Olympia Indivisible Steering Committee (OISC) Charter​

(May 1, 2017-V1; Revised May, 2019-V2, Revised April, 2021-V3)
 
Guiding Principles:
The Steering Committee will model the Olympia Indivisible (OI) principles of truth, fairness, inclusivity, and tolerance.
 
Purpose:

• Promotes coordination and cooperation within the membership of OI;
• Provides representation for members to other progressive organizations, as well as State and National Indivisible;
• Acts as the final decision making body for OI’s culture and its political, legal, organizational, technical, financial, and media issues. Considers the impact of decisions on members, teams, and other stakeholders;
• Works to ensure that OI does everything within its means to achieve its goals and to support our members and teams to act independently and purposefully towards OI’s mission;
• Works to ensure that OI keeps its principles and values at the forefront of our actions and in all communications.

 
Mandate:

• Develops and monitors organizational direction and structure;
• Supports communication and cooperation among teams;
• Organizes and facilitates a monthly meeting for the Leadership Team which is comprised of Team leads and co-leads;
• Solicits input from, and communicates with OI membership;
• Empowers teams and membership to act with creativity and independence;
• Makes decisions about the operations and finances of OI. When making decisions for the organization, it fairly weighs all requests and acts impartially to do the most good with available resources. 

 
Membership:

• The Steering Committee members consist of representatives from within the OI membership;
• SC Members need not be team leads nor liaisons; however, due to the volume of work done at OI with an all-volunteer workforce, it is common for SC members to be involved in one or more teams;
• The SC composition will be evaluated at least annually, and new members can be added as needed on an ongoing basis.

 
OISC Meetings:

• The Steering Committee will meet every two weeks;
• If a member cannot attend, they will notify the chair before the start of the meeting so that arrangements for their absence can be made;
• Without a quorum (four members present) no votes will be held;
• In order for a vote to pass, a simple majority of members present must vote in favor of the item;
• Each member of the Steering Committee will be responsible for chairing the meetings, on a rotating basis, for an assigned month. The order of rotation will be up to the SC and updated as needed;
• An agenda for each meeting will be created and circulated in advance by the chair for the upcoming meeting. SC members may contribute to the agenda by 5 p.m. the day of the SC meeting;
• Suggestions for agenda items will be accepted from OI members, using a form on the OI website or through direct contact with an SC member or Leadership Team member;
• There will be a note taker for each meeting. This responsibility will be done on a voluntary rotating basis;
• At each meeting the Treasurer will provide a written financial report;
• All expenditures over $30 must be presented to the Steering Committee for approval prior to purchase. 

 
Leadership Team (LT) Meetings:

• The LT will consist of all team leads, co-leads, and liaisons;
• LT will act as a representative voice of their team’s members, and will be expected to bring questions or concerns to the SC, as well as to communicate information from the SC to their team members;
• The SC will present for input from the LT: 

            - Any changes to the OI structure;
            - All new organizational partnerships or working coalitions;
            - New OI strategies or objectives (short or long term);
            - Large, organization-wide efforts;

• The LT will be encouraged to give feedback, comments, and approval/rejection to the SC before the changes are brought to the general membership for final approval;
• A monthly LT meeting agenda will be created by the SC. It will be sent to LT members prior to the meeting date. At the meeting, LT members will provide a brief team report and are encouraged to bring items for discussion to the SC for inclusion in the agenda.

Reporting to OI Membership:

• The Steering Committee Charter and strategic planning documents will be available to members through the OI website;
• The SC will strive to present an annual an all-members meeting to update the general membership on OI projects, priorities, mission, goals, and previous activities;
• Annually, the SC will provide a year-in-review document (email, report, or other media) to members that summarizes achievements and actions from the previous year;
• Final minutes from the Steering Committee meetings will be shared with the OI membership upon request, but not to the general public. OI membership comments on the minutes are encouraged. ​