National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News - News and Features

The NCAA News -- October 12, 1998

Division I -- Strategic Planning Cabinet proposes changes in legislative cycle

Responding to a request from member conferences to consider a change in the legislative calendar, the Division I Strategic Planning Cabinet has developed a set of proposals that would establish a single annual review of legislation.

The proposals will be forwarded to the Division I Management Council for consideration at its October 19-20 meeting in Indianapolis.

The proposals, developed during the cabinet's September 22-23 meeting in Indianapolis, are in response to a survey of all 32 Division I conferences concerning communication between the NCAA national office and conference offices, and communication between conference offices and their member institutions. The survey was developed after the Management Council asked the cabinet to examine those communication issues.

The survey, which garnered responses from 29 conferences, indicated that the most pressing problem area regarding those issues was finding a comfort level with the Association's new legislative cycle.

Specifically, conferences are finding that the volume of material provided to the membership, combined with the governance meeting cycle, is detrimental to effective review and processing of legislation. Conferences claim that the current legislative calendar is cumbersome, disjointed and perhaps not fully understood by some of the membership. In addition, there is a concern that there is no formal mechanism for evaluation and review of the Division I legislative process.

Based on the survey results, the cabinet is recommending to the Management Council that a legislative calendar be established that allows for a single annual review of legislation according to the following cycle:

Proposed legislation would be due October 1 to the national office.

Proposed legislation would be forwarded to the membership, via Internet, by November 1.

November 1 would begin a 60-day comment period during which amendments can be submitted.

The proposed amendments would be discussed at the NCAA Convention during conference meetings.

As a result of the actions by conferences and cabinets at the Convention, another 60-day comment period would become effective.

Legislation would be voted upon by the Management Council and Board of Directors at their spring meetings.

Approved legislation would become effective August 1. (It is assumed that the emergency legislation process would be maintained.)

The cabinet believes this process would eliminate much of the confusion surrounding the current legislative cycle and provide the opportunity for conference members to have in-person discussions on new legislative proposals.

The cabinet also is recommending that mailings of legislative information (cabinet agendas, committee summaries and nomination information) to conferences and institutions be eliminated by using the Internet as a primary source of communication between the national office, conferences and institutions. Potential savings from duplication and mailing costs could offset the costs incurred from dedicating appropriate resources and staffing to develop the NCAA Web site as an instrument to deliver those materials in a timely fashion.

In addition, the cabinet recommends that continuing-education opportunities about the legislative process be provided through compliance seminars, teleconferences and the Internet.

Also under the proposal, the cabinet recommends that it be the body responsible for conducting an ongoing evaluation and review of the legislative process.

Convention format

The cabinet also was asked by the Management Council to suggest possible topics for the 1999 Convention and to suggest a format for future Conventions.

The cabinet recommended that the following four issues be included as topics for discussion during the 1999 Convention in San Antonio:

An update on the restricted-earnings coaches litigation, including the financial ramifications for member institutions under a best-case scenario and a worst-case scenario.

A full analysis of the NCAA budget, including expenses and salaries within various programs and services, the cost of moving the national office and staff replacement implications, and the cost of the new governance structure.

A discussion of Division I basketball issues, including the recruiting process and calendar, the impact of non-scholastic camps, and a report from the Division I Working Group to Study Basketball Issues.

A discussion of Division I-A and I-AA football issues, including the bowl alliance selections and ranking system, as well as a discussion of exempted contest implications.

Additional topics could include the possibility of increasing financial aid grants for women's sports, a re-evaluation of the clearinghouse process, a discussion of the Harris poll results (the image and perception of the NCAA), a discussion of the integrity of intercollegiate athletics and an analysis of the increased time commitments by conferences and member institu-tions due to the new governance structure.

The cabinet's recommendation for future Conventions is to provide for a four-day format that reserves the first two days for meetings of and among the Board of Directors, Management Council, the four cabinets and Association-wide committees. The third day would be reserved for conference meetings, the state-of-the-Association address and the honors dinner, and the fourth day would be set aside as an opportunity for the membership to discuss issues with the governance bodies and to conduct any override votes.

Nondiscrimination clause

The cabinet also discussed a recommendation initiated by the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics regarding the Association's nondiscrimination clause.

The Committee on Women's Athletics had suggested to the cabinet in June that the nondiscrimination clause in Constitution 2.6 be expanded to be more descriptive. The cabinet declined to support the committee's request, but the Management Council subsequently asked the cabinet to revisit the issue and to provide a rationale for its decision.

The cabinet initially expressed concern that the proposal was too restrictive, but legal counsel indicated that the expanded language would obligate member institutions only not to discriminate in their Association activities and would not require them to adhere to the principle in their campus' governance, education programs, activities or employment policies.

After discussion, the cabinet approved an amended version of the proposal, stating that the Association should not discriminate against any person regardless of age, color, disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, creed or sexual orientation.

The cabinet agreed to support the proposal, which will be circulated to the membership for comment, with the understanding that the policy would not be used as part of the athletics certification program or for the selection of teams in NCAA championships competition.

The cabinet also supported a recommendation from the Committee on Women's Athletics to amend Constitution 4.02.4 to further define the senior woman administrator as a full-time female employee who is an administrator, coach or faculty member at the institution.

The cabinet believes the proposed definition ensures that the position is appointed by the chief executive officer and that it precludes the appointment of a clerical staff or administrative assistant to the position.

All of the above recommendations will be forwarded to the Management Council for review.

In other actions, the cabinet:

Voted to support an amendment to Bylaw 20 that would identify the sport of equestrian as an emerging sport for women.

Reviewed the time frame for the compilation of strategic plans from the four cabinets and the four committees that report to the Management Council. It is anticipated that the cabinets will submit their plans by the end of February and that the subcommittee on review and planning will meet in March to review and assemble the overall plan.