Bylaws
Revised June 19, 2000
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ARTICLE I - OFFICERS
1.1 - Composition & Election
The officers of the Grand Valley Metro Council (GVMC) transportation planning committees shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice Chairperson and Secretary. These officers shall be elected by the officially designated Committee members at the last regular meeting of a calendar year and take office at the first regular meeting of the next year.
1.2 - Chairperson
The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings and assure that the transaction of business shall be in accordance with these bylaws. The Chairperson may appoint special committees as he/she deems necessary and shall serve as an ex-officio member of these committees.
1.3 - Vice Chairperson
The Vice Chairperson shall execute the powers and duties of the Chairperson during the absence or incapacity of the Chairperson. In the absence of the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, the Committee shall designate a temporary Chairperson who shall perform the duties and have the powers of the Chairperson.
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1.4 - Term of Officers
Officers shall be elected for a one-year term. A member may not serve more than two consecutive terms in the same office. A member, after serving two consecutive terms in the same office, shall not be elected to an office for an interim period of one year.
1.5 - Officer Replacements
The Committee shall elect a member to any vacancy or unexpired term of an officer at which time they deem necessary. The newly elected officer shall serve in this capacity until the next regular election.
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ARTICLE II - MEETINGS
2.1 - Location
All meetings shall be held in Kent or Ottawa Counties.
2.2 - Order of Business
The order of business to be conducted shall be in the following sequence: Roll Call, Minutes of Previous Meeting, Petitions and Communications, Reports of Staff; Reports of Committees, Old or Unfinished Business, New Business, Committee Members Discussion Period, and Adjournment.
2.3 - Agenda
The agenda for any given meeting shall be determined prior to that meeting by the Transportation Planning Division staff. All officially recognized Committee members may submit pertinent items for inclusion in the agenda. Staff shall have the responsibility for notifying all Committee members, sufficiently in advance, of an impending meeting.
2.4 - Special Meetings
Special meetings shall be held whenever necessary, if, in the opinion of the Chairperson, proposed topics of discussion are of regional concern or merit full committee consideration.
2.5 - Recording Duties
Secretarial and recording duties shall be performed by staff.
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ARTICLE III - COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
3.1 - Membership
Policy Advisory Committee
Membership on the GVMC Policy Advisory Committee shall be composed of duly elected or appointed representatives of the legally constituted political units or publicly owned transportation providers contained within the Metropolitan Area Boundary (MAB).
Provided that none of the representatives of political units of government may be employees of the Michigan Department of Transportation, Grand Rapids Area Transit Authority, Kent County Road Commission or Ottawa County Road Commission. As of this date, membership includes the following:
City of Cedar Springs 1
City of East Grand Rapids 1
City of Grandville 1
City of Grand Rapids 4
City of Hudsonville 1
City of Kentwood 1
City of Lowell 1
City of Rockford 1
City of Walker 1
City of Wyoming 2
Ada Township 1
Algoma Township 1
Allendale Township 1
Alpine Township 1
Byron Township 1
Caledonia Township 1
Cannon Township 1
Cascade Township 1
Courtland Township 1
Gaines Township 1
Georgetown Township 1
Grand Rapids Township 1
Jamestown Township 1
Plainfield Township 1
Tallmadge Township 1
Village of Sparta 1
Kent County Board of Commissioners 3
Kent County Road Commission 1
Ottawa County Board of Commission 1
Ottawa County Road Commission 1
Interurban Transit Partnership 1
Kent County Aeronautics Board 1
Michigan Department of Transportation 1
Total Votes 39
Votes Required for Quorum = 19
Or 14 Member Units Represented.
Technical Committee
Membership on the GVMC Technical Committee shall be comprised of representatives of the agencies, which are members of the Policy Advisory Committee. These representatives shall have the same voting powers as representatives on the Policy Advisory Committee. Other agencies or groups having a regional focus related to transportation shall be allowed membership. The voting status of these agencies shall be of an advisory nature; however members shall be allowed to bring issues to the GVMC Technical Committee. Membership will be reviewed on a case by case basis by the GVMC Policy Advisory Committee, which will make a recommendation to the GVMC
Board based on reference to the public information guidelines of the 1991 Inter-modal
Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA),the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).
VOTING Members
City of Cedar Springs
City of East Grand Rapids
City of Grand Rapids
City of Grandville
City of Hudsonville
City of Kentwood
City Of Lowell
City of Rockford
City of Walker
City of Wyoming
Ada Township
Algoma Township
Allendale Township
Alpine Township
Byron Township
Caledonia Township
Cannon Township
Cascade Township
Courtland Township
Gaines Township
Georgetown Township
Grand Rapids Township
Jamestown Township
Plainfield Township
Tallmadge Township
Village of Sparta
Kent County Board of Commissioners
Kent County Road Commission
Ottawa County Board of Commission
Ottawa County Road Commission
Interurban Transit Partnership
Michigan Department of Transportation
Kent County Department of Aeronautics
ADVISORY Members
Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce
West Michigan Environmental Action Council
Voting structure and quorum requirements are the same as of the Policy Advisory Committee.
3.2 - Delegates
Each of the member units shall designate a delegate. Each delegate shall name an official alternate to represent him/her in the event of the delegate's absence from committee meetings. If neither designated representative can be present, a substitute delegate may attend and have full voting privileges. Any substitute delegate not from the same community shall have a signed proxy or have phoned in his/her proxy prior to meeting.
3.3 - Meeting Attendance
A delegate, alternate, or proxy from each member unit should be present at all meetings. If a member unit fails to have a representative present for three consecutive meetings, the said unit will be notified in writing by the Chairperson.
3.4 - Admission of New Agencies or Organizations
Committees may, upon request, permit additional agencies or organizations to sit on the Committee. Such organizations or agencies will be admitted as non-voting members.
Admission of a new agency or organization shall require a recommendation from the Policy Advisory Committee and approval from the GVMC Board. The bylaws will be amended based on the recommendation from the Policy Advisory Committee.
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ARTICLE IV - VOTING
4.1 - Voting Structure
Each member political unit shall be assigned one vote. Cities and townships shall have one additional vote for each 50,000 population based on the last certified census.
4.2 - Quorum
A quorum shall be required before any resolution, motion, or any other official action can
be formally acted upon. A quorum shall consist of designated representatives from fourteen (14) or more units comprising the Committees or nineteen (19) total votes represented. A simple majority of those present shall be required to pass a decision.
Revision of bylaws shall require two-thirds of the votes present of the Policy Advisory Committee Members.
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ARTICLE V - SUBCOMMITTEES
5.1 - Standing Committees
One permanent subcommittee shall be established: Transportation Programming Study Group. This subcommittee will provide in-depth review for and recommendations to the Technical and Policy Committees. Items addressed by this subcommittee shall be at the direction of either the Technical or Policy Committee Chairperson. Meetings will be called by the subcommittee chairperson whenever necessary to accomplish its appointed tasks.
5.2 - Transportation Programming Study Group
This subcommittee shall address matters related to project selection and evaluation for the Transportation Improvement Program and Long Range Transportation Plan. This is a working subcommittee which prepares draft materials for the Technical Committee. This subcommittee is responsible for developing local guidelines for compliance with the federal rules and procedures. In particular, this committee shall have responsibility for assuring that GVMC Transportation plans and programs comply with the 1990 Clean Air
Act and Amendments, the Inter-modal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA), the
Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).
The Composition of the Transportation Improvement Program Committee shall include the following:
City of Cedar Springs 1
City of East Grand Rapids 1
City of Grandville 1
City of Grand Rapids 2
City of Hudsonville 1
City of Kentwood 1
City of Lowell 1
City of Rockford 1
City of Walker 1
City of Wyoming 2
Village of Sparta 1
Village of Caledonia 1
Kent County Road Commission 2
Kent County Township Representative 1
Ottawa County Road Commission 1
Ottawa County Township Representative 1
Interurban Transit Partnership 1
Kent County Aeronautics Board 1
Michigan Department of Transportation 1
Total Votes: 22
Voting
Each member shall have one vote, except the Cities of Grand Rapids and Wyoming, and the Kent County Road Commission. A simple majority of those present is required to establish a position or recommendation. All position/recommendations shall be submitted to and subject to Technical Committee acceptance and confirmation.
5.3 - Ad-hoc Committees
An ad-hoc committee may be appointed at any time by the Chairman of the Technical Committee to address a specific matter. Ad-hoc committees shall function for not more than (1) year. At the end of one (1) year, all responsibilities and remaining duties will be carried out by a standing subcommittee.
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