Business Meetings
Business meetings are held four times a year, an hour before the regularly scheduled fighting/fencing meetings on Sunday afternoon. At each Business Meeting, the date for the next meeting is announced, and the Seneschal will publicize the meeting via the customary methods (currently, email and Facebook.) Officers will give reports and routine current issues will be addressed. All are welcome to attend. Notes from each business meeting will be made public, and archived on the shire website.
Moots
Moots are shire gatherings for the purpose of discussing important issues, planning future events, discussing and voting on major shire expenses, voting on new officers, or for any other reason the Seneschal deems sufficient.
The Seneschal calls the moot, by announcing the time, location and the agenda (including the issues and topics that are anticipated to be covered). Announcements should be made in all of the usual communication venues. Sufficient notice should be given – at least two weeks is recommended.
If numerous people start vocalizing to the Seneschal that it feels like time for a moot, the Seneschal would be wise to schedule one. We do not have a scheduled frequency for moots, but the goal is to have a moot once a year, or as needed.
Any Freeholder may attend a moot and engage in discussions. By Freehold tradition, SCA membership is not required for voting, but voters must reside in the shire’s territory.
If voting on officers will occur at a moot, the Seneschal will devise and make known a procedure for absentee ballots to be collected and counted before the moot.
The seneschal presides at the moot and decides how the moot will be conducted. Different seneschals have different styles, but it is generally recommended that moots be run informally (not by Robert’s Rules of Order).
Notes from the moot will be made public, and will be archived on the shire website.