Mississippi Advisory Opinions July 18, 2003: AGO 000015750 (July 18, 2003)

AGO 000015750.

Dear Mr. Seal:

Attorney General Mike Moore has received your request for an official opinion from this office and has assigned it to me for research and reply. Your request for an official opinion from this office is based on these pertinent facts and is followed by your questions:

The Hancock County School District Board of Trustees has adopted as board policy, the usage of Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised Edition, as the format for conduct of its meeting. The board policy also specifies that elections for president and secretary will take place at the first meeting in January of each year. These are the only two offices on our five-member board.

In January of 2003 an election for President was held which resulted in a tie vote, two to two, with one abstention. Since a successful election was not held, the president continues to preside until a successful election may be held. You will also want to note that a successful election was held for secretary and that person took that office after the election was declared official by the president.

1. Was the expiring president correct in continuing to preside until a successful election can be held?

2. At what point may a new election for president be called and by whom?

3. If the new election takes place and the sitting secretary is nominated and elected president, then must a new election take place for secretary after that position is resigned prior to taking office as president?

4. If the new election for secretary results in a tie vote and the election is not successful, how is the interim secretary determined?

We begin by noting that the matter on which you seek advice is after-the-fact, and this office generally refrains from addressing such situations as an official opinion can neither validate nor invalidate past action of an officer or agency. Additionally, Section 7-5-25, Miss. Code Ann. (1972, as amended), authorizes this office to issue official opinions on questions of state law. We do not interpret local policies or procedures by way of official opinion. Therefore, any observations we make in this response are by way of general information for future guidance only.

There is no statutory law, and as far as we could determine, no Mississippi case law, which addresses the procedure which a school board must follow in conducting its meetings. Therefore, general parliamentary procedure would prevail. However, a school board may by lawful vote adopt any reasonable method of conducting business at its meetings. We also do not find a statutory statement on the procedure for selection of a chairman or president, for the length of his or her term, for the manner of calling elections, or for any of the issues raised by your request.

The Hancock County School District Board of Trustees has filled the statutory void by adopting Robert's Rules of Order as its method of conducting business. The Board should now comply with its lawfully adopted parliamentary procedure. Whether the elections in question are procedurally in accord with the Board's procedures is a question for the Board of Trustees.

If we may be of further service, please let us know.

Very truly yours,

MIKE MOORE, ATTORNEY GENERAL

By:

Charlene R. Pierce

Special Assistant Attorney General