INSCRIBED STOCK REGULATIONS, 1954
CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS
G. H. DEVRIES
WHEREAS by "The Regional Electric Authorities Acts, 1945 to 1954,"
it is enacted that a Regional Board constituted pursuant to such Act may make By-laws for all or any of the purposes specified in the said Acts mentioned: And whereas the State Electricity Commission of Queensland has approved of the making of the following By-laws it is hereby resolved by The Mackay Regional Electricity Board, by and with the approval of the Governor in Council, that the following By-laws shall be in force within the said Region from the date of publication hereof in the Government Gazette.
CHAPTERS
These By-laws are divided into the Chapters as follows:- Chapter 1.-General.
Chapter 2.-Proceedings and Business of Board.
Chapter 3.-Expenses of Members.
Chapter 4.-Extended Leave.
CHAPTER 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS
1. In the interpretations of the following By-laws, unless the context otherwise indicates or requires, the following terms shall have the meaning set against them respectively, that is to say:-
"The Acts"-"The Regional Electric Authorities Acts, 1945 to 1954."
"The Commission"-The State Electricity Commission of Queensland.
"Board"-The Mackay Regional Electricity Board.
"Member" -Any member of The Mackay Regional Electricity Board; the term includes the chairman wherever necessary.
"Chairman"-The person acting for the time being as chairman of the Board; the term where necessary shall include the person for the time being acting as chairman of any meeting of the Board.
"Secretary"-The person appointed by the Board to act as secretary; the term includes the officer or person for the time being performing the duties of secretary.
"Manager"-The person appointed by the Board to act as manager; the term includes the person for the time being performing the duties of manager.
150 BY-LAWS (MACKAY)
'"Month"-Means a calendar month.
"The By-laws" or "These By-laws"-The By-laws. of The Mackay Regional Electricity Board in force for the time being.
SHORT TITLE
2. These By-laws may be cited as "The Mackay Regional Electricity Board By-laws."
Published in Gazette 16 March 1957, pp. 905-9 and printed as amended by by-laws published Gazette 14 June 1958, p. 1495; 18 October 1958, p. 612;
ll April 1959, p. 2055 and 17 September 1960, p. 229.
APPLICATION
3. These By-laws shall, except where otherwise expressly provided, apply to and be in force in the whole of that part of the State constituted as the Mackay Region of electricity supply.
CHAPTER 2
PROCEEDINGS AND BUSINESS
FIRST MEETING OF NEWLY CoNSTITUTED BoARD
1. The first meeting of the Board shall be held upon the day and date prescribed by the Governor in Council by Order in Council published in the Government Gazette. At such meeting or at some adjournment thereol the members present shall elect one of their number, who shall not be thf representative of the Commission, as chairman. At every meeting for tht election of a chairman the secretary shall preside and shall have anc may exercise all the powers and authorities of the chairman other thar the right to vote.
SUBSEQUENT AND SPECIAL MEETINGS OF BOARD
2. The Board shall meet for general business during each year on sue!
day and at such hour as the Board may by resolution appoint: Provide' that the Board shall meet at least once in each month: And provide, further that additional or substituted meetings may be called from tim to time.
Notice of the time and place of meeting and of the business to 1:
tnu1sacted thereat shall be given to all members at least seven da) before the date of the meeting.
The chairman may call a special meeting of the Board in tl:
manner prescribed as often as he thinks proper. If the chairman refus1 to call, or delays in calling, any special meeting so requested by least two members then any two or more members may call a speci meeting of the Board in the manner prescribed, by notice signed 1 themselves and stating the business to be transacted.
The chairman shall preside at all meetings at which he is present.
The chairman or in his absence the chairman for the day shall ha a vote, and when there is an equal division upon any question and me than three members take part in such division shall have a second casting vote.
COMMENCEMENT OF BUSINESS
3. The Board shall commence business at the time appointed for holdi the meeting, or as soon before the expiration of half an hour thereaf as a sufficient number of members are present to constitute a quoru
BY-LAWS (MACKAY) 151 QUORUM
4. A quorum shall comprise not less than three members nor less than one-half of the whole number of members for the time being.
WHEN A QUORUM IS NOT PRESENT
5. At all meetings of the Board when there is not a quorum of members present, such circumstances, together with the names of the members then present, shall be recorded in the minute-book.
INTERRUPTED BUSINESS
6. When the consideration of any motion or matter of business has been interrupted by reason of a quorum not having been present, consideration shall be resumed at the point at which it was so interrupted in its proper order of business at the next regular meeting of the Board.
LEAVING MEETINGS
7. After a meeting of the Board has been formally constituted and the business thereof commenced, no member of the Board shall enter, leave, or withdraw from such meeting without first paying due respect to the chair.
LEAVE OF ABSENCE
8. No leave of absence shall be granted to the chairman or any member otherwise than by consent of the Board.
CALL OF BOARD
9. (i) A call of the Board may by resolution; after notice of motion, be ordered for the consideration of any motion or matter of business before the Board.
(ii) There shall, without any resolution to that effect, be a call of the Board for the consideration of every motion which may be made in respect of any charge against a member of persisting in disorderly con- duct as hereinafter provided, and also of every motion for revocation or alteration of a resolution of the Board.
(iii) The call shall be made immediately before the motion or business for which such call has been ordered or is required to be made is moved or considered.
The call shall be made as follows: The secretary shall call the names of all the members in their alphabetical order; each member present shall answer to his name called, and if a member is absent, a record shall be made of such absence, but if leave of absence of any member has been previously granted, or if such an excuse in writing has been forwarded to the chairman or secretary as a majority of the Board then present con- sider satisfactory, such absent member shall be excused, and a record shall be made of such excuse.
CHAIRMAN'S MINUTES
10. The chairman shall have the right of directing the attention of the Board to any matter or subject within the jurisdiction of official cognisance of the Board, by a minute signed by himself, and such minute shall when required, take precedence of all business before or to come befor~
the Board.
NoTICE OF BusiNESS TO BE GIVEN
11. Except as by these By-laws is otherwise provided, no business othe.- than business arising out of matters already before the Board shall be taken into consideration at any meeting of the Board unless notice thereof
152 BY-LAWS (MACKAY)
in writing, signed by a member, is given at least fourteen days before the meeting at which the business is to be brought forward specifying the nature and substance thereof and no business shall be brought before the Board unless notice of such business has been given to each of the members by summons.
BUSINESS-PAPER
12. The business-paper shall include all matters ansmg out of the proceedings of former meetings of the Board and any business which the chairman may think fit to bring under consideration.
BUSINESS OF SPECIAL MEETING
13. The business-paper for each special meeting shall contain only such matters as have been stated in the notice thereof.
ORDER OF BUSINESS
14. At all ordinary meetings of the Board the general order of business shall be as follows, that is to say:-
( 1) Minutes of meeting;
(2) Business arising out of the minutes of the previous meeting;
( 3) Reading and consideration of correspondence;
( 4) Consideration of tenders;
( 5) Consideration of notices of motion;
( 6) Reception and consideration of reports;
( 7) Miscellaneous business;
( 8) Questions;
( 9) Reception of notices of motion for next meeting.
15. Notwithstanding anything contained in these By-laws to the con- trary, it shall be competent after the confirmation of the minutes of the previous meeting for the chairman in his discretion as a matter of urgency, or the Board, on the motion duly moved, and seconded without debate, to accord precedence to any business set down or not down on the business-paper for consideration.
CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES
16. The minutes of every preceding meeting not previously confirmed shall be taken into consideration as the first business at every meeting of the· Board in order that such minutes may be confirmed, and no discussion shall be permitted with respect to such minutes: except with respect to their accuracy as a record of the proceedings.
CoNSIDERATION oF REPORTS
17. If in a report of the manager distinct recommendations are made, the sense of the Board may be taken separately on each recommendation.
Reports from the manager, and other reports if there are any, shall be considered and may be adopted upon presentation: Provided that the Board may, if deemed necessary, order any report to lie on the table until next meeting. Any report of the manager may be adopted or may be referred back to the manager for further consideration.
NoTICE OF MoTioN-ABsENCE oF MovER
18. In the absence of a member who has placed a notice of motion on the business-paper, such motion shall be deferred till the next! regular meeting of the Board: Provided, however, that any other member may at
BY-LAWS (MACKAY) 153
either of such meetings move the same. A notice of motion must be in writing, signed by the member presenting it, and deli_vered to the chairman or secretary at least fourteen days before the meetmg.
WITHDRAWAL OF MOTIONS
19. No motion after being placed on the business-paper shall be with- drawn without the consent of the Board.
MoTIONS TO BE SECONDED
20. No motion shall be debated unless or until it has been seconded.
MoTIONS NOT TO BE WITHDRAWN WITHOUT CONSENT
21. When a motion has been proposed and seconded,. it shall become subject to the control of the Board and shall not be withdrawn without the consent of the Board.
OBJECTIONABLE BusiNESS
22. If the chairman of any meeting of the Board shall be of opm10n that any motion or business proposed to be made or transacted thereat is of an objectionable character, it shall be competent for him, either before or after the same is brought forward, to declare that the same shall not be entertained: Provided always that it shall be competent for any member of the Board to move dissent from the declaration made by the chairman, whereupon the motion to dissent shall be forthwith put forward without debate, and in the event of the same being carried by a majority of the members present and voting, the business referred to shall thereupon be entertained, but not otherwise.
AMENDMENTS MAY BE MoVED
23. When a motion has been proposed and seconded, any member shall be at liberty to move an amendment thereon, but no such amendment shall be debated unless or until it has been seconded.
EXCEPTIONS AS TO NOTICES
24. The following motions may be moved without notice as hereinafter provided, viz.:-
(i) On point of order;
(ii) On formal motions, i.e.:-
(a) That the chairman do leave the chair;
(b) That the debate be now adjourned;
(c) That the consideration of the question be postponed;
(d) That the Board do now adjourn;
(e) That the question be now put;
(iii) On such other motions as the chairman may from time to time direct for the better conduct of the Board meeting.
ONLY ONE AMENDMENT AT A TIME
25. No second or subsequent amendment shall be taken into consideration until the previous amendment has been disposed of.
FURTHER AMENDMENT MAY BE MOVED ON AMENDED QUESTION
26. If an amendment has been carried, the motion, as amended thereby.
shall become itself the motion before the Board, whereupon any further amendment upon such motion may be moved.
154 BY-LAWS (MACKAY)
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REPETITION OF NEGATIVE MOTIONS
21. No motion to the same effect as any motion, other than a motion moved in pursuance of a report of the manager, which has been negatived within the preceding three months, shall be moved unless a notice of motion shall be signed by a majority of the whole of the Board, and when any such notice has been disposed of by the Board it shall not be com- petent for any member of the Board to propose a similar motion within a further period of six months.
HOW SUBSEQUENT AMENDMENTS MAY BE MOVED
28. If an amendment, whether upon an original motion or upon any motion amended as aforesaid, has been negatived then a further amend- ment may be moved to the motion to which such first-mentioned amend- ment was moved, and so on: Provided that not more than one motion and one proposed amendment thereof shall be before the Board at any one time.
MOTIONS FOR ADJOURNMENT
29. No discussion shall be permitted on any motion for adjournment of the Board. If upon the question being put on any such motion, the same is negatived, the subject then under consideration or next on the business-paper, as the case may be, shall be discussed; it shall not be competent for any member again to move a motion for adjournment until half an hour has elapsed from the time of moving the one that has been negatived.
MOVER OF ADJOURNMENT-WHEN ENTITLED TO PRE-AUDIENCE
30. On resuming any discussion which has been adjourned, the mover of such adjournment shall be entitled, if he has not already spoken on the subject under consideration, to speak first.
LIMITATION AS TO QUESTIONS AND STATEMENTS
31. No question or statement as to any matter under the jurisdiction or within the official cognisance of the Board or requiring attention by the Board or officers shall be allowed to be put or made which is inconsistent with good order.
NoTICE oF QuEsTioNs To BE GIVEN
32. Sufficient notice of every question shall be given to the chairman or member expected to reply thereto, to permit of consideration of such reply, and, if necessary, reference to other persons or to documents.
QUESTIONS TO BE PUT WITHOUT ARGUMENT
33. Every such question shall be put categorically and without any argument.
REPLIES AND OBJECTIONS AND SUBSEQUENT MOTION RECEIVED
34. No discussions shall be permitted respecting any reply or refusal to reply to such question, or respecting any statement made at the time when such question is put, or such reply or refusal to reply is made:
Pn;lVi~ed that nothing herein co.ntained shall prevent the making of any obJeCtiOn as to any such questiOn or statement being out of order, or
pr~':ent the discussi<;m after due notice, of any matters properly ansmg out of or relatmg to any such question, reply or refusal to reply, or any such statement.
BY-LAWS (MACKAY) 155 CONDUCT OF DEBATE-MODE OF ADDRESSING BOARD, ETC.
35. Every member who proposes or seconds any motion or proposes or seconds any amendment, or takes part in any debate or discussion or puts or replies to any question, or makes any statement, or in any way other- wise or for any purpose addresses observations to the Board, shall address himself to the chairman.
SPEAKER NOT TO BE INTERRUPTED IF IN ORDER
36. No member shall be interrupted while speaking unless for the purpose of calling him to order as hereinafter provided.
LIMITATION AS TO NUMBER OF SPEECHES
37. The mover of an original motion shall have the right of general reply to all observations which have been made in reference to such motion and to any amendment moved thereon, as well as the right to speak once upon such motion and once upon every amendment thereon. No member shall, without the consent of the Board, speak more than once upon any question, or for longer than ten minutes at any one time unless when misrepresented or misunderstood, in which case he shall be permitted to explain without adding any further observations than may be necessary for the purpose of such explanation. When an amendment becomes the motion, the mover shall have the same privilege as the mover of an original motion.
MOVER AND SECONDER
38. A member who has moved a motion or amendment other than a motion for adjournment of the debate shall be deemed to have spoken thereon, but any member who has seconded any motion or amendment without any further observation than that he seconds the same shall be at liberty to speak once on every motion or amendment.
DIGRESSION
39. Every member shall confine his remarks to the matter then under consideration.
IMPUTATIONS
40. No member shall make personal reflections on or impute improper motives to any other members or member.
CHAIRMAN TO DECIDE AS TO PRE-AUDIENCE
41. If two or more members rise to speak at the same time the chairman shall decide which of the members shall be first heard.
MEMBERS MAY REQUIRE QUESTIONS TO BE STATED, ETC., UNDER CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS
42. Any member may request the question or matter under discussion to be read or stated for his information, or may require the production of any records of the Board bearing upon such question or matter as are readily accessible: Provided also that if such request or requisition shall be so made as to interrupt any other member when speaking, or materially to interrupt the discussion: Provided also that if such request or requisition appears to the chairman not to have been made in good faith he may decline to comply therewith.
INFORMATION MAY BE REQUIRED TO BE TABLED
43. Any member desiring information upon a matter at issue from letters or documents already in the possession of the Board may move that all such letters and documents bearing upon the question be laid upon the table at next meeting.
156 BY-LAWS (MACKAY) How QUESTIONS ARE TO BE PUT
44. The chairman shall put to the Board all questions on which it is necessary that a vote shall be taken first in the affirmative, and then in the negative, and the members shall vote by show of hands, and the chairman shall declare the result to the Board.
CHAIRMAN MAY REPEAT QUESTION
45. The chairman shall be at liberty to put any question as often as may be necessary to enable him to form his opinion as to the result of the voting and to declare the same.
PROTESTS
46. Any member may protest against any resolution of the Board; notice of the intention to protest shall, however, be given at the meeting when such resolution is passed, and the protest itself shall be handed or sent to the secretary not later than seven days after such notice.
The secretary shall enter every such protest in the minute-book, but if, in the opinion of the Board, it is inconsistent with the truth, or is disrespectfully worded, it may (by resolution after notice) be ordered to be struck out from the minute-book; in such case the striking out shall be made by making a perpendicular line with the pen through the entry of such protest, or in such other manner as the Board approves, with a reference in the margin to the resolution ordering such striking out.
AcTs oF DisORDER
47. Any member, who at any meeting of the Board commits a breach of any clause of this Chapter, or who moves or attempts to move any motion or amendment embodying any matter beyond the legal jurisdiction of the Board, or who in any other way raises or attempts to raise any ques- tion, or addresses or attempts to address the Board upon any subject which the Board have no legal right to entertain or to discuss, or who uses any language which, according to common usage of gentlemen, would be held disorderly, or who says or does anything calculated to bring the Board into contempt shall be guilty of an act of disorder.
CHAIRMAN TO MAINTAIN ORDER
48. The chairman shall maintain order, and without the intervention of any member, may call any member to order whenever in the opinion of the chairman the necessity for so doing arises.
When the chairman rises to speak, every other member must resume his seat.
ANY MEMBER MAY RAISE QUESTION OF ORDER
49. Any. member who c.onsiders that any other member\ is guilty of an act of drsorder as herembefore defined may call the attention of the chairman thereto.
APOLOGY, ETC., MAY BE REQUIRED
50. Whenever anything said or done by any member has been decided to be out of order, such member may be called upon by the chairman to make such explanation, retraction, or apology as the case may require.
QUESTIONS OF ORDER-HOW DEALT WITH
51. After ~ . question of order has. been stated to the chairman by the member rarsmg the same, the charrman shall give his opinion thereon but may first invite the opinion of the Board. '