1998 National LP Convention
Bylawsand Rules Committee Report

The Bylaws and Rules Committee met on June 30 and July 1, 1998. Members present were:

David Bergland, Chair
Ken Bisson, M.D., Secretary
Karen Allard
Bruce Baechler
Hugh Butler
Greg Dirasian
Geoffrey Neale
Bill Redpath
Mark Tuniewicz

David Aitken was unable to attend.

The following proposed amendments to the Bylaws and Convention Rules were supported by a majority:

Proposal 1.
ARTICLE 3: PURPOSES

ARTICLE 3: PURPOSES

The Party is organized to implement and give voice to the principles embodied in the Statement of Principles by:

• functioning as a libertarian political entity separate and distinct from all other political parties or movements;

• moving public policy in a libertarian direction by building a political party that elects Libertarians to public office;

• chartering affiliate parties throughout the United States and promoting their growth and activities;

• nominating candidates for President and Vice-President of the United States, and supporting Party and affiliate party candidates for political office; and,

• entering into political public information activities

Proposal 2.
ARTICLE 13, SECTION 6

ARTICLE 13, SECTION 6, second paragraph

A list of the names and addresses of all delegates and alternates chosen by each affiliate party shall be sent to the Secretary National Headquarters no later than one month prior to start of the first general session of the Regular Convention.

Proposal 3.
ARTICLE 13: CONVENTIONS, SECTION 5. Ex-Officio Delegates

ARTICLE 13: CONVENTIONS

5. Ex-Officio Delegates

In addition, the following persons shall be ex-officio delegates, automatically entitled to delegate status:

a. National Officers;

b. National Committee members or and their alternates;

Proposal 4.
ARTICLE 9, OFFICERS, SECTION 4, CHAIR.

4. The Chair shall preside at all Conventions and all meetings of the National Committee. The Chair shall appoint, subject to the advice and consent of the National Committee, a chief executive to conduct the business of the Party in accordance with National Committee policies and directives. The Chair is the chief executive officer of the Party with full authority to direct its business and affairs, including hiring and discharging of National Committee volunteers and paid personnel, subject to express National Committee policies and directives issued in the exercise of the National Committee's plenary control and management of Party affairs, properties and funds.

Proposal 5.
ARTICLE 13, CONVENTIONS, SECTION 4

4. Affiliate Party Delegate Entitlements:

Each affiliate party shall be entitled to send delegates to each Regular Convention on the following basis:

a. one delegate for each 20 members or fraction thereof, of the National Party (at least one such delegate must be a resident of that state); plus

b. one additional delegate for each one percent (1%) (rounded) of the total vote cast for President in that state or district which was received by the Party's most recent candidate for President.

a. One delegate for each 0.1 percent, or fraction thereof, of the total Party membership in that affiliate; provided that at least one such delegate must be a resident of that State or District.

b. One delegate for each 0.25 percent, or fraction thereof, of the votes cast nationwide for the Libertarian Party candidate in the most recent presidential election, cast in that affiliate's state.

Proposal 6.
RULE 10: ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND NATIONAL COMMITTEE, SECTION 2.a

RULE 10: ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND NATIONAL COMMITTEE

2. Nominations for the at-large members of the National Committee shall be from the floor, with all national or affiliate party members eligible for nomination. The election shall be conducted in the following manner:

a. Each delegate may cast up to five votes, but no more than one vote for any one candidate distributed among one to five candidates at the delegates discretion.

Proposal 7.
RULE 3, VOTING PROCEDURE AND MOTIONS, SECTION 1.

RULE 3: VOTING PROCEDURE AND MOTIONS

1. On all matters, except the retention and final retention of platform planks, the election of Party Officers and at-large members of the National Committee, and the nomination of Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates, voting will be by voice vote. If ten or more delegates five percent or more of the registered delegates object to the Chair's ruling on the outcome of a voice vote, a counted vote will be held.

Proposal 8.
RULE 9, NOMINATION OF PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES, EXISTING SECTION 4.

RULE 9, NOMINATION OF PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

4. Nominations for President and Vice-President shall be submitted to the Chair in writing before nominations are announced from the Convention floor and before any nominating and seconding speeches are given. No nominee for President or Vice-President shall be allocated time for nominating and seconding speeches unless at least five percent of registered delegates join in the nomination in writing submitted to the Chair. No delegate may join in nominating more than one candidate for each office.

Nominating and seconding speeches shall be limited in duration as follows: ...

Proposal 9.
RULE 3: VOTING PROCEDURE AND MOTIONS, SECTION 2.

RULE 3: VOTING PROCEDURE AND MOTIONS

2. The Chair may require any motion offered from the Convention floor to be in writing, signed by the mover and submitted to the Secretary. Any motion offered from the Convention floor shall be seconded by at least five percent of the registered delegates in order for it to be considered.

Proposal 10.
RULE 9, NOMINATION OF PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES, SECTIONS 3 AND 4.

3. The party's nominee for Vice-President shall be chosen by the following procedure. After the Presidential nominee has been selected, the Presidential nominee shall designate a person as the Vice-Presidential nominee and shall have five minutes to speak in support of the person designated. The delegates shall then vote, without debate, whether to accept that person as the Vice-Presidential nominee, who shall be the nominee if a majority votes in favor. If the delegates do not cast a majority of votes in support of the designated nominee, the Party's nominee for Vice-President shall be chosen by the same procedure as for the Presidential nominee.

3. The Party's nominee for Vice-President shall be chosen by the same procedure as for the Presidential nominee except that the Presidential nominee shall have the privilege of addressing the Convention for 5 minutes, after nominations have been made but before voting has begun, for the purpose of endorsing or objecting to any of theVice-Presidential nominees.

4. Nominating and seconding speeches shall be limited in duration as follows:

President: Total of 16 minutes;

Vice President: Total of 11 minutes. , but only if the delegates do not accept any person designated by the Presidential nominee pursuant to the procedure described in Section 3 of this Rule.

Note: There is a minority report on proposal 10.

Proposal 11.
RULE 9: NOMINATION OF PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES, ADD NEW SECTION 1

1. No person may be nominated as the Party's Presidential candidate or Vice Presidential candidate who has not been a Party member for a period of six months immediately preceding the date of nomination.
(Then renumber sections below.)

Proposal 12.
RULE 11: NONE OF THE ABOVE

RULE 9: NOMINATION OF PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

5. A speech on behalf of NOTA may be made by any delegate gathering signatures of five percent of registered delegates who have not already joined in the nomination a candidate. The total time allocated to speeches for NOTA shall be limited in duration to 5 minutes.

RULE 11: NONE OF THE ABOVE

Votes cast for "None of the Above" in voting on the Party's nominees for President and, Vice-President, and the Party Officers , and at large members of the National Committee shall be considered valid. Should a majority of the votes be cast for "None of the Above" in the Presidential or Vice-Presidential balloting, no candidate shall be nominated for that office. Should "None of the Above" be selected for any Party office, that position shall be declared vacant and none of the losing candidates for that position may be selected to fill the vacancy for that term of office.