SEC Constitution

SEC Constitution Q & A

The purpose of this document is to list some of the questions and answers that have come up in relation to the proposed constitution, before the SEC Session itself. As the constitution is a complicated legal document, which will have been scrutinised by UK lawyers, General Conference lawyers, and the Charity Commission, editing at the Session will not be possible. At the moment this document is a work in progress, so if you have questions please pass them on to the SEC Executive Secretary and we may be able to include them in a future version, along with answers. Note that in the questions below, unless otherwise stated, the constitution references relate to the proposed new constitution, not the current (2015) one.
 

Why do we need a model constitution?

Can we change anything in the model constitution?

Don't charities have to be independent?

As we are a separate charity, why does our purpose have to be in harmony with the purpose and policy of the BUC?

Are the “higher organisations” becoming more influential?

Why should the General Conference be able to call a SEC constituency meeting?

Can we really establish other charities?

Shouldn't the constitution include ...?

Do we really need provision for “telephone” meetings?

In a virtual or hybrid meeting, would remote attendees be disadvantaged?

How do we ensure that a quorum is maintained at constituency meetings?

Does the Executive Committee have the authority to hire and fire people?

What's the difference between a trustee and a delegate?

Am I expected to vote in a certain way on proposals that are put forward at the session?

Why do we have a capped delegation?

What does “in consultation with” mean?

What changes can be made to the constitution at the Session?

What are the pros and cons of changing from a four to a five-year term?

What are the benefits of increasing the minimum number of regular delegates?

Do we need an upper limit on the size of the SEC Executive Committee?

Are we going to reconsider the total delegate cap of 600?

Will the proposed constitution affect the relationship between the SEC and the BUC?

Will the changes made to the constitution have much impact at local church level?

In the proposed amendments section (Article 16) why do changes to unbolded text require a two- thirds majority vote, while changes to the bold text only require a simple majority?

Article 3 (Purpose) lists many different powers. Do we have to use them all?

Why do we need a model constitution?

The Seventh-day Adventist Church around the world maintains its unity by sharing the same beliefs (the Fundamental Beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventist Church), the same rules of church operation (specified in the Church Manual), and the same system of governance (specified in General Conference Working Policy). Local churches generally don't have to consider Working Policy, but for Missions, Conferences, Unions, and their Executive Committees, it is very important. Working Policy defines how the church should be governed around the world and it includes detailed models for the creation of local constitutions. Some flexibility is allowed to take account of local laws and customs, but some parts are essential for maintaining the unity of the church. 

Can we change anything in the model constitution?

Yes, the model constitution has sections that are in bold type, and sections that are in normal type. The sections in normal type can be changed, but the bold type sections can only be changed if there are extenuating circumstances and with the agreement of the General Conference.

Don't charities have to be independent?

Charities have to be independent from the state and focus solely on their charitable aims and purposes, but it is very common for charities to be part of a group, affiliation, federation, parent or sponsoring body, or an umbrella organisation, just as we are part of the wider Seventh-day Adventist Church. In these cases, where there are shared purposes and objectives, they often use model constitutions provided by the parent body. It is important that the relationship to the parent body is specified in the constitution. In our case the relationship is stated clearly, right from the start, in Article 1.

As we are a separate charity, why does our purpose have to be in harmony with the purpose and policy of the BUC?

This relationship is stated in Article 3 (a) and is exactly the same as in the current constitution. As stated above, we are part of a wider church body and we are strongest when we share the same purpose, right across the world.

Are the “higher organisations” becoming more influential?

It has always been the custom for representatives or officers of the Union, Division and General Conference to be invited to attend conference sessions and even conference executive committees, where their breadth of experience can be very helpful. The model conference constitution actually states that they should be considered “members” of the executive committee. However, our charity laws would make this difficult so they would simply be invitees. At a session, members of the BUC Executive Committee may be delegates at large, but the number is limited to a maximum of just 2% of the total number of delegates, which is just 12 persons. In practice the number is usually lower than this.

Why should the General Conference be able to call a SEC constituency meeting?

Article 5 (b) (i) (4) says that the SEC Executive Committee shall call a special  constituency meeting if it is voted for by the executive committee of the British Union Conference, the executive committee of the Trans-European Division, or the executive committee of the General Conference. Rather than being an erosion of the authority of the SEC, this is actually a provision put in place to safeguard the constitutional rights of the SEC members. It is theoretically possible (and it may have happened in other parts of the world) that a conference’s leadership decides to take actions that are not in keeping with the direction of the world church or the wishes of the members. In such cases it would be proper for a constituency meeting to be called so that the conference members can have their say regarding the leadership and direction of the conference, and exercise their democratic rights accordingly.

Can we really establish other charities?

Yes, Article 3 (b) (ix) specifically gives the SEC this authority, as long as those charities have objects similar to the Purpose. A good example of this is Adventist Radio London.

Shouldn't the constitution include ...?

Constitutions are the main governing documents for organisations. They should be as clear and concise as possible. The proposed new SEC Constitution is 83% bigger than the old one, as a number of things have been included for compliance and legal reasons. There are many things that a charity needs to do which are not specified explicitly in the constitution, but these can be found in policy documents, on the Charity Commission website, or in various supplementary materials. These may include risk management responsibilities and strategies, duties of trustees, how complaints should be handled etc.

Do we really need provision for “telephone” meetings?

Articles 5 (c) and 18 (d) have been added in response to the global COVID pandemic. Previously many charities were unable to carry out their constitutional business because there was no provision for virtual attendance. The provisions included in the proposed new SEC constitution are blanket provisions that should allow business to be conducted in the case of any future emergency situations. There is no knowing what these might be but “telephone” has been included as a “lowest common denominator”, hopefully allowing business to still take place even in worst case scenarios. Whether or not to use such a system would be at the discretion of the SEC Executive Committee, as stated in Article 5 (c).

In a virtual or hybrid meeting, would remote attendees be disadvantaged?

No, Article 5 (c) states that “all delegates must be able to hear, comment and vote on the proceedings.”

How do we ensure that a quorum is maintained at constituency meetings?

The business of a constituency meeting can only proceed if at least 51% of the delegates are present. It is the responsibility of the chair, with assistance as necessary from others, to ensure that this percentage is maintained.

Does the Executive Committee have the authority to hire and fire people?

Yes. The proposed constitution makes it clear that the appointment of officers, directors and other elected personnel, comes under the authority of the Executive Committee between constituency meetings. They also have overall responsibility for employment throughout the Union, though this would usually be through the administrative officers, intermediary committees, personnel departments and the like.

What's the difference between a trustee and a delegate?

A trustee is appointed to a position to use their own experience, knowledge, expertise and discretion to make joint group decisions for the good of the charity. A delegate is appointed by a particular body (for example a local church in the case of conference constituency meetings, or the conferences or missions in the case of union constituency meetings) to represent the views of the body which appoints them.

Am I expected to vote in a certain way on proposals that are put forward at the session?

As above, delegates are appointed to represent the body which appointed them. You may hear of caucus groups, WhatsApp groups, or other informal gatherings of delegates meeting to try to ensure particular outcomes. Your responsibility is to the church which delegated you, and, while you should of course gather as much information as you can, you should vote according to what you consider to be the wishes of your church.

Why do we have a capped delegation?

As church membership rises (which we believe it will) the number of delegates could eventually become unmanageable if a cap were not in place. On top of this is the major expense of having a constituency meeting, which increases dramatically with the number of delegates. Capping the number of regular delegates for SEC Sessions to 600 was voted into the SEC constitution many years ago and there is no plan to change this.

What does “in consultation with” mean?

Article 9 (a) defines how the executive officers should work together. It says that they should be in consultation with one another. But what does "in consultation with" mean? Can the president overrule his fellow officers? Should this be more tightly defined?
This was discussed by the BUC Constitution Committee in preparation for their 2021 constitution, and was also checked with the General Conference. In practice there are many different styles of leadership - some presidents will be more consultative than others! It might be possible to define the relationship more tightly but the consensus that has been reached over the years is that an attempt to do so would probably over-complicate an already complicated relational situation. The body which applies the checks and balances to the working relationships within the administration, is the Executive Committee. If they see that relationships are becoming unbalanced, they should step in. At the end of the day, the flexibility, or even ambiguity, within the phrase "in consultation with" is probably a good compromise which allows officers to work most effectively within their personality types and skill sets.

What changes can be made to the constitution at the Session?

The constitution is a complex legal document, with many interdependent sections and clauses. It is very important that any proposed changes are carefully scrutinised before they are voted on. This is underlined in the constitution itself where, in Article 19 (a) (i) it says, "at least twenty-eight (28) days notice of any proposed change" must be given. The document as a whole has been checked and double checked, and has approval from the SEC, the General Conference, and our lawyers. In order to maintain the integrity of the document we are suggesting that only three possible changes to the document be discussed and voted on as the session itself. These are as follows:

  1. The ratio of regular delegates to delegates at large – at present this is 70/30, but there has been a suggestion that the percentage of regular delegates could be increased, perhaps to as high as 80%.
  2. The period of time between regular sessions. Currently sessions are held every four years, but there has been a suggestion that this be increased to five, thus keeping the SEC sessions in sync with BUC and General Conference sessions.
  3. The upper limit for the number of members of the SEC Executive Committee. Currently no such limit is specified but in practice the number has been around 20.

What are the pros and cons of changing from a four to a five-year term?

The General Conference and the BUC both have their sessions every five years, which keeps the interval between them constant. With a four year term for the SEC the intervals between sessions keep changing. If the SEC moved to a five year term they would be kept in sync. This would be helpful in terms of budgeting and planning. There is also a cost element. Conference sessions, especially with the size of the SEC delegation, are very expensive. Spreading this cost over five years rather than four effectively means a saving of 20%. There is also a benefit in terms of administrative stability. The SEC is a large and complex organisation, and it takes a long time to get plans and strategies in place and then see them through to completion. It would arguably be easier to achieve strategic aims over five years rather than four. On the downside, a session gives the delegates an opportunity to change administrators, directors and Executive Committee members. If the members are not entirely happy with the way the conferences is headed, the session gives them an opportunity to exercise their democratic rights.

What are the benefits of increasing the minimum number of regular delegates?

The current constitution specifies that a minimum of 70% of the delegates to the SEC Session should be “regular delegates”, that is, delegates sent by the local churches. The other delegates, known as “delegates at large” are made up of Executive Committee members, institutional heads, directors, administrators, ministers and other employees. Having both regular delegates and delegates at large ensures that there is representation from both members and church employees. Both of these groups offer valuable insights into the way the church is being run, and both perspectives are needed. Increasing the minimum number of regular delegates would mean that the influence of regular members, compared to employees, would be increased.

Do we need an upper limit on the size of the SEC Executive Committee?

The current (2015) SEC constitution sets a lower limit for the size of the SEC Executive Committee of 14, but there is no upper limit. The GC Model Conference Constitution recommends that an upper limit is given, though it doesn’t give the number. In practice the total committee members is usually around the 22 mark, but it might be worth setting an upper limit so as to give the Nominating Committee a specific figure to work to. Figures of 17, 22 or 25, have been suggested. There is a balance to be struck between getting the right mixture of skills on the committee, while not making it so big that the dynamics change and make decision-making difficult.

Are we going to reconsider the total delegate cap of 600?

600 delegates is a lot! The cost of running a SEC Session is very high already, and many of the costs are passed on to the local churches. Sessions are of course important, but we must remember that our priority should be on fulfilling the mission, or purpose, of the church. There is also the question of good democracy. We want members, through their delegates, to have their views represented at the Session. This can be done through votes, but a lot is also done through the spoken word. The more delegates there are, the fewer of them actually get to speak. So, it is important to maintain a balance between democratic representation and practicality. As so many other changes are being proposed this year we felt it would be better to leave the cap as it is for now, though it can certainly be reconsidered at future Sessions.

Will the proposed constitution affect the relationship between the SEC and the BUC?

No, it shouldn’t. In practice the relationship will remain the same as it has for many decades. Many of the provisions in the proposed constitution are designed to protect the stability of the conference and the democratic rights of its members in the event of an emergency of some kind. For example, if the SEC Executive Committee were unable, or unwilling, to call a regular constituency meeting within the designated period, the BUC Executive Committee could step in to call the meeting, thus upholding the SEC constitution.

Will the changes made to the constitution have much impact at local church level?

Probably not much. The Church Manual is the working document for the local church, whereas the Constitution relates more to the general governance of the SEC, both as a denominational entity and as a charity. As above, the Constitution is there more as a foundational document for the protection of SEC, rather than a day to day operational guide.

In the proposed amendments section (Article 16) why do changes to unbolded text require a two-thirds majority vote, while changes to the bold text only require a simple majority?

The bold type sections are the ones that come to us from the General Conference. We are not forced to implement them but the General Conference would like us to accept them as they are part of the church’s strategy for greater world unity and cohesion. Any proposed changes to the bold sections will have been considered very carefully by many different committees and legal experts, so accepting them does not carry any great risks. For this reason a simple majority is enough to incorporate them into any future constitutions. The unbolded sections are the ones where we have freedom to change, add, or subtract text. As the General Conference does not check these sections as carefully as the bold sections, the onus is on us to make sure that they are legal, in keeping with our purpose, and in accordance with Charity Commission regulations. For this reason two-thirds majority of the delegates is required.

Article 3 (Purpose) lists many different powers. Do we have to use them all?

No. This article simply lists some of the things that we can do, if they are part of the current strategic objectives of the Conference. The things which will actually take priority will be determined by the Administration and the Executive Committee and will depend on how much money is available, the perceived needs of the churches and the communities they serve, and the wider strategic plans of the church.

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Proposed SEC Constitution 2023 FAQs (Word Doc)
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Proposed SEC Constitution 2023 FAQs (PDF)