7.6 Conduct of Meetings. All business meetings except those in §3.3 shall include a free and open exchange between the Board, NMCV members and attending nonmembers. Except for actions exclusively reserved for Board purview by law or these Bylaws, the quorum of members shall be allowed to participate with the Board in the motion and voting process. NMCV meetings will be conducted in accordance with abbreviated parliamentary procedures defined in Appendix A. NMCV is a "grass roots" organization, so meetings will be informal, but must be conducted with courtesy and decorum in accordance with the Appendix B guidelines. The Chair may ask anyone to leave a meeting whom he/she deems to be persistently rude, argumentative or disruptive. 7.10 Political Activities. NMCV may examine and discuss the position of partisan or nonpartisan candidates on issues within the scope of purpose of NMCV. NMCV may prepare and disseminate educational information regarding the position of partisan or nonpartisan candidates on issues within the scope of purpose of NMCV, provided the material includes equal and balanced coverage of the position of all candidates and does not support, endorse or oppose any candidate. Advocacy of a particular position or viewpoint by NMCV on any issue must provide a sufficiently full and fair exposition of pertinent facts to permit an individual or the public to form an independent opinion or conclusion. In all NMCV forums and official communications:

• The presentation of viewpoints must be supported by facts.
• The facts supporting the viewpoint must not be distorted.
• Presentations must exclude all use of inflammatory and disparaging terms and must express conclusions based on objective evaluations rather than emotion.
• The approach used must be aimed at developing an understanding of the issue by the audience.

Appendix B. Rules of Discussion

When working in a group it is important that all members of the group play a role. While NMCV decisions are based on simple majority rules, it could leave members feeling slighted or out of the loop. In order for this to be successful it is important to be open to compromise! Code of Conduct

NMCV believes the community is best served by healthy communication and exchange. To encourage vital community input, business meetings will be as informal as possible. At each regular business meeting after business has been concluded, the last agenda item will be an open forum where community members will be permitted to discuss any pertinent issue. Discussion will be limited to 3 minutes per speaker, 15 mnui tes total, unless extended by majority consent. During the meeting community participation is encouraged. In return for unrestricted public comment and participation, everyone is expected to communicate with courtesy and respect. Interruptions, personal attacks, side conversations or lack of civility will not be tolerated. The Chair, acting on behalf of NMCV and the community, will request anyone who doesn't communicate with courtesy and respect to leave the meeting. If the person refuses, the Board will take appropriate action. Guidelines

• Trust each other. This is not a competition; everyone should be encouraged to express their ideas and opinions. Every member has rights equal to every other member.
• Make sure everyone understands the topic/problem. While building an agreement, make sure everyone is following, listening to, and understanding each other.
• All members should contribute their ideas and knowledge related to the subject.
• Stay on the task. Only one topic will be considered at a time.
• You may disagree; that is OK and healthy. However, you must be flexible and willing to give something up to reach an agreement. The minority must be heard, and its rights protected.
• Separate the issue from the personalities. This is not a time to disagree just because you don't like someone.
• Spend some time on this process. Being quick is not a sign of quality. The thought process needs to be drawn out some.

Procedure

1. Agree on your objectives for the task/project, expectations, and rules.
2. Define the problem or decision to be reached.
3. Figure out what must be done to reach a solution.
4. Consider a variety of possible solutions.
5. Discuss pros and cons of a narrowed down list of ideas/solutions.
6. Adjust, compromise, and fine tune the agreed upon idea/solution so most group members are satisfied with the result.
7. Make your decision. If a majority isn't reached, review and/or repeat steps one through six.
8. Once the decision has been made, act upon what you decided. The will of the majority must be carried out.