By-Laws & Operating Procedures

BSA By-Laws (revised 2/21/19)

Preamble

In the following text, “BSA” shall signify the Berkeley Staff Assembly; “Council” shall signify the Governing Council of BSA; “CUCSA” shall signify the Council of University of California Staff Assemblies.

Name
1. The name of the organization shall be the Berkeley Staff Assembly.
Membership
1. General Membership: All staff employees, regardless of appointment type and including non-Senate non-teaching appointees, shall be considered members of BSA.
2. Associate Membership: Retired staff employees and other applicants may become BSA members if approved by the Council but are not eligible for election to the Council.
Organization
1. Governing Council
  1. The Council is the governing body of BSA.
  2. Membership: The Council shall consist of at least 12 but not more than 24 BSA members.
  3. Terms: Members are elected for three-year terms beginning July 1. Members are limited to two consecutive three-year terms but are eligible for re-election after a one-year interval.
2. Officers
  1. The Officers are: Chair, Chair-Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, Operations Officer, and Junior and Senior CUCSA Delegates. The offices of Chair, Chair-Elect, and Secretary may be held by a team of two people provided that they put their names in nomination for the office as a team.
  2. Terms: Officers serve for a term of one year beginning July 1. Officers shall not serve in any combination of offices for more than four successive years but are eligible to serve again after a one-year interval. Any partial term over six months as an officer counts as a full year. After completing a term as Chair-Elect, the Chair-Elect will automatically begin a term as Chair. After completing a term as CUCSA Junior Delegate, the Junior Delegate will automatically begin a term as Senior Delegate.
  3. Any Council member running for a multi-year office (Chair-Elect or Junior CUCSA delegate) must complete that office before the expiration of their second three-year term on the Council.
  4. If a Council member is selected for a multi-year office after their second year on the Council, their term on the Council will automatically be extended by one year so that the term can be completed.
  5. Special Considerations: The two CUCSA Delegates must be elected in accordance with CUCSA eligibility requirements and regulations and by a simple majority vote of the entire Council. Delegates serve two-year staggered terms and are limited to two consecutive terms.
Council Meetings
1. Schedule: Meetings are held semi-monthly and are open to the general membership.
2. Executive Session: Executive Session may be convened by either the Chair or a majority of the Council.
3. Quorum: A simple majority of the Council constitutes a quorum. In the absence of a quorum, those present may act by submitting such action for ratification to the Council at a subsequent meeting or by ballot of the Council.
Committees
1. These include the Executive Committee, the Standing Committees, and any Ad Hoc Committees. The Chairs of these committees shall be appointed by the Chair of the Council in consultation with the Council.
2. Executive Committee: The Executive Committee consists of the Chair, Chair-Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, and CUCSA Delegates. The Executive Committee is assigned duties by the Chair.
Elections
1. Officers and CUCSA Delegates:
  1. Elections: Election of Officers and CUCSA Delegates is conducted by the Chair-Elect, who will solicit nominations at the last Council meeting in April. Candidates are elected from the Council membership by the vote required for the position. All members of the Council must vote in person or electronically for this election to be valid, and an abstention will be counted as having voted. This election must be completed by the last day of May.
  2. Vacancies: If an officer resigns before the term is up, the Council will solicit nominations of Council or BSA members for the balance of the term. If there are multiple eligible candidates for the position, election will be by a majority vote of the entire Council. Votes may be cast in person or electronically.
2. Governing Council:
  1. Elections: Election to the Council is conducted by an Ad Hoc Election Committee and must be completed by the last Council meeting in June. Election is by a majority of the total votes cast by the entire BSA membership, but there is no required minimum number of votes which must be cast. The number of seats available on the Council is determined by the Elections Committee. Should the election result in a tie among nominees, the matter will be resolved by a vote of the Council.
  2. Vacancies: The Council may select nominees to fill vacancies by soliciting nominations from the Council. Nomination is limited to BSA members. If membership on the Council is at 12 or more, the Council retains the option to not fill any vacancy. The nominee selected to fill the vacancy must be approved by a simple majority vote of the entire Council. Votes may be cast in person or electronically.
  3. Removal from the Council: Any member of the Council may be asked to resign or be removed in accordance with guidelines outlined in the Operating Procedures and by a two-thirds vote of the entire Council. Resulting vacancies shall be filled as specified in Section 6.b.2
Voting in General
1. The simple majority of votes cast, except where otherwise stated in these By-Laws, determines the results of all elections, whether by voice vote at a meeting or by electronic ballot.
Parliamentary Authority
1. Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, or any other parliamentary authority approved by the Council, shall guide the Council in all cases to which they are applicable and insofar as they are not inconsistent with these By-Laws.
Changes to By-Laws
1. The Council acting as a group, or any BSA member with the endorsement of five other members, may propose changes to these By-Laws.
2. An Ad Hoc By-Laws Committee will be formed to prepare the formal changes for review by the Council and the general membership.
3. The By-Laws Committee must notify the membership that proposed revisions are posted on the BSA website and schedule a general membership meeting to discuss the proposal to be held within 30 days but not sooner than 10 days after the notification is sent. Subsequent to the general meeting, the proposed changes shall be voted on by the membership. A two-thirds vote of ballots cast is required for approval.
Operating Procedures:
1. The Operating Procedures shall be included as an Appendix to these By-Laws. The Procedures are approved or amended by the vote of a majority of the Council.

Revised January 2019, Approved: February 2019

Revised and Approved: December 2009

Revised and Approved: March 2006

BSA Operating Procedures
Preamble

In the following text, “BSA” shall signify the Berkeley Staff Assembly; “Council” shall signify the Governing Council of BSA, and “CUCSA” shall signify the Council of the University of California Staff Assemblies.

Meetings
1. Governing Council
  1. The Chair will set the schedule of the Council meetings in July for the entire year.
  2. The Chair sets the agenda and the Secretary distributes it to the Council members prior to the meeting. GC Members may request an addition to the agenda by emailing the Chair at least two days prior to the meeting. Additional agenda items are to be addressed within the following next two GC meetings, as time permits.
  3. Attendance:
    1. Council members are required to attend in person or remotely, and participate at all Council meetings. If regular attendance is not possible, voluntary resignation is expected.
    2. If a member misses two consecutive meetings and the absence is not approved in advance by the Chair, the Chair will require that the member resign from the Council.
    3. If a member misses three meetings in any given three-month period, the Chair will consult with that member and may request that the member resign from the Council.
  4. The Council may include an ex-officio non-voting member from the Chancellor’s Staff Advisory Committee (CSAC).
  5. All BSA members are invited to participate without vote in Council meetings.
2. General Membership
  1. Meetings of the full membership are to be held at least once each academic year.
Communications
1. Minutes
  1. The Secretary is responsible for preparation of the draft minutes which are distributed to Council members via email within one week after the meeting. Corrections will be copied to all members via email.
  2. Minutes are approved by the Council and then saved to a public Google Drive folder which is linked to the BSA website.
2. Public Positions
  1. The Chair is the only official spokesperson for BSA.
  2. The Chair may only make written official statements (i.e. resolutions) from BSA after GC approval.
  3. The Chair and/or the Chair-Elect may delegate this responsibility if the Chair is unavailable.
  4. Requests to Council members for BSA views or opinions are to be referred to the Chair.
3. Correspondence
  1. The Chair, the Communications Committee, or those with delegated authority send all official BSA correspondence..”Official” is defined by any correspondence with BSA letterhead and/or sent by a BSA email address.
  2. Official correspondence will be archived and will be made available to Council members.
4. Annual Reports
  1. Annual reports are prepared by each Council Officer and Standing Committee Chair to be included in the Year End Summary Report. The annual reports are to be submitted to the Operations Officer by the first meeting in June.
Budget
1. Timeline
  1. Budget proposals shall be made by the Chairs of standing committees to the Treasurer by March 1st of each fiscal year (July - June) after having consulted with their respective committees for input (i.e. Chair with Governing Council; Communications Chair with the Communications Committee, etc.).
  2. The treasurer must present a BSA-wide proposed budget for simple majority approval by the Governing Council by April 1st.
  3. The final budget must be made available to chairs within one week of being approved by the BSA sponsor.
2. Process for Expenditures
  1. Each person who initiates an expenditure is responsible for the processing of said expenditure, including their own reimbursement, on Bear Buy or any alternate payment means (i.e. Cal Catering, etc.).
3. Forecasting
  1. Chairs of each committee must submit a forecast of expenditures to the Treasurer by September 1st of each fiscal year (July - June).
4. Alterations to an Approved Budget
  1. Any change to the budget exceeding $499.99 needs to be approved by a simple majority vote of the governing council.
Officer Positions
1. Chair
  1. Prepares agenda in consultation with the Secretary and provides background information on agenda items. The Chair will then share the agenda with the executive committee to see if there are any additional items to add before sharing the agenda with the Governing Council.
  2. Starts Council meetings on time; introduces guests; reviews and revises agenda; establishes and assigns action items; reviews outstanding action items and responsibilities.
  3. Discusses attendance at meetings with Council members who have repeated absences and requests resignations if necessary. The Council member under consideration for removal will be asked to not be present while the vote occurs.
  4. Acknowledges receipt of all correspondence and distributes correspondence as appropriate.
  5. May introduce speakers at BSA-sponsored programs; ensures that on behalf of BSA each speaker/guest participant receives a thank you note.
  6. Provides Communications Committee with copy or leads for possible articles.
  7. Approves all postings to the BSA website, but may delegate this responsibility.
  8. Attends Council of Staff Organizations and ad hoc advisory committee meetings as requested and provides information on BSA activities; reports to Council as appropriate.
  9. Approves the Chairs of all BSA Committees.
  10. Reviews and distributes the Year End Summary Report to the Council, the university administration, and the Bancroft Library’s BSA Archive.
  11. Prepares an electronic file of all BSA correspondence from tenure and passes it along to the incoming Chair along with the electronic files from previous Chairs. This is currently done using SPA accounts and shared drives.
  12. If needed, serves as mentor to the new Chair for the following year.
  13. Turns over office in good order and with all necessary records on completion of term.
2. Chair-Elect
  1. In the absence of the Chair, the Chair-Elect will assume Chair responsibilities.
  2. Works closely with and provides assistance and advice to the Chair and may work on special projects as determined by the Chair.
  3. Actively participates to assume leadership of the organization the following year.
  4. Keeps current with committee activities.
  5. In consultation with the Operations Officer, convenes annual meeting with outgoing and incoming committee chairs and Governing Council members to ensure a smooth transition.
  6. Serves as Chair of the Governing Council Ad Hoc Election Committee as described in the By-Laws.
  7. Organizes the Governing Council officers and CUCSA delegate election as described in the By-Laws.
  8. Works with the Chair in preparing an annual report to be submitted to the Operations Officer by the first meeting in June.
  9. Turns over the office in good order and with all necessary records on completion of term.
3. Secretary
  1. Distributes the agenda and any necessary information by close of business two days prior to the meeting.
  2. Takes minutes at Council meetings and presents drafts within one week to the Council members for approval and/or comments.
  3. Tracks attendance at meetings and reports patterns of absence to the Chair.
  4. May assist with correspondence at the direction of the Chair on behalf of BSA.
  5. Is responsible for finding a Council member to serve as Secretary when the Secretary is not available.
  6. Prepares an annual report to be included in the Year End Summary Report. The annual report is to be submitted to the Operations Officer by the first meeting in June.
  7. Turns over the office in good order and with all necessary records on completion of term.
4. Treasurer
  1. Is responsible for fund oversight, including deposit of receivables, disbursement of payables, maintenance of receipts and other financial records, tracking of liens and commitments, and reconciling bank statements on a monthly basis.
  2. Is responsible for presenting a BSA-wide proposed budget for simple majority approval by the Governing Council by April 1st.
  3. Prepares quarterly written financial statement for inclusion in the minutes, prepares other reports as requested or necessary to keep the Chair apprised of significant changes in the organization’s finances.
  4. Obtains quarterly written financial statements from Committee Chairs to keep the Chair(s) apprised of significant changes in the organization’s finances.
  5. Submits all statements and records for audit at the discretion of the Chair.
  6. Coordinates with university administration for submission of any required financial reports.
  7. Prepares an annual report to be included in the Year End Summary Report. The annual report is to be submitted to the Operations Officer by the first meeting in June.
  8. Turns over the office in good order and with all necessary records on completion of term.
5. Delegates to CUCSA
  1. Are selected from non-represented staff, in accordance with CUCSA requirements.
  2. Have, or must acquire quickly, an understanding of and familiarity with BSA history.
  3. Are familiar with other UCB staff organizations.
  4. Are knowledgeable about the administrative organization of the Berkeley campus and about pertinent campus and systemwide issues.
  5. Perform specific duties as set by CUCSA.
  6. Attend CSAC meetings as an ex-officio member in years CSAC approves.
  7. Shares information between BSA GC and CSAC.
  8. Prepare an annual report to be included in the Year End Summary Report. The annual report is to be submitted to the Operations Officer by the first meeting in June.
6. Operations Officer
  1. In consultation with the Chair-Elect, convenes annual meeting with outgoing and incoming committee chairs and council members to ensure a smooth transition.
  2. Prepares an annual report to be included in the Year End Summary Report. The annual report is to be completed by the first meeting in June.
  3. Annually prior to June 1, each officer and the chair and/or co-chair of each committee will submit a summary of their activities, issues of concern and continuing efforts for the year. The annual reports are compiled by the Operations Officer to form a Year End Summary Report, which is sent to the Chair for distribution to the Council, the university administration, and the Bancroft Library’s BSA Archive.
  4. Assists with booking Council meeting rooms, submitting documents, and other operational requests as directed by the Chair.
  5. Transitions documents, folders, and e-mail addresses from outgoing to incoming members as appropriate.
  6. The Governing Council Officer positions shall comprise the Executive Committee.
  7. The Executive Committee meets with the BSA sponsor quarterly.
Governing Council Members
1. Individual Member duties include:
  1. Attending the semi-monthly Council meetings, as required above in section 1.3.
  2. Reading the agenda and supporting materials distributed prior to the meetings, and coming prepared to contribute to the meeting by discussing and voting on agenda items. Request additional items to be added to the agenda at least two days prior to the meeting.
  3. Serves the campus community and support the mission of BSA.
  4. Recruits new members and encourages membership participation in BSA activities.
  5. Serves as the chair or member of a committee, either according to personal interest or to meet a specific need.
2. Governing Council Body duties include:
  1. Approve nominees to fill Council vacancies.
  2. Select Council members to fill officer/CUCSA delegate vacancies.
  3. Review and approve Council meeting minutes.
  4. Approve actions by CUCSA delegates, as necessary.
  5. Review and approve standing Committee goals and action plans as needed.
  6. Establish and give direction to ad hoc committees.
  7. Review the annual report from the Treasurer.
  8. Approve the annual budget.
  9. Approve requested unbudgeted expenditures.
  10. Review Operating Procedures and approve any changes required.
  11. Review plans for General Membership Meetings.
  12. Serve as a staff voice in campus and systemwide activities.
3. Chancellor’s Staff Advisory Committee (CSAC) member duties include:
  1. Attend semi-monthly Council meetings regularly but will not vote on Council matters.
  2. Bring issues from CSAC to the Council.
  3. Report on BSA issues/concerns/activities to CSAC.
Description of Standing Committees:
1. Career Development and Mentorship Committee
  1. The Career Development and Mentorship Committee offers a wide variety of networking and career development opportunities to the campus community and oversees the Staff Mentorship Program.
2. Excellence in Management Committee
  1. The Excellence in Management Committee is responsible for the execution of the annual Excellence in Management Awards Ceremony and all corresponding activities.
3. Program & Events Committee
  1. The Programs & Events Committee organizes and schedules various social events to appeal to a wide range of interests among BSA members and the campus community at large.
4. Communications Committee
  1. The Communications Committee, or those with delegated authority, are responsible for accurate and timely postings to the BSA website and other relevant sites; assists with publicity for BSA and for BSA events; and must stay abreast of current campus website policies. This committee also maintains the BSA social media accounts
5. New Professionals Network
  1. The New Professionals Network is responsible for creating a forum, wherein UC Berkeley's early career professionals and recent hires from across campus can come together to expand their networks, exchange professional development opportunities, and share their experiences and knowledge about building a career at Cal.
Standing Committee Responsibilities
1. Committee Chairs
  1. Are appointed for a one-year term starting on July 1 and are responsible to the Council Chair who formally approves these appointments. Immediately following the year as chair, it is encouraged that outgoing chairs act as advisors to the incoming committee chairs.
  2. Reports regularly to the Governing Council through when activities are underway.Sets committee meetings.
  3. Works with committee members to determine members’ responsibilities, committee mission and procedures.Facilitates necessary discussion by committee members.
  4. Delegates work assignments and monitors progress.
  5. Motivates committee members.
  6. Prepares an annual report to be included in the Year End Summary Report and submits to the Operations Officer by June 1.
  7. Meets with the incoming Committee Chair to ensure a smooth transition.
Committee Members
1. May be any UC Berkeley staff member.
2. Attend scheduled meetings prepared to contribute to the meeting by discussing and voting on agenda items, if any.
3. Serve the campus community and support the mission of BSA.
4. Recruit new members and encourage membership participation in BSA activities.

Approved: April 1998

Revised and Approved: January 2010

Revised and Approved: November 2010

Revised and Approved: September 2013

Revised and Approved: July 2019

BSA By-Laws (revised 2/21/19)

Preamble

BSA Operating Procedures Preamble

BSA Operating Procedures
Preamble