How to submit legislation
Resolutions and amendments to the Constitution and Canons may be presented by convocations or diocesan departments and commissions or any lay delegate or clergy member.
Resolutions may be submitted any time before Council recesses on the first legislative day. Thereafter, a resolution must receive a two-thirds affirmative vote of approval of its introduction to Council. To be published on the diocesan website before Council, a Resolution on any matter must be e-mailed (MS Word attachment preferred) to news@episcopalatlanta.org by Oct. 1, 2008.
Amendments to the diocesan constitution or canons must be submitted to the Council Standing Committee on Constitution and Canons by October 14, 2008. Send them to the Council Secretary, The Rev. Herschel R. Atkinson, 509 Rhodes Drive, Elberton, GA, 30635-2006, or by e-mail MS Word attachment to olsmaj@comcast.net. E-mail a copy to news@episcopalatlanta.org as stated above.
A resolution that is not a constitution or canon change and has not been received by October 1, 2008, will not be published on the diocesan website or included in the packets given to persons at the Council at registration. It must be introduced before recess of the first legislative day of Council. Prepare 550 copies of the resolution and bring them to Mrs. Janet Patterson, Chair of Annual Council Committee, to the Council on October 14, 2008, to be distributed then.
Format
Please be guided by the formats below. Please do not use "whereas" clauses; they are not part of the resolution, and they cannot be debated, amended, or acted on by the Council. Instead, include an "Explanation" that focuses attention of the Council on the substance of the resolution.
A Model Resolution
Resolved, that resolutions submitted to any Council shall not include a preamble ("whereas" clauses); and be it further
Resolved, that any resolution or proposed Constitution or Canon change shall be followed by an explanation of the matter to be acted on by the Council.
EXPLANATION
Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, a standard authority, recommends that reasons for a motion not be in the motion or in a preamble. Instead, reasons and justifications are included in a straightforward manner in the explanation. Thus it is clear that only the substance of the resolution is being acted on. In addition, a statement of the effect of the resolution can be included.
A Model Canonical Change of Some Complexity
Resolved, that Section 1 of Canon 23 Of Church Debt be amended to read as follows:
Section 1. No long term indebtedness shall be incurred by an Aided Parish or congregation without the prior approval of (a)both the Bishop and the Board of Officers, or (b) the Bishop and Department of Finance Committee.
EXPLANATION
Words to be deleted are lined through. Words to be added are underlined (or in italics if desired). The explanation should show the intent of and the effect of the proposed amendment. This format is followed also for proposed amendments to the Constitution or the Council Rules of Order.
