Chaparral 2016-2017: 25.4 Governance TidBits

Governance TidBits: Quorum Quandary of Governance Committee Meetings

by Frankie Strong

Governance Office Coordinator

 

Just a quick reminder…

Ok so we understand that we need a quorum in order to conduct committee business

According to Administrative Regulation 2511, the Governance Document, “quorum is the simple majority of voting members of the committee which is 50% + 1 of the total voting membership.
NOTE:  a vacant voting member seat is not counted when determining quorum.”

Duly noted is that vacant voting seats are not counted towards quorum.

What about the “resource” members of the committee, they’re part of the quorum count, right?

No, they are not included, only voting members are counted towards quorum.  “Resource” seats are non-voting members.  They participate in discussion, but have no vote.

Well, our committee convened but we didn’t have quorum, do we just leave?

Not necessarily.  Committees can still have discussion of agenda items, but no action can occur that requires a vote.

What about the “resource” members of the committee, they’re part of the quorum count, right?

No, they are not included, only voting members are counted towards quorum.  “Resource” seats are non-voting members.  They participate in discussion, but have no vote.

Can we approve the minutes from the previous meeting during this non-quorum meeting?

No.  Quorum must be met in order to conduct any vote.

So, do we record “minutes” for this meeting which only entailed discussion?

Certainly!  Recording information that was discussed during this non-quorum meeting is helpful for the committee members, and helpful for those who did not attend, such as non-members.  Some committees refer to these “minutes” as notes versus official minutes.  Nevertheless, it is appropriate to distribute such notes to the membership at the next meeting as an informational item.  No vote to “approve” such notes is necessary.  It may be noted in the present meeting’s minutes that notes from the previous meeting were reviewed.

What if NOT meeting quorum is a regular occurrence for our committee, what do we do?

It is recommended that the chairperson contact members who are absent and to alert the Governance Review Committee that there may be an attendance problem.

 

Lastly, if you are a voting member on a committee but cannot attend a meeting, please find a proxy.   Assigning proxy enables the committee to meet quorum to do its important business.  Instructions and criteria are included on the proxy form.  The form can be found on the governance webpage.

And, one final point, committee representatives should be sharing information with their appointing body.  This is easily done by submitting a committee report to the executive body that appointed you to the committee.  For faculty there is an online form to fill in and send.  For the classified staff an email to the CSEA President and Vice President is appropriate.

For governance questions contact Frankie Strong fstrong@glendale.edu, ext. 5393.

References
Administrative Regulation 2511, Governance Document

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