THE NATIONAL CONVENTION OF THE LUTHERAN TRAINING INSTITUTE STUDENTS ASSOCIATION OF CONVENTION RULES
Chapter 1. Organization of the Convention
1.1 The 4th National Convention (hereinafter the “Convention”) of the Lutheran Training Institute Students Association shall convene form 10-12 of August 2001 , in Minneapolis, Minnesota , United States of America. All references to the “Plenary” shall mean the Convention sitting in Plenary 1.2 A heads of delegation meeting shall be convened by the Head of the Host Chapter prior to the official opening of the convention for the purpose of electing the officers of the Convention and members of the Convention committees. 1.3 The Convention shall be convened by the Head of the host chapter, who shall serve as presiding officer of the convention 1.4 Except as otherwise agreed by the Convention, all sessions of the Convention shall be governed by these Rules and by Roberts Rules of parliamentary procedures, except to the extent that the Roberts Rules are inconsistent with the plain meaning of these rules. All interpretation of these rules shall be based on the plain meaning of the entire context of the rule being interpreted. Chapter 2. Heads of Delegation Meeting
2.1 All provisional regional or chapter coordinators attending the Convention shall be invited to the Heads of Delegation meeting 2.2 The Heads of Delegation shall elect the head of the Host Chapter Chair of the Convention. They shall also elect a Vice-Chair and Secretary. They shall elect two standing committees – three member drafting committee and a five-member elections committee, the composition of which shall conform to the provisions herein. The Heads of Delegation may elect any member of LUTISAA to serve in the above capacities 2.3. The Heads of Delegation shall adopt these rules by consensus Chapter 3. The Convention Officials
3.1 The Chair of the Convention shall preside over the Plenary. The Chair shall recognize speakers from the floor and observe any speaking time limits. The Chair shall give a summary of discussion at the conclusion of the debate on any agenda item, and shall give a summary of discussion upon the request of any member. The Chair shall not participate in the vote of any agenda item or motion except where necessary to break a tie. This provision shall not apply to the election of national officers or the Board. 3.2 The Vice Chair shall assist the Chair in the performance of the above duties. If the Chair cannot continue to preside, the Vice Chair shall preside until the Chair can return or until the conclusion of the Convention, whichever is earlier. The Vice Chair may participate in votes on agenda items or motions, except when acting as Chair. 3.3 The Secretary of the convention shall keep the minutes of the discussions of the Plenary and shall serve as liaison with drafting committee. The Secretary shall sign all resolutions adopted by the Convention and turn same over to the National Secretary to be archived 3.4 The Drafting Committee shall draft all resolutions for the adoption of the Convention, any amendments to the Rules of the Convention as adopted by the Convention , and any other instrument mandated by the Convention. 3.5 The Elections Committee shall receive all nominations for national office and the Board of Governors, and shall conduct such elections. 3.6 The Convention may appoint such other Convention committees as may be deemed necessary to carry out Convention business. All Convention Committees shall be composed of only one member from any one chapter. Except for the standing committees, the Plenary may appoint any number of persons to Convention committees. Chapter 4 . The Agenda
4.1 The Plenary shall adopt its agenda at the start of the convention. The agenda shall include any item agreed upon by the Plenary and items not included on the agenda may be discussed, time permitting, under the item “New Business”. New business items shall be discussed in the order received. 4.2 Chapters may propose agenda items no later than thirty days preceding the next session of the Convention. Agenda items may be proposed by any member no later than thirty days preceding the next session of the Convention, provided such agenda items is supported by at least five other members. Any items may be added to the agenda at the current session of the Convention by adoption of a motion from the floor. Chapter 5. Representations, Motions and Decisions
5.1 All discussions and decisions in the Plenary shall involve the participation of all members attending the Convention, unless otherwise stated herein or in the constitution or agreed upon by the Plenary, and if a different representation method is agreed by the Convention, the terms and conditions shall be agreed in advance. All decisions of the Conventions shall be by adoption of a resolution. 5.2 The Chair may elect to limit debates by imposing time constraints on individual representation, provided that such time constraint shall only be imposed prior to the start of the debate on a particular item. The chair may elect to appoint a Chair’s working group, consisting of any number of interested members, to resolve any issue. Rule 3.6 shall not apply to the appointment of the chair’s working group. 5.3 Motions may be table by any member and shall be seconded by any other member. All motions so tabled shall be decided by a yea or nay vote unless a member demands a vote. Motions may be amended by a motion on the motion, and if the amending motion is adopted , the original motion shall only be adopted with the amendment. 5.4 A simple majority shall be required to agree on an item voted on. Resolutions shall be adopted by a simple majority unless the Constitution requires otherwise. Simple majority means fifty percent plus one vote of all members attending the Convention and voting on the item. Abstentions shall be treated as absent members, although they be included in the official vote count. Chapter 6. Elections
6.1 The Elections Committee shall preside over all elections of national officers and Board Members. All such elections shall be held in Plenary. The election of national officers shall precede the election of the Board. 6.2. Nominations shall be received from the floor. To nominate a candidate for national officer, a chapter shall introduce a nomination resolution for that candidate, and another chapter shall second the nomination orally or by written resolution. The candidate’s local chapter shall certify that the candidate is in active status. If the candidate’s local chapter nominates the candidates, the chapter shall certify the candidate’s status in the nomination resolution. 6.3 Individual members shall make nominations for Board members orally from the floor and the local chapters shall certify each candidate belonging to such chapter. 6.4 Nominations shall be closed by motion. 6.5Elections shall be by secret ballot. The committee shall determine the form and the content of the ballots, as well as any other procedures consistent with the Constitution and the rules. The list of members registered at the convention shall constitute the voter’s roll. The poll shall close after the last ballot has been cast. The ballots shall be tallied immediately thereafter. Ballots which not conform to the instructions of the Elections Committee shall be invalidated. A plurality of validated ballots shall be required for election. 6.6 For the election of national officers, in the even that no one candidate obtains a plurality of the votes cast for the particular office, a runoff poll shall be conducted between the two candidates with the highest votes. The candidates who obtains the higher number of votes in the runoff shall be declared the winner. 6.7 For the election of the Board , each member shall have seven votes. The candidates with the seven highest votes shall be elected as the Board. The candidates with highest votes shall be the chair, the next highest shall be the Vice Chair, and the next highest shall be the Secretary. There shall be no runoffs for the Board. In the even of a tie which render any provision of this rule inoperable , the Plenary shall, by a show of hands break the tie. 6.8 Any candidate may file with the convention Chair, a written protest against the conduct of the election in which he or she contested. The protest shall set out in detail, the grounds for the candidate’s objection. Protests shall be filed as soon as possible, but before the adjournment of the Plenary session at which the election was conducted. There shall be no exceptions to this rule. The Chair shall then appoint a three member Chair’s working group to investigate the claims. The working group may recommend a repeat of the election, or confirm the result. A repeat election shall be conducted before the close of the convention. Chapter 7. Miscellaneous Provisions
7.1 These rules shall remain in force until abrogated or amended by a Heads of Delegation meeting or the Convention. A two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the convention shall be required to amend these rules or abrogate same. 7.2 Amendments to these rule shall enter into force upon adoption by the Heads of Delegations of the Convention, unless the adopting body specifies otherwise. The effective date of the abrogation of these rules shall be contingent on the adoption of new rules of the Convention by the Heads of Delegation meeting. |