by Ed Dolly and George Eynon, COCBAP Members

The AAPG Executive Committee created the Ad Hoc Committee on Constitution and Bylaw Amendment Process (COCBAP) on March 1, 1998. The twelve-member committee, including Chairman Lee T. Billingsley, was given the charge to analyze both the amendment process and the responsibilities of the Executive Committee with respect to determining “legality” of proposed amendments to the AAPG Bylaws. After exchanges of opinion and much discussion, the COCBAP met twice at the annual convention in Salt Lake City in May 1998.

The COCBAP members represented divergent views on the charge. They took their charge seriously, and debated vigorously, honestly, and professionally. They invited four guest speakers to offer insight on the subject and to answer questions of the Committee members. Those speakers were Frank Harrison, John Hogg, Clint Moore and Larry Woodfork.

COCBAP Recommendations

The recommendations of the COCBAP, made in June 1998, are listed below. For the sake of brevity the Executive Committee will be referred to as the EC, the Advisory Council as the AC, and the House of Delegates as the HOD.

1) Interpretation of Legality - “Legality” as set out in Section 2, Article XIV of the Bylaws should be interpreted literally. The EC’s determination of legality for proposed Bylaw amendments should be “limited to the mechanical process as outlined in the Bylaws. It should not include “a broader responsibility which includes a consideration of the intent, purposes and spirit of the Association and all of its governing documents.” (Quote from the COCBAP charge.)

2) Procedural Charges - The following recommendations are designed to a) improve communication about proposed Constitution and Bylaw amendments (“amendments”) and b) allow amendments to be in more of a consensus form before they are debated and voted upon in the HOD.

3) Constitutional Amendment - The EC should pass a resolution proposing a constitutional amendment. The proposed amendment would prevent any one body (AC, EC, or HOD) from proposing amendments which would “alter the composition, manner of selection, the terms of office, the specific duties, responsibilities, and other matters relevant to such bodies and officers” without the consent of the affected body. This resolution for amendment should be submitted to the HOD, and if passed by a majority vote, will be submitted to the entire membership for vote.

The COCBAP recommendations received unanimous endorsement when taken as a whole, but there would not be a consensus if any of the three main sections of recommendations were deleted. COCBAP is divided on support of the amendment itself (item 3 above). But COCBAP is unanimous in support for the concept that such an amendment should be brought forward for consideration.

The 1998 Executive Committee moved to receive the recommendations of the COCBAP, but deferred approval of the report itself.

Action to Date

The Executive Committee thus far has put into practice two of the three recommendations (specifically items 1 and 2 of the COCBAP report). As the recommendations applied to specific Bylaw amendments within the International Representation Committee Report, the EC deemed all were “legal” in the literal sense of the word, as per the COCBAP recommendation. The ad hoc IRC Amendment Resolution Committee was formed to propose amendments to the original IRC Report. As requested by COCBAP, representatives of the AC provided their input and consent to proposed amendment changes.

With respect to the third recommendation, no new constitutional amendment was proposed by the EC in 1998. However, in March 1999, a Special Ad Hoc Committee (SAHC) to the EC was formed to evaluate the advisability of the proposed amendment to restrict the ability of one body of the Association to alter another without its consent (item 3 of the COCBAP report).

Special Ad Hoc Committee

The members of this Committee were Brenda K. Cunningham, Committee Chairman and HOD representative; Carlos A. Dengo, AC representative; and Terry R. Hollrah, EC representative.

At the AAPG Annual Convention in San Antonio in April of 1999, the Special Ad Hoc Committee held a forum in which fourteen Association representatives spoke before the Committee and/or submitted written statements.

Statements presented to the Committee at the forum were of three exclusive types:
1) Those in favor of the proposed amendment,
2) Those opposed to an amendment, and
3) Those in favor of a proposal being brought forward before the HOD.

Sixteen percent of the 14 representatives were in favor of an amendment in some form, 46% were against a proposed amendment in any form, and 38% wished to see the issue brought before the HOD regardless of their personal position relative to the issue. The Committee members deliberately expressed no opinion to this forum. Multiple aspects of the issue were considered, specifically:
1) What was the general impression of what informed members of the Association desire?
2) What were the initial charges to, and the final recommendations of, the COCBAP?
3) What obligation, if any, does the EC have to act upon the recommendations of the COCBAP and other ad hoc committees?
4) What effects, both positive and negative, might result if this issue is not brought forward?
5) What effects, both positive and negative, might result if this issue is brought forward?
6) Is there a need for a different course of action not identified previously?

Based on all the data collected, the SAHC drew the following conclusions and made the following recommendations.

Most Recent Action

In April by a vote of five (5) for and two (2) against, the EC moved to forward the third recommendation of the COCBAP report as a resolution by the EC for action and decision by vote in the HOD. The EC has taken no position to date, for or against the measure, and defers to the judgment of the HOD and the membership as to this amendment to the Constitution.

This short summary on the history of COCBAP comes from more detailed reports on COCBAP prepared by Lee T. Billingsley, notes from HOD Past Chairman Dan Smith, EC minutes, and the SAHC report. It has been reviewed by House leadership and by the chairs of the EC and AC.

More on COCBAP will be published in future 2000-2001 issues of The Delegates' Voice.