Parliamentary Procedure

III. Kinds of Motions

A. Main motion

A substantive motion. Only one main motion may be before the Assembly at a time. A main motion has the lowest precedence or priority.

B. Subsidiary motion

A motion which has an effect on the main motion but does not itself act as a main motion - a motion to refer to a committee or to table is a subsidiary motion.

C. Appendage motion

A motion which modifies or alters a motion. A motion to amend is an appendage motion. An appendage motion always has precedence over the motion it modifies or alters. An appendage motion always takes it precedence from the motion it modifies, except that it has precedence over that motion. Thus, a motion to amend a main motion has precedence over and must be disposed of before the main motion may be taken up. A motion to amend a motion of very high precedence -- a motion to amend a motion to set the date of the next meeting -- takes the precedence of an just above that motion. Note an appendage motion is really a special instance of a subsidiary motion.

D. Incidental motion

Administrative motions: a motion to recess, or to adjourn, or to fix the date of the next meeting. Usually incidental motions have the highest precedence. An incidental motion has only and indirect (and incidental) effect of another motion.

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