Section VII: Committees and Boards

A. Purpose ¹

1. The SAA Council establishes standing committees and boards to provide ongoing oversight and guidance on, and perform specified tasks related to, functional areas of importance to the Society’s programs and members.
2. The Council approves descriptions for each SAA committee and board stating its purpose, reporting procedures, and duties and responsibilities, and including specific information about its selection, size, length of terms, and meetings. The descriptions are intended to ensure that the purpose and goals of each committee and board are clear and to promote continuity and consistency in the Society's work. Each committee and board uses the description as a source of guidance for its activities.
3. The copy of record of these descriptions for each committee and board is maintained on the SAA website. Committees and boards work through their Council liaison to recommend any needed revisions to these descriptions.

B. Membership

1. Appointments to standing committees and boards generally are made by the vice president / president-elect in the months preceding the SAA Annual Meeting and take effect at the close of the Annual Meeting. Membership on committees and boards is open to all SAA members. Further details on appointments are specified on the SAA website for a specific committee or board.
2. Unless otherwise stated in the description on the SAA website for a specific committee or board, appointments are for three-year terms and may be renewed.
3. To encourage participation in the work of a committee or board by those who seek to gain expertise in that area, interns may be appointed to committees and boards. Interns, who are appointed by the vice president / president-elect in consultation with the chair, serve as nonvoting members for a term of one year and are expected to attend the SAA Annual Meeting and assist in the work of the group throughout the year.
4. The process for the removal of a non-participating committee or board member is specified in the Policy for Removing a Non-Participating Member from a Council-Appointed Group.

C. Consultation and Reporting

1. Committees and boards work closely with their Council liaisons to ensure that they are responsive to the needs of the Society.
2. Each committee or board, like all SAA groups, is required to present an annual report for review by the Council. The chair is responsible for coordinating the submission of an annual report. Budget requests must be submitted as part of the annual report, which must be filed with the SAA Executive Director within 90 days of the close of the annual meeting. Annual reports must use the Council Report Template. The annual report should be a brief summary of the group’s activities in the preceding year, and may raise issues or questions about which the group desires Council feedback.
3. The chair is responsible for ensuring that minutes or reports of meetings are prepared if these are warranted. Minutes or reports should be posted on the committee’s or board’s SAA website to inform SAA members of its activities.

D. Meetings and External Resources

1. Standing committees and boards meet at the Annual Meeting. The work of most committees is best facilitated if both incoming and outgoing members are invited to participate in this meeting. The chair prepares and distributes in advance an agenda for the meeting.
2. The standard expectation is that a committee’s or board’s work outside of the Annual Meeting will be done utilizing emails, conference calls (supported by the SAA office), and free tools. SAA support for in-person, mid-year meetings of committees and boards is severely restricted due to limited financial resources. Committee and board chairs should discuss requests for such funding with their Council liaisons and the executive director.
3. If a committee or board wishes to seek resources (whether cash or in kind) from any source outside SAA, Executive Committee approval must be obtained in every instance before approaching the source. Proposals should be routed through the executive director and Council liaison, with sufficient time for consideration by the Executive Committee, which will respond within 30 days.

Adopted by the Council: January 1995
Revised: July 2013

¹ The source for Sections VII.A and B. is the Bylaws of the Society of American Archivists, Bylaw 6.