Minutes are a record of all the business that goes on during a meeting. Minutes should contain an exact wording of all motions that are adopted or that are postponed to a further meeting. All minutes should be read and approved after the secretary or other recording officer has perfected them. The minutes should be divided into four sections: the first paragraph, the body, the last paragraph, and the signature. Each section should include specific items, but none of them should be over descriptive or overly complicated. The first paragraph contains general information about the meeting. Items that need to be included are: the kind of meeting (special or regular), the name of the organization or assembly, the date, the time, the place, the presence of president and secretary or the name of their substitutes, and whether or not the minutes of the previous meeting were read and approved or “approved as corrected”. The body of the minutes should be divided into each item in the order of business. Each paragraph should be one order of business. All main motions that are moved within the meeting need to be included in the minutes in the proper paragraph of the body. State the maker of the motion, whether it was adopted or defeated, and the exact wording. The wording should be how it was stated right before the final vote, even if there were amendments to the original wording. The last paragraph and signature should be the very last lines of the minutes. The last paragraph is simple and should be phrased as, “The meeting adjourned at xx:xx p.m./a.m.” The signature of the secretary should be below the last paragraph and is the end of the minutes.

TIPS ON MINUTES BBY ABI SHEEN, MOUNTAIN. PLAINS REGION PARLIAMENTARIAN