Adjourn: A Town Meeting Representative will make a motion like “I move we adjourn” at the end of Town Meeting to officially close the meeting. A majority vote is required to pass this motion and a Town Meeting Representative cannot interrupt the moderator to make this motion.

Amendment/Substitute Motion: A motion to amend a motion or to substitute a motion that Town Meeting Representatives are considering is either an amendment or substitute motion.  In Dedham, the terms are usually interchangeable.  A TMR wishing to modify a motion being discussed must be recognized by the Moderator and must offer a motion to amend. The Moderator will rule out of order any motion to amend which changes the original motion so much that the Moderator judges the motion no longer to be within the scope of the article. An amendment may consist of adding, deleting, or substituting words in the motion. It may also take the form of a "motion to substitute" a different motion, so long as the substitute is within the scope of the original article.

Consent Agenda: A consent agenda is a tool to streamline meetings by separating the non-controversial matters from those that require debate and discussion. At the beginning of every Town Meeting, the Moderator will read aloud each matter to be voted on. Any Town Meeting Representative may ask that an article or budget line item be set aside for further discussion. Any article or budget line that is not set aside is then voted as part of one overall vote. The original motion of the Finance and Warrant Committee or the Planning Board is thereby accepted unanimously by the Town Meeting.

Motion: A motion is a formal proposal by a Town Meeting Representative, the Finance and Warrant Committee, or the Planning Board to do something. Motions are the basis of the group decision-making process. They focus the group on what is being decided. Generally, a motion should be phrased in a way to take an action or express an opinion.

Move the Question: A motion to move the question is a motion to vote to end debate on a pending motion. It may not be preceded by an opinion on the motion by the proponent, is not debatable, and requires a 2/3 vote to pass.

Point of Order: A point of order is a not a motion, but a question in a formal debate or meeting as to whether correct procedure is being followed.  When a Town Meeting Representative has a question as to Town Meeting procedure, that Town Meeting Representative should rise and state “Point of Order”. That Town Meeting Representative should not interrupt another speaker unless allowing that speaker to continue would cause a furthering of procedural error.

Quorum: Town Bylaws require at least 170 representatives to be in attendance for the Meeting to officially begin. That minimum number of attendees is referred to as the quorum. The only action that a Meeting may take in the absence of a quorum is to adjourn.

Warrant: The warrant is the agenda of items to be acted on at Town Meeting. The purpose of the warrant is to apprise or warn the voters in advance of the matters that will be voted on. Town Meeting may not vote on any matter that was not included in the warrant.