Hello Donna, Thank you for this discussion, as my library is dealing with some similar issues. Our current bylaws set the meetings rules rather than a policy per se. I am currently considering asking my Board to update the Bylaws to address remote voting and to give a set number of absences whether excused or unexcused. 1. Is there a limited number of excused absences allowed? Current Bylaws relating to attendance Article II - BOARD OF TRUSTEES Section 4. Meeting Attendance. Members shall be expected to attend all meetings except as they are prevented by a valid reason. Here is a chart I created in December to quantify the problem of absences. We have 1 member who missed 4 of the 12 meetings which has caused some issues bc that member is then not up to date on discussions. In the past when we had a member miss 3 or more meetings in a year, then the Board President had a discussion with them about whether their other life commitments are getting in the way of their commitment to the library board and whether: 1) they can recommit to attending meetings regularly; or 2) they would like to step-down. We have had people step-down mid-term and others who stick it out till their 3 year term is up. Fyi, our Board members turnover in May, so you see the old #3 attended Jan-Apr and the new #3 attended May-Dec. Whereas Old #4 completely quit attending and it took us 3 months to replace with New #4. Currently Old #7 left and needs to be appointed by an outside entity so we are going on a 4th month without that rep. We have 7 members and have been operating with 5-6 at various points which makes it harder to get a quorum of 4. Also, I have found the inclusion of "valid reason" with no definition = any reason. Board Member # Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec # Attended... of how many mtgs Missed % Attendance 1 x x x x x no x no no x no 7 11 4 64% 2 no x x x x x x x no x x 9 11 2 82% 3 - new x x x x x no x 6 7 1 86% 3 - old x no x x 3 4 1 75% 4-new x x x x no x x x 7 8 1 88% 5 x x x no x x x x x x x 10 11 1 91% 6 x x x x x x x x x x x 11 11 0 100% 7 - new - tbd 7 - old x x x x x x x x 8 8 0 100% 5 5 6 6 7 6 7 0 5 4 5 5 2. When the trustee attends remotely, is the roll call vote valid? Currently we do not allow remote attendance or voting, but I would like to consider it when we update our bylaws since it is more "usual" these days for committees. But perhaps add in a number of allowed remote meetings per person, on an emergency basis, so we don't end up with someone calling in 6x/yr. Current Bylaws relating to quorum and voting Article IV - MEETINGS Section 6. Quorum. A quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting shall consist of four (4) members of the Board present in person. Article X - GENERAL Section 1. An affirmative vote of the majority of all members of the Board present at the time shall be necessary to approve any action before the Board. Sincerely, Nyama Nyama Y. Reed Library Director N.Reed@WFBLibrary.org 414-755-6551 (direct line) Whitefish Bay Public Library 5420 North Marlborough Drive Whitefish Bay, WI 53217 414-964-4380 (main line) Our Mission The Whitefish Bay Public Library, as a cornerstone of the community, is dedicated to connecting people of all ages, inspiring a love of learning and providing easy access to ideas, information and resources. *Please be advised electronic mail becomes a "public record" as allowed under public record laws when sent or received as part of normal business processes. Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2019 13:23:29 -0500 From: Donna Olson <dolson@ssldl.info> To: Michlib-l <michlib-l@mcls.org> Subject: [Michlib-l] Attn Directors: Policies (bylaws) addressing trustee excused absences, remote voting Message-ID: <CANNpyi8Ja4exh0BGzVby-sLFfJV8OoxXXRAF6okdshokfjb=xA@mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" Hello All, I hope you can help. Technology is a blessing and a curse. We are addressing the need to update our policy/bylaws to address trustee excused absences and remote participation. 1. Is there a limited number of excused absences allowed? 2. When the trustee attends remotely, is the roll call vote valid? 3. Would you share your policy addressing this? Looking forward to your responses. Thank you so much. Happy New Year! Donna *Donna Olson, Director* *Salem-South Lyon District Library*