[GPCA-SGA-Votes] PROPOSED AMENDMENT: Discuss *ID 157*: Bylaws Amendment: Clarify Notice Requirements and Reset Quorum at a Minimum of 50% For Standing Committees’ Voting Membership

[Eric Brooks]

Proposed Amendment to Item 157 – Resetting Quorum and Noticing for Committees.

Hi all, and to the proposers of Item 157,

I have a proposed amendment to solve a particular technical problem we have specifically for the Media Committee.

Currently the Bylaws state that our two GPCA spokespersons can be ex officio members of the Media Committee, but cannot count toward quorum and vote on the committee. This has effectively made it impossible for the Media Committee to reach quorum.

Since the Media Committee has been active, and as long as I have been on it, it has always made decisions by full consensus – and two votes out of a quorum of four does not allow the spokespersons to carry any potential vote by themselves. And regardless the GA/SGA can always override any committee if it ever does make mistakes or show any bias.

So I am asking the proposers to amend this proposal to:

Make the two Green Party spokespersons voting members of the Media Committee.

thanks

Eric Brooks
SF, CA
Media Committee

From: gpca-votes [mailto:gpca-votes-bounces at sfgreens.org] On Behalf Of GPCA Votes
Sent: Thursday, February 15, 2018 12:45 PM
To: gpca-votes at sfgreens.org
Subject: [GPCA-SGA-Votes] Discuss ID 157: Bylaws Amendment: Clarify Notice Requirements and Reset Quorum at a Minimum of 50% For Standing Committees’ Voting Membership

Please send your discussion comments to gpca-votes at sfgreens.org<mailto:gpca-votes at sfgreens.org>

Discussion has begun for the following GPCA SGA ranked choice vote:

Ranked Choice Vote ID #157
Ranked Choice Vote Bylaws Amendment: Clarify Notice Requirements and Reset Quorum at a Minimum of 50% For Standing Committees’ Voting Membership
Ranked Choice Vote Administrators: Victoria Ashley, Brian Good, Laura Wells, Eric Brooks, Mike Goldbeck
Discussion  02/12/2018 - 03/25/2018
Voting  03/26/2018 - 04/01/2018
Voting ends at Midnight Pacific Time

Background

This proposal has been brought forth because in recent years a number of standing committees of the Green Party of California (GPCA) have been unable to conduct any business for lengthy periods of time due to failure to reach quorum.  This state of affairs has often impeded the GPCA Coordinating Committee (CC) from fulfilling its own responsibilities per GPCA Bylaw 8-1.7 (“Request and receive reports from Committees and Working Groups, refer matters to them, and monitor and assist their work”).  GPCA standing committees are capped, for gender balance, at an even number of members, and currently establish quorum at a majority of voting members.  This proposed amendment would establish the minimum quorum at least 50% of standing committees’ voting membership.

This proposal would also clarify an ambiguity in notice requirements for calling meetings.  The language of GPCA Bylaw 9-3.1 is silent regarding notice requirements for standing committees that establish regular meeting schedules.  In practice, most if not all standing committees establish regular meeting schedules for their work year.  The proposed language would make explicit that two weeks’ notice is required for meetings that fall outside a standing committee’s regular meeting schedule, should one be set.

Proposal

That GPCA Bylaw Article 9-3 be amended as follows:

That Article 9-3 be amended from its current text:

Section 9-3 Meetings

9-3.1 Committees shall meet during GPCA state meetings, on teleconferences and otherwise as necessary to achieve the objectives outlined in its work plan. Meetings must be called with a minimum of two weeks notice to committee members.

9-3.2 The decision-making process for committees shall follow that described for the General Assembly in 7-5.5. Quorum is a majority of the committee's voting membership.

To read as follows:

Section 9-3 Meetings

9-3.1 Committees shall meet during GPCA state meetings, on teleconferences and otherwise as necessary to achieve the objectives outlined in their work plans. Meetings outside any regular meeting schedule shall be called with a minimum of two weeks notice to committee members.

9-3.2 The decision-making process for committees shall follow that described for the General Assembly in 7-5.5. Quorum shall be at least 50% of the committee's voting membership.​

Sponsors: The proposed amendment has been endorsed and sponsored by the Green Party of Butte County and the Green Party of Yolo County.

Full details will be available at: http://www.sjcgreens.org/sga_vote_bylaw_interpretations

Please send your discussion comments to gpca-votes at sfgreens.org<mailto:gpca-votes at sfgreens.org>
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