Dear SCI members,

As agreed on the SCI call on 02 June, the attached document, CONSENSUS CALL-GNSO Operating Procedures Proposed Revision Chair-Vice-Chair Elections 02 June 2016, is being circulated for a formal Consensus Call.  The document is the proposed revision to the GNSO Operating Procedures to include the new text relating to Chair and Vice Chair elections.  The text includes the following suggested changes from today’s SCI call:

1. In Section 2.2 (2) delete the phrase "within the allotted time period" in the sentence “Should the House with the vacant Vice-Chair position fail to appoint an interim Vice-Chair within the allotted time period, the continuing Vice-Chair from the other House will serve as an Interim Vice-Chair alone until a new Chair is conclusively elected.”  Show the deletion in strikeout.

2. In Section 2.2 (3) delete the phrase "within the allotted time period" in the sentence “Should the House with the vacant Vice-Chair position fail to designate an interim Vice-Chair within the allotted time period, the Designated Interim Vice-Chair from the other House will serve as an Interim Vice-Chair alone until a new Chair is conclusively elected.”  Show the deletion in strikeout.

3. In Section 2.2 (4) insert the phrase “within the allotted time period” after “on an interim basis” in the sentence “If both Houses should fail to temporarily fill the role of Vice Chair on an interim basis, the non-voting NCA will be designated the Interim Chair to oversee the Chair election and conduct Council business until such time as a Chair is conclusively elected.”  Show the addition in brackets.

Background:

• In its motion approved on 19 November 2015 the GNSO Council requested the SCI:

• 1. To review Sections 2.2(b), (f) and (g) of the GNSO Operating Procedures with respect to clarifying: (i) the eligibility of incoming Council members to run for the position of GNSO Chair; (ii) the start and end dates and the duration of the Chair and Vice-Chair terms in accordance with the ICANN Bylaws; and (iii) the timing of publication of the election results; and
• 2. To recommend a general time table for election of the GNSO Council Chair to be approved by the GNSO Council and added to the GNSO Operating Procedures.

• In December 2015 the SCI created Subteam B to discuss and draft possible new procedures.  The Subteam members were: Anne Aikman-Scalese, Angie Graves, Wolf-Ulrich Knoben, and Sara Bockey.
• The Subteam submitted its recommendations to the SCI to consider at its meeting during ICANN 55 in Marrakech, Morocco on 05 March 2016.
• On 02 June the SCI discussed the draft revisions and asked staff to submit them to the SCI for a Consensus Call.

If there are no objections or changes received in two weeks by Thursday 16 June, the language will be presumed to be accepted by Full Consensus.

Best regards,

Julie 

Julie Hedlund, Policy Director