Re: [council] Draft Revisions to the ICANN Bylaws Relating to GNSO Restructure

[Stéphane Van Gelder <stephane.vangelder@xxxxxxxxx>]

Margie,

Thanks for sending these on. As we are so pushed for time, allow me to get
the ball rolling on this discussion and make a few comments.

Section 3. Article 1.
Moving the ³geographic regions goalposts² up from ³no 2 members² to ³no 3
members² seems like a sensible suggestion for those SGs with 6 Council
members. I agree with it.

Section 3. Article 3.
What¹s your rationale for recommending that ³vacancy rules² be moved to
OR&Ps?

Section 3. Article 7.
Are there no voting thresholds for selecting the chair and vice-chairs?

Section 3. Article 8.
I agree the voting threshold descriptions belong in the OR&Ps, but it would
be helpful for our discussion of the bylaws to have a reminder of what they
are. Can you provide a link to where they are please?

Apart from the points raised above, I think this document is already very
near completion. Having seen it, I must admit I feel a lot more confident
that we can move ahead with sufficient speed to meet the deadlines set in
your email for our review of these proposed bylaws. Congratulations on a
well-written document.

Stéphane




Le 27/03/09 00:34, « Margie Milam » <Margie.Milam@xxxxxxxxx> a écrit :

> Dear All,
>  
> As discussed in today¹s GNSO call,   ICANN Staff has prepared Draft Bylaws
> Revisions (attached) that contain Staff recommendations for changes relating
> to the GNSO restructure.   They are intended to serve as a starting point for
> the GNSO Council¹s discussions.
>  
> General Observations
>  
> ·        These Bylaws were drafted to be consistent with Board recommendations
> as to structure and principles.
> 
> ·        Staff also attempted to build in flexibility to accommodate changes
> in the future without requiring Bylaws amendments.  For example, Staff
> recommends that some issues be moved from the Bylaws to GNSO Council Operating
> Rules and Procedures that would be approved by the Board.
> 
> ·        Since the Board approved improvements did not provide specific
> details with respect to all topics, ICANN staff developed recommendations to
> address these gaps, which are contained in footnotes throughout the document.
> 
> ·        The Draft Bylaws Revisions are subject to review by the ICANN Office
> of the General Counsel for legal form as well as consistency.
> 
> ·        A few additional decisions will be needed to finalize these Bylaws,
> for example,  Board approval of the unresolved open issue concerning Board
> seats 13 and 14, and further Council work on certain of the transition
> procedures (e.g. staggered terms, elections).
> 
>  
> 
> Format of Revisions
>  
> ·        To facilitate reviewing these changes, the Draft Bylaws is organized
> as a side-by-side comparison of the current language and the proposed
> language.
> 
> ·        The yellow highlighted text refers to new or substantially revised
> language compared to the current Bylaws.
> 
> ·        The footnotes include rationale statements where Staff thought  an
> explanation might be helpful.
> 
>  
> Next Steps and Timing
>  
> ·        The GNSO Council will need to decide how it would like to review the
> Draft Bylaws to develop its recommendations.
> 
> ·        ICANN Staff will be working with the GNSO Operations Work Team in
> developing the GNSO Operating Rules and Procedures to incorporate those
> improvements that were omitted from the Bylaws in order to provide
> flexibility.
> 
> ·        In order to seat the new Council by June,  the Board would need to
> approve of the revisions by no later than its May 21st meeting.
> 
> ·        A public comment period would need to take place before the May 21st
> meeting.
> 
> ·        The Council would need to complete its review/analysis by the next
> GNSO council meeting on April 16th  in order to accommodate the public comment
> period.
> 
> ·        Due to this short time period, the GNSO Council is currently
> evaluating the most effective way to proceed.
> 
>  
> 
> Finally, ICANN Staff is available to provide background and additional
> information on the Draft Bylaws Revisions if it would be helpful for your
> review.
> 
>  
> 
> Regards,
> 
>  
> 
> Margie Milam
> 
> Senior Policy Counselor
> 
> ICANN 
> 
>  
> 
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