July 15 is the deadline for NCAA institutions and conferences to submit legislative proposals in all three divisions.

This includes both Divisions II and III legislative proposals to be considered for the 2005 NCAA Convention and Division I proposals for final consideration in April 2005.

This is the second year that Division I's single annual legislative cycle will be in place. Division I conferences must submit legislative proposals to the national office by 5 p.m. Central time July 15. The same deadline applies for Divisions II and III membership-sponsored proposals for consideration at the Association's 2005 Convention in Dallas.

In Division I, pursuant to the new legislative calendar, Division I conferences are permitted to formally submit legislative proposals that will be considered by the governance structure. Legislative proposals developed and sponsored by the Academics/Eligibility/Compliance Cabinet or the Championships/Competition Cabinet also must be submitted by the July 15 deadline.

In Division II, a minimum of 15 active member institutions (or two conferences acting on behalf of 15 active member institutions) is required to sponsor an amendment not sponsored by the Division II Presidents Council. The minimum number of active members required in Division III is eight (or a member conference with voting privileges).

A Division II proposal must be signed by the chief executive officer of a sponsoring institution or by the CEO's designee. In the alternative, at least two chief elected or executive officers of a voting member conference (such as a conference commissioner) can submit legislation on behalf of the 15 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).

In Division III, legislation also may be submitted by a chief conference officer on behalf of the eight or more active conference members. CEO signatures are required in the same manner as in Division II.

Other procedures for submitting proposals were detailed in a May 15 memorandum to Division I conference commissioners and Divisions II and III CEOs. Copies of the official amendment-submission forms for institutions and conferences accompanied the memorandum.

Among the procedures:

Conferences and institutions should submit legislative proposals electronically through the Legislative Services Database (LSDBi) on the NCAA's Web site (www.ncaa.org). Click on "Rules and Eligibility" and then "Legislative Services Database." Legislative proposals also may be submitted by mail or facsimile to Lynn Holzman, director of membership services, at the NCAA national office (facsimile: 317/917-6622).

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Submissions should include clear and concise statements of intent that indicate what the proposal is designed to accomplish. The intent statement should not be used to argue the proposal's merits.

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A submission should identify the specific legislation to be amended, as it appears in the appropriate 2003-04 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).

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Each proposal must be accompanied by a rationale statement of fewer than 200 words. Division I rationale statements must note any fiscal impact to the Association or institutions or both and, additionally, whether the proposal impacts student-athlete time demands. The rationale statement also should indicate whether the proposal is consistent with the deregulation efforts taking place in Division I.

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In Divisions II and III, proposed legislation for the 2005 Convention cannot become effective before August 1, 2005, unless eligible voters present at the Convention vote otherwise. In Division II, 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. The rationale statement of a proposal with an effective date other than August 1, 2005, must include the reasoning behind the proposed alternate effective date. In Division III, a two-thirds vote is no longer required to adopt an alternate effective date.

In accordance with the 12-month legislative cycle in Division I, proposals will be posted online as part of a Web-based "Publication of Proposed Legislation" by August 15. Also by then, the Management Council's administrative committee will refer the proposals to the appropriate governance entity for review this fall.

The first of two amendment periods will last from August 15 to the end of the Management Council's October meeting (typically held during the third week in October). During this time, the cabinets or any conference (whether it sponsored the proposal or not) may amend a proposal.

At its October meeting, the Management Council will review proposals that have been amended but not agreed to by the original sponsor. In those cases, the Council may choose to support the original proposal or the amendment(s), or develop its own proposal.

A printed "Official Notice" will be distributed by November 15 and will list all pending legislative proposals sponsored by conferences, cabinets or the Council.

At the NCAA Convention, Division I members will have the opportunity to engage in educational/discussion sessions about the more significant proposals and conduct conference meetings in order to develop voting lines on pending legislation. Then the Management Council will meet to initially consider the legislative proposals.

A 60-day membership comment period will ensue for proposals initially approved by the Council. Conferences or cabinets may amend any proposal during the 60-day comment period, provided any amendment does not increase the modification specified in the original proposal. In March, a Management Council legislative review subcommittee will develop a consent package for the Council to consider in April.

Legislation approved a second time at the Council's April meeting will be forwarded to the Board later that month for adoption. After Board approval, a 60-day override period will be in place until mid-June.

In Divisions II and III, all membership-sponsored proposals will be evaluated by an appropriate Association-wide or Division II or III committee before they are included on the agenda for the 2005 Convention. The divisions' respective Presidents Councils will designate the reviewing committee.

The designated committee will report to sponsors the results of its review of a proposal by October 7. Committees will attempt 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. The committee's position will be printed with the relevant proposal in the Official Notice for the 2005 NCAA Convention.

Properly submitted proposals, after appropriate editing by the Legislative Review Subcommittee of the Division II Legislation Committee, the Division III Interpretations and Legislation Committee and the membership services staff, will appear in the Initial Publication of Proposed Legislation, which will be provided online in PDF format not later than August 15.

The Second Publication of Proposed Legislation (which includes amendments submitted by the Presidents Councils and those properly modified by sponsors) will be provided online not later than September 23, and the Official Notice will be provided not later than November 15.

Future deadlines for preparation of legislation for the 2005 Convention are:

September 1: Convention proposals due from the Divisions II and III Presidents Councils. The Division II Presidents Council may submit amendments after September 1 when necessitated by action taken by Division I or Division III. In such matters, the Presidents Council shall submit amendments not later than November 1.

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

November 1: Nonsponsors' amendment-to-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.