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Saint Paul Public Schools #625
Citizens’ Budget and Finance Advisory Committee Bylaws
Adopted July 1, 2003
I. Name and Charge
A. The name of this committee is the Citizens’ Budget and Finance Advisory Committee (CBFAC).
B. CBFAC is an advisory committee to the Board of Education (Board) and the administration of the Saint Paul Public Schools.
C. CBFAC receives its charge from the Board. That charge includes:
1. Review the current year budget and where appropriate make recommendations to the Board on possible courses of action.
2. Review the school district’s financial condition and projected resources available for the next school year and make recommendations to the Board.
3. Recommend guidelines to the Board of Education with respect to budget preparation for the next school year.
4. Work in an advisory capacity including ongoing major budget revisions, and report directly to the Board of Education for the Board’s action on its recommendation.
5. Adhere to the guidelines established by the Board for budget preparation for the coming fiscal year.
6. Be informed about the proposed next year budgets and have the opportunity to discuss with the Board and administration.
7. Adhere to all existing Board policies. CBFAC may suggest changes to the Board’s policy and shall clearly indicate when they do.
II. Membership
A. CBFAC shall consist of up to thirty (30) members as follows:
1. Two individuals chosen by each Board member
2. One individual nominated by the Special Education Council
3. Two individuals nominated by the Citywide Student Council
4. A representative from the Chamber of Commerce
5. A representative from the Planning, Evaluation and Reporting (PER) Committee
6. Up to eleven (11) members shall be chosen among:
a. Those persons attending the first meeting
b. Those persons requesting to become members
c. Those persons nominated by district committees such as district technology, Community Education, site councils, PTOs, and the Citizens’ Long Range Space Planning Advisory Committee.
B. The overall selection and election process for the committee shall attempt to achieve a membership that is representative of the District in terms of gender, race and geography. CBFAC may forward to the Board, for its consideration, the names of persons interested in serving on the committee who have come to the committee’s attention.
C. Appointments to CBFAC are made by the Board.
1. Members are appointed for a two-year term.
2. No member may serve more than two consecutive two-year terms. If positions remain open under category II. A. 6. at the time of appointment of the entire committee, the Board may waive this rule.
D. CBFAC members serve without compensation.
E. A CBFAC member shall be a member “in good standing” if the member has not had more than three unexcused absences during the current fiscal year and has not resigned.
1. A CBFAC member who is not a member in good standing shall lose voting privileges and shall not have the member’s name included on reports submitted to the Board.
2. The CBFAC chair shall notify any member with two unexcused absences about the consequences of three unexcused absences.
F. CBFAC may forward to the Board the names of committee members who have resigned or who are not members in good standing, so that the Board may consider filling those positions.
III. Officers
A. CBFAC officers shall be a chair, a vice chair, and a secretary.
B. Duties of the officers are:
1. Chair
a. Preside at CBFAC meetings
b. Set meeting agendas in accordance with CBFAC’s charge and after consultation with CBFAC and the superintendent or designee.
c. Set times and locations of joint meetings with the Board, in consultation with the administration.
d. Authorize excused absences and notifying committee members with two unexcused absences of the consequences of a third unexcused absence.
e. Carry out other duties and activities necessary to fulfill CBFAC’s charge, and/or which are customarily associated with leadership of an advisory committee.
2. Vice Chair
a. Assume the duties of the chair in the chair’s absence.
b. Carry out other duties as assigned or delegated by the chair.
3. Secretary
a. Maintain or work with the administration on record of CBFAC members’ attendance.
b. Provide or work with the administration on meeting notices, minutes, committee correspondence and drafts of committee position statements or recommendations.
c. Maintain or work with the administration on a current roster of committee members’ names, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, email addresses, term expiration dates, and standing.
C. A person who is eligible to be an officer shall be:
1. A committee member in good standing
2. Not an elected school board director
3. Not an announced candidate for the school board.
D. Officers serve a one-year term for the school district’s fiscal year. Officers may be re-elected to the same or a different office in subsequent years.
E. Officers are elected by CBFAC members.
1. At the third to the last meeting of the fiscal year, the upcoming election will be announced, and it will be included on meeting notices for the next two meetings.
2. At the second to the last meeting of the fiscal year, persons may be nominated to be officers, or they may nominate themselves to be officers.
3. Elections of officers for the following year shall take place at the last regularly scheduled meeting of the fiscal year. No nominations may be taken at this meeting, just the vote on the persons who were nominated at previous meeting.
F. In the event of a vacancy in an officer position for any reason, the procedure described in E., above, will be used to fill the vacancy, starting with the first meeting at which a vacancy occurs.
G. An officer who becomes ineligible to serve as an officer for any reason shall resign immediately as an officer, but may remain as a CBFAC member.
H. An officer may be removed from office for any reason by a 2/3 vote of members in good standing present. Such a vote shall occur only at a meeting which 2/3 of all members in good standing are in attendance.
IV. CBFAC Meetings with the Board
A. CBFAC members shall be encouraged to attend the budget review process meetings held by the Committee of the Board (COB).
B. The COB shall hold joint meetings with CBFAC as necessary to review the administration’s proposed budget and develop budget recommendations. The times and locations of these sessions will be developed jointly by the chairs of both committees in consultation with the administration.
C. CBFAC will participate in the Board’s budget review discussion.
1. CBFAC members will listen to citizen testimony and will be able to ask questions and request information.
2. The structure of the meetings will consist of:
a. Budget presentations by the administration
b. Public testimony from persons in attendance
c. Board questions to the administration
d. CBFAC questions to the administration. The chair of the COB will refer CBFAC questions, as appropriate, to the administration for response.
V. CBFAC Meetings
A. CBFAC shall meet regularly, usually twice a month, during the school year. CBFAC also may schedule special committee meetings, hold public hearings and forums, form subcommittees, and use other means of carrying out its charge if necessary.
- CBFAC meeting agendas shall be set by the chair in accordance with CBFAC’s duties and responsibilities of the committee and after consultation with members and the superintendent or designee. CBFAC members may vote to amend the proposed agenda at the beginning of each meeting.
- The structure of the regular meetings shall include:
1. CBFAC shall have an organizational meeting to review its assignment and adopt a schedule of regular meetings.
2. From the beginning of the year through January, CBFAC shall review the current year budget, the financial condition of the various funds and the projected resources available for the following fiscal year. The current budget review may include but is not limited to: athletics, pupil costs, magnet schools, non-magnet schools, transportation and all other district funds.
3. CBFAC recommendations on the budget (including next year’s budget guidelines) shall be submitted to the Board at the Board’s January regularly scheduled meeting.
4. CBFAC shall review its mission and agenda prior to the end of the fiscal year and make a recommendation concerning implementation of CBFAC including the election of officers for the following school year.
D. CBFAC meetings shall:
1. Conform to the provisions of the Minnesota Open Meeting Law
2. Follow the policies and practices of the Board concerning posting of scheduled meetings and providing opportunities for citizens and delegations to be heard.
E. CBFAC may conduct business at a meeting when a quorum is present.
1. A quorum is 50% or more members in good standing in attendance.
2. If a quorum is not present, the committee may have a working session but may not adopt positions or other motions.
F. Committee Decision Making
1. CBFAC shall work with respectful regard for the members of the Board of Education, members of CBFAC, committees and citizens making public comment. CBFAC shall collaboratively problem solve with others when they are working on the same issue.
2. CBFAC shall make decisions by consensus whenever possible.
3. If consensus cannot be reached, CBFAC shall vote to make decisions. Parliamentary authority for this process shall be Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised.
4. Adopted committee positions or recommendations shall be communicated to the Board in writing.
5. If CBFAC adopts a position or recommendation which is to be transmitted to the Board, and one or more committee members who voted against the position or recommendation wish to submit a minority report:
a. The minority report must be prepared in writing within two weeks of adoption of the motion.
b. Copies of the minority report must be provided by the maker to all CBFAC members.
c. The minority report will be attached to or submitted as a follow-up to the transmittal of the position or recommendation to the Board.
- Minutes shall be kept of each meeting and shall be provided to the Board.
VI. CBFAC Communications and Representation
A. In general, the chair or the vice chair will represent the committee to the Board and the public. CBFAC members may adopt a motion authorizing other CBFAC members to represent CBFAC if appropriate.
B. Any CBFAC member who is representing CBFAC must speak only to CBFAC’s adopted positions or recommendations and may not present their personal position when publicly communicating a CBFAC position.
C. CBFAC members are encouraged to seek input from the community. CBFAC members should communicate adopted CBFAC positions and recommendations by distributing written copies of the position and recommendations and along with minority reports if applicable.
D. CBFAC members may participate in the Open Forum section of Board meetings as citizens, but not as CBFAC representatives unless specifically authorized by the adopted committee motion.
VII. Amendments to these Bylaws
A. If any part of these by-laws are found to be contrary to school board policies or other applicable requirements, the remainder of the by-laws shall remain in full force and effect.
B. These bylaws may be amended by the following procedure:
1. A motion for consideration of a bylaw amendment may be made at any regularly scheduled CBFAC meeting. If the motion is adopted, consideration of the proposed bylaw amendment will be placed on the agenda for the following two meetings. Written copies of the proposed bylaw amendment must be distributed to all CBFAC members.
2. At the next regularly scheduled meeting of CBFAC following introduction of the proposed amendment, the proposed amendment shall be discussed. If CBFAC members wish to modify the proposed amendment, the modifications shall be discussed and vote shall be taken on the modifications to the proposed amendment.
4. At the second regularly scheduled CBFAC meeting following introduction of the proposed bylaw amendment, a vote will be taken on the proposed amendment in final form. Neither discussion nor modifications to the proposed amendment will be permitted at this meeting.
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