Note: Template sections B & C are NOT the most recent.

Please click below to find the proposed changes to each rule:

Section A: DEFINITION AND STRUCTURE

A1: What is the ALAC (including links to relevant ICANN Bylaws and Reviews)

A2: ALAC Members and Structure (Chair, Regionally balanced Executive/Leadership Team etc.)

A3: Primary Role(s) of the ALAC (also and secondary or tertiary rolls identified) 

A4: ALAC mechanisms (Committees, Work Groups, Representations, Activities)

Ax: Other as discussed / decided by DT

Glossary of Defined Terms and Meanings used in the ROPs (as an appendix and complemented by the ICANN Web based tool).

Section B: Responsibilities

1. ALAC Member Requirements and Responsibilities:

1.1. Agree to abide by these Rules of Procedure and other requirements as may be agreed to by the ALAC from time to time.

1.2. Serve on behalf of the ALAC and the At-Large Community by acting for the good of the entire Community.

1.3. Submit a Statement of Interest (SOI) in a format agreed to by the ALAC, and to keep that SoI up to date. Certain positions and responsibilities may require additional information to that included in the standard ALAC SOI.

1.4. Attend all formal ALAC meetings, and to the extent that such participation from time to time may not be possible, provide advance notice of the planned absence where practical.

1.5. Prepare for and actively participate in all ALAC discussions, including face-to-face meetings, teleconferences, e-mail lists, wikis and other means of interaction as agreed to by the ALAC.

1.6. Take part in all ALAC consensus decisions and votes except for those which require attendance at a meeting where the Member is not present.

1.7. Play a leadership role in representing the interests of Internet users within ICANN.

1.8. Actively participate in ALAC Working Groups, and preferably in Working Groups sponsored by other ICANN bodies as well. Unless otherwise specified, such participation is as an individual and not formally representing the ALAC. Preferably, the ALAC member will also take a leadership position within one or more of the Working Groups in which they participate.

1.9. Should a situation arise where a person can no longer reasonably (currently and ongoing) carry out the obligations of a role, that person is obliged to either resign or otherwise ensure that the ALAC and At-Large is well-served.

1.10. Responsibilities of ALAC Members are more fully discussed in the Position Description for ALAC Members, Liaisons and Appointees. <<Note: current title: Position Description for ALAC Members and ALAC Liaisons.>>

2.  ALAC Chair Requirements and Responsibilities

2.1. The Chair must be an ALAC member.

2.2.  A person nominated to be Chair does not need to be in the ALAC at the time of nomination but must have an expectation of being in the ALAC after the next AGM.

2.3. Should the person elected Chair not be an ALAC member after the AGM, a new election will be conducted.

2.4. A chair is elected for one year term automatically extended to two each time the person remains to be an ALAC member for the second year. The first priority for the ALAC is to select the best person to be Chair.

2.5. All actions attributed to the Chair in these RoP may be delegated by the Chair to any other ALAC Member.

2.6. It is expected that a Chair will delegate specific responsibilities (sometimes referred to as “portfolios”) to other ALAC Leadership Team Members (ALTM), other ALAC Members and/or Liaisons based on skills, interests and workload.

2.7. All such delegations are subject to the agreement of the delegate and should be a matter of public record.

2.8. The duties of Chair include:

2.8.1. Presides over ALAC meetings.

2.8.2. Has the authority to determine the procedures to be followed where standard operating procedures do not cover a specific situation,

2.8.3. Verifies the respect of the RoP, Bylaws and other norms applicable to the ALAC.

2.8.4. Determines meeting agendas in advance in conjunction with the ALAC and Staff.

2.8.5. Be the prime liaison with Staff.

2.8.6. Represents the ALAC and At-Large in meetings and in written communication where there is no specific appointment. This responsibility notwithstanding, the Chair is obliged to consult with the ALAC Members, the ALAC Leadership Team (ALT ) and the ALAC and/or other segments of At-Large as appropriate.

2.8.7. Ensures that timelines and deadlines for the work of the Committee are set and met.

2.8.8. Facilitates and encourages participation of all ALAC members in At-Large Community activities and taking appropriate actions when the participation and contributions of ALAC Members and appointees do not meet.

2.9. As a member of the ALT, the Chair is subject to the same obligations as all ALT Members.

2.10. Should the Chair be incapable of carrying out the duties and obligations of the office, including that of delegating responsibilities to another ALAC Member, another ALAC member will be deemed to be the Chair until such time as the original Chair can resume their duties or the ALAC can select a replacement. The replacement chair will be, in order of precedence:

2.10.1. The Vice Chair, if there is only one.

2.10.2. One of the Vice-Chairs, by mutual agreement of the Vice-Chairs, or barring such agreement, by random selection with the random selection carried out by Staff.

2.10.3. Any other ALT Member by mutual agreement of the ALT Members, or barring such agreement, by random selection with the random selection carried out by Staff.

3. ALAC Leadership Team Requirements and Responsibilities

3.1. The ALAC Leadership Team (ALT) supports and collaborates with the Chair in the overall administration and management of the ALAC.

3.2. All ALT Members must be ALAC Members.

3.3. A person nominated to for an ALT position does not need to be in the ALAC at the time of nomination but must have an expectation of being in the ALAC after the next AGM.

3.4. Should a person selected as an ALT Member not be an ALAC member after the AGM, a new selection will be conducted.

3.5. ALT Members are expected to participate in all ALT meetings, both face-to-face and teleconferences, and to the extent that such participation from time to time may not be possible, provide advance notice of the planned absence where practical.

3.6. ALT Members agree to be available to meet the time commitments associated with their position as agreed to be the ALAC. <<Capture for adjunct document – Chair: 20-25 hours per week. More in a bad week, perhaps 1/2 in very good week. on call, available and able to attend meetings 24/7. often to do 7-9 hours straight, per day.>>

3.7. ALAC Members occupying the role of Vice-Chair agree to take on a heavier workload then the untitled ALT Members.

4. ALAC Liaison Requirements and Responsibilities

4.1. The ALAC may from time to time appoint Liaisons to formally represent the ALAC to various bodies within or outside of ALAC from now on named the Target Group (TG).

4.2. Liaisons need not be ALAC members but they will normally be current or past ALAC members, or be otherwise familiar with ALAC/At-Large and the TG to whom they will Liaison.

4.3. Liaisons are responsible for communicating ALAC positions to the TG, and for reporting on TG activities, meetings and actions that may be of interest to the ALAC, to the extent that confidentiality rules of the TG allow.

4.4. Liaisons shall generally have the same responsibilities as ALAC Members, with the following exceptions

4.4.1.   Liaisons do not participate in ALAC consensus decisions or votes unless they are ALAC members.

4.4.2. Liaisons may be relieved of the responsibility to attend all ALAC meetings by decision of the ALAC.

4.4.3. Liaisons have no requirements to participate in ALAC and other WGs other than those related to the TG unless they are ALAC members. That notwithstanding, Liaisons are encouraged and expected to be active participants in the activities of the TG.

4.5. Liaisons have an obligation to ensure that it is clear whether they are speaking on behalf of themselves, the org that sent them (if any) or the ALAC. Moreover, Liaisons must, to the best of their ability, fairly represent positions of the ALAC where they exist.

4.6. When representing the ALAC, Liaisons have an obligation to solicit ALAC and At-Large views on the matter where practical and possible. Liaisons should be picked knowing that in many instances such consultation may not be possible or practical and thus the ALAC needs to select people who understand the philosophies of the ALAC and At-Large.

4.7. Liaisons shall accept, while acting in their capacity on behalf of the ALAC, to put the collective views of the ALAC in front of their own, to the extent that such views are known.

4.7.1. When the personal views are in conflict with ALAC views, the Liaison must make clear which position is which.

4.7.2. To the extent that such ALAC views are not known, personal views should not be misrepresented as ALAC views.

4.8. Liaisons may serve in this capacity to only one TG at a time.

4.9. Liaison appointments are from the period of the end of one AGM to the end of the following AGM unless otherwise specified by the ALAC at the time of the appointment.

4.10. Any appointment where the TG has internal participation qualifications is conditional on acceptance by the TG.

4.11. To the extent possible and practical, the TG should make their requirements known ahead of time.

5. ALAC Non-Liaison Appointee Requirements and Responsibilities

5.1. The ALAC may from time to time appoint individuals to represent the ALAC or to act on behalf of the ALAC to various bodies within or outside of ICANN.

5.2. Non-Liaison Appointees do not need to be ALAC members but must have sufficient knowledge of ALAC/At-Large and other the group or subject related to their appointment so as to be able to properly represent the ALAC/At-Large.

5.3. Except as agreed to by the ALAC, the responsibilities and obligations of Non-Liaison Appointees are generally the same as those of Liaisons.

6. Terms

6.1. All appointments except the ALAC Chair begin at the conclusion of one AGM and continue until the conclusion of the following AGM, unless the ALAC specifically identifies a different time-frame.

6.2. The term of the Chair starts at the conclusion of an AGM and runs for one or two consecutive ICANN years conditional on the Chair being an ALAC member during the second year.

6.3. Should the Chair not be an ALAC member during the second year of the term, the ALAC will use its normal Chair election procedure to select a new Chair as per the normal Chair selection process.

6.4. If any person leaves an appointed position prior to the normal end of their term, the person appointed as a replacement will serve only for the remainder of the incumbent’s term.

7.  Performance and Metrics

7.1. The ALAC can function effectively only if all ALAC Members and appointees meet the obligations of their positions.

7.2. The ability of the ALAC to represent the interest of Internet users depends on strong participation from all ICANN regions.

7.3. The ALAC and At-Large receive very significant funding from ICANN, both for travel and other activities, and the ALAC’s ability to justify such expense is conditional on all ALAC Members making regular and significant contributions to the ALAC, At-Large and ICANN.

7.4. Satisfactory performance is a complex concept including both objective and subjective issues.

7.5. A variety of metrics will be maintained related to quantifiable performance aspects to ensure that all ALAC Members and appointees are aware of their performance, and to support the Chair in the responsibility of monitoring such performance. Such metrics will include, but are not limited to:

7.5.1. Meeting attendance including sending prior notice if attendance not possible.

7.5.2. Attendance will be based on individual ALAC sessions for those present at ICANN meetings.

7.5.3. Participation in the decisions and votes of the ALAC.

7.5.4. Participation and roles played on ALAC working groups as well as those of other bodies within ICANN.

7.6. The metrics for all Members and appointees will be publicly available.

7.7. The ALAC may set thresholds which the Chair or RALOs could use to monitor performance.

7.8. The ALAC has the right to withdraw the appointment of ALAC appointees. <<Recall presumably to be covered by ESADT.>>

7.9. The Chair is empowered to take action as agreed to by the ALAC. Any such actions must be done with due consideration to cultural differences throughout At-Large and to the extent possible in a discreet and sensitive manner.

7.10. Such actions shall include but not be limited to:

7.10.1. Discussion of issue with the ALAC Member or appointee.

7.10.2. Use of the ICANN Ombudsman for mediation.

7.10.3. Discussion with the RALO leadership if the ALAC Member is a RALO appointee

7.10.4. Withdrawal of travel funding, in conjunction with the appropriate ICANN budget manager(s).

7.10.5. Although resignations are far preferable to the ALAC taking formal action, should the situation warrant it, the ALAC may vote to remove an ALAC Member.

7.10.5.1. The Member must be given an opportunity to explain to the ALAC why they should not be removed.

7.10.5.2. Should such a vote be necessary, it will be carried out with a secret ballot of all ALAC members except the one in question.

7.10.5.3. For a vote of removal to be successful, at least 2/3 of the ALAC Members eligible to vote must vote for removal.

7.11. Actions taken do not need to be done in sequence and none of those listed above are mandatory unless specified as so by the ALAC.

7.12. All actions of the ALAC, ALAC Members, or the ALAC Chair are always subject to referral to the ICANN ombudsman.

Section C: Process - Meetings and Administration

1.  ALAC Meetings

1.1. ALAC meetings may be face-to-face or teleconferences. Most face-to-face meetings also have teleconference capabilities for those who cannot attend in person.

1.2. Classification of ALAC meeting

1.2.1. Regular Meetings

1.2.1.1. Scheduled at times as agreed upon by the ALAC.

1.2.1.2. Requires advance notice of at least one (1) week.

1.2.1.3. By explicit action of the ALAC, notice may be waived.

1.2.1.4. Requires Quorum to begin.

1.2.1.5. For face-to-face meetings (typically held in conjunction with ICANN meetings), a meeting can be temporarily halted and reconvened at a later time by agreement of the ALAC. Upon re-convening, Quorum is once again required to begin.

1.2.2. Annual General Meeting (AGM)

1.2.2.1. A Regular meeting held in conjunction with the ICANN Annual General Meeting

1.2.3. Urgent Meetings

1.2.3.1. May be called by the ALAC Chair at any time, possibly on short notice.

1.2.3.2. Requires Quorum to begin.

1.2.3.3. The only Motion that an Urgent Meeting can approve is to give the Urgent Meeting the same rights as a Regular Meeting. If such a decision by Consensus is not unanimous, a formal vote must be taken.

1.2.4. Special Meetings

1.2.4.1. May be called at the request of any four (4) ALAC members.

1.2.4.2. Requires a minimum notice of one (1) week.

1.2.4.3. Requires Quorum to begin

1.2.4.4. Once convened, has the same status as a Regular meeting.

1.3. Meeting Rules

1.3.1. ALAC meetings are run based on the following authorities in decreasing priority

1.3.1.1. ICANN Bylaws

1.3.1.2. These ALAC Rules of Procedure

1.3.1.3. Decisions of the ALAC

1.3.1.4. Robert`s Rules of Order, 11th Edition

1.3.1.5. Rulings of the Chair

1.4. Agenda

1.4.1. All meetings should have an agenda, preferably published ahead of time identifying the topics to be covered in the meeting as well as the projected time to be allowed for each item.

1.4.2. A meeting may have a “Consent Agenda” which will include Motions which are deemed to not require further discussion and will be adopted by consensus or vote as a single item.

1.4.2.1. Items within the consent agenda will be deemed to have been moved by the Chair and seconded by a Vice-Chair as identified in the Consent Agenda.

1.4.2.2. Any ALAC Member may request that a specific item be removed from the Consent Agenda be removed and dealt with independently.

1.5. Quorum

1.5.1. For a meeting to be quorate, more than 50% of the currently sitting Members of the ALAC must be present, either in person, telephonically, or by other means explicitly approved by the ALAC.

1.5.2. The quorum for a vote to proceed has not yet been fixed. Following are the current version, followed by an alternative that was suggested with (so far) no objections). The issue is whether regional representation needs to be ensured on any vote.

1.5.2.1. For a vote or decision to be valid which will be completed at a meeting, the meeting must be quorate at the time of the decision. <<This option is our current procedure.>>

1.5.2.2. Keep the current vote Quorum definition, but add that if all regions are not present, a vote must be used instead of Consensus and that vote must be carried over unless the Chair deems the issue too urgent to do this. <<This would eliminate the effective veto, but ensure that all regions have an opportunity to participate in virtually all ALAC decisions.

1.6. Open Meetings, Speaking Rights and Speaking Order

1.6.1. Unless otherwise decided by the ALAC to address a specific sensitive issue, all ALAC meetings are open.

1.6.2. Speaking priority is given to ALAC Members, Liaisons and Appointees, but time permitting, others may be granted speaking rights at the discretion of the Chair.

1.6.3. Participants who wish to speak should indicate their intention using whatever method is appropriate given the meeting details.

1.6.4. The Chair shall have sole control over the speaking order and may time-limit interventions.

1.7. Motions

1.7.1. Any formal action of the ALAC will be in the form of a Motion. Such formal action may be initiated at an ALAC meeting or electronically.

1.7.2. Motions may be made by any ALAC Member.

1.7.3. To the extent possible and practical, Motions should be made and circulated well in advance of the meeting.

1.7.4. All Motions must be seconded by another ALAC Member.

1.7.5. The Chair shall allow sufficient time for discussion, which may take place at a meeting or electronically, prior to the ALAC taking a decision.

1.7.6. Prior to reaching a decision, an amendment to the Motion may be suggested by any Member.

1.7.6.1. If the Members who put and seconded the original Motion deem the amendment to be “friendly”, it will become part of the Motion being considered.

1.7.6.2. If a motion is not considered to be friendly, a decision of the ALAC is required as to whether the amendment is incorporated or rejected.

1.8. Points of Order

1.8.1. A point of order is an interruption of a meeting which must be addressed before the meeting may proceed. There are two general types of Points of Order with respect to ALAC meetings.

1.8.1.1. A situation where a Member believes that the ALAC Rules are not being followed and requests a ruling of the Chair.

1.8.1.2. A situation where continuation of the meeting is impractical due technical or other problem. Examples of such problems include the lack of technical infrastructure and the failure of audio-visual aides.

1.8.2. The Chair shall rule if anything needs to be done to correct the situation.

1.9. Procedural Motions

1.9.1. A procedural motion is a motion to do the following (in order of precedence):

1.9.1.1. Suspend the meeting;

1.9.1.2. Adjourn the meeting;

1.9.1.3. Close debate on an issue and initiate the decision process (consensus or vote)

1.9.2. A procedural motion may be made by any ALAC Member and does not need to be seconded.

1.9.3. Once a procedural motion is made, it must immediately be decided by either consensus or vote.

1.9.4. If multiple procedural motions are made, they must be addressed in the order specified in this section.

1.10. Decisions of the ALAC

1.10.1. With several exceptions noted here, all decisions of the ALAC should preferably made by Consensus.

1.10.2. When attempting to judge Consensus, the Chair will ask if there any objections to the Motion or amendment being adopted. If the call for objections is made electronically, sufficient time should be allowed for Members to voice their objection.

1.10.3.     Whether Consensus has been reached is a ruling of the Chair.

1.10.3.1. As a “rule of thumb”, Consensus is unanimity minus no more than three for the full ALAC and proportionally smaller for a smaller group.

1.10.4. Any ALAC member may request that a formal vote be taken instead of the Chair judging whether Consensus has been reached. If such a vote is requested, the Chair may decide whether to hold the vote immediately or after additional discussion.

1.10.5. If a Member cannot be present for a vote, either cast in person or electronically, that vote may be cast by another Member according to rules governing Proxies.

1.10.6. Any vote related to personnel, whether in an election, appointment, recall or disciplinary action shall be held by secret ballot and how each Member votes shall not be revealed.

1.10.7. For any vote not held by secret ballot, how each ALAC member votes shall be recorded in the records of the meeting.

1.10.8. All ALAC Members will be given an opportunity to request that the meeting record indicate the rationale for their vote. Members who abstain shall explicitly be asked if they wish such a record to be made.

1.10.9. For decision made by Consensus, any Member who does not support the Consensus position may request that their disagreement be noted in the records of the meeting.

1.10.10. If a formal vote is taken where the outcome is not needed immediately for a time-sensitive reason, the Chair may decide to keep the vote open for no more than three days to allow votes of those not at the meeting to be registered. Those votes may be registered via e-mail, telephone with Staff, or via a specialized web-based voting system

1.10.11. Votes carried out outside of formal meetings may be carried out using any method approved by the ALAC which may include:

1.10.11.1. Specialized web-based voting systems,

1.10.11.2. E-mail

1.10.11.3. Telephone

1.10.12. A formal vote is deemed to be successful if at least five delegates cast a non-abstaining vote, and if the number of votes in favor is higher than the number of votes against. For votes that explicitly require a super-majority or a two/thirds vote, the number of votes in favor must be at least twice the number of votes against.

1.10.13. If a formal vote is taken which results in a tie, the Chair may:

1.10.13.1. Cast a second vote to eliminate the tie

1.10.13.2. Call for additional discussion and then decision

1.10.13.3. Immediately call for a new vote

1.10.13.4. If the vote was part of a nomination and selection process, re-open the entire process

1.10.14. Votes must be used in lieu of Consensus for:

1.10.14.1. Election of the ALAC Chair

1.10.14.2. Election of the At-Large Board Member

1.10.14.3. Approval or removal of an ALS

1.10.14.4. Any vote that must be held by secret ballot

1.10.15. If any part of the present section of the Rules of Procedure are contradicted by the sections governing the election of the ALAC Chair or the At-Large Board Member, the latter sections must be followed.

1.11.   Proxy Voting

1.11.1. If a Member will be unable to participate in a vote at a given meeting, another Member (Proxy Holder) may hold a proxy to cast that vote on behalf of the first Member (Proxy Giver).

1.11.2. If the details of a vote are known ahead of time, the Proxy Giver may instruct the Proxy Holder how to vote and the Proxy Holder is honor bound to follow those instructions. Such a Proxy is known as a Directed Proxy. If no specific instructions are given (an Undirected Proxy) the Proxy Holder may vote as he/she wishes.

1.11.3. An Undirected Proxy may be given to cover some or all votes to be held in a given meeting.

1.11.4. A Member may receive Proxies from no more than two other Members.

1.11.5. If a Proxy Holder is not at the specified meeting, the Proxy shall be given to the Chair of the meeting who may hold an unlimited number of such “2nd order” Proxies.

1.11.5.1. A Proxy Giver may specify that the Proxy not go to the meeting Chair in the case of absence of the Proxy Holder.

1.11.6. Proxies, whether Directed or Undirected, do not alter the rules surrounding disclosure of how a Member votes. In the case of a secret ballot, the Proxy Holder is honor bound not to publicly reveal the contents of the cast Proxy vote.

1.11.7. The ALAC will from time-to-time publish the details of how a Proxy is to be issued.

1.12. Records of ALAC Meetings

1.12.1. Records of ALAC meetings, whether in the form of formal “minutes” or less formal notes or meeting summaries, shall at a minimum include:

1.12.1.1. Type of meeting, date, location (if face-to-face) and start and stop times

1.12.1.2. Attendance including how a person joined (for instance in person or via teleconference)

1.12.1.3. Agenda, as amended during the meeting if applicable

1.12.1.4. Decisions taken including method (vote or Consensus), record of how Members voted if a vote, and records of any abstentions or other remarks requested by Members

1.12.1.5. Links to any media associated with meeting (such as recordings, presentations)

1.12.1.6. Any of the above may be omitted by decision of the ALAC if inclusion would violate confidentiality in any particular case.

1.12.2.  Records of meeting must be made available to Members by the earlier of a) 30 days from the date of the meeting (or last date if the meeting spanned more than one day); or b) the posting of the final agenda for the following meeting.

1.12.3. Records of meetings are deemed to be accepted 14 days after they are first distributed, or 14 days after the last correction is requested by a Member.

2. Amendment of the Rules of Procedure

2.1.1. A Motion to amend the Rules of Procedure must be made at least 21 calendar days prior to the meeting.

2.1.2. The text of the changes must be provided at the time the Motion is made.

2.1.3. Amendments are allowed, but any suggested amendments should preferably be made well in advance of the meeting.

2.1.4. Approval of the modified Rules of Procedure requires a supermajority vote of the ALAC.

3. ALAC Work Methods

3.1. The ALAC will use a variety of work methods to accomplish its goals. These will include:

3.1.1. Face-to-face meetings

3.1.2. Teleconferences

3.1.3. E-mail

3.1.4. Wikis

3.1.5. Other methods that are deemed by the ALAC to be appropriate and generally accessible to its Member, Appointees, and members of the At-Large Community.

3.2. E-mail

3.2.1. E-mail is a prime technology used by the ALAC.

3.2.2. The ALAC and At-Large will have a variety of E-mail mailing lists to allow easy communications amongst ALAC Members, Appointees, WG members, RALOs, and members of At-Large.

3.2.3. To ensure that these lists are used properly and have the correct membership lists, the ALAC will from time-to-time publish a guide to its mailing lists.

3.2.4. Most At-Large mailing lists are archived and viewable by the public. The ALAC guide to mailing lists will identify which lists are public and which are not.

3.2.5. Communication by electronic mail shall be considered equivalent to any communication otherwise required to be in writing. The ALAC shall take such steps as it deems appropriate under the circumstances to assure itself that communications by electronic mail are authentic.

3.3. Work Teams

3.3.1. Much of the work of the ALAC will be carried out through Work Teams (WT). Examples of WTs include but are not limited to:

3.3.1.1. ALAC Sub-committees, standing or ad hoc

3.3.1.2. Drafting Teams

3.3.1.3. Working Groups

3.3.2. The ALAC Charters all such WTs, specifying intent of the group, expected outcomes if applicable, general or specific WT composition and membership.

3.4. All ALAC meetings are conducted in English. To the extent possible and practical, and subject to ICANN funding and sufficient demand, simultaneous translation from and into other languages may be provided. WT meetings are generally conducted only in English, but consideration may be given to interpretation subject to the same guidelines as for ALAC meetings.<<This reflects our current practice and allows us to change as the ICANN translation and interpretation policy evolves.>>

4. At-Large Structures

4.1. The ALAC shall, subject to review by the RALOs and the ICANN Board, set procedures to certify and decertify At-Large Structures.

4.2. Detailed procedures are set forth in the At-Large document “At-Large Framework Formation” (http://www.atlarge.icann.org/framework.htm at these Rules of Procedure were last modified).

4.3. The “At-Large Framework Formation” shall be deemed to be an integral part of these Rules of Procedure.

Section D    PROCESS - ELECTIONS, SELECTIONS, AND APPOINTMENTS

Elections, selections and appointments

 1.General provisions

1.1. According to the ICANN Bylaws, the ALAC Chair has to be formally elected. Other selections and appointments can be made by consensus, but failing that, elections can always be used as a last resort.

 1.2. Elections and selections can take place by electronic mail, online ballot, written ballot, or any other convenient and accurate means that are deemed to provide appropriate degree of confidentiality.

 2. Procedures for the election of Chair and selection of the ALAC Leadership Team

2.1. Ordinary Chair Elections

2.1.1. Ordinary elections of the ALAC Chair shall be held so as to have the new Chair selected prior to the start of the AGM. The selection should preferably be completed at least three (3) weeks prior to the start of the AGM to allow for the orderly selection of the rest of the ALAC Leadership Team.

2.1.2. The time schedule of the election process must take into account a  possible run-off election.

2.1.3. The Chair / ALAC Staff will send to an appropriate ALAC mailing list an “election call” for the ALAC Chair, giving the schedule and modalities of the election process and a requesting nominations (including self-nominations) by ALAC Members. The election call will allow at least fourteen (14) days for nominations.
 
2.1.4. The requirements to be met by nominees for Chair are listed in section X of the RoP.

2.1.5. A nominee must send a message of acceptance to the same list on which nominations were solicited within seven (7) days of the close of nominations. If the nominee does not have sending privileges to that list, the acceptance should be sent via ALAC Staff. If the nominee does not have an ALAC Statement of Interest, one must be completed prior to the close of the acceptance period.

2.1.6. After the deadline for nomination acceptance has passed, the Chair/ALAC Staff will post to the appropriate ALAC mailing list an “election summary” of all valid nominations for Chair, announcing the detailed election process.
 
2.1.7. Nominations shall then be discussed on the appropriate ALAC mailing list, conference calls, or other electronic or face-to-face meetings as appropriate.

 2.1.8. The ALAC can designate an independent third party to conduct the mechanics of the vote.
 
2.1.9. The voting mechanism shall allow each Member to cast his/her vote in a confidential manner.

2.1.10. The count of those voting must constitute an ALAC quorum for the election to be valid. 

2.2. Ordinary Leadership Team selections
 
2.2.1. Ordinary elections of the ALAC Leadership Team Members shall be held in connection with the AGM.

2.2.2. The incoming Chair must be selected prior to the initiation of the selection process of the other Members of the Leadership Team. (Cf. 2.1.1., 2.1.2).

2.2.3. The Chair / ALAC Staff will send to an appropriate ALAC mailing list a “selection call” for the Leadership Team Members identifying the positions to be filled, giving the schedule and modalities of the selection process and requesting nominations (including self-nominations) by ALAC members. The selection call will allow at least seven (7) days for nominations.
 
2.2.4. The requirements to be met by Leadership Team nominees are listed in section X of the RoP.
 
2.2.5. A nominee must send a message of acceptance to the same list on which nominations were solicited within seven (7) days of the close of nominations. If the nominee does not have sending privileges to that list, the acceptance should be sent via ALAC Staff. If the nominee does not have an ALAC Statement of Interest, one must be completed prior to the close of the acceptance period.

2.2.6. The selection of the Leadership Team Members (excluding the Chair) shall be carried out during the AGM using the standard ALAC process of consensus if possible, and barring that, by secret ballot. Regardless of outcome, there shall be not more than one person selected from each of the regions not represented by the Chair.

 2.3. Extraordinary elections, selections and appointments

2.3.1. Extraordinary elections are held, if for any reason a vacancy arises outside the normal election cycle, and  a Leadership Team position  (including the Chair) becomes vacant more than X months before the end of the term.

2.3.2.When such vacancy occurs, the Chair /ALAC  Staff will immediately send to an appropriate ALAC  mailing list an “selection/election call” for filling the open position for the remainder of the ordinary term, asking for nominations by a 14  day deadline or sooner, if warranted by special circumstances. The “selection/election call” should allow for nominations to be accepted within 7 days of the nomination.

 2.3.3. If the Chair is the vacancy being filled, nominations may be for ALAC Members from any region. If one of the other Members of the Leadership Team is being filled, nominations may only be from for an ALAC Member from the region represented by the previous incumbent.

2.3.4. Only current ALAC Members are eligible and entitled to vote.

2.3.5. Within 7 (seven) days of the nominations deadline, the Chair will post to the ALAC public list a “selection/election summary” of all valid nominations, announcing the date, time and modalities of the selection and specifying the term of the appointment.

2.3.6. If the Chair is being elected, and the incoming Chair is from different region than the Chair previously in office, then a new Leadership Team Member from the latter region must be selected.

 2.4. Special provisions

 2.4.1. The election system is described in the Annex.

 2.4.2. If two or more candidates receive the same, highest number of preferences, a runoff election is to be conducted.

 2.4.3. The Chair/ALAC Staff will post a new “election summary”, listing only the candidates that received the same, highest number of preferences, and select the date and time for the runoff election, to be held as soon as the electorate can be informed about it. 

 2.3.4. In case no candidate is elected for any other reason (lack of valid nominations, lack of five valid preferences...), the Chair/ALAC Staff will immediately post a new “election call”, thus reopening nominations. The Chair and the serving officers may jointly appoint a Member to fill the vacancy who may serve until the elections process concludes, or until the term of office ends and a successor is elected, whichever shall come first.

 2.3.5. Incumbent officers shall continue to serve in their position in full standing until a valid result is obtained for the election and a new officer is elected. 

 3. Procedure for other appointments

3.1. Appointments of At-Large representatives  to various ICANN bodies both inside and outside of the ALAC, including Liaisons,  will be made by the ALAC. Such appointments shall normally be initiated by a call for volunteers, posted by the Chair to an appropriate  ALAC/At Large mailing list, and on other lists, if appropriate, allowing at least 7 (seven) days for people to volunteer. The ALAC tries to reach consensus on the appointment(s). However, if consensus cannot be reached, or in case that this is requested any (AG) ALAC member, the Chair will start a formal election procedure.

3.2. ALAC Representatives to the Nominating Committee, one from each ICANN region,  will be selected by ALAC in consultation with the RALOs.

4. Procedures for electing the ALAC representative to the ICANN Board

This rule describes the process by which an At-Large Board member is selected to fill the Board seat referred to as Seat 15 within the ICANN Bylaws.

4.1 Timing

For any regular term, the timing of the process described in this section must meet the ICANN Bylaw Article VI, Section 8 (1.f) and 8 (4) requirement to provide written notice of the person selected to the Secretary of ICANN no later than six months before the conclusion of ICANN's annual meeting in 2014 and each ICANN annual meeting every third year after 2014.

4.2 Board Selection Process Committee

The ALAC shall name a Board Member Selection Process Committee (BMSPC) which will oversee the entire selection process including the election culminating the process but excluding those responsibilities specifically retained by the ALAC or given to the Board Candidate Evaluation Committee. At the ALAC’s choice, the ALAC shall either name a chair of the BMSPC or may instruct the BMSPC to select a chair from amongst its members.

4.3 Board Candidate Evaluation Committee

The ALAC shall name a Board Candidate Evaluation Committee (BCEC) to compile an initial slate of candidates for election to Seat 15. A new BCEC consisting of two delegates selected by each of the RALOs plus a chair selected by the ALAC will be convened for each Board seat selection process. No member of the electorate (see 27.7) may simultaneously serve as a member of the BCEC. The BCEC shall solicit Expressions of Interest (EoI) and only those submitting such EoIs may be considered by the BCEC. The task of the BCEC is to identify applicants who would each make an excellent Board Director, who have the highest integrity and capability, who are knowledgeable about both ICANN’s and At Large's mission and environment, and who are best able to articulate and advance the views and needs of the global community of Internet end users to the ICANN Board. The BCEC Operating Principles in use for the 2010 selection can be found at  (link to appropriate web page)https://st.icann.org/absdt/index.cgi?draft_bcec_operating_principles.&nbsp;

4.4 Committee Overlap

No person who is or was a member of the current BMSPC or BCEC may submit a SoI to that BCEC. 

4.5 Procedures

The BMSPC and the BCEC shall adopt their operating procedures.  They shall be published and are subject to ALAC  review and approval.

4.6 Final Candidate List

Following the publication of the BCEC slate of candidates, RALOs have an opportunity to suggest adding candidates to that list.  The timetable should allow for  consultations and outreach both within and among RALO's. RALO's can only suggest candidates who had previously submitted a SoI to the BCEC during the current selection process. They will be added only   if they receive the support through formal action of at least three of the five RALOs.

4.7 Electorate

a) The electorate for the final election shall be the fifteen ALAC members plus the five RALO chairs.

b) If a member of the electorate is a candidate, the RALO for his/her region will name a replacement.

c) If a vote of a RALO Chair is to be directed by a RALO membership, that decision needs to be a formal decision of the RALO according to its rules.

4.8 Voting Process

a) All votes shall be by secret ballot. Votes may be cast electronically, in person, telephonically or some combination thereof. For votes cast in person or telephonically, the services of a trusted third party will ensure the secrecy of the ballot. Proxies are allowed only in accordance with explicit ALAC Rules of Procedure governing their use, or with explicit BSPC rules governing their use.

b) If there is only one candidate on the Final Candidate List, that candidate shall be acclaimed the winner.

c) If there are more than three candidates on the Final Candidate List, the first vote shall be using an accepted voting method which allows the three most preferred candidates to be selected.

d) When there are three candidates remaining, there shall be vote of the electorate. Should one candidate receive more than 50% of votes cast, that candidate shall be declared the winner. If not, the candidate with the least votes shall be removed. If there is a tie for last position,and if sufficient time remains, the BMSPC, will run the tied election over again in case voter positions have changed. In any given step of the process, this can be done just once.

e) When there are two candidates remaining, there shall be vote of the electorate. Should one candidate receive greater than 50% of votes cast, that candidate shall be declared the winner. If there is a tie,  and if sufficient time remains, the BMSPC, will run the tied election over again in case voter positions have changed. In any given step of the process, this can be done just once.

f) If there is no time to run the tied election over again as called for in d) and e), a random selection by a method determined in advance by the BMSPC shall be used to identify the candidate to be removed.

4.9 History

To ensure that the process history is not lost despite the volunteer and staff turnover and the infrequency of At-Large Board Member selections, the ALAC shall preserve ALAC and ABSdt documents giving the history of the creation of this Rule; and the BSPC/BMSPC and BCEC operating procedures and other non-confidential documents.

5. RECALL

5.1 A recall vote can be initiated by:

A request, specifying the officer or appointee to be recalled and the reasons for such proposal, posted to the list specified in an adjunct document,  and supported by at least five delegates; 

The Chair, upon verification of the lack or loss of eligibility requirements, or failure to meet participation requirements set forth in rule 21.

5.2. Before proceeding to the formal recall process, the Chair may encourage the officer or appointee concerned to resign. (AG)

5.3 In case a recall vote is initiated, the Chair will send a message to the  list specified in an adjunct document, announcing such vote, and including the date and time for the vote, selected by the Chair and situated no earlier than 7 (seven) and no later than 14 (fourteen) days after the date of the announcement. Between the announcement and the vote, the matter will be discussed on the public ALAC list, including counter-arguments by the officer under recall. 

5.4. A voting instrument meeting the requirements set forth in 9.6 will be set up by staff or disinterested third party. Each delegate will be allowed to cast a vote picking among “in favor”, “against” or “abstain”.

5.5 In case that at least nine votes are cast in favor of recall and not less than 11 ALAC members participate in the vote (for the purpose of this article, a vote Yea, Nay of Abstain shall count as participation) and   the recall is successful;   in all other cases, it is not. 

5.6 In case of successful recall, the Chair will promptly post an “election call” to start the procedure defined in Rule 9, to elect a replacement. The recalled officer or appointee will continue to serve until a replacement is elected, or if unable to serve or to serve in the best interests of the ALAC and At Large, then an interim representative or officer can be appointed by the ALAC.

 


 

(THIS SECTION WAS A  TEMPLATE; will be removed)

D1: Appointment of a ALAC Representatives to:

  • Standing Committees of the ALAC
    • ExCom
    • Budget and Finance
    • list continues... 
    • ... .....
  • AdHoc Committees of the ALAC
      • list continues... 
      • ... .....
  • ALAC Work Groups
    Other ICANN Groups and Activities external to the ALAC
    • ALAC Study / Interest Groups
      • links to Wiki spaces
    • ALAC Design/Drafting Teams

D2: Election of the ALAC Chair

D3: Selection to ICANN Board seat #15 

(insert / link to section on this methodology and note the future opportunity to review and alter if desired and agreed by consensus)

Dx: Other as discussed / decided by DT

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1 Comment

  1. I have deleted my earlier comment to avoid confusion.  The entry for 20 October is the agreed output of the DSDT team