Ask the Experts
Parliamentary Procedure
What are the minimum parliamentary procedures one should have to properly execute a civic league meeting?
What are the top three to five most frequent mistakes?
When attendance is spotty, how do you get minutes approved or make other time sensitive decisions? Can the board review/approve?
When providing input to city leaders, when is formal voting recommended versus conducting surveys?
What basic committees are required, if any?
Do you have any advice on how to handle contentious speakers?
Finances and Increasing Impact
Our civic league has an annual audit of the past year conducted in January by a two-person audit team who goes through it with our treasurer. One member of the audit team is also a board member. Is this a good practice, or do you have other suggestions? Do you have an audit checklist?
We have a large amount of money in our bank account but would like to hold on to it. At the same time, we are asking for sponsors to help us fund our upcoming second annual Memorial Day Parade. Ethically, is this acceptable?
What are ideas for attracting new members?
What are ideas for fundraising?
If my civic league wants to have more of a collective impact, where do we start?
Using Facebook Groups
Legal
What are legal issues that a civic league’s board of directors should be aware of?
When, if at all, do you recommend separate liability insurance for the civic league board itself? Our civic league has general liability insurance and adds on special event riders for ourselves and when participating with local organizations such as our Memorial Day Parade.
What are top pitfalls civic leagues can face?
If a neighbor has no recourse against a nuisance neighbor through City enforcement, where do they go to pursue the matter through the courts?
What are Duties of Care, Loyalty, and Obedience?