PAC: MT 10 (voting by mail)

[Jon Bosak <bosak@boethius.eng.sun.com>]

To: workprocess@lists.oasis-open.org
Subject: PAC: MT 10 (voting by mail)

Voting by mail is a problem.

Robert's authorizes votes by mail on resolutions that have been
moved in a meeting, but it does not authorize anyone to make
motions by mail.  This means that formal business can take place
only in meetings.  Given that phone meetings constitute legal
meetings in our process, this is not a killer requirement, but it
is certainly an inconvenience.

It is not an adequate solution simply to allow motions to be made
in mail, because the usual mechanism for keeping order in meetings
(by recognizing only one speaker at a time) does not work in mail.
Allowing motions in mail would (a) create instant chaos, because
everyone would then be able to move anything they wanted, and (b)
allow amendments in mail -- amendments being just a special kind
of motion -- and slow the process down so far it would no longer
be usable.

But we do want to allow routine business to be handled in mail,
and we do want TCs to be able to proceed by mail as long as there
is no real conflict to resolve.

The PAC has directed me to attempt a solution to this.  Here's my
first try.  Comments?

Jon

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Voting by mail

A TC may resolve during a meeting to authorize its chair to
conduct the vote on a particular question by mail or, by adopting
a standing rule, to conduct specific kinds of routine business by
mail.

A TC may resolve during a meeting to authorize its chair to word a
resolution regarding a particular issue or set of issues, to put
such resolution to the members of the TC by mail, and to conduct
the vote on that resolution by mail.

The period allowed for voting by mail shall be five days, unless
the TC specifies a different voting period in the resolution
authorizing the vote or in standing rules governing mail ballots.