MEMORANDUM
April 24, 2013
From: Shawne E. Soper, PT, DPT, MBA, speaker of the House
Kristen Hecht, manager, National Governance and Leadership
RE: 2013 House of Delegates Packet I, Background Papers, and House of Delegates Handbook
Packet I, which contains all proposed main motions received by the March 25 deadline, is attached, along with subsequent appendices that contain information about additional materials, planning, and resources. Business of the House of Delegates (House) is conducted through the introduction of main motions; therefore, in order to be thoroughly prepared to represent your component, delegates must make the time to read and educate themselves about each motion and stay current on conversations occurring on the House of Delegates community discussion boards. Questions about anything contained within the motion may be asked via the House discussion boards or by directly contacting the maker of the motion or the Board of Directors (Board), staff, or Reference Committee contacts.
· Within Packet I, delegates will find the Rules of the House of Delegates and the General Order of Business, both adopted by the House as the first and second orders of business, and Implications for Motion Language, developed by the Reference Committee to identify the implication of certain terms when used within House motions. Note: in the Rules of the House two new rules (18 and 19) have been added. Both of these rules are traditions of our House and their inclusion simply memorializes these traditions for future reference.
· The Detailed Agenda, a subset of the General Order of Business which is adopted immediately prior to the start of new business, provides delegates with the logic used to guide the speaker of the House and Reference Committee in developing the order of the motions. It is important to note that this categorization is used only as a guide and that ultimately the order of motions is determined at the discretion of the speaker in order to facilitate the business of the House in the way she deems most efficient.
Downloading Packet I is accomplished by accessing the documents from the House community. From the APTA homepage (www.apta.org), at the top of the page in the teal horizontal tool bar, select “APTA Communities.” Once on the community homepage, select “House of Delegates” under “My Communities,” and under Documents, select “Packet I & House Handbook.” Please note that a downloadable file will be compiled by Friday, June 7, that contains all documents needed by delegates.
New this Year:
· As you read through Packet I you will notice some formatting differences as compared to prior years. Of particular note is the use of conforming motions in several of the amendments to the bylaws and standing rules (RC’s 2-13, 4A-13, 4B-13, and 9-13 in particular) The concept of conforming motions is a new addition to Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, 11th edition. A conforming motion is a single subsidiary motion that contains multiple amendments needed in order to achieve one end. Conforming motions are very helpful in situations in which a given change needs to be reflected in multiple places in a document. Using an example from Robert:
Suppose a lengthy resolution is pending relating to the creation of a new standing committee, called the “Ways and Means Committee,”…and this committee is referred to by name in a number of places scattered throughout the resolution. If it is desired to change the name of this committee from “Ways and Means Committee” to “Finance Committee,” it is both necessary and in order to move “to amend the pending resolution by striking out ‘Ways and Means Committee’ wherever it appears and inserting ‘Financing Committee’ in lieu thereof.” In such cases (where all of the individual amendments must be made, if any one of them is made, in order to leave a coherent resolution pending if the motion to amend is adopted), the proposed amendments are offered in a single motion and may not be divided.1
For more information on actions that can be made to this and other types of motions, please refer to the tables provided in Appendix D.
In this packet, conforming motions are presented with each amendment named as a separate part (Part A, Part B, etc). In the old world of bylaw amendments, each part (Part A, Part B, etc) would be presented as a separate motion. In this (brave) new world of Robert’s 11th edition, all of the necessary changes can be adopted in one motion, which of course makes our work much more efficient. There will be opportunity to amend the motion and we will move through each conforming motion seriatim, calling for debate and amendment on each part, and then ultimately take a vote on the entire document. Conforming motions will be reviewed at the Chief, Section, and Assembly (CSA) meeting, in motion discussion groups, and during the House prior to the consideration of an RC that is written as a series of conforming amendments.
· Also new this year will be the use of online and social media tools to promote member-wide discussion of motions prior to debate in the House. Beginning with Packet I's posting, comment-enabled webpages on APTA's website will allow any member to post feedback on motions coming forward to this year’s House. Similarly, members may choose to discuss motions on Twitter using the hashtags that will be provided. While not considered substitutes for direct discussion with delegates, these tools will provide members additional opportunities to exchange thoughts on this year’s motions. Please note that the official discussion process for delegates hasn’t changed; the discussion forum remains in the House community for delegate interaction.
As you will recall from the “Message from the Speaker” sent via e-mail on April 18, there will be numerous pieces of information provided to you over the next 2 months. It is very important to thoroughly study each piece of this information in order to be fully prepared for the House activities and discussions. Given the number of items that will be coming your way, it will be necessary for you to set aside extra time for material review. Please pace yourself so that you are able to work through each piece of information well before arriving onsite at the House.
The House officers wish to thank the delegates for their preparation thus far and for their timely submission of motions. We are confident that the House can complete all the business to come before it this year if we work together efficiently and openly. Early and frequent networking with delegates and the APTA Board and staff will greatly improve our ability to resolve conflict and reach mutual understanding for the good of the association. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have questions, concerns, or suggestions for expediting the business of the House. We look forward to seeing you soon!
For information on preparation and planning for the House (Appendix A), accessing all of your important resources (Appendix B), specifics of the grab-and-go Downloadable File (Appendix C), and basic characteristics of motions (Appendix D) please see the corresponding appendix.
1 Robert III, H. M. et. al., Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, (11th Edition), De Capo Press, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; p.274
APPENDIX A
PREPARATION AND PLANNING FOR THE HOUSE
· The House of Delegates Handbook contains annual and special reports to the House. All reports published within the Handbook, with the exception of the House officers, Reference Committee, and Nominating Committee reports, have been written in response to charges from the House. Be sure to read these thoroughly; questions about anything contained within a report may be directed to the Board or staff contacts listed on each report, or asked on Tuesday, June 25, during the House when reports are taken up. The House of Delegates Handbook will be posted to the House Community on Friday, April 26, 2013.
· Background Papers, which are written by APTA staff, are an invaluable resource to delegates in helping to understand the implications of motions published in Packet I. The Background Papers will be posted to the House Community on Friday, May 10, 2013.
· Nominating Committee Candidate Video Interviews will be posted online on May 10, 2013. Please stay tuned for an announcement and link to the videos.
· Reference Committee Appointments will be held Sunday, June 23, and Tuesday, June 25. For specific information regarding appointment times and guidance regarding what materials to bring to your appointment, please see the Reference Committee Appointment Schedule, which will be posted in a few weeks to the House Community under “Shared Documents.” Prior to arriving onsite, 2 more opportunities for virtual appointments are also available, on May 16 and June 13. Please refer to the House Community for more information.
· “Month-Out Must Knows” webinar will be held on Thursday, May 23, 2013, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm, ET. With the House just one month away, attend this webinar for a discussion of your important role as a delegate, resources to help you prepare for the House, and information you need to know once you arrive on site. This webinar will be useful even if you have served as a delegate in the past.
· Pre-House Motions Discussion Groups will be held on Sunday, June 23, 2013, 6:00 pm - 7:45 pm. The agenda has been posted to the House Community under “Documents” “Packet I and House Handbook” “Motion Discussion Group Agendas.”
APPENDIX B
RESOURCE FOR DELEGATES: HOUSE COMMUNITY
· The House of Delegates Community (House community) is the most important resource available to delegates. The House Community is your source for all of the important materials necessary to prepare for the House.
The House Community may be accessed from the APTA homepage (www.apta.org) by logging on and, at the very top of the page in the teal horizontal tool bar, selecting “APTA Communities.” Once on the main community page, select “House of Delegates” under “My Communities.”
The House Community is organized into 5 sections:
1. Announcements – this area is used solely by the House officers and APTA staff to communicate important information to delegates. *All delegates should subscribe for alerts to this area.
2. Web Resources – contains links to other web-based programs. Examples of links found in this area could include: Candidate Web page, Delegate Rosters, and the Nominations (NC-1) Form.
3. Discussion Boards – the sole purposes of these forums are to facilitate motion discussion prior to arrival onsite. *All delegates should subscribe for alerts to each one of the discussion boards listed on the House Community. Discussion boards are organized as follows:
· Packet I - This forum is used for all delegates to provide opinion or to ask questions related to the motions that have been released in Packet I. Although the forum is open to all delegates, chief, section, and assembly delegates are the only individuals who may post the official opinion of a delegation, and should identify themselves within a post when providing official opinion.
· Motion Cosponsors – This forum is used for official notification to the speaker of a component’s intent to cosponsor a motion.
· Motion Concepts/Draft Motion – Now that Packet I is available this forum should be used only by delegations wishing to propose concepts for future meetings of the House.
4. Documents – contains materials in document formats (i.e. PDF, Word, PowerPoint, etc). Folders are organized as follows:
· Packet I and HOD Handbook – after designated posted date, includes the current year’s Packet I, House Handbook, and Motion Discussion Group agendas
· Onsite Packets – examples of documents in this folder could include Packet II, Packet III
· Reference Materials – is organized into 6 separate folders
- House Resources - examples of documents in this folder could include: House Schedule, Apportionment, Seating Chart
- Motion Development - examples of documents in this folder could include: Motion Development Form, Main Motion Template, Bylaw Amendment Template, Implications for Motion Language
- Nominations, Candidacy, and Elections – examples of documents in this folder could include: Slate of Candidates, Candidate Interview Groups/Schedule, Candidate Manual
- Orientations, Presentations, and Training – examples of documents in this folder could include: CSA meeting agendas, New Chief Delegate Orientation, Basics of Parliamentary Procedure
- House Happenings – this folder includes PDF copies of the monthly House Happenings newsletter
- Archive – this folder includes Packets, House Handbook, Post-House Survey data, and Summary of House Actions from past House of Delegates’ sessions
- House of Delegates Online Manual – this document is posted as a stand-alone PDF file
5. How Do I – contains tutorials on how to navigate the various parts of the community
*Instructions for setting alerts - Alerts are very important because they inform delegates of when something new has been posted.
· To set an alert, access the House Community and go to the area in which you’d like your alert set (ie, Announcements, Discussions).
· Once in the desired area (i.e., Announcement, Discussions), locate on the blue tool bar the “Actions” button.
· Click on “Items” in the teal navigation bar and click on the option “Alert me.”