Meeting Rules

2. Persons seeking recognition from the Presiding Officer shall identify themselves for the record, giving their names, library or other affiliation, and whether Members or nonmembers.

 

3. All categories of Members as given above may vote whether present in person or by proxy in accordance with the Articles of Association.

 

4. Debate shall be limited to five minutes for each speaker; no speaker may have the floor twice on the same question until all who wish to speak have spoken.

 

5. Resolutions at ordinary general meetings shall be submitted to the Resolutions Committee in either of the official languages. Resolutions shall be presented to the ordinary general meeting in English; if asked for, a free translation of resolutions into French will be given orally from the floor by a French-speaking member of the committee; and Resolutions shall be printed in their final form in the APLA Bulletin in both English and French. Resolutions shall be framed only in connection with contentious matters or questions of policy. The presiding officer shall protect the meeting from obviously frivolous or dilatory motions by refusing to recognize them.

 

6. All motions and amendments from the floor shall be written by the makers and submitted to the Secretary. Discussion will not begin until they have been read or displayed to the Membership.

 

7. At the beginning of each session of the meeting the Presiding Officer will announce the agenda and rule on proposed additions. After the agenda has been adopted by the members present, it can be departed from only by general consent or by a two-thirds vote.

 

8. The President shall appoint a Parliamentarian who shall render service as required at general meetings. During a meeting the work of the Parliamentarian should be limited to giving advice to the Presiding Officer and when requested, to any other member. 

 

April 2008