Rotary International • District 7040

District 7040 Procedures

SECTION I - ADMINISTRATION

Article 1 - General

The administration of District 7040 of Rotary International shall be directed by the District Governor in accordance with the policies and procedures established by the Board of Directors of Rotary International. These policies and procedures are intended to assist the District Governor in areas of local practice. The Governor is an ex-officio member of all district committees.

Article 2 - District Secretary

The Governor shall appoint a District Secretary, a Rotarian who is a member of a club in the district, and assign such duties as the Governor may require in the year of office.

Article 3 - District Treasurer

The Governor shall appoint a District Treasurer, a Rotarian who is a member of a club in the district, and assign such duties as may be required, consistent with Article 7 - District Finances.

Article 4 - Assistant Governors

As required, the Governor shall appoint Assistant Governors who will each be allotted a group of clubs as designated by the Governor. The duties and responsibilities of the Assistant Governors will be assigned by the Governor reflecting the district needs and the framework established by Rotary International.

Article 5 - The District Council

The District Governor shall schedule at least four meetings of the District Council in the Rotary year to counsel the Governor regarding all aspects of district administration.

Membership of the District Council shall be the District Governor (Chair); the District Governor-Elect (Vice-chair); three immediate Past Governors and three Assistant Governors selected respectively from New York, Quebec and Ontario; plus three District Committee Chairs selected at each Council meeting on a rotating basis where possible. In the absence of a voting member an alternate shall be selected having similar qualifications as the absentee.

Non-voting members shall be the District Secretary, District Treasurer and District Governor-Nominee.

Article 6 - District Committees

6.1 - Executive Committees

To provide continuity to the district administration, the following Executive Committees shall be established and staffed with experienced Rotarians as detailed:

A) Awards Committee - shall be composed of three members, one from each region. The recommended composition shall be one Past District Governor and two experienced Rotarians. The Chair shall be from the same geographic region as the District Governor.

B) District Conference Committee - shall be chaired by the Chair of the forthcoming District Conference, who shall take office on the first of the month following the preceding District Conference. It shall also include, but need not be limited to, the immediate past District Conference chair and the incoming and subsequent District Conference chairs when so appointed; the District Governor and the immediate Past District Governor, the District Governor-Elect and the District Governor-Nominee; and the District Leadership Trainer.

The District Governor-Nominee shall appoint a qualified Rotarian to chair the District Conference in the DGN's year as Governor. That Rotarian shall become a member of the District Conference Committee at the time of her/his appointment.

C) Finance Committee - shall be composed of the three immediate Past District Governors; the District Governor-Elect; the District Treasurer; the incoming District Treasurer and the District Governor-Nominee. The senior Past District Governor, by year, shall be chair. The Finance committee shall meet at least semi-annually (once in each half of the year) with additional meetings at the call of the Chair or District Governor. The Finance Committee shall review the proposed District budget prior to presentation to clubs for approval.

D) Nominating Committee - shall be composed of six immediate Past District Governors, two from each geographic region. The District Governor will be Chair and only vote in the case of a tie.

E) Legislative Committee - shall be composed of three Past District Governors plus three experienced Rotarians. Each geographic region of the district shall be represented. It is recommended that at least one member of this committee is a member of the legal profession. The chair of this committee shall be selected by the committee members.

F) District Training Committee - shall be chaired by the District Leadership Trainer and composed of Rotarians who are members of the Rotary Leadership Institute faculty and others who may be appointed by the Chair. In conjunction with the District Governor, District Governor-Elect or responsible District Committee chairs, this committee will be responsible for the organization and implementation of PETS; District Assembly and seminars/workshops (e.g., Membership, The Rotary Foundation, etc.)

6.2 - Other District Committees

The District Governor should ensure the appointment of experienced Rotarians as chairpersons. To make use of as many qualified Rotarians as possible, the terms of chairpersons should be limited to three one year appointments.

Suggested committees include, but are not limited to:

1. Membership (recruitment, retention, education, extension and club support)
2. Literacy
3. The Rotary Foundation (and its sub-committees: Scholarships, Group Study Exchange, Grants, etc.)
4. Strategic Planning
5. Public Relations
6. Youth Exchange (Academic-year, S.T.E.P., New Generations)
7. Interact
8. Rotaract
9. Electronic Communications
10. Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA)
11. World Community Service
12. Vocational Service
13. Community Service

Article 7 - District Finances

7.1 - District Budget

The District Governor-Elect shall prepare a budget in Canadian currency for approval by the clubs in the district. For budget and reporting purposes, the rate of exchange shall be that established by Rotary International for the current time period. The proposed budget shall be presented to the District Finance Committee for review and recommendation at least 30 days before being presented to the presidents-elect no later than PETS and taken to their clubs for discussion. A vote will be taken within 30 days following PETS. Approval will require a positive vote by three quarters of the clubs voting.

7.2 - Per Capita Levy and Insurance Fees

The financing for the district budget (operations) shall be provided by all clubs in the district by way of a per-capita levy on the members of those clubs. In addition, for those clubs sharing in the District Liability Insurance Program, there will be a fee charged each participating club on the basis of club size, to cover the insurance premiums charged to the district. The levies and fees shall be invoiced in the currency of the club and payable within 30 days, based on the club membership on 1 July.

7.3 - Funded Areas

The District Funds shall be sufficient to meet the reasonable financial requirements of district functions, external functions, district committees and district administration.

7.4 - Disbursement

Disbursement of the District funds shall be by cheque requiring the signatures of the District Governor and District Treasurer. In the event that one of the signatories is unavailable for a significant period of time, the District Governor may appoint an alternate signatory.

Expenditures may include:

• a sum to assist in underwriting the costs of the District Conference;
• a sum to assist the District Governor and District Governor-Elect and partners to attend the International Convention;
• a sum to assist the District Governor-Elect and District Governor-Nominee and partners to attend the respective training seminars and the Rotary Institute, which follows at Zone 22 or Zones 31/32;
• a sum to assist the District Governor and partner to attend a Zone Institute;
• a sum to assist the District Leadership Trainer or the District Rotary Foundation Committee Chair to attend a Zone Institute;
• a budgeted amount to assist the District Governor-Elect in preparation and organization prior to becoming Governor;
• a budgeted amount, in the appropriate year, to assist the District representative to prepare for and attend the Council on Legislation;
• a budgeted amount, in the appropriate year, to assist the District Delegate to prepare for and attend the Nominating Committee for R.I. Director from Zone 22.

SECTION II - NOMINATION OF THE DISTRICT GOVERNOR

Article 1

It is the practice in District 7040 to select the District Governor Nominee annually from the district's three geographical areas on a rotating basis, namely New York, Ontario and Quebec, in that order.

Article 2

Between 1 July and 31 October, the District Governor shall advise the presidents of the clubs in the appropriate area for that year that they may propose a candidate for consideration by the Nominating Committee, for selection as a nominee to serve as District Governor for the Rotary year three (3) years hence. Such notices to club presidents shall advise that all proposals must be submitted to the District Governor on or before 1 January on fully executed forms available from the Governor.

Article 3

In the event that an area fails to propose a qualified candidate by the 1 January deadline, that area shall be considered to have passed its turn and the District Governor shall issue an invitation to all other clubs in the district to submit suggestions for District Governor Nominee. The following year, the traditional sequence of the geographical areas shall be restored.

Article 4

The Nominating Committee shall review all the submissions, select the best-qualified candidate and notify the Governor of the candidate selected. The Governor shall then publish to all clubs in the district the name and club of the nominee.

Article 5

In the event a club wishes to propose a challenging candidate for Governor-nominee the procedure for proposal, concurrence and subsequent ballot-by-mail shall be in strict accordance with the applicable RI Bylaws (currently Article 13, Sections 13.020 and 13.040).

Article 6

In the absence of a challenging candidate the Governor shall declare to all clubs in the district that the candidate of the District Nominating Committee is the Governor-nominee. The Governor shall certify the name of the Governor-nominee to the RI General Secretary within ten days after such declaration.

Article 7

In the event that a District Governor-Nominee finds it impossible to assume the duties as District Governor, the District Governor shall issue an invitation to all clubs in the district inviting proposals for a District Governor-Nominee. All proposals shall be reviewed by the Nominating Committee.

SECTION III - COUNCIL OF GOVERNORS

All Past R.I. officers who are active members of Rotary clubs in the district shall act as an advisory committee to the Governor and be known as the Council of Governors. The Council shall meet at least twice a year at the request of the District Governor (Chair) for the purpose of obtaining current news and information about Rotary International and District 7040 and to provide such aid and counsel as may be requested. The Council of Governors is a purely consultative body and its actions or decisions do not commit or oblige the Governor.

SECTION IV - AMENDMENTS

Article 1

These policies and procedures may be amended by a two-thirds majority of incoming presidents, or duly appointed representatives present and voting at the District Assembly or PETS, or by a two-thirds majority of the presidents, or duly appointed representatives, present and voting at the District Conference or by ballot-by-mail. Each club shall be entitled to one vote.

Article 2

New proposals, changes or additions may be initiated by resolution from a club, the District Assembly, PETS or the District Council. All submissions must be presented to the District

Governor not later than 120 days prior to a vote being taken by the clubs. Voting may be done at the District Assembly, PETS or the District Conference or by a ballot-by-mail. All resolutions shall be reviewed by the District Legislative Committee, after which the Chair of the Legislative Committee shall distribute approved resolutions, along with the committee's recommendations, to all members of the District Council and to the President-elect of each club not less than 60 days prior to the District Assembly or PETS, or to the President of each club not less than 60 days prior to the District Conference or a ballot-by-mail.

At the District Assembly or PETS or the District Conference, the resolutions will be presented by the Chair of the Legislative Committee along with the committee's recommendations for action.

SECTION V - SEXUAL ABUSE PROTOCOL

Article 1 - Rationale

The concern for protecting and nurturing youth is as old as Rotary itself. Programs for youth have been a central focus of Rotary from its earliest days, beginning with service to children with disabilities and projects to help boys. In 1949, the RI Board of Directors adopted the slogan 'Every Rotarian an Example to Youth'. The Interact, Youth Exchange, Rotary Youth Leadership Wards (RYLA) and Rotaract programs epitomize Rotarians' dedication to the healthy development of young people.

The RI Board of Directors (November 2002) adopted a "Code of Conduct" for working with youth, which states:

"Rotary International is committed to creating and maintaining the safest possible environment for all participants in Rotary activities. It is the duty of all Rotarians, Rotarians' spouses, partners and other volunteers to safeguard to the best of their ability the welfare of and to prevent the physical, sexual or emotional abuse of children and young people with whom they come into contact."

Article 2 - Policy

This directive is to be posted in such a manner that all members in District 7040 and clubs will have access to and be aware of its content. Now more than ever sexual abuse, mainly involving children, is in the forefront of newscasts and newspapers everywhere. The liability from this type of accusation whether sustainable or not would be devastating to Rotary. Rotary must take action to protect our youth and children that we come in contact with.

Sexual abuse is a Criminal Act, and a Human Rights violation. Abuse in any form will not be tolerated by Rotary in general and within our District 7040 specifically. We are responsible for and will be accountable for our actions. While we are all presumed innocent until proven otherwise, steps must be taken to properly address these situations.

Article 3 - Actions

1. District 7040 will treat all allegations seriously, and will do nothing to impede any criminal investigation.

2. Abuse is: inappropriate or suggestive language, including but not limited to unwanted and sexual touching, violence or threat of violence, embarrassing or threatening remarks, talk of sexual desires and gratification.

3. If abuse is suspected or reported, realizing the need for confidentiality, a case must be documented and reported immediately to the Club President.

a) The President then must notify the District Governor, and appropriate authorities, immediately.

b) The Children's Aid Society as well as the police have a role to play in accusations of this type, and must be advised.

c) Each will conduct an investigation with a view to protect the children and to lay charges where appropriate.

4. All individual Rotarians and volunteers to Rotary such as host parents, who are involved in activities with youth, must obtain police record checks.

5. If the parties refuse to obtain clearance checks for this type of history, then they should not be entrusted with the care of our youth and children.

6. In the case of hosting parents, both parents and anyone at least 18 years of age within the household must obtain police record checks.

7. Always contact references before accepting an out of club volunteer to host our youth exchange students.

8. Hold discussions and training sessions within the club and District relating to these issues.