The NCAA News - News & Features

Deadline to submit Convention proposals is July 15

Proposals will be accepted either by mail or facsimile and should be submitted to the attention of the NCAA legislative services staff. Facsimiles should be submitted using the legislative services fax number (913/339-0032).

Proposed legislation for the 1997 Convention cannot become effective before August 1, 1997, unless eligible voters present at the Convention vote otherwise. An immediate or alternative effective date may be adopted only with the approval of two-thirds of all delegates present and eligible to vote on such a proposal.

As in the past, a minimum of eight active member institutions are required to sponsor an amendment not sponsored by the NCAA Presidents Commission, NCAA Council or a division steering committee.

A proposal must be signed by the chief executive officer of a sponsoring institution or by the CEO's designee. CEOs must notify the Association's national office in writing of individuals designated to sign a proposal.

The chief elected or executive officer of a voting member conference (such as a conference commissioner) can submit legislation on behalf of eight or more active conference members, as long as those sponsoring institutions are listed and the proposal is signed by the chair of the conference's official presidential administrative group (or by at least two CEOs of conference schools if no such group exists).

Other procedures for submitting proposals for the 1997 Convention in Nashville were detailed in a May 1 memorandum to chief executive officers of NCAA institutions. The memorandum was accompanied by copies of the official amendment-submission form for institutions and conferences.

Among the procedures:

* The submission should include a clear and concise statement of intent, stating what the proposal is designed to accomplish. The intent statement should not be used to argue the proposal's merits.

* For proposed amendments to federated bylaws, the sponsoring institutions must be members of the division or subdivision in which the amendment is to be offered. In such cases, the submission should indicate the involved division or subdivision.

* A submission should identify the specific legislation to be amended, as it appears in the 1996-97 NCAA Manual. It also must specify the desired effective date and list a primary contact for information about the proposal (the contact does not have to be from among the proposal's sponsors).

* Each proposal must be accompanied by a statement of rationale, not to exceed 200 words in length.

All legislative proposals will be evaluated by an appropriate NCAA committee designated by the NCAA Administrative Committee before they are included on the agenda for the 1997 Convention.

The designated committee is obligated to report to sponsors the results of its review of a proposal by October 7. An effort will be made by committees to complete the review process in time for sponsors to make any alterations to proposals before the September 15 deadline for modifications by sponsors.

A committee may indicate support for or opposition to a proposal or suggest an alternative proposal as a result of its review. A committee position will not prevent a vote by the membership on a proposal, as long as submission requirements and deadlines are met.

Properly submitted proposals, after appropriate editing by the NCAA Legislative Review Committee and the legislative services staff, will appear in the Initial Publication of Proposed Legislation, which will be mailed not later than August 15.

Future deadlines for preparation of legislation for the 1997 Convention are:

* September 1: Convention proposals due from the Council, Presidents Commission and division steering committees.

* September 15: Sponsors' amendment deadline (amendments may be more or less restrictive than the original proposal).

* November 1: Nonsponsors' amendment deadline (amendments-to-amendments may not increase the modification called for by the original proposal). The date also is the deadline for submission of resolutions by member institutions.

Questions regarding any aspect of legislative procedures should be directed to Stephen A. Mallonee, director of legislative services, at the national office.