GUIDELINES FOR SUBMITTING RESOLUTIONS

      I.  PURPOSE OF RESOLUTIONS

 The purpose of resolutions is to provide a formal mechanism whereby the members of the Academy can give input concerning Academy policy and activities.  All resolutions submitted to the Annual Leadership Forum or to the Board of Directors directly are considered by the Board, but are advisory and not binding. 

          Useful types of resolutions include:

           1)          A request that the Academy develop a statement or otherwise take action on a particular issue. 
           2)           A request that the Academy inaugurate a new program or activity or reconsider a current AAP                      program or activity. 
          3)            A request that the AAP change its operating procedures. 

      II.  WHO CAN SUBMIT RESOLUTIONS
           Resolutions may originate from: 

          1)            Chapters 
          2)            Districts 
          3)                        Fellows through their chapters with or without chapter endorsement

      III. CHECK OUT THE RESOLUTION DATABASE

 The purpose of the resolution database is twofold;

1) The database is a quick reference for looking up past resolutions;     and

2) The database allows members who are thinking about developing a new resolution to review past resolutions on the same subject and what the Academy is doing about it.  In some cases an author may find that their issue is already being handled and in other cases, a new resolution is still necessary, despite past resolutions covering the topic. 

      Instructions to go into the resolution database:

      Go to the Members Only Channel (MOC) of the AAP Website.  Click on Chapters, then click on Forum and Resolutions, and then click on Resolution Database.  Type a keyword, date, author name or title to search for a resolution.  All resolutions that have been written in the past 9 years will appear in your search.  This will help you to determine whether or not a resolution dealing with this subject is necessary.  Other search tips: When searching by title, use keywords from the title instead of using the full title.  When searching by author, only use the author’s last name whenever possible.  When searching by date, search on a particular year and include keywords to narrow your search, i.e. “2002 vaccine”.  To search for an exact date, use the full text date with double quotations around the date.  For example: “March 2, 2001” 

    IV. RESOLUTION FORMAT (see attachment)

           Following is an explanation of the resolution format:

           RESOLUTION #           Supplied by Central Office

           TITLE                             Should reflect the action for which the resolution calls 

          SUBMITTED BY            The sponsor(s) of the resolution must be identified.          

     Resolutions can be sponsored by fellows, chapters and
     districts, solely, or together.

         DATE                                 Date submitted. (see below, Section IV - DEADLINES).

         DISPOSITION                  Reflects vote of the Forum.

             Whereas -                    These statements should be written clearly to define the problem and state that a solution is possible.  Please remember that the Whereas’ are not voted on and should be limited to three or four statements in order to assure that the focus remains on the resolved portion of the resolution.

            RESOLVED           Each resolution should contain a maximum of two resolved which stand alone and request action by the Academy.

            REFER TO           Resolutions should be referred to the Annual Leadership Forum or, if urgent, to th AAP Executive Committee.

            AUTHOR/CONTACT

                 PERSON            Fellow(s) who drafted the resolution and can be contacted for clarification.

                 Telephone #         Number where the author/contact person can be reached.

                  Fax #                  Fax number where the author/contact person can be reached.

       Email                 Email address where the author/contact person can be reached.

 BACKGROUND INFORMATION -   The author of the resolution should supply background material, if             possible.  The author’s background material should be limited to 2 pages or 86 lines using a 12 point font.  Any background material exceeding 2 pages will be placed in the additional background book.  Staff will gather information as well.  This information will be sent to the Chapter Forum Management Committee for review before the workbooks are mailed to the Forum attendees.

 FISCAL NOTE       

Developed by staff.  When possible the author will be notified of any significant fiscal  notes by the Chapter Forum Management Committee.

V.   DEADLINES

1)  Regular Resolutions-      To be considered as regular business and to be included in the Annual Leadership     Forum workbook, resolutions must be received by the central office no later than June 15th.  Resolutions which require any By-laws changes should be submitted at least 90 days prior to the Forum.  Resolutions requiring a bylaws change will be noted in the background information. Resolutions to be included in the workbook for a district meeting, should be submitted to the Central Office at least 21 days before the meeting.  Resolutions can be submitted on-site at the district meetings as well.

          2)  Late Resolutions (LR#) -Resolutions presented later than June 15th and before the opening session of the Forum, will be considered Late Resolutions.  After all resolution calendars have been presented, late resolutions that do not have approval of the CFMC will be presented to the Forum by resolution title only. The resolution will be considered by the Forum, if two-thirds of the voting members present agree.All resolutions submitted after the June 15^th  deadline, are considered LATE, as stated in the Chapter Forum Rules and Regulations.  All Late Resolutions must be accompanied by a statement from the author(s) of the late Resolution setting forth:

A.                 The reason (s) the Late Resolution was not submitted by the deadline date;

B.                 The reason(s) that the Late Resolution cannot wait until the next Annual
            Leadership Forum and be submitted on time; and

C.                 If expenditure of funds is anticipated in the implementation of any Late
            Resolution, an accompanying fiscal note, specifying the dollar amounts where possible, is required.

Resolutions should be sent to the attention of Sharon Chase, Coordinator, Chapter and District Relations, Division of Chapter and District Relations, 141 Northwest Point Blvd,Elk Grove Village, Illinois, 60009-0927, to the appropriate Chapter President, and to the appropriate Chapter Forum Management Committee member.