By Heather Hahn
May 10, 2016 | PORTLAND, Ore. (UMNS)
In ordering their work, the 2016 General Conference delegates late May 10 adopted all but one rule recommended by the commission that plans The United Methodist Church’s legislative gathering.
The vote was 518 to 258.
The delegates deferred discussing a proposed Group Discernment Process, outlined in Rule 44, until May 11. The commission hopes the rule can be used to consider complex and contentious legislation, but it has already received significant pushback.
The new rules include:
- An earlier adjournment of 6:30 p.m. PDT most evenings rather than 9:30 p.m. used at previous General Conference gatherings.
- A new electronic queuing system in which delegates will use a tablet computer to register their desire to speak
- Prohibitions on “verbal and non-verbal distractions” as delegates do their legislative work. It will be up to presiding officers to determine what constitutes distracting behavior.
- The option of using the advice of an Advance Legislative Research Panel, an early warning of whether legislation might run into constitutional trouble
Hahn is a multimedia news reporter for United Methodist News Service. Contact her at newsdesk@umcom.org.
