Legislative Assembly approves changes to NCA By Laws

By Bill Balthrop, Chair, Task Force on Constitutional Revision

The Legislative Assembly approved several amendments to the NCA By Laws at the November meeting in Miami.  Those amendments were required to reflect and implement changes to the Constitution approved by NCA members in the summer of 2003.

Several of these changes were minor in scope, including shifting approval for registration fees at conferences and meeting (not dues, which must still be approved by the full Legislative Assembly) from the Finance Board to the Executive Committee, altering the terms of officers from the end of the National Convention to a calendar year basis, and identifying more clearly the responsibilities of Officers, the Executive Director, Unit officers, Editors, and Boards.

More important, however, are several major changes that will have a significant impact on individual units and on the Association as a whole.  These changes fall within three broad categories:

·        Unit Representation to the Legislative Assembly

-        Representation to the Legislative Assembly from Divisions and Sections will based on size, with each Division and Section having at least two representatives and not more than five.  Representation for the 2004 Legislative Assembly will be allocated based on a member count conducted by the National Office in January, 2004.  Representation for the 2005 Legislative Assembly will also be based on this January 2004 count.  In the future, representation will be predicated upon the count taken in the previous year (for example, the 2005 count will determine representation for 2006, and so on).

-        Each Caucus will have one representative to the Legislative Assembly.

-        Each Unit (Division, Section and Caucus) will determine how to select their representatives rather than necessarily being represented by the Unit Chair and Immediate Past Chair.

·        Nominations and Elections

-        The Committee on Committees will expand in size, being comprised of the Immediate Past President (as Chair), President, First Vice President, Second Vice President, Executive Director (without vote), four members who are elected at large from the NCA membership (and may not be members of the Legislative Assembly), and four members who are on the Legislative Assembly at the time of appointment.  Members from the Legislative Assembly and those elected at-large will serve two year, staggered terms.

-        The Nominating Committee will include one representative from each NCA Unit, and each Unit may select that individual as it determines to be most appropriate.

·        The Boards

-        All Boards, with the exception of the Finance Board which will function as currently constituted, will consist of six members plus a Director (currently the “Chair” in previous By Laws).  The Legislative Assembly is also given explicit authority to add Boards as necessary.

-        Three members of each Board (again, excepting the Finance Board) must be members of the Legislative Assembly at the time of their appointment and three must not be on the Legislative Assembly at the time of their appointment.  All members will serve three-year staggered terms.

-        All current Board members and directors will complete the current terms and conditions of appointment.

Obviously, there will be a period of transition while all the Boards are constituted to comply with these requirements.  Recognizing these situations, the Legislative Assembly also granted authority to the Executive Committee to clarify working, correct any necessary grammar, or make other changes to the amended NCA By Laws so long as any changes are not substantive and are consistent with the discussion and approval of these By Laws by the Legislative Assembly meeting in November 2003.

The Task Force on Constitutional Revision, who submitted recommended changes to the Legislative Assembly, believes that these amendments to the Constitution and By Laws will help create a more substantive policy role for the Legislative Assembly than has existed in the past and produce more active participation in establishing directions, policies, and programs for NCA.  Additionally, more opportunities will exist for greater participation by members in the governance process and for developing NCA’s future leaders.