Introduction 1 About This Book 2 (Not So) Foolish Assumptions 3 Icons Used in This Book 4 Beyond the Book 5 Where to Go from Here 5 Parliamentary procedure education in your area 6 Hiring a professional parliamentarian 7 Part 1: It''s Parliamentary, My Dear: Participating Effectively in Meetings 9 Chapter 1: Following the Rules (Robert''s, That Is) 11 Keeping Things Informal 12 Making Meetings Meaningful 12 A Brief History of Robert''s Rules 13 Being Empowered at Meetings 15 Understanding What Parliamentary Procedure Is 16 General parliamentary law 16 Principles of parliamentary law 17 Achieving Personal Goals 20 Experiencing Personal Success 21 Chapter 2: Defining the Organization: Bylaws and Other Rules 23 Covering the Rules about Rules 24 Classifying your rules 25 Ranking the rules 26 Laying down rule requirements 29 Uncovering Bylaw Basics 30 Breaking Down the Content of Bylaws 33 Making Sure Your Bylaws Are Complete 35 Express-permission needed bylaws 36 Special bylaw provisions for convention-holding organizations 37 Amending Your Bylaws 38 Setting the conditions for amending your bylaws 38 Giving notice of bylaw amendments 39 Handling a motion to amend bylaws 40 Interpreting Bylaws 43 Publishing Your Bylaws and Other Rules 45 Chapter 3: Meetings: Making Group Decisions 47 Defining the Deliberative Assembly 48 (Un)Tying the Hands of the Assembly in Future Sessions 49 Understanding Types of Business Meetings 51 Regular meetings 51 Special meetings 52 Adjourned meetings 53 Annual meetings 54 Executive session 55 Conducting Your Business 56 Giving notice and getting people to the meeting 56 Getting some help up front 57 Planning the work 57 Getting down to business 57 Participating in Meetings as a Member 59 Addressing the presiding officer 59 Speaking through the chair 60 Waiting for recognition before speaking 60 Presiding over Meetings with Style 60 Relaxing the Rules at Meetings 61 Considering things informally 62 Taking it easy in small boards 63 Meeting Virtually 64 Amending your bylaws to make virtual meetings possible 66 Evaluating meeting platforms 66 Adopting special rules of order 68 Chapter 4: Notice and a Quorum 69 Giving Notice of Meetings 70 Regular meetings 70 Special meetings 71 Selecting forms of giving notice 75 Protecting the rights of absentees 76 Quorum Defined 77 Determining how many is enough for a meeting 78 Establishing a quorum 78 Counting ex-officio members in board and committee quorums 78 Knowing what you can do without a quorum 79 Handling emergencies quorumless 81 Chapter 5: Ordering Business: The Agenda 83 Order of Business Sequence 84 Approving the minutes 85 Hearing the reports of officers, boards, and standing committees 87 Receiving reports from special committees 88 Taking up special orders 89 Turning to unfinished business and general orders 90 Calling for new business 91 Using an Agenda 92 Understanding the agenda 92 Using Robert''s Rules'' basic agenda 93 Part 2: Motions: Putting Ideas into Action 97 Chapter 6: Main Motions: Proposing Ideas for Group Action 99 Understanding Motion Basics 100 Classifying motions 100 Defining relationships between the classes 101 Knowing when to use secondary motions 102 Taking the Plunge with a Main Motion 103 Examining examples of main motions 104 Understanding the main motion''s purpose 104 Putting your motion in writing 105 Making your motion in proper form 106 Breaking Down the Types of Main Motions 108 Original main motions 108 Incidental main motions 108 Giving Previous Notice of Motions 113 Working within Limits: Basic Rules for Main Motions 114 Avoiding Out-of-Order Main Motions 115 Handling a Main Motion in Eight Easy Steps 117 Step 1: The member rises and addresses the chair 117 Step 2: The chair recognizes the member 117 Step 3: The member makes the motion 118 Step 4: Another member seconds the motion 118 Step 5: The chair states the motion 120 Step 6: The members debate the motion 121 Step 7: The chair puts the question and the members vote 121 Step 8: The chair announces the result 122 Chapter 7: Debate: Discussing the Pros and Cons of Ideas 125 Understanding the Debate Process 126 To Debate or Not to Debate, That is the Question! 126 Presiding over the Debate 129 Starting the debate 129 Assigning the floor 130 Deciding who to recognize 134 Refraining from debate 135 Handling an appeal 135 Closing debate and taking the vote 135 Debating As a Member 137 Taking your turn 137 Seeking recognition and obtaining the floor 137 Recognizing limitations on debate 138 Getting around the rules by changing the limits of debate 140 Knowing when it''s okay to interrupt 140 Playing Nice: Decorum in Debate 142 Dealing with Disruption: Dilatory and Improper Motions 144 Chapter 8: Making Group Decisions: Voting on the Motion 147 Knowing Your Voting Rights and Responsibilities 148 Voting as a duty 148 Abstaining from voting 148 Voting for yourself 149 Interrupting a vote 149 Explaining your vote 150 Changing your vote 150 Making your vote count -- once! 150 Deciding questions of procedure 150 Taking Your Pick of Voting Methods 151 Unanimous consent 151 Voice vote (viva voce) 152 Rising vote 152 Counted vote 153 Roll-call vote 154 Voting by ballot 155 Allowing Absentee Voting 160 Voting by proxy 160 Voting by mail 163 Voting online 165 Determining Voting Results 168 Crossing voting thresholds 169 Handling tie votes 171 Challenging a vote 172 Chapter 9: Subsidiary Motions: Helping to Process the Main Motion 175 Disposing of a Main Motion 176 Ranking the Subsidiary Motions 178 Let''s Vote but Say We Didn''t: Postpone Indefinitely 180 Using the motion to Postpone Indefinitely 181 Six key characteristics of the motion to Postpone Indefinitely 183 Making a Change: Amend 183 Six key characteristics of the motion to Amend 184 Amending by the book 184 Understanding basic forms of amendments 186 Sending It to Committee: Commit or Refer 193 Using the motion to Commit 194 Delegating authority to a committee 195 Six key characteristics of the motion to Commit 195 Dealing with It Later: Postpone to a Certain Time (Or Postpone Definitely) 196 Using the motion to Postpone to a Certain Time 197 Limiting the time of postponement 197 Six key characteristics of the motion to Postpone to a Certain Time 199 How Long Can This Go On? Limit or Extend Limits of Debate 200 Using the motion to Limit or Extend the Limits of Debate 200 Additional information 201 Six key characteristics of Limit or Extend the Limits of Debate 202 Enough Already! Previous Question 203 Putting the damper on debate 203 Using Previous Question to stop debate and vote immediately 204 Six key characteristics of the motion Previous Question 206 Doing This Now: Lay on the Table 207 Using the motion to Lay on the Table 207 Six key characteristics of the motion to Lay on the Table 208 Chapter 10: Privileged Motions: Getting through the Meeting 211 Ranking the Privileged Motions 212 Getting Back on Schedule: Call for the Orders of the Day 214 Using the motion to Call for the Orders of the Day 215 Setting aside the orders of the day 216 Six key characteristics of the motion to Call for the Orders of the Day 216 It''s Cold in Here: Raise a Question of Privilege 217 Using the device Raise a Question of Privilege 218 Six key characteristics of the device Raise a Question of Privilege 220 Taking a Break: Recess 220 Using the motion to Recess 221 Six key characteristics of the motion to Recess 222 Time to Get Outta Here: Adjourn 222 Using the motion to Adjourn 224 Six key characteristics of the privileged motion to Adjourn 225 Finishing on Another Day: Fix the Time to Which to Adjourn 226 Using the motion to Fix the Time to which to Adjourn 227 Six key characteristics of the motion to Fix the Time to Which to Adjourn 228 Chapter 11: Incidental Motions: Dealing with Questions of Procedure 229 Defining Incidental Motions 230 Using Incidental Motions 231 Following the Rules: Point of Order 232 Rising to a point of order 233 Beating the clock on points of order 235 Looking back in time: Precedent 237 Six key characteristics of Point of Order 238 Sorry, but I Disagree: Appeal 238 The appeal of the motion to Appeal 238 Applying the motion to appeal 240 Six key characteristics of Appeal 241 We Can''t Let That Stop Us: Suspend the Rules 241 Moving to Suspend the Rules.