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Guidelines for Meeting Minutes in Local Government

By Ann Macfarlane / May 2, 2018 / Comments Off on Guidelines for Meeting Minutes in Local Government
A document titled "Meeting Minutes" lies on a table with a pair of glasses and a fountain pen placed on top, hinting at important local government discussions.

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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Don’t try to count a voice vote

By Ann Macfarlane / April 3, 2018 / Comments Off on Don’t try to count a voice vote
Close-up of a hand holding a red pencil, marking tally marks on lined paper, recording votes in meeting minutes.

Sometimes after a voice vote that is not unanimous, we see an odd scenario. The chair or the clerk starts trying to figure out who voted for and who voted against. “Let’s see, it looks like the motion passed, with Member B and Member C voting against—you did vote against, didn’t you?” Don’t do this! Trying…

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Approving minutes if you were absent

By Ann Macfarlane / September 27, 2016 / Comments Off on Approving minutes if you were absent
meeting minutes with pen

Is it all right for you to vote to approve minutes of a meeting if you were absent? Robert’s Rules of Order gives a resounding “yes” as the answer to this question. When you vote to approve the minutes, you are expressing your confidence in the veracity of the secretary, the actions of your colleagues,…

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Who may correct meeting minutes?

By Ann Macfarlane / September 9, 2016 /
A red keyboard key with the word "OOPS!" written on it is seen among white keys, standing out like an error in correct meeting minutes.

In the olden days, the standard way to correct meeting minutes was to request the correction at the next meeting, when the meeting minutes were up for approval. Nowadays, since meeting minutes are often circulated in advance, the question becomes a little more complicated. This article explores those complications. According to Robert’s Rules of Order…

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Recording votes in meeting minutes

By Ann Macfarlane / August 25, 2016 / Comments Off on Recording votes in meeting minutes
Close-up of a hand holding a red pencil, marking tally marks on lined paper, recording votes in meeting minutes.

When deciding about recording votes in meeting minutes, first review any legal requirements in your state of incorporation. For instance, in California, public bodies must record how each board member cast their vote by name in the minutes. Those requirements may settle the matter for you. If your state doesn’t specify how to record the…

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What to include in meeting minutes?

By Ann Macfarlane / August 2, 2016 / Comments Off on What to include in meeting minutes?
A woman with long blond hair, wearing glasses and a pink blouse, types on a typewriter while ensuring to include in meeting minutes everything important from the discussion.

Updated November 20, 2022 Readers sometimes ask us what exactly to include in meeting minutes. This is our best understanding of the content according to our experience and Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, 12th edition. The name of the body that is meeting and the type of meeting (regular, special, annual, continued, study session,…

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Nonprofit boards should not vote to approve minutes

By Ann Macfarlane / May 12, 2016 / Comments Off on Nonprofit boards should not vote to approve minutes
paper with pen

Do you serve on a private nonprofit board? Did you know that according to Robert’s Rules of Order, you shouldn’t vote to approve minutes? Instead, use this simple procedure. The secretary reads the minutes aloud. If the draft minutes have been distributed in advance, so everyone has had a chance to review them, this step is…

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Are summary minutes right for your nonprofit board?

By Ann Macfarlane / August 25, 2015 /
paper with pen

Over the years Jurassic Parliament has been a strong supporter of “action minutes.” We agree with Robert’s Rules of Order that the fundamental purpose of minutes is to record official actions taken by a governing body. Minutes are a legal record and document what the body has done. This is true for elected councils, appointed…

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Who may raise a point of order at council meetings?

By Ann Macfarlane / April 17, 2015 /
A red stop sign with two lights is attached to the side of a yellow vehicle, next to the text "NO," serving as a clear point of order for passing drivers.

Over the years of working with parliamentary procedure I’ve found that there is a lot of confusion about the motion “point of order.” In essence, when a person says “point of order” he is making a claim that there has been some procedural mistake. In his view, something has been done incorrectly, and it ought…

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