The Florida Parliamentarian
Volume 35, Issue 4 September 2016
Professionalism Call to Meeting Robert’s Day Workshop October 14‐16, 2016
October 14 Board Meeting Registration and Recep‐ tion October 15 Business Meeting Workshops October 16 FURP Business Meeting Workshop Embassy Suites Brandon 10220 Palm River Road Brandon, FL 33169
FSAP PLANS ROBERT’S DAY WORKSHOP AND MEETING The annual meeting of the Florida State Association of Parliamentarians held on May 21 in Jacksonville, FL., President Tim Wynn, PRP, presiding with 32 members present, was a suc‐ cess.
Meeting coordinator Julie Palm has arranged for the Fall meeting on October 14‐16 at the Embassy Suites Brandon. Registration forms are found on pages 11 and 12.
The nominating committee was elected as follows: Ron Guiberson, Linda Laurendeau, Karen Price, and Jacqueline Pierce. The nominating committee will submit its report at the October meeting.
President Tim Wynn, PRP, re‐ ports that NAP representative Ali‐ son Wallis, PRP is scheduled to attend. A family illness prevented her from attending the May meet‐ ing.
Tim Wynn, PRP, presented a pro‐ gram on Wielding the Ballot and Dr. Eugene Bierbaum, PRP, presented Teaching with Scripts.
There will be fun, fellowship, and great workshops. All mem‐ bers are invited to come!
Inside this issue:
Presidentially Speaking
2
Who Has a Hidden Agenda?
3
Q&A
4
Unit Lesson: Let Me Interrupt You
6
FURP News Directory Update
7
There is more than One Mickey Mouse Club
8
Hotel and Meeting Registration
11-12
FSAP Officers: Carol Austin, Gene Bierbaum, Todd Wynn, Tim Wynn, Sara Russell, and Karen Price
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The Florida Parliamentarian
Presidentially Speaking... In serving a client recently, I was reminded of the significance of parliamen‐ tary language. I was in a roomful of attorneys who had all been hired to rep‐ resent a condominium association, when one asked me, “What do you mean by deliberative assembly?” To us, as parliamentarians, this is tantamount to stepping onto a baseball field and asking, “What’s a bat?” But we have to remember that our clients, be they officers, members, or attorneys at law, do not necessarily speak our language. This President Tim Wynn, PRP highlights a valuable point: a large part of our job as parliamentarians is to translate parliamentary law into common English and vice versa. We must also take every opportunity to educate others on the correct parlia‐ mentary terms. In that same room, another attorney asked, “When a member makes a motion, isn’t that debating?” He was shocked when I said it wasn’t. If we overlook this language barrier, those we teach are unlikely to fully comprehend what we are saying. So, language becomes our most basic component of teaching. At times it can seem rigid to in‐ sist on precise parliamentary language, but in doing so, we are creat‐ ing clarity and identifying opportunities to further educate those around us on the fundamentals of parliamentary law. President Tim Wynn, PRP prepares to bring clarity to parliamentary terms.
The Florida Parliamentarian is the official publication of the Florida State Association of Parliamentarians and is pub‐ lished four times a year; February, April, September, December. Subscription rate: $20 per year. © 2015 Florida State Association of Parliamentarians. All rights reserved. Tim Wynn,PRP, Editor‐in Chief
(386) 228‐2242 E‐mail: Tim@PerfectRules.com Ann Guiberson, PRP, Editor (727) 641‐6308 E‐mail: aguiberson@gmail.com Dr. Eugene Bierbaum, PRP, Associate Editor (352) 333‐2442 Email: ebierbaum@juno.com Carol Austin, PRP, Circulation Manager (813) 833‐4747 Email: carolaustinprp@cs.com
DEADLINES FOR COPY February issue Dec 31 April issue Mar. 1 September issue July 31 December issue Oct 31 SEND ADDRESS CORRECTIONS TO: Carol Austin 1515 Pinellas Bayway S, A13 St. Petersburg, FL 33715 FSAP WEBSITE http://www.flparliamentarian.com
Volume 35, Issue 4
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Who Has a Hidden Agenda? by Ann Guiberson, PRP Have you ever driven to a new location with‐ out a road map or GPS to help you? Chances are you wandered around, doubled back, missed turns, and wound up a bit frustrated. Have you ever thought that you’ve been in meetings that resemble feeling lost in traffic? Surely there is a better way. In parliamentary procedure, the so‐ lution to the “lost in the weeds” meeting is a good agenda. The agenda. Webster defines an agenda as a list or outline of things to be considered or done. For meetings the list consists of the items of business and the order in which they are tak‐ en up. The agenda, as a map the assembly agrees to follow, is a powerful tool that assures fair meetings. The standard order of business. RONR makes a distinction between the agenda and an order of business. (pp. 351‐352) An order of busi‐ ness is any established sequence of business to be taken up in a session of an assembly. In ordi‐ nary societies the order of business is listed as general types or classes of business and is used at all regular meetings. In a convention the or‐ der of business has more detail, listing specific subjects and even times. The term agenda or program is used related to the entire session and may include activities outside the meeting as well. The classes of business defined in RONR as the standard order of business in‐ clude: 1. Reading and approval of minutes 2. Reports of officers, boards, and standing committees. 3. Reports of special committees 4. Special orders 5. Unfinished business and general orders 6. New business Note that there are no specific items of busi‐ ness; however this order can be used in many
different meetings. The subject matter under each heading may vary, but the headings do not. The “hidden” agenda. RONR states: “In or‐ ganizations that have adopted this book as par‐ liamentary authority and that have not adopted a special order of business, this series of headings is the prescribed order of business for regular meetings…” So, unless your regular meetings are more than a quarterly time period apart, you al‐ ready have an adopted order of business. The presiding officer does not need to prepare one for each meeting because RONR has provided it for you. (p. 353) Changing the standard order. What happens if any assembly wants to have more detail? If the proposed agenda does not conflict with the standard order of business and there are no spe‐ cial orders, it may be adopted by a majority vote. If the agenda deviates from the standard order of business or creates a special order, it must be adopted by a two‐thirds vote. (p. 372, ll. 18‐22) Prior to adopting the agenda, the chair may use it as a guide. Using the standard order of business. While it is helpful to have the headings to create a logical order, it is even more useful to have a list of all the individual items to be considered. Before the meeting, the presiding officer should fill out the entire order of business. Consulting with the secretary and using the minutes of the last meeting, determine the minutes to be ap‐ proved and the special order, unfinished busi‐ ness, or general orders that should come up. Contact the officers and committee chairmen to learn which will have a report. Add those with reports and leave the others off. Check the by‐ laws to see if there are re‐occurring items to be added.
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The Florida Parliamentarian
All page numbers are references to Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, 11th ed., unless otherwise noted. Send questions to the Associate Editor, Gene Bierbaum, PhD, PRP. E‐mail: ebierbaum@juno.com
Question #11 Business meetings at our an‐ nual conventions have become increasingly boisterous and disorderly with multiple points of order, requests for infor‐ mation, and other “interrupting” motions being raised before speakers can fin‐ ish their comments. Debate has become so disruptive that members are unable to follow the arguments being present‐ ed. What can be done to re‐ store order to our meetings? Answer #11 Robert notes that “the object of rules of order is to facilitate the orderly transaction of busi‐ ness.” (P. 15) Without order, the assembly dissolves into chaos and nothing can be ac‐ complished. It is therefore es‐ sential that advance planning for your meetings include pro‐ visions to establish and main‐ tain order. These provisions should be included in your standing rules and special rules of order.
In large conventions, the key to maintaining order is to es‐ tablish a system for the recog‐ nition of speakers that is clear, concise, and enforceable. Three systems in common use are: a. Colored cards used at the microphones.
b. Each floor microphone shall be monitored by a member of the tellers committee. c. A member approaching a microphone shall immedi‐ ately inform the monitor of his reason for wishing to speak. The monitor shall then assign a colored card to the speaker, as follows:
b. The designation of one mi‐ crophone for points of or‐ der and other motions that “interrupt.” c. The use of electronic media whereby a member presses a button to gain recogni‐ tion. Each of these systems has unique characteristics and must be adapted to the needs of the particular organization. All of them must be embedded in the standing rules and spe‐ cial rules of order. Following is a generic sample of rules that might be used with the “colored card” system and mi‐ crophones. a. There shall be six floor mi‐ crophones in addition to a microphone for the Presi‐ dent.
1) Orange: To introduce a motion that Robert says is out of order when another has the floor. (Includes main motions, amend‐ ments, motions to refer or postpone, etc.)
2) Green: To speak in favor of a debatable motion.
3) Red: To speak in opposi‐ tion to a debatable motion.
4) Blue: To raise a point of order that requires immedi‐ ate attention.
5) Yellow: To make any mo‐ tion (except Point of Order) that Robert says is in order when another has the floor. (Includes Requests for In‐ formation, Parliamentary Inquiries, etc.).
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continued
When more than one member has approached the microphone, the monitor shall arrange the members in line, as follows:
In the event that a meeting becomes disorder‐ ly, the president may declare a recess until or‐ der is restored.
First, speakers requiring a blue card, in the order in which they approached.
Second, speakers requiring a yellow card, in the order in which they approached.
The monitor shall raise the appropriate card for the first member in line to make it visible to the President, and shall keep the card raised until the member is recognized. When the member is finished speaking, the monitor shall raise the appropriate colored card for the next in line.
The 2015‐2016 board of directors failed to note in the minutes an action that it took regarding a series of potential bylaw amendments, some of which were postponed and some of which were either rejected or referred back to com‐ mittee. How do the minutes get amended to correct the omission? Is this something that the 2016‐2017 board should do even though most, though not all of the members on the current board were not on the 2015‐2016 board? Or, is there a way for the 2015‐2016 board to make the correction?
All speakers shall be subject to a 2‐minute time limit. No speaker shall be interrupted for any reason whatever during his 2‐minute allocation. Time may be extended for an additional 2‐ minutes by a two‐thirds vote of the assembly, provided that no blue or yellow cards are raised at the microphones.
Answer #12
Third, all other speakers, in the order in which they approached.
Any speaker who gains the floor inappropriate‐ ly (i.e., by raising a point of order for the pur‐ pose of debate, etc.), shall forfeit his place in line, and shall be permitted to speak only after all others seeking recognition have finished speaking. The motion to close debate (“Previous Ques‐ tion”) shall require the orange card for recogni‐ tion and shall be adopted by a two‐thirds vote without debate.
Question #12
The minutes should be corrected by the cur‐ rent (2016‐2017) board. Robert notes on page 475 that, when a material omission in the minutes has been established “even many years later,” the minutes should be corrected. He also notes that it is not necessary to have been present at the meeting for which the minutes are being corrected to participate in their cor‐ rection. (P. 355) It is assumed, of course, that the board will do the necessary research and make contacts to establish the accuracy of what actually occurred at the meeting in ques‐ tion.
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The Florida Parliamentarian
Unit Lesson - Let Me Interrupt You It is a basic principle of parliamentary procedure that when a member has the floor, other members usually may not interrupt him. There are some circumstances when other members can interrupt. Some motions may interrupt after a speaker has been assigned the floor but before he begins to speak. Other motions may interrupt even while a member is speaking. Some motions may interrupt but only if the situation is urgent. Knowing the rules about when, how, and why a member can interrupt an‐ other member’s right to speak, is a powerful tool for the individual member. Fill out the chart using RONR to look up each motion and determine if the motion can be inter‐ rupted when a member has been assigned the floor or when a member has begun to speak. Remem‐ ber to use the tinted pages as well as the text. In unit meetings, you may want to work in teams and have everyone share their answers. If you are working alone and have any questions, email your question to aguiberson@gmail.com. Motions that interrupt
When the motion is in order
Page and Line #
Appeal
Call for the Orders of the
Division of the Assembly
Object to the Consideration
Parliamentary inquiry
Point of order
Raise a Question of Privilege
Reconsider
Request for Information
Request to modify or with‐
Request to be excused from
Other requests
Answers will be posted on www.flparliamentarian.com on the Publications page.
Volume 35, Issue 4
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It’s Red, White, and Blue on October 16 You are all invited to attend the Florida Unit of Registered Parliamentarians “Red, White, and Blue” Meeting on Sunday, October 16, at 9 a.m. The Opening Ceremony will include a special presentation on flag etiquette. The program will feature a study on The Election: Following Parliamentary Law. All in attendance are requested to bring their RONR, 11th edition with them to the meeting as all aspects of the election process from nominations to voting to the announcement of voting results will be covered. Prizes will be given to all attendees who appear wearing red, white and blue! We look forward to greeting all FURP members and guests to this very special patriotic meeting. Jacquelyn Pierce, President
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS AND DIRECTORY UPDATE Congratulations New RP: Joshua Fairfield, Member‐at‐large New PRP: Jason Abellada, Florida Alpha Welcome to New NAP Members Patsy Adkins, 4970 City Hall Blvd., North Port, FL 34286; 941‐429‐7056; padkins@cityofnorthport.com; CCPU Luceal Curry, P.O. Box 1496, Ft. Myers, FL 33092; 941‐833‐5552; palzetta@embarqmail.com; CCPU Beverly Damonte, 1360 Thrasur Dr., Punta Gorda, FL 33950; 941‐637‐1628; bdamonte2@centurylink.net; CCPU Anna DiCarlo, 5006 W. San Miguel, Tampa, FL 33629; 813‐727‐2230; Florida Alpha Catherine Gerolimatos, 12116 Buffington Lanes, Riverview, FL 33578; 813‐766‐1495; Florida Alpha Mark Moriarty,1513 McGregor Reserve Dr., Ft Myers, FL 33901; 941‐637‐1628; mmoriarty@cityofnorthport.com, MAL Hortensia Vargas, 5028 san Miguel, Tampa, FL 33629; 813‐454‐7742; tukyvargas@hotmail.com; Florida Alpha Welcome to New Provisionals Pat Bankhead, 102 Riverside Dr. #201, Cocoa, FL 33922; 253‐350‐9849; pbankhead@gmail.com; Apollo XI Donnette Hilton, 140 Greenwing Trl, Titusville, FL 32780; 321‐567‐4178; speakk1@aol.com; Apollo XI Irene Matthews, 1313 E. Conover St., Tampa, FL, 33603; 813‐361‐5173; matthews1313@yahoo.com; Florida Alpha Janice Moore, 220 Maple Dr., Satellite Beach, FL 32937; 321‐777‐4842; Apollo XI Emily Rogers, 801 W. Alfred St., Tampa, FL 33603; 815‐957‐3204; e.rogers@firstsource1.com; Florida Alpha In Memoriam: Roger Smith, RP; Bradenton Unit Dissolved: The Central Florida Unit of Parliamentarians voted to dissolve on July 19, 2016.
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The Florida Parliamentarian
There is More Than One Mickey Mouse Club by Dorothy Demarest, PRP At the 2015 NAP Convention I was able to take a course on cumulative voting taught by Dr. Daniel E. Seabold, Ph.D, PRP, professor of mathematics at Hofstra University. Dr. Seabold is a contributing au‐ thor of the latest edition of RONR. (As a word of advice, if you have the opportunity to take one of Dan’s workshops take it – even if the topic doesn’t sound particularly interesting at the time.) During this workshop Dan covered the relationship between cumulative voting and calculus and still kept everyone’s attention. In my case that was a true feat of accomplishment as I quit math after trigonom‐ etry having reached my limit in the mathematical skills necessary to continue. And yet, even I was able to follow Dan’s explanation. So, yes, he IS that good of an instructor. During the course the class was divided into teams. Dr. Seabold distributed election tellers reports and marked ballots to each team which they were to use to complete the tellers reports. I was espe‐ cially fortunate to have Craig Henry, PRP, CPP‐T on my team along with two non‐credentialed mem‐ bers. Craig and I agreed on how each vote should be tallied. Typical questionable ballots were included in those distributed such as a vote for “JS” when only John Strong and Mary Smith were candidates. As the intention of the voter was in our opinion clear we would tally that vote for John Strong. After explaining our reasoning to our teammates they agreed and we moved on. A vote for Mickey Mouse arrived on a ballot. Our team unanimously agreed that the vote was illegal. After all the teams completed the voting, Dr. Seabold discussed each ballot. The class was running quite late, and after saying that the vote for Mickey Mouse should count as an abstention, Dan de‐ clared we were out of time for more questions. Alas, class dismissed. Undeterred, a group of about five or six PRPs, all of whom with long careers in the parliamentary trenches, gathered in the hall outside of the classroom to ask why Dan counted Mickey Mouse as an abstention and not an illegal vote. Although I can’t verify it, my assumption and that of Craig was that those in the hall had previously counted Mickey, Donald, Pluto, et. al. as illegal votes. I readily admit I always have. I have also previously taken classes that included teaching how to tally ballots and none of the cartoon characters were ever counted as abstentions. Dr. Seabold took a moment to explain before quickly heading off to his next assignment. He stated that since Mickey Mouse could not be a real choice of candidate as he was fictitious, the voter ab‐ stained. Oh me … Oh my. What a dilemma. Craig and I subsequently discussed our thoughts by phone and we each came to the same conclusion, that is, we believe a vote for Mickey Mouse is an illegal vote. Our reasoning is that if the member wished to abstain there were two simpler ways to do so. They could either not submit a ballot at all or submit a blank ballot if they did not wish others to know they had abstained. In both cases the absten‐ tion would not count toward the number of votes cast in order to determine the number of votes nec‐ essary to elect. Why would they take the time and initiative to cast a “write in” vote for Mickey Mouse
Volume 35, Issue 4
Page 9
except to have it counted as an illegal vote thus adding to the number of votes cast and affecting the number of votes necessary to elect? We believe that just as with the vote for “JS” stated above, the intention of the voter should be con‐ sidered. Craig and I are comfortable with this rationale. Another choice for the parliamentarian, how‐ ever, is to pass the decision on to the assembly. It should be noted that The Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure (aka “Sturgis”), and the more recent The AIP Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure solve the dilemma for you as both absten‐ tions and illegal votes are not counted in the number of votes cast. Might there be something to be said for amending the bylaws of an RONR society to procedurally coincide with those parliamentary authorities? As a parliamentarian, someday, somehow and somewhere you can be assured that Mickey Mouse or his equivalent will show up on a ballot in an organization that has RONR as its parliamentary authori‐ ty. What advice will you give and what will be your rationale? My advice now is to read RONR p. 414, ll. 3‐6; p. 415, ll. 32‐35 and continued on p. 416, ll. 1‐19. After doing so, you can decide to which Mickey Mouse Club you belong.
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The Florida Parliamentarian
The Five C’s of a Diamond Parliamentarian In observance of the Florida Unit of Registered Parliamentarian’s 60th Anniversary, the FURP Presi‐ dent, Jackie Pierce, RP closed the meeting with this message about diamonds and parliamentarians: COLOR: The less color, the higher a diamond’s value; the CLOTHING of a Parliamentarian is kept in conservative, business mode. CUT: Ultimately it is up to the diamond cutter to determine the best way to get the most light from the stone; ultimately, the CHAIR determines the final ruling—not the Parliamentarian. CLARITY: Is determined in the diamond by the presence of blemishes on the surface of the stone and /or inclusions in the interior of the stone; CLEAR, CONCISE COUNSEL is always given by the Parliamentarian. CARAT: The size of the diamond shouldn’t be the determining factor. Cut, clarity and color are better factors; COMMITMENT and CONTINUING EDUCATION, not age or gender, deter‐ mines the value of a Parliamentarian. CERTIFICATION: Certification of the diamond by an independent and unbiased gemologist is of utmost importance; Certification to become a NAP Registered Parliamentarian/Professional Registered Parliamentarian is of utmost importance.
Unit News -Apollo XI Reports President Pat Rosenthal, Vice President Betti Cogswell, Treasurer Theresa Thomas, member Vanessa Brown, Mary Bowen and Pat's daughter, Jennifer Park attended FSAP annual meeting in Jacksonville. We enjoyed networking and attending work‐ shops. Sunday during the memorial service Robert Clark and Courtney Smith, long time members of Apollo XI, were remembered. The May meeting's special guests were two representatives from the Supervisor of Elections Office. They discussed elections, mailed ballots, making sure your signature is current, the storage of machines, kinds of ballot machines, and the election process. We ended the day with our annual pot luck finger foods and drinks. The next meeting will be September 22, 2016 at the Melbourne Library on Fee Avenue. The time is now 1:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m. on the fourth Thursday. November and December we will meet on the third Thursday. We do not meet in June, July or August.
Volume 35, Issue 4
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HENRY M. ROBERT’S DAY REGISTRATION FORM FLORIDA STATE ASSOCIATION OF PARLIAMENTARIANS Henry M. Robert’s Day Embassy Suites, 10220 Palm River Road, Brandon, FL October 14‐16, 2016
NAME__________________________________________________________________________________ ADDRESS_______________________________________________________________________________ (Street) (City) (State) (Zip) PHONE________________ CELL______________ EMAIL_______________________________________ UNIT______ MAL_______ MEMBER _______ GUEST _______ FSAP Office/Chairmanship Held____________________________________________________________ Unit Office/Chairmanship Held ____________________________________________________________ NAP/District III Office/Chairmanship Held___________________________________________________ REGISTRATION FEE: Includes Saturday Lunch
$80 ________
STUDENT REGISTRATION FEE:
$40
GUEST LUNCH:
$30 ________
TOTAL:
$ ________
___________
Please select your lunch choice: Roaster Herb Chicken Bourbon Glazed Sirloin I need a vegan or vegetarian meal Special Dietary Needs _________________________________________________________________ Payment: Make check payable to FSAP and mail to: Kay Stephens, 2946 Golden View Lane, Orlando, FL 32812‐5984 Email: stephensmk@bellsouth.net Telephone: 407‐658‐9779 Advance Registration Deadline: October 7, 2016
Page 12 The Florida Parliamentarian
Embassy Suites Brandon 10220 Palm River Road Brandon, Florida 33619 Phone: 813‐653‐1905 October 14‐16, 2016
HOTEL RESERVATION FORM
(Telephone or mail directly to hotel. Please print) NAME______________________________________________________________________________ ADDRESS___________________________________________________________________________ (Street) (City) (State) (Zip) PHONE _______________ CELL _______________ EMAIL_________________________________ ARRIVAL DATE______________________ DEPARTURE DATE ___________________________ ROOM RATE: $115.00 per night plus applicable state and local taxes. (All rooms are suites, breakfast and afternoon reception is included) GUARANTEE: Submit one night’s deposit or fill out the following information: Discover Master Card ___Visa American Express Credit Card #
Expiration Date:
Signature:
Room rate is available October 11‐19, 2016 Deadline for room rate guarantee: 5 p . m . October 27,
2016 Group Code: FSP