Committee Members

It is my understanding that when a Board member serves as an advisor to a committee, the Board member is not a full-fledged committee member but is considered an intermediary (liaison) who passes decisions/information from the committee to the Board. One of the forum members wrote: "The liaison may provide the committee a Board perspective to assist the committee members in their development and duties they are charged with. But a liaison to a committee that is also a Board member does not partake in the carrying out of the duties the committee is charged with, but merely listens, and perhaps provides the committee some Board members food for thought."

If this is considered common practice, where would I find written information to back up this principle?

Thanks!

Our by-laws are silent on committee members except to state that the Board president can appoint members.
What is meant by "they are in the minority"?
I would assume that your Board members who also are on committees do not have a right to vote on a particular committee since they would in effect be voting twice; i.e. once as a committee member and again as a Board member.

I have read our Documents and the Florida Statutes on addressing committee membership. All that is written is that the Boards have the power to appoint committee members at their discression. Committees have no power to vote in any decision when it comes to spending association money or making decisions to hiring or dismissing contracts. Only the Board has that sole responsibility.
Committees work as an advisory body to the Board.

As for Liaisons, a Board member should be appointed to the committee that is coresponding to the Board members position on the Board. Example, the Treasurer would be liaison to the Budget or Financial committee, Vice President might take care of Landscape or fine or enforcement committee but we always have the President liaison to any Document committee work as that has to follow the CC&Rs and Statutes. After all, he is the big Kahona of the Board and will be the one giving out the instructions to the committees.

Mary,
No, The Board member, acting as a liaison, should not be voting on any committee issues unless he is a member of the committee. It really doesn't matter because the committee can vote on anything that they want but they do not have any power to enact on anything. They are only advisior in their capacity. Of course, your State or association Documents may have it different as for the powers of committees but the ultimate decision making is strictly up to your Board. Look at the Federal Government committees. They meet, spend lots of money probing everything imaginable, and then reccomend to the higher entities such as the Courts or the President. They have no power to vote.

That's it Mary,
Your governing Documents do not give any committee any power, therefore, they cannot have any function other than "Advisory" This is the system in almost all associations because committees are not elected but just appointed therefore, the membership has not had any say-so in who would be making decisions within the committee and that is why they have no power to vote or make financial decisions for the association.

Exactly what Gerald said.

Typically, when a Board member becomes a member of a commmittee, then that person has NO special status. He/She is a Committee Member. He/she MAY be the liaison (person who reports the on-goings of the committee to the Board) but does not HAVE to be.

This is standard, unless bylaws or other rules differ. The president MAY appoint the Board member to chair the Committee, but even then, the role is as committee chair, not as a Board member.