Originally adopted 5/8/2002, and as cumulatively amended
10/14/2009, 9/12/2012, 3/13/2013 and 10/14/2015
BYLAWS OF THE REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COUNCIL
Article I NAME
The organization will
be
known as the Regional Transportation Advisory Council and
alternatively referred to as
the Advisory Council.
Article II PURPOSE
The Advisory Council advises the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)
on transportation policy and planning and serves as
a primary mechanism for broad public
participation in the federally mandated 3-C transportation planning
process.
Article III MEMBERSHIP
Membership shall consist
of
a broad and balanced spectrum
of
providers and users of
any
form of transportation.
Individuals
are
welcome to participate in all meetings
of
the Advisory Council, but membership shall be limited to public
and private organizations
and
governmental
units, including state agencies and municipalities, that meet the
requirements of Title
VI
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other applicable federal
requirements concerning public outreach for metropolitan planning organizations
(collectively, for purposes
of
these bylaws, entities).
An entity may become a member of the Advisory Council (a) by first attending three
meetings
of
the Advisory Council within a five-month period and, following the third such meeting, thereafter
(b) by a majority vote of the then-current voting membership.
Member
entities shall designate to the Advisory Council in writing one representative
and up to two alternates.
Representatives and alternates should be empowered by the entities they represent to cast votes on matters
before
the Advisory
Council.
Ongoing
voting membership status shall depend on active participation, defined as
attendance at the majority of Advisory Council meetings
in each federal
fiscal year. Failure to attend a majority of such meetings
in any federal fiscal
year shall
automatically change such member entitys
status to non-voting. In the discretion of the Chair, any determination of member entities attendance records may be based on the
current and/or
the
most recently concluded federal fiscal
year.
Notwithstanding the
foregoing, no voting member
entitys status shall be changed to non-voting prior to the
first anniversary of such voting member entitys
first attendance of a meeting of the Advisory Council.
Such non-voting member entity may thereafter be re-admitted to voting status upon first (i)
attending a majority of six consecutive meetings of the Advisory Council and thereafter
(ii) by majority vote of the then-current voting
membership.
As used herein, the term member refers
to
an admitted entity, and the
terms
representative and alternate
refer to individuals
designated by any such
member entity.
All MPO member entities, except the Advisory Council itself, shall automatically
be deemed non-voting members of the Advisory
Council. Individual
persons who represent
any
MPO entity cannot simultaneously serve as a voting representative or
alternate at the Advisory Council. The list
of
all current member entities and their
respective
representatives and alternates shall
be
maintained by MPO staff on the MPO website.
Article IV OFFICERS
The Officers
of
the Advisory Council shall be a Chair and a Vice Chair.
The Chair, supported by MPO staff, shall be the primary contact for the Advisory
Council, shall set agendas
and shall call and preside at the meetings.
As provided in the MPOs
Memorandum
of
Understanding of July 7, 2011, the Advisory
Council is a voting member of the MPO. The Chair, representing the Advisory Council, will attend, participate, and vote in MPO meetings.
The Vice Chair shall serve in the absence of the Chair and shall replace the Chair in the event of a vacancy in that office. If and when requested by the Chair, the Vice Chair shall actively participate in meetings
of
the MPO and in the absence of the Chair
will
exercise the Advisory Councils vote at the MPO.
In the absence of both the Chair and Vice Chair, the Chair may appoint a member
of
the Advisory Council who is
a past Chair to represent and vote for the Advisory Council at
any
MPO meeting.
Article V MEETINGS
The Advisory Council will generally meet monthly as determined by the Chair with at least seven days
notice of the time and agenda provided to the representatives.
Special meetings
may also be called by the Chair with at least seven days notice.
All meetings of the Advisory Council shall be open to the public.
The conduct of the meetings shall be governed by Roberts
Rules of Order subject to
parliamentary discretion vested in the Chair. The Chair shall recognize all attendees
wishing to be heard, and shall grant the floor, except in the discussion of a motion on the floor,
where
the Chair shall have discretion.
Article VI QUORUM
One third of the voting members of the Advisory Council shall constitute a quorum.
Assuming a quorum is present, a simple majority of present voting members shall be
necessary for passage of all motions.
Article VII MOTIONS
Motions will be accepted only if moved and seconded by voting members designated
representatives or
alternates participating in a representatives absence.
Article VIII VOTING
Each voting member
shall have one vote, to be cast by its designated representative, or
in case of such representatives absence, by an alternate.
Article IX COMMITTEES
The Chair shall appoint committees to assist in carrying out the business of the Advisory Council. Only Advisory Council voting members
may
vote on committees. Reports by
committees shall be submitted to the Chair for report
to
the Advisory Council. The Chair shall publish a list of existing committees and their current
membership in
or around December. The following committees will be established, as well as other
committees
deemed appropriate by the Chair of the Advisory Council, with members appointed by
the
Chair unless otherwise provided by these bylaws.
An Executive Committee shall consist of the Chair, the Vice Chair, the immediate past
Chair, and Chairs of all standing committees. The Executive Committee shall be
authorized to act in place of the full Advisory Council on any matters
arising between
Advisory Council meetings
that
require immediate action. Any actions so
taken shall be reported to the Advisory Council at its
next meeting. In the case of officer
vacancies, the
Executive Committee shall nominate replacements for election at the next occurring Advisory Council meeting, and the Executive Committee nominees
shall serve until
those elections.
A Membership Committee shall be chaired by the Vice Chair of the Advisory Council
and
shall include at least one representative each from a citizen advocacy organization, a municipality, and a regional or
state agency. The Membership Committee should
assess the breadth of representation on an ongoing basis and report annually to the
Chair changes that should be made in Advisory Council membership, if any.
An Election
Committee shall be appointed by the Chair prior
to
yearly elections
of officers, and shall be chaired by the immediate past Chair of the Advisory Council, if available.
Election Committee membership
shall include a voting member from a citizen advocacy organization, a municipality, and, if possible, a regional or state agency.
One or
more additional committees may be appointed by the Chair on an annual basis to review and offer
recommendations on the MPOs
Long-Range Transportation Plan,
Transportation Improvement Program and Unified Planning Work Program as well as such other topics as the Chair shall deem
advisable in its discretion.
Article X ELECTIONS
The Election Committee will
commence its election process each year
at the July
Advisory Council meeting.
The Election Committee will
encourage members to seek election and will
organize and
administer
the
election, supported by
MPO
staff.
The Election Committee will receive nominations and will
submit the names of all
candidates for
Chair and Vice Chair at the September Advisory Council meeting.
Additional nominations from the floor, accepted by the nominee, will be accepted during
the
September meeting and nominations
will be closed as of the adjournment of the
September meeting. The Election Committee will
prepare
a list of candidates and their statements and circulate this
list to voting members prior
to the October Advisory Council meeting.
Elections shall be held in October,
and the new Officers terms shall begin November 1.
Article XI AMENDMENTS
These bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds
majority vote of present voting members at a meeting of the Advisory Council.
Specific
notice of the proposed amendment shall be provided to members
at least seven days
in advance of the meeting, in order to have representation available to vote at the meeting.