🏛 The Somerville Record
Matters ▸ Attachment

Amendments Adopted 11-08-18 — File 206583

File 206583·1 page·📄 Original PDF (city portal)·sha256 67ceb4fce3a4…
Rule 16. When a question is under debate before the Board or a committee of the Board, the presiding officer shall entertain no motion but: 1) to adjourn, 2) to lay on the table, 3) for the previous question, 4) to postpone to a day certain, 5) to refer to a committee, 6) to amend, 7) to postpone indefinitely, or 8) to recess. These motions shall take precedence in the order in which they are arranged, and the first two shall be decided without debate. On a motion for the previous question no more than five minutes shall be allowed for debate and no member shall speak except in opposition to the motion or for more than two minutes. All questions of order arising after a motion for the previous question shall be decided without debate, except on appeal, and on appeal no member shall speak more than two minutes or more than once. The adoption of the previous question shall put an end to all debate and bring the board to a direct vote upon pending amendments, if any, and then upon the main question. Rule 19. Any member of the Board, or a committee of the Board, may sponsor a member of the public to address the board, or committee, on any matter properly before the board, or committee, as the case may be, unless such sponsorship is objected to by any member. Upon such objection, the address shall occur only by a two thirds vote of the entire membership of the Board, or by a majority vote of the committee members present. Rule 29. The chair of each committee shall determine the agenda for each committee meeting, and shall include in said agenda any items that the Committee previously voted to include on the agenda for the meeting in question. The clerk of committees shall prepare the agenda and the report of the meeting, which shall include the disposition of each agenda item and any roll call votes taken. Any document submitted to the members of the committee in connection with the main item under discussion during the committee meeting shall be identified in the report. The clerk shall insure that all such items are readily available for viewing during searches of the main item on the web portal for the board. The report shall be approved by the chair and submitted to the board for action at its next meeting. In no case shall this preclude a member not in agreement from submitting a minority report. The clerk shall also prepare the minutes of the meeting, which shall consist of the committee's actions, decisions, and votes, with a summary of any discussions, as prescribed by the most recent edition of Robert's Rules of Order and the requirements of the open meeting law. The minutes shall be approved by the committee at a subsequent meeting. No committee shall act by separate consultation and no report shall be received by the board unless the subject thereof shall have been considered in committee actually assembled Rule 36. Every motion shall be reduced to writing if the presiding officer so directs or if any member so requests. A motion need not be seconded, either before the Board or a committee of the Board, except as provided in Rule 11. Rule 37. A question containing two or more propositions may be divided whenever such division can clearly be made, and such division shall be determined by a majority vote of the members present. A member may sever an item from a committee report in order to separately vote on that item from the remainder of the report if determined favorably by a majority vote of the members present.