Procedure for Instigating a Vote of the Membership
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The Procedure for Instigating a Vote of the Membership is a document which outlines the procedure which members and the Board shall follow in order to bring a proposal and vote before the membership of MyFC. It was approved by members on the 12 May 2008.
[edit] Definitions
Proposal: a suggestion by members to make a change of some sort which shall meet the criteria as defined in §5
Motion: a proposal that has reached the threshold as defined in §7 and has been published in accordance with §8. Becomes an item for debate in accordance with §9
Resolution: a motion that has passed a vote of the membership in accordance with §11
(The) Board: has the same meaning as in the Rules of the Society
[edit] Applicability
For the avoidance of doubt, the procedure described in this document does not apply to regular votes on team selection or formation.
None of this document is intended to change the criteria for voting on any issues that have already been prescribed in the Society’s rules.
[edit] The Voting Committee
A committee shall be formed to take charge of the processes detailed throughout this document. It shall be known as the Voting Committee (“VC”) and shall comprise three members appointed by the Board (who may appoint reserve members to be used in case of necessity). Any member may apply to the Board for consideration, who will recommend which of the applicants they believe are suitable for the post. The applicants will then be subject to a ratification process by a general vote of the membership, with a simple majority of those voting forming sufficient basis for appointment.
The members of the VC shall be subject to a process of reappointment upon each anniversary from their date of appointment. The exact specifics of this process will be laid out by the Board prior to the first appointments.
The Board shall be responsible for drafting a document regarding the internal operating and decision-making procedures of the VC.
[edit] Pre-proposal: drafting of text
Where time allows, members should initially raise issues they would like to take to a vote on the forums. This stage is optional, however, it may give a proponent a useful method of testing the water to see if the issue is likely to achieve support, as well as helping to achieve consensus before submission. Titles of such threads should begin with the words “Draft proposal”. The Forum Team shall ensure that such a thread strictly remains “on topic”.
[edit] Submission of draft proposal
The Web Team shall provide a method via which a draft proposal may be submitted to the VC for consideration. The text of such a draft proposal will be received by the VC, who will check that it meets the following six criteria:
- Is in line with the Society’s rules
- Is presented as a change to the status quo
- It should not cover more than one issue
- It abides by normal forum rules for posting
- Is not similar in wording or intent to a motion defeated in the previous four months
- Is not similar in wording or intent to any other proposal or motion currently progressing under this procedure
Discussions between the VC and the proponent shall continue until both parties are satisfied that the text is in order with the above criteria.
The VC shall be required to provide the proponent of the draft proposal a full explanation for any rejection in accordance with the above criteria.
[edit] Publication of proposal
When the above criteria have been met to the satisfaction of both parties, the text shall be published at the next available opportunity, at which time it becomes a proposal. These shall be displayed in their own section of the Website in a form agreed by the Board and the Web Team.
[edit] Threshold for next stage
In order for a proposal to be put to the members as a motion for voting it shall be seconded by 0.5% of the total membership as at the date of the proposal and rounded up to the nearest whole number. Members may choose which proposals they would like to second from those available by selecting the appropriate button on the proposal they wish to see go forward as a motion. A running total of the number of seconders to date shall be displayed.
A proposal shall be required to achieve this threshold within seven days of being published. If it does not, the proposal expires and the process ends.
Upon achieving the threshold, the proponent and the VC shall again enter into discussions to ensure that the proposal meets the six criteria in §5. At this stage, amendments to the proposal should only be made if they are minor (defined here as meaning not changing the intent of the proposal) and with the agreement of both parties.
[edit] Publication of motion
When the VC and the proponent are satisfied as to the final wording of the proposal, it shall be published at the next available opportunity, at which time it becomes a motion. These shall be displayed in their own section of the Website in a form agreed between the Board and the Web Team.
[edit] Debate
The official debate on the motion shall be held on the Website. The methods of the debate shall be in a form agreed by the Board and the Web Team. The debating period shall last seven days from the time of publication as a motion.
A proponent may withdraw their motion at any time during the debating procedure.
[edit] Amendments and Addenda
A proponent may amend or add to their motion at any time within four days of the motion being published.
Amendments or addenda shall only be made to the motion if they are in line with the following criteria:
- They shall only clarify or modify a motion.
- They shall conform to the original intent of the motion.
- They shall not make it do something it was not originally intended to do.
In the event of there being a dispute that a proposal has been changed contrary to these criteria an appeal may be made to the VC, whose decision shall be final.
[edit] Voting
After seven days from the publication of the motion the debating period shall end and a voting procedure shall follow.
The motion shall be formally put by the VC, and the period for voting shall last seven days from this point.
A motion shall be deemed to have passed if it achieves a simple majority of votes cast. Members may formally register an abstention from voting, but such votes shall not count towards the calculation of the point of majority.
Any vote that fails to receive a majority falls and shall not be resubmitted for a period of four months from the date of failure. For the avoidance of doubt, this does not apply to motions that have been withdrawn at the debate stage in accordance with §9.
[edit] Results
At the end of the voting period, the Web Team shall post the results as soon as is reasonably practicable.
[edit] The role of the Board
The Board shall take due account of the results of this procedure when taking and implementing decisions.
The Board shall be allowed the power to take trivial decisions without recourse to the membership, but they must be published afterwards with their reasoning.
The Board may also be allowed to take decisions without recourse to the membership in the case of emergency. Where possible, the Board must publish these decisions and seek ratification after the event
The Board shall be required to use and satisfy the procedure described in this document when submitting proposals for the membership to debate or vote upon, save as otherwise provided for in §13 and §14.
Any proposal submitted by the Board shall automatically begin the process as if it were a motion, and shall continue in accordance with §8 and §9.
[edit] Variations to this procedure
The Board shall have the right to implement the following variations to the procedure:
[edit] The fast track
The Board shall be granted the power to “fast track” any proposal into a motion if either of the following two considerations are met:
- They believe it is important and for whatever reason has failed to receive the required number of seconders.
- They believe a proposal needs bringing to a vote as soon as possible.
Use of this power shall result in a proposal becoming a motion, where the process shall continue in accordance with §8 and §9.
[edit] Further consideration
The Board shall be granted the power, where they believe a decision is of considerable significance and/or is a contentious issue amongst the membership, to extend the length of the debating period (as defined in §9) to 21 days.
[edit] Accelerated decision making
In the event of the Board deeming a decision needs to be made on an issue within a shorter time period than the minimum possible under these rules, the Board has the power to impose a shorter debating period, to a minimum of 24 hours, refuse to allow amendments to the motion and reduce the voting period to a minimum of 24 hours. This procedure should only be used in the event of a considerably urgent issue, and shall not be used as a substitute for normal decision making under this process if possible.
[edit] Arbitration
At any point during the procedure where there is an irresolvable dispute, particularly between the VC and the proponent, either party has the right to refer the proposal/motion to the Board for consideration, who shall be the final arbiter.
[edit] Review of this procedure
This procedure shall be subject to a complete review of its operation six months after the date upon which it is implemented. The review shall be conducted by the Board.
