Letter from the Chair
As you know, the House of Delegates will be holding its annual meeting on Sunday, April 20, 2008 in San Antonio, TX at the AAPG Annual Convention. The meeting will be the culmination of the hard work that your House leadership, Committee Chairs and their teams have been focused on for the past 9 months. I would like to take this opportunity to thank this group of close to 50 Delegates for their service to the House and AAPG. A special thanks also to Donna Riggs, Regina Gill, Janice Scott, and Linda Ramsey at AAPG HQ for their help throughout the year.
Let’s take a look at what the committees have been working on and what we’ll be discussing in San Antonio.
The Credentials Committee chaired by Patrick Gooding (Eastern Section) has been active in contacting society Presidents and Delegation Chairmen to ensure that Delegates are properly selected and documented prior to the annual meeting. Please make every effort to attend the annual meeting. Over the past 5 annual meetings, an average of only 72% of eligible Delegates has attended the annual meeting.
The Honors and Awards Committee chaired by Jim McGhay (Mid-Continent Section) has selected the following individuals as House of Delegates awardees for the year 2007-2008:
Honorary Member of the House – No awardee
Distinguished Members of the House - John Brooks (European Region), Alan DeGood (Mid-Continent Section), Patrick Gooding (Eastern Section)
House Long Service Award – Jeannie Mallick (Gulf Coast Section)
In addition, Delegates reaching 9 and 15 year service milestones will be recognized with Certificates of Service
The Rules and Procedures Committee chaired by Steve Sonnenberg (Rocky Mountain Section) is proposing one amendment to the House of Delegates Rules and Procedures:
The committee is proposing an amendment to Article I. B which deals with the way in which the number of delegates is determined for US affiliated Societies versus International Regions. The amendment is being proposed to bring the Rules and Procedures in compliance with the AAPG’s Constitution and Bylaws.
In addition, the committee is proposing minor typographical edits to Article III. A.
Amendments to the HoD Rules and Procedures require approval of a majority of the Delegates present and voting at the meeting.
The Constitution and Bylaws Committee chaired by Paul Hoffman (Gulf Coast Section) is proposing one amendment to the AAPG’s Bylaws:
The committee is proposing an amendment to Article XI Section 8 which will provide for the AAPG Executive Committee to have the authority to expel a member who falsely stated his or her qualifications on an application for AAPG membership. This recommended amendment results from consideration of concerns expressed that in some instances the burdens placed on members of the Ethics Committee and of the Advisory Council, who have responsibility to adjudicate grievances, are unduly onerous and time consuming. The committee felt unanimously that such grievances could be addressed more efficiently within the process stipulated in Section 8, Alternative Procedure, while maintaining reasonable due process protection.
An AAPG Bylaws amendment requires a two-thirds affirmative vote of the Delegates present and voting at the meeting.
The Nominations and Elections Committee chaired by Ed Dolly (Rocky Mountain Section) selected the following House of Delegates Officer candidates:
Deborah Sacrey (Gulf Coast Section) and Steve Sonnenberg (Rocky Mountain Section) are standing for Chair-Elect
Sigrunn Johnsen (European Region) and Erik Mason (Gulf Coast Section) are standing for Secretary/Editor
One year terms for the officers begin July 1, 2008 with the Chair-Elect assuming the Chair July 1, 2009.
The Resolutions Committee chaired by Paul Britt (Gulf Coast Section) reports that no action needs to be taken under their auspices this past year. The Committee has been busy, however, reviewing affiliated societies that are in danger of disaffiliation due to non-representation at the past two HoD annual meetings. The Committee is in contact with these societies to reactivate their participation.
The Newsletter Committee chaired by Secretary/Editor RobertWebster (Southwest Section) has published three (3) issues of The Delegates’ Voice to date; in September and December, 2007 as well as the current March 2008 issue. The final issue of this term will be published in June 2008.The publication continues to be an excellent mechanism for communications with Delegates. The Committee is evaluating going to a digital .pdf version of The Delegates’ Voice that will be e-mailed to Delegates and posted to the AAPG website. A straw poll will be taken at the annual meeting.
The Minutes Approval Committee chaired by Secretary/ Editor Robert Webster (Southwest Section) will finalize and approve the minutes of the annual meeting within 60 days following the meeting.
I look forward to meeting each of you at our Delegates Reception Saturday evening in San Antonio and at our meeting on Sunday.
P.S. My apologies to Delegates from the Southwest Section. I was unable to attend our breakfast on Tuesday February 26 due to a work commitment. My thanks to Chair-Elect George Bole and Secretary/Editor Robert Webster for pinch hitting.