ASLCS - The Journal - MAKING TRADITION RELEVANT - Mason's Manual Revision Commission

MAKING TRADITION RELEVANT
A History of the Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure Revision Commission

By:
Betty King
Secretary of the Senate, Texas

Volume 4, Number 1 Spring 1998

From the first publication of Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure in 1935 until 1985, when members of the American Society of Legislative Clerks and Secretaries (ASLCS) began revision work, the Manual was the work of one person, devoted parliamentarian Paul Mason. Although never officially named parliamentarian of the California Senate, Mason was enthralled with the law as well as with procedure, and in 1931 he compiled the Annotated Edition of the State Constitution of California, a comprehensive publication which he updated many times in the next 22 years. Originally published for the California Legislature in 1935, Mason's Manual was soon made available to lawmakers in other states as a source of rules of parliamentary law and was revised six times between 1937 and 1979.

Mason strongly believed that parliamentary procedure is, in fact, law and that all actions taken in making a decision must comply with the law or risk being overturned by the courts. His painstaking research in studying court cases, guided by knowledge he gained from many years of experience with legislative procedure, produced this indispensable publication.

Mason died in 1985, after turning over the copyright to Mason's Manual to the National Conference of State Legislatures. NCSL in turn requested the members of the American Society of Legislative Clerks and Secretaries to continue Mason's work. A Commission of 16 members of ASLCS, representing a broad cross-section of state legislatures and bringing a combined total of 381 years of experience in procedural theory and practice, was appointed in 1984.

The Commission, under the leadership of Chair Patrick Flahaven, Secretary of the Minnesota Senate, immediately undertook a section-by-section review of the book. Commission members realized that significant changes were needed in order to bring the volume in line with current practice. Chair Flahaven appointed three subcommittees to which he assigned chapters of the Manual. The Commission met five or six times a year for three and a half years as members modernized the book's language and determined which practices were used widely enough to retain. Inconsistent and confusing provisions were cleared up and references to municipal government and other administrative bodies were eliminated so that the Manual now applies only to state legislative bodies. While most debate centered on substantive issues, Commission members also focused on grammar and style.

The members voted that Mason's should continue to be a scholarly work based on legal precedents, so an exhaustive search for cases that might apply to legislative procedures was conducted. West Publishing and Mead Data Central donated time on their electronic databases for the searches. The final version was sent to presiding officers in every state with the request that the content be reviewed and comments for changes or corrections be returned to the chair of the Commission. Former Speaker John L. Martin of Maine 1 was very supportive of the work of the Commission.

Following three and a half years of more than 25 meetings in every region of the country, the members of the Commission met for the last time in Chicago to make final changes in the manual and to celebrate the conclusion of the project. The sometimes contentious meetings were forgotten, and members celebrated with a sense of euphoria the successful completion of a monumental task. Accolades went to Chair Patrick Flahaven for his role in guiding the work of the Commission.

The Commission's work product was edited by staff of the National Conference of State Legislatures. Chair Flahaven made the official presentation of the final pre-publication version of the 1989 edition of Mason's Manual of Parliamentary Procedure to the president of NCSL, Colorado Senator Ted Strickland, at the Conference's 1988 annual meeting in Reno, Nevada.

The 1989 revision is, for the first time, clearly for the use of state legislatures only and many changes were made to promote efficiency and help legislatures cope with a larger workload. Members of the Commission believe that the result of their intensive work is a manual which better serves state legislators. Mason's is now used in all state legislatures and is the primary parliamentary authority in 63 of 99 chambers. Every deliberative body is bound to comply with all applicable rules laid down for it by its constitution and laws; therefore, Mason's does not supercede the rules of individual chambers. Mason's is intended as a reference when rules are silent or unclear.

In 1991 the members of the Commission voted to update the manual every ten years. Commission members were assigned Mason's footnotes, which refer to other parliamentary sources, to determine accuracy and relevance. West Publishing was requested to continue to search its database to identify court decisions which affect the Manual. This work continued until 1992 when new subcommittees were appointed and organized for the 1999 revision of the manual.

The three subcommittees which were assigned chapters in the current edition of Mason's have completed their study and have submitted their recommendations to the full Commission. Subcommittee chairs are Mark Corrigan, Patrick O'Donnell, and Don Schneider. The subcommittee on possible new material, chaired by John Phelps, has begun its deliberations and will recommend any changes made necessary by technology, court cases, or rulings. Following consideration of these recommendations by the full Commission, the final version will be carefully edited by NCSL staff and the 1999 edition will be sent to the printer.

In 1993, through the efforts of John Phelps, Clerk of the House in Florida, the Center for Democracy began negotiations with NCSL for the publication of a Spanish language version of Mason's Manual. Commission members considered the proposal at the NCSL Annual Meeting in San Diego and recommended approval of the proposal to the NCSL Executive Committee. Final approval from the National Conference of State Legislatures was received in October of 1993 and work on the translation began at that time. Staff of the Center for Democracy worked with members of the Commission as the translation progressed and as questions arose concerning the meaning of certain provisions of Mason's. The translation was completed in 1995 and the Center for Democracy finalized details of publication with NCSL and the International Development Bank, which is funding printing, in December of 1997. The Center will begin extensive promotion of the Spanish language version of Mason's, which was distributed throughout Latin America, in February of 1998.

The 1999 version of the Manual will continue to adhere to Paul Mason's philosophy as stated in the foreword to the 1979 edition: "A proper application of the rules of procedure will eliminate controversy, confusion and litigation and will make public bodies more efficient in their work and more pleasant to work in." Mason's ten principles governing procedure in group decision-making are:

1. The group must have the authority to take the actions it purports to take. Jurisdiction must be given, it cannot be assumed. Groups sometimes assume powers that they do not have.

2. There must be a meeting of the decision-making group. When authority to make a decision is vested in any group, it is vested in the group collectively, and not merely in the individual members of the group. To make a decision, the group must meet and make up its collective mind.

3. A proper notice of the meeting must be given to all members of the group. All members of the group are entitled to such a notice of the time, place, and purpose of the meeting as will enable them to attend and participate. Failure to give such a notice will invalidate actions taken at the meeting.

4. There must be a quorum present at the meeting. A quorum is a sufficient number or proportion of the members as will qualify those present to act for the entire membership. A quorum is a majority of the members qualified to act, unless a lesser number is given that authority by proper authority or a higher number is especially required. A member who is not entitled to vote on a particular question cannot be counted to make a quorum for voting on that question.

5. There must be a question before the group upon which it can make a decision. The question may be a motion, resolution or other proper form and may be oral or in writing and in most cases should be capable of being answered by an affirmative or negative vote. A member has the right to know what the question is and what its effect will be before voting on the question.

6. There must be an opportunity to debate the question. An opportunity to debate is necessary to enable the members of a group to reach a collective judgment. A member has the right to express personal opinions and hear the opinions of the other members.

7. The question must be decided by taking a vote. It is not enough to assume how a member will vote. A vote actually must be taken. It may be taken by an authorized and fair method.

8. There must be a majority vote to take an action or decide a question. In order to take any action or decide any question, there must be an expression of the will of the majority. This is usually a majority of the legal votes but sometimes is a majority of the entire membership or a two-thirds vote is required. A minority vote or a tie vote will not take any action.

9. There must be no fraud, trickery or deception resulting in injury to any member. A person is entitled to the protection of the courts from injury through injustice by a body making a group decision as in any other situation involving injury.

10. To be valid, any action or decision of a body must not violate any applicable law or constitutional provision. The decision-making procedures of any body must comply with the applicable provisions of any local, state or federal law. It is governed by any statutory or court-made law, including provisions of constitutions and charters.

These principles validate Mason's theory that principles are easier than rules to remember and apply and are included in both the 1989 and 1999 revisions.

CURRENT MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION ARE:
Stephen Arias, Chief Clerk of the New Mexico House
Hogan Brown, Assistant Clerk of the South Carolina House
Mark R. Corrigan, Secretary of the Pennsylvania Senate
Patrick Flahaven, Secretary of the Minnesota Senate
Gregory Gray, Clerk of the West Virginia House
Janet Jones, Chief Clerk of the Kansas House
Ramona Kenady, Chief Clerk of the Oregon House
Betty King, Secretary of the Texas Senate, Chair
McDowell Lee, Secretary of the Alabama Senate
Joseph W. Mayo, Clerk of the Maine House
Clyde W. McCullough, Jr., Chief Clerk of the Tennessee Senate
Patrick O'Donnell, Clerk of the Nebraska Legislature, Vice Chair
Carole Peterson, Chief Clerk of the Utah House
John B. Phelps, Clerk of the Florida House
Donald I. Schneider, Chief Clerk of the Wisconsin Senate
Alfred Speer, Clerk of the Louisiana House
Janice Thomas, Secretary of the Nevada Senate
Larry Warden, Chief Clerk of the Oklahoma House

ALTERNATES:
Susan Schaar, Clerk of the Virginia Senate
Denise Weeks, Principal Clerk of the North Carolina House

ASSOCIATES:
Karen Wadsworth, Clerk of the New Hampshire House
Thomas Leighton, West Group
Brenda Erickson, NCSL

Those who have served previously are: Joe Brown, Secretary of the Florida Senate; Edward Burdick, Chief Clerk of the Minnesota House; Grace Collins, Principal Clerk of the North Carolina House; William Kandler, Secretary of the Michigan Senate; Mouryn Landing, Chief Clerk of the Nevada Assembly; Robert Picher, Clerk of the Vermont House; Jane Richards, Chief Clerk of the Arizona House; and Kenneth Wright, Secretary of the Illinois Senate.

The work of the Commission is tedious, time-consuming, and challenging. Over the years there have been changes because of attrition and travel constraints. The members of the Commission are proud that the legacy of one devoted parliamentarian has been continued for 14 years by 29 equally devoted members of the American Society of Legislative Clerks and Secretaries.

The Revision Commission has achieved a great deal by working through differences to embrace procedures applicable to all jurisdictions. Founding chair Flahaven was quoted following the completion of the 1989 revision: "The people who hold these jobs are fairly strong individuals with strongly held beliefs about how procedure should be conducted. That they were able to agree on a manual that they could all endorse and use is perhaps their greatest accomplishment."

For more information about ASLCS, write or call:

Sally Kittredge
National Conference of State Legislatures
1560 Broadway, Suite 700
Denver, CO 80202
Phone: 303/364-7700
FAX: 303/863-8003
E-mail: sally.kittredge@ncsl.org

MAKING TRADITION RELEVANT A History of the Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure Revision Commission

MAKING TRADITION RELEVANT
A History of the Mason's Manual of Legislative Procedure Revision Commission