Point of order point of contention in Roberts vs Rosenberg rules of order
by Dan Blackburn Hermosa Beach city council members will consider changing the rules by which their public meetings are governed. The proposal to change the current parliamentary structure, which emerged from a recent council retreat, would scrub Robert’s Rules of Order, a guiding publication that has laid out procedural rules for the last 146 years. It outlines how tax-supported and non-profit governing agencies conduct meetings and interface with members of the public. A much more concise structure, Rosenberg’s Rules of Order, is rapidly gaining favor among California entities, and is the version being eyed by the Hermosa Beach council. The original Robert’s is 716 pages long, and delves with excruciating detail into the intricacies, niceties, and necessities of running a meeting. A revised version of 179 pages was published in 1989. By contrast, Rosenberg’s version is only 10 pages in its entirety, which may help explain its growing popularity with elected officials. Mary Macfarlane is co-founder of Jurassic Parliament, a Seattle-based business providing information, training, and resources to “help governing bodies run effective and fair meetings.” She sees flaws in…
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