FLC Constitution Review Task Force
May 3, 2023
Attending: Joan Detrick, Jan Ray, Andrea Miller, Bob Miller
Purpose of Meeting: Review 2020 Constitution for possible future amendments
Background: The FLC Constitution was completely rewritten (following the guidance of the ELCA Model Constitution adopted in 2019), and approved during the Annual Meeting of the FLC Congregation in January 2020. Since its ratification, questions related to Council/Executive Committee term limits and the structure of Committee governance have come to the attention of the Council. Joan Detrick and Jan Ray were appointed to review the questions with the assistance of members of the 2020 Constitution committee as resources.
CLICK HERE for a link to a PDF of the 2020 Faith Lutheran Church Constitution
Action Recommendations:
1. The 2022 ELCA Churchwide Assembly approved several amendments to the Model Constitution for Congregations. The task force reviewed the changes and recommends that the Council move them in a package to be approved by the Congregation during its January 2024 Annual Meeting. CLICK HERE to view these changes. (If wording is adopted exactly as presented on the proposal from ELCA, these provisions require a majority vote of those voting members present and voting at any legally called meeting of the congregation, provided that they have been presented to the congregation at least 30 days prior to the meeting. If the Council proposes to alter any of the wording in “non-required” sections, ratification becomes a two-step voting process, that culminates in a required 2/3 majority of voting members at a Congregation meeting.)
2. FLC Constitution task force recommends that the Council not propose any other amendments to the Constitution at this time. Rationale: The Constitution is only three years old and it’s too early to fully understand if changes are needed for smoother operation of the Congregation and its elected Council.
The recommendation is to continue to work within the structure of the 2020 Constitution (incorporating the changes from the 2022 ELCA vote) and reconsider possible amendments in 2026, when the ELCA Model Constitution will be updated (as determined by the Churchwide Assembly action every three years).
3. The task force did not develop a recommendation on how to manage FLC’s Continuing Resolutions, which describe the authority and activities of various church-approved committees. These resolutions are approved by Council action. Currently, there is not a formal structure for ‘managing’ them. This topic needs further consideration.