meeting ground rules
City councilmembers and nonprofit board leaders should not get chummy—too familiar—with their constituents or regular members. Here’s why.
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You can make better decisions about complicated proposals by using the Exploratory Round Robin.
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Many small casual groups spend too much time in discussion. Seeking consensus, time can be wasted and little progress made.
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Under Robert’s Rules of Order, the chair of a meeting has 11 duties. These duties are listed in Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, 12th edition, the only official and current version of Robert’s Rules, in section 47:7. Download PDF THE MEETING may be that of a city council, a nonprofit board, a professional society,…
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The Washington Citizen’s Commission on Salaries for Elected Officials chooses half its 20 members by lottery.
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A reader writes that he was voted off the board of directors of his neighborhood association. On investigation, it turned out that the board didn’t have the right to remove him. The director was reinstated. What are the rules about removing a director of a nonprofit organization? In order to answer this question, you have…
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In the 20 years since Jurassic Parliament began, we’ve seen a lot of dumb things happen at meetings. Here’s our dirty dozen—a list of the 12 stupidest meeting mistakes. If you have more to add, let us know! Failing to give notice Poor agenda Ignoring the quorum requirement Chair acting like a dictator A few…
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Meeting minutes recording the actions taken by your council or board are a fundamental part of the meeting process. These are our guidelines for meeting minutes in local government. They refer to ordinary business and work or study meetings of councils, boards and committees. Public hearings are governed by different rules. Download PDF WHAT KIND…
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Updated September 20, 2023 The public comment period is an essential part of local government meetings. This new publication offers 50 guidelines for public comment, and includes a sample public comment announcement. It is an update from our 2018 guidelines. These guidelines refer to ordinary business and work or study meetings of councils, boards and…
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Do you feel flummoxed by the language of Robert’s Rules? Is it a challenge for you to keep things running smoothly at your meetings? We have just what you need!
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