Introduction

Minutes of Association meetings represent the legal record of business transacted at those meetings. Careful attention should be given to the recording of association proceedings as they might possess significant legal implications at a future date. Minutes of the Association are guided by Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised and Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revisited In Brief.

1. The minutes of proceedings of the members, the board of directors, and any committees* of the board of directors shall be kept at the corporation’s principal office in California or other space as designated by the organization’s bylaws, and be printed in the newsletter. Such minutes shall be kept in written or typed form. Minutes of public (open) proceedings shall be open to inspection on the written demand of any member, at any reasonable time during usual business hours, for a purpose reasonably related to the member’s interests as a member. The inspection may be made in person or by an agent or attorney, and shall include the right to copy and make extracts of the minutes.
2. Minutes should contain mainly a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was said by the members. Among other things, they should include:

1. the type of meeting: regular, special, executive (closed)
2. name of organization or assembly
3. the date, time, and place of the meeting
4. presence of presiding officer and secretary or name(s) of their substitute
5. whether minutes of previous meeting(s) were read and approved or approved as corrected. The corrections themselves should be made in the minutes being corrected.
6. main motions only—except those that were withdrawn— including the name of the maker of the motion, stating:

1. the text of the motion using the words immediately before finally being disposed of; incorporating any amendments that were adopted
2. the disposition of the motion; adopted or lost, after debate, after amendment, after debate and amendment.
3. exception being inclusion of:

1. secondary motions when the main motion is carried over to another meeting
2. secondary motions needed for completeness or clarity; for example motions to Recess or motion to Suspend the Rules

7. Votes by count or roll call, Notices of Motion, Points of Order, or Appeals.
8. any question considered informally
9. oral committee reports should be summarized; written committee should be incorporated by reference
10. the name and subject of a guest speaker, but not a summary of remarks
11. identification of all those present constituting a quorum
12. the time of adjournment
13. the signature of the secretary

3. All reports should be attached and incorporated by reference, as should other documents which may clarify or explain business transacted.
4. As the proceedings of an executive/closed session are confidential and the minutes must be held confidential. Board member(s)-elect will not receive executive (closed) session minutes until the member(s) has been seated and/or has signed a commitment to fiduciary duties.
5. Nothing in this policy shall apply to the Ethics Committee, whose proceedings shall be governed by the Ethics Code or by that committee’s policy and procedure as established from time to time.<</li>

* The word committee shall include, wherever it appears, subcommittees, commissions and task forces. It shall not include the Ethics Committee.