A Guide to Great Lakes Commission

REVIEW DRAFT – FEBRUARY 16, 2017

A Guide to Great Lakes Commission

Operations and Procedures

Review Draft for the Board of Directors

February 16, 2017

A.Background

I.Introduction and Use of the Operations and Procedures Document

This document provides information on procedures and practices that guide the operations of the Great Lakes Commission (GLC). The information is designed to inform commissioners, staff, and delegation heads about the purpose, mission, goals and objectives of the organization. It also provides information regarding the history of the organization and the value of the GLC to its members, which are the Great Lakes states and provinces.

The document is designed to principally to promote a common understanding between commissioners and staff about not only what the organization is, but what it does and how it accomplishes its mission and purposes. In other words, how the organization interacts both internally (e.g., communications between and among staff and commissioners) and externally (with state/provincial government, the federal governments and other partners) is covered in this document.

In addition, organizational governance and management is described, focusing on the important roles, responsibilities and requirements of commissioners, its Board of Directors and staff, at a level of detail that provides the context and sufficient information so that the commissioners know that the operations and procedures are well-documented for organizational success.

II.History and Background of the Great Lakes Commission

The GLC is an interstate compact agency established in 1955 by the Great Lakes states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The organization is founded in both state and federal law as an institution and was authorized by the U.S. Congress through the passage of P.L. 90-419, enacted by Congress in 1968 providing consent and establishment of the Great Lakes Basin Compact (the Compact). The Compact is provided in Appendix 1. The Compact was entered into by each of the states through enactment of state specific legislation between 1955 and 1963.

The establishment of the GLC in 1955, was prompted by an identified regional need for an organization to speak as a unified voice for the Great Lakes states and to help the states communicate, coordinate and develop consensus on important issues affecting the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River region.

Although the GLC is legally a U.S. institution, the provinces of Ontario and Québec have played an important role in the life of the organization and currently participate formally with the GLC through a declaration of partnership which was signed in 1999 and is provided in Appendix2.

The Great Lakes Basin Compact was one of the first examples of the use of a compact as a legal mechanism to establish relationship between two or more states when working on water protection and management issues of common interest. Compacts hold a unique place in U.S. law in part because of their broad reach and in part because of the status of the parties in relationship to one another. States have quasi-sovereign status (i.e., they are not mere political subdivisions of the federal government) and they have the ability to enter into agreements with other states to help control current and future state actions both individually and collectively.

The writers of the Compact understood the complexity of the issues to be addressed facing the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River region at the time of its development and so by design, the Compact was drafted to allow the GLC to work on and advise the states on literally any topic surrounding Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River water resource use, development, management, environmental protection and water-based economy related issues.

Article I establishes the purpose of the Compact to be accomplished through means of joint and cooperative action between the states. Article I (1) calls for the GLC “to promote the orderly, integrated, and comprehensive development, use, and conservation of the water resources of the Great Lakes Basin”.

Since its inception, the GLC has worked closely with governors, premiers and state/provincial legislators; members of the U.S. Congress from the Great Lakes States; municipal, state, provincial and federal agencies; interstate organizations; private sector firms and non-government associations; universities; colleges and individual citizens to serve its members and accomplish its mission.

III.Role/Place of the GLC Among Great Lakes Institutions

The GLC is one of three main Commissions working on Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Issues. The other two Commissions are the International Joint Commission (IJC) (formed in 1909) and the Great Lakes Fishery Commission (GLFC) (formed in 1955). Unlike the GLC which is a Compact Commission, the other two were formed by treaty between the federal governments of the United States and Canada. The GLC works closely with these two Commissions on different issues. Beginning in 1979, two other state/province-led organizations were created to serve the interests of the Great Lakes states and provinces. The other two organizations are the Conference of Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers (the Conference) - serving both the states and provinces - and the Great Lakes Protection Fund (the Protection Fund) - serving just the states. The Conference was originally created in 1979 as the Council of Great Lakes Governors. While unique and separate entities, the three organizations work closely on many issues and projects. The executive directors of each maintain close communication and coordination so as to maximize opportunities for coordination and minimize the demands on the time of state and provincial executives who are appointed to oversee the missions of the organizations. A brief description of the IJC, the GLFC, the Conference and the Protection Fund are included in Appendix 3.

The GLC is the oldest of the three state/provincial managed organizations. It has contributed to the regional governance regime by representing the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River-related interests of the states and provinces to the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. federal government and state and provincial legislative and executive bodies. It has also established itself as a regional leader on Great Lakes issues accomplished through its many partnerships with governmental and non-governmental organizations and ongoing involvement with the states and provinces. In the late 1990s, the GLC decided to broaden its partnerships through a formal Observer program (described in Section D II), providing the opportunity for like-minded organizations - including U.S. and Canadian federal, regional and tribal governments and nongovernmental organizations – to participate in GLC activities.

B.Principles and Priorities that Govern the Operations and Procedures of the GLC

Stemming from the Great Lakes Basin Compact and its strategic plan, the GLC promotes an organizational philosophy that emphasizes the importance of both environmental protection and economic development of water resources, stewardship of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River water resources, sustainability and the need for strong partnerships between the states, provinces and the federal governments.

I.Great Lakes Basin Compact

The Great Lakes Basin Compact is the foundational document establishing the organization (see Appendix1).

Article 1 describes the purposes of the compact to be accomplished through means of “joint cooperative action” between the members as follows:

1. To promote the orderly, integrated, and comprehensive development, use, and conservation of the water resources of the Great Lakes Basin (Basin);
2. To plan for the welfare and development of the water resources of the Basin as a whole as well as for those portions of the Basin which may have problems of special concern;
3. To make it possible for the states of the Basin and their people to derive the maximum benefit from utilization of public works, in the form of navigational aids or otherwise, which may exist or which may be constructed from time to time;
4. To advise in securing and maintaining a proper balance among industrial, commercial, agricultural, water supply, residential, recreational, and other legitimate uses of the water resources of the Basin;
5. To establish and maintain an intergovernmental agency the end that the purposes of this compact may be accomplished more effectively.

Article II of the Compact states that the Compact enters into force and becomes binding with the enactment of specific state legislation which occurred prior to the Congressional consent provided under PL 90-419 in 1968. In its approval of the Compact, Congress did not extend consent to Section B of Article II which provided for provincial membership to the Commission.

Article III of the Compact talks about the geography of the Basin which is described as including all of the Great Lakes, Lake St. Clair, the St. Lawrence River and the connecting channels. The GLC is also authorized to exercise its powers and perform its functions within the entire Great Lakes drainage basin including rivers, ponds, lakes, streams and watercourses that are tributary to the Great Lakes or which comprise part of any watershed draining into the Great Lakes.

Article IV of the Compactdescribes the creation of the GLC, the establishment of commissioners, the roles and responsibilities of commissioners, the appointment of an executive director and the responsibilities of that person, the ability to create by-laws, the ability to establish and maintain one or more offices and buy property as necessary, the requirement and ability to meet and other functions. These important matters are covered in more detail in Section C-J of this operations and procedures document.

Article V of the Compactdescribes the organization budget and the requirement of each member state regarding support to its commissioners. Section A states that commissioners serve without compensation. Section B provides for the establishment and approval of an organizational budget. Section C establishes the ability to set organization dues to be allocated equitably among the member states. Sections D-F talk about organizational finances and cover items related to record keeping, the requirement for an annual independent audit and open access to financial information as required by the states.

Article VI of the Compact describes the Commission’s powers related to issues to be worked on and services to be provided to its members. Article VI is far-reaching both in terms of topics and forms of reports and communications that the Commission may engage in to serve its members. Section L calls for the Commission to cooperate with the governments of the United States and Canada (including public and private agencies or bodies) having interest in or jurisdiction over the waters of the Basin. In its approval of the Compact, Congress did not extend consent to Sections J, K or M regarding assisting in negotiation or formulation of treaties or recommending formal agreements between the United States and Canada. Section N is important in that it specifies that recommendations of the GLC do not hold the force of law. In other words, the GLC’s role is advisory in nature.

Article VII of the Compact covers specific topics that the GLC may be involved with and make recommendations on. While these topics were developed as priorities in 1955, many of them continue to be of interest to the region today and many of the GLC’s long-standing programs and services to its members are in response to these issues. Most of them are covered in some fashion in the GLC’s Strategic Plan (See Section H of this document).

Article VIII stipulates that the Compact continues in force and each state retains its obligations toward the Compact unless and until it renounces its obligations by an act of the state legislature.

Article IX states the intent of the Compact to be reasonably and liberally construed to accomplish its purposes. Provisions of the Compact are severable and can be amended if considered contrary to the constitution of the United States or any member state.

II.Great Lakes Commission Bylaws

Article IV Section K of the Compact provides the authority for the GLC to develop and adopt bylaws to provide detailed and supporting information to guide the management and operation of the organization. The Bylaws can be found in Appendix 4.

Bylaws were first developed by the GLC on December 3, 1962 and have been amended on numerous occasions since then, the latest amendments occurring on October 7, 2008.

Specific aspects of the GLC’s procedures and operations addressed by the bylaws will be covered in greater detail in Sections C-I of this document.

A few highlights of the bylaws not covered elsewhere in this document are as follows:

Article I of the bylaws recognize Ontario and Québec as non-voting members of the GLC through a declaration of partnership that was entered into by action of the provincial governments in 1999 (see Appendix 1).

Article VIII of the bylaws describes the process for updating and amending the bylaws which allows for amendments to be acted upon at any regular meeting of the GLC subject to a 30-day review period for any proposed changes to be acted on by the commissioners.

III.Strategic Plan

The GLC also has a strategic plan which, along with the Compact and bylaws, guides the organization’s work, helps keep the agenda and priorities of the GLC current and ensures that the highest priorities of the states and provinces are reflected in its mission and work. The current Strategic Plan is included as Appendix 5.

The GLC first adopted a strategic plan in 1995. Subsequent revisions have occurred in 2000, 2007 and 2017.

The newly adopted strategic plan articulates the vision, mission and values of the GLC as follows:

Vision: The GLC is a binational leader and a trusted voice ensuring the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River support a healthy environment, vibrant economy and high quality of life for current and future generations.

Mission:The GLC represents, advises and assists its member states and provinces by fostering dialogue, developing consensus, facilitating collaboration and speaking with a unified voice to advance collective interests and responsibilities to promote economic prosperity and environmental protection and to achieve the balanced and sustainable use of Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River basin water resources.

Values: Important core values guide the work of the GLC and set the standards that the organization strives to achieve in serving its member states and provinces.

• Member-led: The GLC is guided by and serves the common interests of its member states and provinces;
• Regional perspective: The GLC brings a regional perspective to federal, state and provincial programs, policies, projects and priorities;
• Leadership: The GLC serves as an ambassador for the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River region and serves as liaisons within and beyond the region;
• Collaboration: The GLC advances its objectives in close coordination with the Conference of Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers, the International Joint Commission and the Great Lakes Fishery Commission;
• Partnerships: The GLC respects the roles of other regional institutions and agencies and collaborates to achieve common goals and interests;
• Transparency: The GLC is open and transparent in carrying out its work;
• Integrity: The GLC strives for the highest levels of honesty, credibility and accuracy in the information, recommendations and perspectives that it conveys;
• Objective: The GLC is nonpartisan, balanced and science-based in its work, while promoting a vision of a healthy environment and vibrant economy;
• Open-minded: The GLC is inclusive and welcomes diverse views; and
• Sustainability: The GLC incorporates principles of sustainable development and adaptive management in its work.

The principles and purposes of the GLC as described above and its long-standing history serving the eight states and two provinces make it ideally suited to carry out a consistent, coordinated and collaborative approach to the issues that it works on. Its grounding in state and federal law and strong partnership with Ontario and Québec provide both credibility within the region to advance member priorities related to Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River water resource use, management, environmental protection, sustainability and economic development.

C.Commissioners,Officers and Board of Directors

I.Great Lakes Commission Membership

The GLC is composed of delegations of commissioners from each Great Lakes state and associate commissioners from the provinces of Ontario and Québec. Each state or province may appoint three to five individuals consistent with each jurisdiction’s applicable state law or policy. The State membership composition is provided as Appendix 6. The appointment process varies from one state to the next, but in the case of the states, delegations are generally composed of cabinet and agency officials, state legislators, and/or governors’ appointees (including members of academia, business and industry representatives and nongovernmental organizations among others). The Governments of Ontario and Québec appoint delegates to the GLC, usually senior agency officials, consistent with their Associate Member status under the terms of a Declaration of Partnership between the GLC and the provinces which was signed in 1999 (See Appendix 2).Under the provisions of the Declaration of Partnership the associate commissioners from Ontario and Québec may be permitted to participate in discussions, deliberations and other activities as approved by the GLC, but shall have no vote.