The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc.

Conduct of Meetings
Standard Operating Procedure 02-10
Last Amended November, 2009

02-10.1 Introduction
The purpose of this SOP is to define the roles, responsibilities and limitations of participants in Board of
Director meetings, including Board of Director general session meetings, Executive Committee meetings
and standing and ad hoc committee meetings. This SOP supplements SOP 02-03 which outlines the
operational procedures of the committees, committee responsibilities and committee limitations.

02-10.2 Meeting Chair

A. Board of Directors General Session.
The President of the USHPA presides at general session meetings. In the absence of the
President, the Vice President presides at general session meetings. In the absence of both the
President and Vice President, the President must designate a member of the Board of Directors
to preside.
B. Executive Committee
The President of the USHPA presides at Executive Committee meetings. In the absence of the
President, the Vice President of the USHPA presides at Executive Committee meetings.
C. Standing and Ad Hoc Committees
The Chair of any standing or ad hoc committee, appointed by the President of the USHPA,
presides at any meeting of the ad hoc or standing committee. In the absence of the appointed
Chair, the Chair of the committee is responsible for appointing an acting Chair, selected from the
other members of the committee, for the purpose of conducting meeting business.

02-10.3 Meeting Minutes

A. Board of Directors General Session.
1. Responsibilities. As mandated by the Bylaws, the Secretary of the USHPA is responsible
for taking minutes at general session meetings. In the absence of the Secretary, the
President will appoint a USHPA member to take minutes.
2. Contents of Meeting Minutes. Minutes of USHPA Board of Directors general session
meetings shall contain the following information:
a. The date of the meeting;
b. The names of all voting members in attendance at the meeting;
c. The names of all others in attendance at the meeting;
d. The general nature of the subject matters discussed during the meeting;
e. Verbatim text of all formal proposals for board action presented at the meeting by
all persons authorized to make such formal proposals at the meeting;
f. The results of all votes on all such formal proposals.

Conduct of Meetings Page 1 of 4 SOP 02-10

Copyright © 1974-2009 The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc. All rights reserved.
The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc.

Minutes shall not contain recitations of arguments made by those in attendance at the
meeting and shall not contain transcripts of any of the proceeding of the meeting.
3. Dissemination of Minutes. A draft version of the minutes must be made available to the
Board of Directors as soon as possible but no later than the following Board of Directors
meeting. A draft version of the minutes may also be made available to the members in
the Members Only section of the USHPA web site. The minutes are not official until
approved by the Board of Directors at the following meeting. Once approved, the official
minutes shall be made available to all USHPA members in the Members Only section of
the USHPA web site.
B. Executive Committee
1. Responsibility. The Secretary of the USHPA is responsible for taking minutes at
Executive Committee meetings. In the absence of the Secretary, the President will
appoint another Executive Committee member to take minutes.
2. Contents of Meeting Minutes. Minutes of USHPA Executive Committee meetings shall
contain the following information:
a. The date of the meeting;
b. The names of all Executive Directors in attendance at the meeting;
c. The names of all others in attendance at the meeting;
d. The general nature of the subject matters discussed during the meeting;
e. Verbatim text of all formal proposals for board action presented at the meeting by
all persons authorized to make such formal proposals at the meeting;
f. The results of all votes on all such formal proposals.
Minutes shall not contain recitations of arguments made by those in attendance at the
meeting and shall not contain transcripts of any of the proceeding of the meeting.
3. Dissemination of Minutes. Minutes of Executive Committee meetings must be made
available to the Board of Directors as specified in the Bylaws.
C. Standing and Ad Hoc Committees
1. Responsibility. The Chair of the committee must appoint a member of the committee to
take minutes at committee meetings.
2. Committee Minutes. Minutes of USHPA committee meetings shall contain the following
information:
a. The date of the meeting;
b. The names of all members of the committee;
c. The names of all voting committee members in attendance at the meeting;
d. The names of all others in attendance at the meeting;
e. The general nature of the subject matter(s) discussed;
f. Formal proposals for recommendations presented at the meeting by all persons
authorized to make formal proposals at the meeting;
g. The results of the committee votes on all such formal proposals;

Conduct of Meetings Page 2 of 4 SOP 02-10

Copyright © 1974-2009 The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc. All rights reserved.
The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc.

3. Dissemination of Minutes. Committee Chairs must make all minutes of committee

meetings available to all Board Members on request as soon as the minutes are
prepared, but, in any event, no later than two weeks following each committee meeting.
4. Committee Reports. Committees must submit formal reports to the Board of Directors,
detailing any action that the committee recommends be taken by the board together with
such supporting documentation and research as deemed necessary by the Committee as
well as such supporting documentation and research as is requested by the Board.
Reports may be submitted to the full board at any scheduled meeting of the Board of
Directors and may be submitted to the Executive Committee between scheduled
meetings of the Board of Directors. If a committee report is submitted to the Executive
Committee, the committee Chair must simultaneously transmit the report to all members
of the Board of Directors by mail or email. Recommendations in a report do not become
the actions of the Board unless and until the Board adopts those recommendations as
the action of the Board. Should the Board of Directors (or the Executive Committee,
acting on behalf of the Board between meetings, pursuant to the Bylaws) decide to act on
the recommendations in a report, the Board may do so by taking any of the following
actions:
a. Adopt the recommendation(s) in the report, in whole or in part, as the action(s) of
the Board;
b. Reject the recommendation(s) in the report, in whole or in part, and return the
matter to the committee for further work;
c. Reject the recommendation(s) in the report, in whole or in part, and assign the
matter to a different committee for further work;
d. Take action different from the recommendation(s) in the report; or
e. Take the report under advisement and take no formal action on the
recommendation(s) in the report.

02-10.4 Conduct of Meetings

A. The conduct of the meetings is at the discretion and authority of the presiding Officer or Chair.
When order is necessary, the Chair may use parliamentary procedures. Examples of procedures
the Chair might use are “Parliamentary Procedure at a Glance" by O. Garfield Jones or Roberts
Rules of Order.
B. The meeting Chair is responsible for determining the agenda of the meeting, in collaboration with
and approval of the President of the USHPA.

02-10.5 Voting Procedures

A. Voting procedures at USHPA meetings are at the discretion of the meeting Chair, unless
otherwise specified by other SOPs or the Bylaws of the corporation. The Chair can request a
voice vote, show of hands, secret ballot, roll call vote or any other voting method.

02-10.6 Audio Recording, Video Recording and Broadcast

of Meetings
A. Audio recording, video recording and broadcast of meetings are not allowed without the
permission of every person lawfully in attendance at any point during the meeting. Broadcast

Conduct of Meetings Page 3 of 4 SOP 02-10

Copyright © 1974-2009 The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc. All rights reserved.
The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc.

includes traditional broadcasting methods such as television, as well as new media broadcast
methods such as telephones, internet connections and any other methods of transmission.

02-10.7 Remote Attendance at Meetings

A. The Chair of the meeting may allow anyone otherwise authorized to attend the meeting in person,
to attend and participate in the meeting from a remote location using a telephone, internet
connection or similar method.
B. Anyone otherwise authorized to attend the meeting in person wishing to attend and participate in
a meeting from a remote location must submit a written request to the meeting Chair at least two
weeks prior to the meeting. Remote attendance and participation is at the discretion of the
meeting Chair.

Conduct of Meetings Page 4 of 4 SOP 02-10

Copyright © 1974-2009 The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, Inc. All rights reserved.