Q&A for How to Make a Motion at a Board of Directors Meeting

You take back a motion by asking the chair for permission to withdraw your motion. The chair will put it to a vote and if the majority of the group agrees, your motion will be withdrawn.

Anyone member of the board can make a motion. The secretary of the board is a member of the board and therefore would be permitted to make a motion.

Under Robert's Rules, you are free to vote against your own motion. However, you cannot speak against your own motion in open debate. You also have the option of asking permission to withdraw your motion. The chair will put it to a vote, and if the whole group agrees, your motion will be withdrawn.

Abstaining means you just don't agree but don't say anything. Objecting means voicing your opinion against something.

In most cases, yes. There are exceptions, though, and you should check with your moderator.

It depends on the rules of the organization. In small groups, that is sometimes allowed, but other organizations might have different rules for conducting meetings.

It is not necessary or even usual for a motion's proposer and seconder to be preselected. The chair calls for motions and if two or more people seek to be recognized, the chair rightly chooses one or the other, a motion is then made and a seconder is usually the first person recognized by the chair to have seconded the motion.

It depends. If you have a copy of the meeting agenda, it should be noted when questions from guests are allowed.

When the chair states that a meeting is adjourned, that means the meeting is over. No one attends an adjourned meeting. Generally if you are permitted to attend a board meeting, you can attend regardless of whether you attended any prior meetings. There is no requirement that every member attend every meeting. The minutes of the previous meeting will be read to get everybody up to speed.

If the chair is a member of the HOA, they have the same rights as any other member. They can make as many motions as they want. Those motions still have to be debated and voted on by the group, just like anybody else's.

General rules such as Robert's Rules of Order allow this, but any group may adopt special rules to the contrary.

No, a non-member cannot speak at all to the motion, the only thing they can do is ask the chair if they may be permitted to comment.

Not necessary, as new business comes up at meetings and motions are made and carried.

Yes. Generally, all board members present may vote on all motions at board meetings.

Yes the board member does, unless there are other board members present to second the motion for the absent member.

The vice chair should be present; therefore, you can make a motion.

At our meeting, the audience members can only ask questions and have a time limit; they are not allowed to discuss agenda items. If they want a motion to be presented to the board, it must be submitted in writing to the president so it can be added to the agenda. Per Florida statutes, the agenda must be posted 48 hours before the board meeting.

If it is an HOA, then any owner can present correspondence out of the meeting to be discussed at the meeting. It must be submitted at least 72 hours before the scheduled meeting so it can be added to the agenda, which must be posted 48 hours before the meeting (and cannot be changed). Anything submitted during the meeting is held until the next meeting.

That is usually required, yes. Of course it depends on the rules of the organization.

Once a motion is made and seconded, the chair asks if there are any questions. This would be the time to ask for clarification.