Robert's Parliamentary Practice/Chapter 16
CHAPTER XVI.
OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES.
Chairman or President. Unless some special title is given to the office in the by-laws, the presiding officer is called the chairman, and is addressed as Mr. or Madam Chairman. When he has a special title the word "Chairman" is replaced by that title. Whatever his title, in referring to himself as presiding officer he uses the term, "the chair," never the pronoun of the first person. He should set an example to the assembly in fairness, courtesy, and obedience to rules. He should call the meeting to order at the appointed time; preside at all the meetings; announce the business before the assembly in its proper order; state and put all questions properly brought before the assembly; announce the result of every vote and the next business in order if there is any; inform members on points of order, and answer parliamentary inquiries relating to pending business when necessary to enable members to proceed in order; preserve order and decorum; and decide all questions of order subject to an appeal. When putting a question and announcing the result, and when speaking upon an appeal, he should stand; during debate he should be seated and give attention to each speaker; at other times it is optional with him whether he sits or stands. If the chairman thinks it necessary for him to take part in the debate, he must call some one else to the chair, as chairman pro tem. (a vice chairman if one is present) and take the floor as a member, not as presiding officer. By doing this in a case where there is strong feeling he destroys the confidence of the opposite side in his impartiality, and therefore he should not resume the chair until that question is disposed of. In case of his absence the vice president calls the meeting to order and presides. If no vice president is present the secretary calls the meeting to order and a chairman pro tern, is elected. The president cannot appoint any one to act in his place except during a meeting, and the appointment terminates with the meeting.
The chairman should be familiar with the By-laws, Rules of Order, and Standing Rules of the society, at least sufficiently to refer to them quickly when needed. If the meetings of a society are frequently disorderly it is nearly always due to the ignorance or incompetence of the presiding officer. No one should accept the office of president of a society who is unwilling to fit himself for performing the duties of presiding officer. These duties are fully explained in R. O. R., pages 236-244.
In addition to his duties as presiding officer, in many societies the president has duties as an administrative or executive officer. When this is desired, the by-laws should clearly set forth these duties, since they are outside of his duties as presiding officer of the assembly. He should always in his reports refer to himself as *'the [or your] President," never as "the chair" as this term applies only to the presiding officer as such.
Vice President. In many societies a vice president is chosen who presides in the absence of the president. Some societies have several vice presidents each of whom has charge of a special department of work. In case of the death or resignation of the president, the first vice president becomes president automatically unless the by-laws provide differently. In this case the second becomes the first, the third the second, and so on, unless the by-laws provide for filling the vacancy. In case the presiding officer has any other title than president, his alternate's title is changed to correspond, thus Vice Commander, Vice Chairman, etc. When a vice president is in the chair he is addressed as "Mr. President."
Secretary. The secretary should keep a record of the proceedings, the character of which depends upon the kind of meeting. This record in a deliberative assembly is called the "minutes" and should contain the following:
Since the object of the minutes is to keep a record of what is done, an amended main motion may be entered in the form in which it was adopted without giving its original form and the amendments. Unless the proceedings are published the debates should not be entered. The duty of the secretary is mainly to record what is done by the assembly, and not what is said by the members. The name of the member who introduced a main motion is usually recorded, but not the name of the seconder.
The Form of the Minutes may be as follows:
At a regular meeting of the Adelphia Club, held April 12, 1921, the president and the secretary being present, the minutes of the previous regular meeting were read and approved. The treasurer reported $15 received and $10 expended since the last report: the balance in the treasury is $75.30. The reports of the committees on ———— and ———— were received and ordered placed on file. The committee on ———— reported a resolution which after discussion and amendment was adopted as follows: "Resolved, That. . . ." At 9 P. M. the society adjourned.
M———— M———— A————,
Secretary.
The secretary should never allow the minutes to express his opinion, complimentary or otherwise. The minutes are a record of action taken by the society, and the secretary's duty is solely that of recording its action. Ordinarily the minutes of each meeting are read at the opening of the next meeting. If there is more than one meeting in the day the minutes are read only at the first meeting. In organizations meeting less frequently than quarterly, the minutes of the last day's meeting are read just previous to final adjournment of the session. When read, the chair asks, "Are there any corrections to the minutes?" If any corrections are proposed the procedure is as described on page 130.
When the minutes are approved the word "Approved" with the initials of the secretary should be written below them, or on the margin. If they are not habitually approved at the next meeting, then "Approved" should be followed by the date of approval.
In addition to keeping the minutes the secretary keeps a register of the members and when required calls the roll; notifies officers, committees, delegates, etc., of their appointment, furnishing the committees with all papers referred to them and delegates with credentials; and signs, with the president, all orders on the treasury authorized by the society, unless specified otherwise by the by-laws. He is custodian of the records of the society except such as are necessarily in charge of others, as the treasurer's books. He conducts the correspondence of the society that is not otherwise assigned or that does not by the nature of the case belong to others. The officers and committees conduct the correspondence connected with their respective duties.
In case the work of the secretary in addition to keeping the minutes is too heavy for one person, it is customary to divide it between two, a Recording Secretary and a Corresponding Secretary. The ordinary duties of the latter are described in R. O. R., page 246, but each society in its by-laws should specify the duties of the corresponding secretary.
Treasurer. The treasurer's duties vary greatly in different societies. The society should select some one with business ability who will regard himself as custodian of trust funds which he will keep separate from his own. In some organizations he pays all bills that are approved by the executive officers; in others he can pay only such bills as have been approved by the society or its board, or the financial committee. Each society must adopt such a plan as is best adapted to its own needs. The treasurer should pay only bills that have been authorized by a vote of the society, or have been approved by some authority empowered to do so by the by-laws. The by-laws should leave no doubt as to whose approval is necessary to justify disbursements by the treasurer.
All funds collected by committees or officers should be turned over immediately to the treasurer unless the society has authorized otherwise. In many organizations the treasurer is required to report at every meeting of the society the amounts received and expended since the last meeting and the balance on hand. These reports may be given orally. Since they have not been audited, no action is taken upon them. The treasurer is required to make an annual report, however, which must contain full information as to the receipts and expenditures of every kind during the year. Sometimes similar reports are required quarterly. The details of dates and separate payments for any one object should never be given since they are a hindrance to the report's being understood. It is the duty of the auditing committee to examine into details by comparing the report with the vouchers, and to see that the report is correct. The report should be handed to the auditing committee in time to be examined and returned to the treasurer before the annual or quarterly meeting". Or, the auditing committee may submit the report at the meeting. When the report is made the president should put the question on the adoption or acceptance of the auditors' report. If this motion is adopted it carries with it the approval of the treasurer's report. [See R. O. R., page 252, for form cf Report of Treasurer and Auditors.]
Boards. Nearly all organizations find it advisable to appoint a Board of Directors or Managers who act for the organization during the intervals between the meetings. These boards usually consist of the officers and some directors or managers who are elected in the same way and at the same time as the other officers. This board is subordinate to the society and must carry out its instructions and can take no action conflicting with any action taken by the society. The society can countermand any action taken by the board and can give it instructions, excepting in such matters as are placed by the by-laws exclusively under the control of the board. [See R. O. R., pages 207-210.]
Practice Work.
(1) Chairman or President. Name the duties of the chairman as outlined in the beginning of the chapter.
(2) What is said about the chairman's standing or sitting? What about his taking part in debate?
(3) Vice President. How may a second vice president ever become president? How is a vice-president addressed when presiding?
(4) Secretary. What are the minutes? Name seven points that the minutes should cover.
(5) Write an original set of minutes.
(6) Give two cautions to the secretary in writing the minutes. Name other duties that may devolve upon the secretary besides keeping the record of action taken at the meetings.
(7) Give form for the chair to use in connection with the approval of the minutes.
(8) Treasurer. What are the characteristics of a good "treasurer? From whom should the treasurer get authority to disburse funds?
(9) Should a treasurer's statement of the money in the treasury be "accepted" or "adopted" at each meeting? Give outline for auditors' work and show how the auditors' report is adopted.
(10) What is the real function of boards?