Q&A

By laws committee shut out of review

We created a committee for by law review and changes. The committee met once. Only reviewed a small portion. Communication from the committee chair stopped. Committee was notified months later that a final set of by laws has been approved by the PTO officers and Principal. Final set was never presented at a general meeting. Committee does not agree. Is there anything we can do?
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Bylaws revisions must be voted on at a general meeting and approved by a two-thirds vote. The only exception is if your current bylaws -- not the proposed revisions -- call for a different procedure. In your case I would bring a copy of Robert's Rules to the meeting, raise the issue, and when the vote is taken, motion to separate the proposed revisions to vote on them section by section. It's a fairly significant violation of the spirit of Robert's Rules for the board to impose bylaws on the membership without the membership's approval. What if, for example, the board decided to write into the bylaws that officers are paid? That's an extreme example, but it demonstrates why members always have a say.
- Craig
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