46-596: A referendum on the remunicipalization of the energy supply in Berlin was held on 3 November 2013. Prompted by the Neue Energie für Berlin (New Energy for Berlin) citizens' initiative in June 2013, it was approved by 83% of those who voted. However, the referendum failed due to insufficient voter turnout. 24.2% of Berlin voters voted in favor, but the quorum required 25% or more to do so. The New Energy for Berlin draft law aimed for
92-509: A de facto referendum across all five geographical constituencies of the territory, involving the entire electorate, which would not be officially recognised anyway. Most other factions, although against the move by these five Members, stayed in the chamber. On 2 May 2012, when the LegCo was debating a law change to bar resigning legislators to participate in by-elections in 6 months, effectively discouraging any more "de facto" referendums, some of
138-424: A committee of the whole or its variants, a quorum is the same as the assembly unless otherwise provided. In online groups, a quorum has to be determined in a different manner since no one is actually "present". The rules establishing such groups would have to prescribe this determination. An example is that a quorum in such groups could be established as "present" if enough members state that they are "present" at
184-467: A call of the house is ordered, the clerk calls the roll of members and then the names of absentees. Members who do not have an excused absence are arrested and brought in. The arrested members may be charged a fee. Both chambers of the United States Congress have the power to compel the attendance of absent members; this procedure, authorized by Article I, Section 5 of the U.S. Constitution
230-408: A meeting or vote of it, is quorate if a quorum is present (or casts valid votes). The term quorum is from a Middle English wording of the commission formerly issued to justices of the peace , derived from Latin quorum , "of whom", genitive plural of qui , " who ". As a result, quora as plural of quorum is not a grammatically well-formed Latin-language construction. In modern times
276-727: A meeting with fewer than nine members in attendance is pointless. Article I, Section 5, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution provides that "Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business..." Therefore, in both the House of Representatives and the Senate , a quorum is a simple majority of their respective members (currently 218 in
322-503: A non-partisan alliance of about 55 organizations, initiatives, and individual activists aiming for the remunicipalization of the municipal energy supply . The alliance was founded in 2011 as an open platform for all those lobbying for a socially just , ecologically sustainable , and economically democratic energy, gas, and heating supply in Berlin . Members of the alliance include the Berlin sections of attac , BUND , People's Solidarity ,
368-531: A personal vote requires at least 20 participating members. Article 55 of the constitutions of Pakistan states that, if at any time during a sitting of the National Assembly the attention of the person presiding is drawn to the fact that less than one-fourth of the total membership of the Assembly is present, he shall either adjourn the Assembly or suspend the meeting until at least one-fourth of such membership
414-415: A point of order can be given effect retrospectively by a ruling of the presiding officer, subject to appeal ." When a quorum is not met, the assembly can only take limited procedural actions. These limited actions are to fix the time to which to adjourn , adjourn , recess , or take measures to obtain a quorum, such as a motion that absent members be contacted during a recess. Any other business that
460-429: A quorum is a majority of registered delegates, even if some have departed. In a mass meeting or in an organization in which the membership cannot be accurately determined, the quorum consists of those who attend the meeting. In committees and boards , a quorum is a majority of the members of the board or committee unless provided otherwise. The board or committee cannot set its own quorum unless given such power. In
506-540: A quorum might be defined as the minimum number of voters needed for a valid election. Quorums are often required by traditional handbooks of parliamentary procedure such as Robert's Rules of Order . However, quorums have been criticized by social choice theorists for their pathological behavior, including an absurd result called a no-show paradox , where a proposal may pass because too many members oppose it. This has led many jurisdictions and bodies to replace traditional quorums with quorums of votes in favor, i.e.
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#1732869254287552-415: A quorum, but it failed to prevent another lack of quorum. On 18 June 2015, when the LegCo was due to vote on a resolution to amend the provisions for the election of the territory's Chief Executive , pro-Beijing members left the chamber to force a quorum roll call to make sure that a sick member could be able to rush back to the chamber. However some of the members stayed behind, citing miscommunication, and
598-404: A referendum ( Volksbegehren ). Quorum A quorum is the minimum number of members of a group necessary to constitute the group at a meeting. In a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure , such as a legislature), a quorum is necessary to conduct the business of that group. In contrast, a plenum is a meeting of the full (or rarely nearly full) body. A body, or
644-409: A requirement that any proposal be supported by a certain share of the entire membership to pass (e.g. 25% of all members). According to Robert, each assembly determines the number of members that constitutes a quorum in its governing documents (such as in its constitution, charter , bylaws or standing orders ). The quorum may also be set by law. Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised states that
690-637: A roll on the table of the house, and this list is included in the Journal of the House. There is no need for quorum when the attendance of the House is requested in the Senate of Canada , for example, when royal assent is being given to bills. The quorum of the Senate is 15. In the German Bundestag more than half of the members (currently 369 out of 736) must be present so that it is empowered to make resolutions. It
736-506: Is called to be counted from time to time by the pan-democrats, in order to force the pro-Beijing camp to keep some members in the chamber. Article 100 of the Constitution of India stipulates that at least 10% of total number of members of the House must be present to constitute the quorum to constitute a meeting of either House of Parliament . For example, if the House has the total membership of 250, at least 25 members must be present for
782-498: Is conducted is not valid unless it is ratified at a later meeting where a quorum is present. However, there is no obligation to ratify such action and those responsible may be punished for their actions. In legislatures and other assemblies that have the legal power to compel the attendance of their members, the call of the house procedure may be used to obtain a quorum. This procedure does not exist in ordinary societies, since voluntary associations have no coercive power. When
828-515: Is exceptional that the quorums are 9, 3 and 3 respectively. Quorum-busting was used at least twice since 1997. In 2005, when some pro-democracy members of the council paid a silent tribute to late leader of the People's Republic of China, Zhao Ziyang , against the Rules of Procedure, the president of the council suspended the meeting. When the meeting was recalled, pro-Beijing members refused to return to
874-606: Is however common that fewer members are present, because they can still make effective decisions as long as no parliamentary group or 5% of the members of the parliament are complaining about the lack of quorum. This, in rare cases, is used by opposition parties to delay votes. Article 75 of the Basic Law of Hong Kong stipulates that the quorum required for the meetings of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (LegCo) as "not less than one-half of its members". Between 1997 and 2012
920-461: Is not met, the bells are rung for five minutes and a count is then taken; if the quorum is still not met the sitting is adjourned until the next sitting day. During the sitting, any MP or senator may draw attention to the lack of quorum in which the bells are rung for four minutes, and if a quorum is still not met the sitting is adjourned. Although quorum-busting is virtually unheard of in Australia, it
966-498: Is not unknown for parties to deliberately use quorum counts as a disruptive tactic and there have been some suggestions to enact rules to restrict this practice; however, this is very difficult due to the explicit mention of a quorum in the constitution. It is considered disorderly to call attention to quorum when one exists, and members or senators who do so can be punished. In the National Council of Austria at least one-third of
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#17328692542871012-494: Is postponed and the House moves on to consider the next item of business. The quorum for votes on legislation in the House of Lords is 30, but just three of the 753 peers , including the Lord Speaker , are required to be present for a debate to take place. Historically, the quorum was a select group of the justices of the peace in each county in early modern Britain . In theory, they were men experienced in law, but many of
1058-527: Is present, which comprises 87 out of total 342. In Congress of the Philippines , half of the membership (13 in the Senate and 159 in the House of Representatives ) is needed to muster a quorum. If someone contests the lack of quorum, a roll call shall be done, and if there is indeed less than a majority of members present, the meeting shall be adjourned. Both majority and minority blocs in Congress have used
1104-523: Is rarely full outside question time, with often just one government representative (often an ordinary Teachta Dála, not a minister) present to answer opposition questions. Article 64 of the Italian Constitution prescribes that the quorum for both houses of Parliament is an absolute majority of their membership. A quorum is assumed to be present unless 20 or 7 members in the Chamber of Deputies and in
1150-475: Is rarely used in the modern Congress. While Section 22 and section 39 of the Constitution of Australia set the quorum for sittings of the House of Representatives and Senate at one-third of the whole number of MPs and senators, respectively, Parliament is permitted to change the quorum for each House by ordinary legislation. In the House of Representatives, the quorum was amended down to one-fifth by
1196-556: The Education and Science Workers' Union (GEW) as well as community organizations for affordable housing and the left-wing initiative FelS . While being non-partisan, the alliance is supported by the federal sections of major parties such as the SPD , Alliance '90/The Greens , and Die Linke . Between 11 February and 10 June 2013, the initiators collected 227,748 valid signatures of Berlin citizens, around 50,000 more than necessary to qualify for
1242-626: The Parliament of the United Kingdom , the House of Commons has a quorum of 40 MPs, including the Speaker , out of 650 members of the House. There is no need for a quorum to be present at all times: Commons debates could theoretically continue even if only one MP and the Speaker were present. However, if a division is called and fewer than 40 MPs are present, then a decision on the business being considered
1288-556: The Senate respectively request for its presence to be verified. In the New Zealand Parliament there is no general quorum for the House to conduct business. The House's previous requirement for a quorum (15 members in a House of 99 members) was abolished in 1996. Some procedures do require minimum participation: a motion without notice to suspend the Standing Orders can be moved only if at least 60 members are present, and
1334-563: The remunicipalization of Berlin's energy supply that was privatized in 1997, when the city of Berlin sold its municipal infrastructure and services company Bewag to the Swedish power company Vattenfall . It also demanded economically democratic control of the supply and a fast transition to 100% renewable energy . The referendum on New Energy for Berlin was initiated by the Berlin Energy Table ( German : Berliner Energietisch ),
1380-482: The Constitution, the Turkish Grand National Assembly shall convene with at least, one-third of the total number of members (184 out of 550) and shall take decisions by an absolute majority of those present; however, the quorum for decisions can, under no circumstances, be less than a quarter plus one of the total number of members (138 out of 550). Before the constitutional referendum of 2007 , there
1426-675: The House and 51 in the Senate). The only exceptions are those stated in the Twelfth Amendment : The Senate has the additional ordinary requirement in Rule VI of its Standing Rules that "A quorum shall consist of a majority of the Senators duly chosen and sworn ." In the United States Senate , the procedure was last used in the early morning hours of 25 February 1988. Majority of
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1472-447: The House of Representatives (Quorum) Act 1989, which means the quorum of the current House of 151 MPs is 31 MPs. In the senate, the quorum was amended down to one-quarter by the Senate (Quorum) Act 1991, so 19 senators is a quorum. The quorum includes the occupant of the Chair , and is not reduced by the death or resignation of a member or senator. If at the beginning of a sitting the quorum
1518-588: The House to proceedings with its business. If at any time during a meeting of a House there is no quorum, the Chairman has to either adjourn the House or suspend it until there is a quorum. According to the most recent standing orders, published in 2011, the quorum for the Oireachtas, the Irish parliament, for both the lower House, Dáil Éireann, and the upper House, Seanad Éireann, is 20 members. The chamber of Dáil Éireann
1564-638: The attendance of one-third of the membership (currently 65 states in the General Assembly and 18 in ECOSOC) to conduct most business, but a majority of members (currently 97 states in the General Assembly and 28 states in ECOSOC) in order to take any substantive decisions. The rules of the United Nations Security Council make no provisions for quorum, but nine votes are in all cases required to pass any substantive measure, effectively meaning that
1610-413: The chamber, forcing the meeting to be adjourned. On 27 January 2010, when five pro-democracy members were intending to make their resignation speeches, pro-Beijing members of the council left the chamber as a sign of protest. One of the pro-Beijing members nevertheless stayed in the chamber to call for the quorum to be counted, effectively forcing the meeting to be adjourned. The resignation was intended as
1656-430: The designated meeting time. The chairperson of the group has the responsibility to determine if a quorum is present. In addition, any member can raise a point of order about an apparent absence of a quorum. Because it is difficult to determine exactly when a quorum was lost, points of order relating to the absence of a quorum are "generally not permitted to affect prior action; but upon clear and convincing proof, such
1702-421: The division proceeded with two members above the required quorum of 35. While the resolution was originally predicted to be narrowly defeated due to not able to get super-majority support votes, it turned out to be a landslide defeat. Quorum-busting and attempts to thwart it are also a common feature during the annual motion debate related to the 1989 Tiananmen massacre moved by pro-democracy Members. The quorum
1748-400: The five pro-democracy members who resigned constantly issued quorum calls, especially when they were making their resignation speeches intended for 2 years before. In the nine-hour meeting, 23 quorum calls were issued, taking up to 3 hours. When LegCo reconvened on 3 May, it was adjourned for lack of quorum amid a boycott by the pan-democrats. The pro-government members drew a timetable to ensure
1794-489: The lack of quorum in defeating bills that they do not want to be passed without putting it to a vote. After an election during the lame-duck session , quorums are notoriously difficult to muster, more so in the House of Representatives as winning incumbents may opt to go on vacation, and defeated incumbents may opt to not to show up. According to article 96 of the Turkish Constitution , unless otherwise stipulated in
1840-477: The number of voting present). In Canada, the Constitution Act, 1867 sets quorum for sittings of the House of Commons of Canada at 20 MPs . If a member calls for quorum to be counted and a first count shows there are fewer than 20 members, bells are rung to call in the members; if after 15 minutes there are still fewer than 20 members, the session is adjourned to the next sitting day; the members present sign
1886-528: The proportion rose from 52% in 1562 to 93% in 1636. By then, most of those not on the quorum were new to the bench. Sometimes justices of the peace were removed from the quorum as a disciplinary measure less drastic than removal from the bench. The large deliberative bodies of the United Nations (the General Assembly and Economic and Social Council , as well as their subsidiary organs) generally require
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1932-399: The quorum set in an organization's bylaws "should approximate the largest number that can be depended on to attend any meeting except in very bad weather or other extremely unfavorable conditions." In the absence of such a provision, a quorum is an assembly whose membership can be determined is a majority of the entire membership. In the meetings of a convention , unless provided otherwise,
1978-557: The quorum was 30, and since 2012 it has been 35. Prior to 1997 transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong , the quorum was set at 20. The quorum for the panels, committees and subcommittees is, nevertheless, one-third or three members, whichever the greater, as according to the Rules of Procedure. The three standing committees, namely, the Finance Committee, the Public Accounts Committee and Committee on Members' Interests,
2024-420: The quorum were appointed because of their status. Some legislation required the involvement of a member of the quorum (e.g., granting a license to a badger ). In practice, they increasingly were not qualified, as the proportion in the quorum rose faster than the proportion who were called to the bar or practising lawyers. By 1532, an average 45% of justices of the peace nationally were of the quorum. In Somerset ,
2070-417: The representatives must be present, so that they may decide on a simple law (participation quorum of 33.3%). At least half of the members must participate if a constitutional law should pass the parliament (participation quorum of 50% based on the total number of members). Over and above that, constitutional laws require the consent of at least two-thirds of the members present (quorum agreement of 66.6% based on
2116-463: Was a quorum of two-thirds required in the Turkish Parliament: after opposition parties used the quorum to deadlock the presidential election of 2007 , making it impossible for the parliament to choose a president, the ruling AK party proposed a referendum to lower the quorum to prevent a repeat of this event. Nearly seventy percent of the participants supported the constitutional changes. In
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