| How
to Submit an Overture
A. Overview:
The ground rules for presenting
overtures are found in the Manual of the General Assembly, Standing
Rules B.5.c. The key provisions are:
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Overtures must be approved by a presbytery
or a synod.
-
Overtures must request the General Assembly
to take a particular action or approve or endorse a particular
statement or resolution.
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Overtures must be timely submitted to the
Office of the General Assembly (see G. below).
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The originating governing body may appoint
an overture advocate (see section E. below).
B. Researching the Overture:
Standing Rule B.5.c.(1) requires
that stated clerk of a presbytery or synod considering an overture
to the General Assembly shall:
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Examine the most recently published Minutes
of the General Assembly to determine if a similar overture
has already been passed;
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Consult with the Office of the General Assembly
to determine whether the desired action has been voted by
any previous General Assembly;
-
Consult with the Office of the General Assembly
to determine whether a similar overture has already been proposed
for the current year. If so, the presbytery or synod will
be encouraged to concur with that overture. (see section D.
below)
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Presbyteries or synods submitting overtures
with a recommendation(s) that affects the work or budget of
a General Assembly entity(ies) shall submit evidence that
the affected entity(ies) has (have) been consulted. If such
evidence is not submitted, the Stated Clerk shall recommend
that the overture be received and referred to a future session
of the General Assembly so that consultation may take place.
These procedures are designed to insure better communication
in conceiving and writing recommendations considered at the
assembly. The consultation may take place by fax, phone, mail,
or personal conversation.
C. Format of the Overture:
Recommendation Section:
"The Presbytery [or
Synod] of _____________________overtures the 217th General Assembly
(2006) to ..."
The recommendation section should
be worded with specific, concise directives so that the General
Assembly can make a clear, informed decision, and so that financial
implications, if any, can be accurately assigned.
Rationale Section:
The rationale section should be
as concise as possible, and provide insight into the reasons for
the recommendation. Material included in the rationale is for
information only and is not a part of the action of the assembly.
Tell the reader, in short paragraphs, things like what is the
problem, what is the harm, why is the current rule or program
not adequate, what is needed.
A change in presbytery boundaries,
or moving a church from one presbytery to another requires action
by both presbyteries and the synod, or both synods. This may be
submitted as three separate overtures or in a single overture
that recites the dates when each governing body voted to approve.
Treat a change in boundaries as you would an amendment to a paragraph.
Repeat the entire description of the boundaries of the presbytery
as amended.
D. Submitting the Overture:
The overture may be submitted
electronically to Kay
Moore, faxed to (502) 569-8642, or sent via first class
mail c/o Kay Moore, Office of the General Assembly, 100 Witherspoon
Street, Room 4415, Louisville, KY 40202. Submitting the overture
electronically or providing a disk copy eliminates the necessity
of OGA staff rekeying the overture.
Please provide either a hard copy
of the overture signed by the stated clerk, or a cover letter
with signature, to certify the overture's authenticity as an action
of the governing body.
Please remember that the receipt
of all overtures in OGA will be acknowledged by letter. If an
acknowledging letter is not received within a few weeks after
submission, please check with the Office of the General Assembly
to ensure that the overture has been received.
E. Overture Advocate:
Each presbytery or synod submitting
an overture may name an overture advocate. The overture advocate
must be able to be available at the General Assembly to provide
information on the background and intent of the overture to the
assembly committee to which the overture is referred (see also
Standing Rule C.4.d. "Privilege of the Floor"). Be aware
that naming a commissioner as an overture advocate will most certainly
require that the commissioner will be taken away from their assigned
assembly committee business to go to another assembly committee
to advocate for the overture.
In the letter acknowledging receipt
of the overture, the Office of the General Assembly will request
overture advocate information Please provide the name of an overture
advocate as soon as possible. Several weeks before the convening
of the General Assembly, the Office of the General Assembly will
correspond with all overture advocates. The overture advocates
receive information identifying the item number and title they
will be advocating, the assembly committee to which the overture
is referred and the location of the meeting room in the convention
center, and the names of the leadership of the assembly committee.
F. Frequently Asked Questions:
Q. What is the deadline for concurring
with another presbytery's or synod's overture?
A. The deadline for concurring with an overture is the same as
the deadline for submitting that overture. If a presbytery or
synod intends to concur with an overture to amend the Book of
Order, the concurrence letter must be received by the 120-day
deadline.
Q. If our presbytery concurs with
another presbytery's overture, do we name an overture advocate?
A. A presbytery or synod that concurs with an overture from another
presbytery or synod still may send an overture advocate to assist
in presenting the matter to the assembly committee.
G. Deadlines for submitting
overtures are as follows:
120-day deadline: overtures requesting
amendment to or interpretation of the Book of Order. These overtures
are then automatically referred to the Advisory Committee on the
Constitution for advice to the General Assembly (G-18.0301).
60-day deadline: overtures having
financial implications for current or future budgets.
45-day deadline: all other overtures.
30-day deadline: time by which
consultation with affected entity must have occurred (see B. above).
Overtures not timely received will
be returned to the originating governing body. All deadlines are
postmark deadlines.
218th GA (2008): June 21-28, 2008
(San Jose, Calif.):
120-day Deadline: February 22, 2008
90-day Deadline: March 24, 2008
60-day Deadline: April 22, 2008
45-day Deadline: May 7, 2008
30-day Deadline: May 22, 2008
219th GA (2010): July 3-10,
2010 (Minneapolis, Minn.):
120-day Deadline: March 5, 2010
90-day Deadline: April 5, 2010
60-day Deadline: May 4, 2010
45-day Deadline: May 19, 2010
30-day Deadline: June 3, 2010 |
