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Dear Dinosaur: Our school board will be passing a resolution to institute a protocol for a Native Land Acknowledgement at school events. A board member plans to move to amend the motion to have it apply to our national anthem and state song. Can they do this?

Answer:  According to Robert’s Rules of Order, amendments are allowable which change the intent of the original motion, as long as they are germane (relevant). The chair rules on whether an amendment may be entertained, subject to appeal to the group.

The question of germaneness is a subjective one. If one considers that the intent of the motion is to establish a land acknowledgement, then the other two items are not germane. If one considers that the intent is to establish a ceremonial opening to the meeting, then the other two items are germane. Ultimately it is the group that will decide.

Note that Jurassic Parliament recommends that groups adopt a special rule limiting which amendments can be made. Our suggested language:

No amendment to any motion will be allowed which changes the intent of the original motion.

You can read more about this in our blog post, Extra rules to add to Robert’s Rules.

Dear Dinosaur provides simple, practical answers to questions about Robert’s Rules and parliamentary procedure. Send your questions to Dear Dinosaur here. Our answers are based on Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, 12th edition. As always, nothing in this post constitutes legal or business advice. For specific issues, seek a qualified authority.