Date of Notice: 09/21/2016
Motion type: Legislation
Current Status: Approved by the Senate 10/19/2016
Sponsor: Senate Executive Committee
Motion:
Section I
1.1 WHEREAS The Senate Bylaws requires that “The Order of Business” be conducted in a specific sequence, and;
1.2 WHEREAS changes requires a ⅔ vote of the Senate at the start of the meeting any time there is a need to re-order the agenda, such as when accommodating the schedule of a presenter, and;
1.3 WHEREAS Taking such votes is cumbersome and changing an already-posted agenda can be misleading to those who are attending part of the meeting for particular agenda items, and;
1.4 WHEREAS Allowing for prior modification of the order listed in the Bylaws, at the discretion of the President in consultation with the Senate Executive Committee, will be more efficient and transparent by allowing the the published agenda to show the actual order of business.
Section II
THEREFORE: The Senate modifies Article 3.3 of the Senate Bylaws as follows:
3.3 Senate Agenda. The Senate President shall set the agenda for each University Senate meeting in consultation with the Senate Executive Committee. The Senate agenda must be made public and available to the Senate at least 7 6 days prior to the Senate meeting. The Order of Business follows the sequence listed below. Senate meetings will include all items in the Order of Business listed below, however the sequence may be modified by the Senate President in consultation with the Senate Executive Committee. Section 3.3 shall be a Special Rule of Order as defined by Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.
Background:
Current bylaws, Article 3, from
ARTICLE 3: RULES AND PROCEDURES
3.1 The Senate shall adopt its own rules and procedures. The Senate is free to adopt its own internal rules and procedures (i.e., Senate by-laws) except as explicitly stipulated in the University of Oregon Constitution Section 8.1. These exceptions are noted throughout this document.
3.2 The Senate shall follow Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised. The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the University Senate in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are consistent with these bylaws, the University of Oregon Constitution, and any special rules of order the University Senate may adopt. Senate rules must also adhere to all local, state and national laws.
3.2.1 Deviations from Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised. The Senate may choose to adopt rules that do not conform to Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised. Any deviations from Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall be presented to the Senate in the form of a motion and shall require a two-thirds affirmative vote to be adopted.
3.3 Senate Agenda. The Senate President shall set the agenda for each University Senate meeting in consultation with the Senate Executive Committee. The Senate agenda must be made public and available to the Senate at least 7 days prior to the Senate meeting. The Order of Business follows the sequence listed below. Section 3.3 shall be a Special Rule of Order as defined by Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.
3.3.1 Call to Order.
3.3.2 Approval of the Minutes. The minutes from the previous meeting shall be brought before the Senate for discussion, revision if necessary, and formal approval by vote.
3.3.3 State of the University. The President of the University or his/her designee shall be granted this period at each Senate meeting to make a presentation.
3.3.4 New Business. New Business is the section of the Senate meeting where motions shall be brought to the Senate floor for discussion, consideration and action. Other action items, such as formal acceptance of the Curriculum Report from the Committee on Courses and motions from prior meetings that were tabled or sent back for revision shall also be presented in this part of the meeting.
3.3.5 Open Discussion. The Senate shall have the opportunity to discuss a topical issue of campus-wide concern during this part of the meeting. No formal action shall occur during the Open Discussion period and motions shall not be brought to the floor for consideration.
3.3.6 Reports. This shall be the section of the meeting when reports from University Standing or ad hoc Committees, Administrative Advisory Groups, Externally- Mandated Boards and other campus constituencies are presented.
3.3.7 Notice(s) of Motion. Notice shall be given for all motions to be discussed and acted upon by the Senate at a future meeting (See Article 3.7 for more information concerning Legislation and Resolutions).
3.3.8 Other Business.
3.3.9 Adjournment.