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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTRANSIT CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE (TCAC) BY-LAWS TRANSIT CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE (TCAC) BY-LAWS L FUNCTIONS AND ROLE A. The Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee (hereinafter "TCAC") shall be constituted to advise the Augusta, Georgia Commission, Mayor, and the Augusta Public Transit Department (hereinafter "ATP") on matters related to APT, and to meet with the local community, to review and provide input as to the issues concerning transportation program administration. Members of TCAC shall be appointed by the Board of Commission and the Richmond County Legislative delegation in the General Assembly of Georgia. A list of the appointees shall be maintained in the Clerk of Commission's Office and is incorporated herein by reference. B. The TCAC shall review and comment on the Transit Development Plan (hereinafter ("TDP"). C. The TCAC shall work closely with the Augusta Public Transit Department to suggest ways to improve the public transportation within the Augusta-Richmond County service area and throughout the region. D. The TCAC will assist the APT department in publicizing transportation projects and plans to neighborhoods throughout Augusta, Georgia and provide valuable feedback to APT. 1I. MEMBERSHIP 1. The TCAC shall consist of ten (10) members. Each appointee shall be designated by the commission-council member representing a designated district. Each of the ten (10) members of the TCAC shall be nominated by the individual Commissioner representing District 1, District 2, District 3, District 4, District 5, District 6, District 7, District 8, District 9, and District 10. Each member of the TCAC appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall be required to reside in the district of the appointing Commissioner. Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 1 of 9 Members of the TCAC serving as of July 1, 2013, shall serve until their fixed term has expired and continue to serve until their successors are appointed and qualified by the Commissioner representing the respective Districts as herein set forth, to wit: Appointment Term Expires TBA District 1 03/31/2016 TBA District 2 03/31/2014 TBA District 3 03/31/2016 TBA District 4 03/31/2014 TBA District 5 03/31/2016 TBA District 6 03/31/2014 TBA District 7 03/31/2016 TBA District 8 03/31/2014 TBA District 9 03/31/2016 TBA District 10 03/31/2014 The term of members of the TCAC appointed by the Commissioners of the respective Districts shall automatically expire upon the termination of the appointing Commissioner's incumbency. Such Members of the TCAC shall continue to serve until their successors are appointed and qualified. 2. In addition, two (2) members shall be recommended by the Augusta-Richmond County delegation in the General Assembly of Georgia and appointed by the Augusta, Georgia Commission. 3. The TCAC may also include ex-officio, non-voting representative nominated by the Office of the Mayor. Terms of office shall be four (4) years and coincide with the term of the appointing Commissioner. No member shall serve more than two (2) consecutive terms or eight (8) years. III. CHAIRMAN A Chairman shall be elected by the TCAC from among its members for a one (1) year term. The term shall run from January 1 of each year until December 31 of each year. The Chairman shall serve as such for no more than two(2) consecutive terms. A. The Chairman shall preside over the TCAC and shall have the right to vote. Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 2 of 9 B. The Chairman shall decide all points of procedure, subject to these bylaws and the latest edition of Roberts Rules of Order, unless otherwise directed by the majority of the TCAC in session at the time. C. The Chairman shall appoint any committees found necessary to investigate any matters before the TCAC. IV. VICE-CHAIRMAN A Vice-Chairman shall be elected by the TCAC from among its members in the same manner for a one (1) year term. The term shall run from January 1 of each year until December 31 of each year. The Vice-Chairman shall serve no more than two (2) consecutive terms. A. The Vice-Chairman shall serve as "Acting Chairman" in the absence of the Chairman or when that officer has to refrain from participation because of a conflict of interest and shall have the same powers and duties as the Chairman. B. The Vice-Chairman shall have the right to vote. C. Upon the resignation or disqualification of the Chairman, the Vice-Chairman shall assume the chairmanship for the remainder of the unexpired term or until a new Chairman is elected. V. SECRETARY The Augusta Public Transit Department shall serve as secretary to the TCAC. A. The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping records of board actions, including overseeing the taking of minutes at all board meetings, sending out meeting announcements, distributing copies of minutes and the agenda to each board member, and assuring that TCAC records are maintained. B. The Secretary shall be responsible for notifying the Clerk of Commission and the general public with advanced notice of all meetings of the TCAC in accordance with the Georgia Open Meetings Act.' Notice of Regular Meetings - Notice of the time, place, and dates of regular meetings (e.g., the Advisory Board's monthly meeting) must be made available to the general public and be posted in a conspicuous place at the regular meeting place of the agency and must be posted on Augusta's website. For any meeting OCGA §§ 50-14-1 et seq. Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 3 of 9 that is not conducted at the regular meeting place or time, Augusta, Georgia, through its Advisory Board must post the time, place, and date of the meeting for at least (24) hours at the regular meeting location and give written or oral notice at least (24) hours in advance of the meeting to the legal organ of the county or a newspaper with equal circulation. In counties in which a legal organ is published less than four times per week, the time, place, and date of the meeting must be posted for at least (24) hours at the regular meeting location and, upon written request from broadcast or print media in the county, notice must be provided to the requesting media outlet (24) hours in advance of the meeting. Upon written request from any local broadcast or print media outlet, a copy of the meeting's agenda must be provided by fax, by e-mail, or by mail through a self-addressed, stamped envelope provided by the requester. Notice of Special/Emergency Meetings - For emergency meetings (i.e., meetings with less than (24) hours notice), the meeting notice must include the date, time and location of the meeting, the subjects expected to be covered at the meeting and the reason for meeting with less than (24) hours notice.2 Notice must be provided to the county legal organ or a newspaper with greater circulation in the county than the legal organ. Notice must also be provided by telephone, fax or e- mail to any broadcast or print media outlet whose place of business and physical facilities are located in the county when such media outlet has made written request for such notice within the previous calendar year. The Secretary of the Advisory Board shall ensure that the Clerk of Commission and the public are aware of all special called meetings or emergency meetings of the board. VI. ELECTIONS Election of the TCAC officers shall be held during the regular meeting in December, with newly elected officers taking office in the following January. To be considered for office a committee member must have served on the TCAC for at least one (1) calendar year. VII. TERMS OF APPOINTMENT Each TCAC member shall serve at the pleasure of their appointing authority and can be removed from the TCAC by the appointing authority, with or without cause, at any time. For all members appointed by individual Commissioners or the Mayor, the term of membership shall coincide with the appointing Commissioners or Mayor's term of office. The term of all other TCAC members shall be four (4) years from the date of 2 OCGA §50-14-1(d)(3). Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 4 of 9 appointment. Members of the TCAC shall not receive a salary unless such is provided for by the Augusta, Georgia Commission. VIII. CONFLICT OF INTEREST MEMBERS In connection with any actual or possible conflict of interest, the interested board member must disclose the existence of the conflict and be given the opportunity to disclose all material facts to the TCAC. At any time the TCAC is to undertake any official action which will affect a monetary or other vested interest of a member of the Commission, that TCAC member shall reveal the existence of that interest to the Commission at the next meeting after the member becomes aware of the conflict of interest. The TCAC member shall abstain from voting on that matter. IX. RESIGNATION Advisory Board members may resign by submitting a written resignation to their appointing authority, copying the Chairman of the Advisory Board and the Clerk of Commission. X. VACANCIES In the event that there are unfilled vacancies on the TCAC for any period of time, an TCAC consisting of six (6) or more members may exercise all powers delegated to the TCAC until the vacancies are filled. XI. STAFF LIAISON The APT department shall serve as the staff liaison for the TCAC. The Director, or designee, shall assist the Chairman in preparing meeting agendas, recording and transcribing the minutes of all meetings, and handling all related correspondence with Committee members. XII. VOTING 1. Each Committee member, including the Chairman and Vice-Chairman, shall vote. A committee member shall abstain from voting in the event of a conflict of interest. The committee member shall state for the record the basis for the abstention and complete a Statement of Potential Conflict of Interest form. Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 5 of 9 2. Voting by proxy or absentee is prohibited. XIII. ATTENDANCE AT MEETINGS AND REMOVAL OF MEMBERS Faithful and prompt attendance at all meetings of the TCAC, and conscientious performance of the duties required of members, shall be a prerequisite to continuing membership on the TCAC. Should a member fail to attend three (3) consecutive regular meetings of the TCAC, and should there be no adequate excuse for such absences, the TCAC, by a majority vote may remove such person from membership and shall recommend to the appointing authority that a vacancy exists and that the vacant position be filled in an expeditious manner. The determination as to what constitutes "adequate excuse" shall be determined by a majority vote of the TCAC. XIV. QUORUM A quorum of the TCAC shall consist of a majority of the total number of members of the Advisory Board. For purposes of calculating a quorum, vacant seats shall not be considered. Where no quorum exists no official meeting can take place; no official action can take place; and no minutes are to be created. XV. MEETINGS 1. Meetings will be conducted according to the latest version of Roberts Ruled of Order, except as modified by these by-laws. Regular Meetings: Regular meetings of the Transit Citizens Advisory Committee shall be held on the fourth Thursday of each month at 4:00 P.M. in the Training Room of the Augusta Public Transit Department, 1535 Fenwick Street, Augusta, GA 30904, or in any other designated meeting place, provided the location is specified in all notices required by law. If a regularly scheduled meeting occurs on a legal holiday, the Chairman, with the concurrence of a majority of the TCAC, may set an alternate date for the meeting. The Secretary of the TCAC shall have the responsibility of notifying the Clerk of Commission and others of the date, time and location of meetings of the TCAC as required by the Georgia Open Meetings Act. 3 If a quorum is not present at a regular meeting of the Committee, a special meeting may be held within fourteen (14) working days from such scheduled meeting. XVI. SPECIAL/EMERGENCY MEETINGS 3 OCGA §§ 50-14-1 et seq. Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 6 of 9 Special meetings of the TCAC may be called at any,time by the Chairman. At least forty- eight (48) hours notice of the time and place of special meetings shall be given to each member of the TCAC and the Secretary. The Secretary shall have the responsibility of notifying the Clerk of Commission and others as required by the Georgia Open Meetings Act. XVII. CANCELLATION OF MEETINGS Regularly scheduled meetings can be cancelled or postponed whenever there is no business for the TCAC to consider. The Chairman may dispense with a regular meeting by giving notice to all board members not less than twenty-four (24) hours prior to the time set for the meeting. XVIII. ADJOURNED MEETINGS Should the business before the Advisory Board not be completed, the Chairman may adjourn the same from day-to-day until the matters before the Advisory Board are completed. XIX. OPEN MEETINGS Unless otherwise determined in advance, all meetings of the TCAC will be open to the public. Once an open meeting has begun, it will not be closed for any reason. All materials brought before, or presented to, the TCAC during the conduct of an open meeting, including the minutes of the proceedings of an open meeting, will be available to the public for review or copying at the time of the scheduled meeting. Members of the public may attend any meeting or portion of a meeting that is not closed to the public and may, at the determination of the Chairman, offer oral comment at such meeting. Comments will be limited to five (5) minutes. The Chairman may decide in advance to exclude oral public comment during a meeting, in which case the meeting announcement will note that oral comment from the public is excluded and will invite written comment as an alternative. Members of the public may submit written statements to the TCAC at any time. XX. AGENDA, SUMMARY AND MINUTES The agenda for each meeting shall be prepared by the Secretary at the direction of the Chairman. The order of business before the board shall be: (1) Determination of Quorum, (2) Approval of Minutes of the Previous Meeting, (3) Reports, (4) Old Business, (5) New Business, (6) Announcements, (7)Adjournment. Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 7 of 9 An agenda of all matters expected to come before the TCAC must be made available upon request and must be posted at the meeting site as far in advance as is practicable during the two weeks prior to the meeting.4 If a particular issue is not included on the posted agenda it may still be considered by the board if it is deemed necessary to address it. The clear intent of this provision is to ensure that the public is informed of the matters that will come before the body. Members of the public shall be allowed access to the meeting and must be allowed to make visual and sound recordings of the open portions of any meeting.5 A written summary of the subjects acted on and a list of the members attending the meeting must be prepared and made available within two (2) business days of the meeting.6 Minutes of the meeting must be prepared and made publicly available after having been approved as official; such approval is to occur at the next regular meeting of the agency. The minutes must, at a minimum, contain the names of the members present at the meeting, a description of each motion or other proposal made, a record of who made and seconded each motion, and a record of all votes including who voted for and who voted against each motion. It shall be presumed that the action taken was approved by each person in attendance unless the minutes reflect the name of the persons voting against the proposal or abstaining. For meetings with less than (24) hours notice, the minutes must also describe the notice given and the reason for the emergency meeting. XXI. STAFFING ARRANGEMENTS. Assistance shall be provided to the TCAC by the Augusta Public Transit Department staff. The Augusta Public Transit Department staff shall assist the Transit Director, or designee, in coordinating all information submitted from other sources to the Committee. Specifically, it shall be the responsibilities of the Augusta Public Transit staff, under the direction of the Transit Director, to: (a) Make available, in conjunction with the Chairman, relevant information and prepare recommendations. (b) Make available copies of comments, proposals or any other information submitted from other sources, in accordance with the Georgia Open Records Act and Georgia Open Meetings Act in a timely fashion. 4 OCGA §50-14-1(e). s OCGA § 50-14-1(c). 6 OCGA § 50-14-1(e)(2) Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 8 of 9 (c) Serve as a liaison between the TCAC and other departments. XXII. NOTICE AND PUBLIC INFORMATION. The Transit Director, or designee, is required to comply with guidelines pertaining to matters of public notice and scheduling as provided by the Clerk of Commission. XXIII. AMENDMENTS. All amendments, modifications, or changes to these by-laws shall first receive an affirmative vote of two-thirds majority of the members of the TCAC. All amendments, modifications, or changes require the legislative authorization of the Augusta Board of Commissioners and approval of the Mayor before becoming effective. Duly adopted this day of 2013. Deke Copenhaver, Mayor t y. k ATTEST • . • • , Cerk , /V/AJ y Ml i / Transit Citizens' Advisory Committee By-Laws Page 9 of 9 MIL.