointed to make the report) informs the a.s.sembly that the committee to whom was referred such a subject or paper, has directed him to make a report thereon, or report it with or without amendment, as the case may be; either he or any other member may move that it be "received"* [A very common error is, after a report has been read, to move that it be received; whereas, the fact that it has been read, shows that it has been already received by the a.s.sembly.

Another mistake, less common, but dangerous, is to vote that the report be accepted (which is equivalent to adopting it, see -- 31), when the intention is only to have the report up for consideration and afterwards move its adoption. Still a third error is to move that "the report be adopted and the committee discharged," when the committee have reported in full and their report been received, so that the committee has already ceased to exist. If the committee however have made but a partial report, or report progress, then it is in order to move that the committee be discharged from the further consideration of the subject.]