Florida’sOfficeofEarlyLearning
TechnicalAssistancePaper#2012‐01
QuestionsandAnswers(Q&A)Board
MemberTerms&UniformLengths
RickScott
Governor
MelJurado
Director
Purpose
Florida’s Office of Early Learning (FOEL) is providing this guidance as a response to multiple inquiries regarding board member terms and uniform lengths. The questions and answers in this document provide clarification of the requirements of statute and proposed rules related to board membership. Background
Section 411.01(5)(a)13, Florida Statutes (F.S.), requires that each early learning coalition establish terms for all appointed coalition members, that the terms be staggered and be of a uniform length that does not exceed four (4) years per term, and that appointed coalition members may serve a maximum of two (2) consecutive terms. Q&A‐‐‐BoardMemberTermsandUniformLengths
General
1. Q: Which Florida Statute governs appointed coalition board members’ terms? A: Section 411.01(5)(a) 13, F.S., addresses the term lengths of appointed coalition board members. 2. Q: Has Florida’s Office of Early Learning published guidance concerning coalition board membership? A: Yes, FOEL published Program Guidance 206.05 [OEL‐PG‐0003‐10] dated July 1, 2010. 3. Q: Is the coalition required to submit a school readiness plan amendment when a
particular board member’s term expires or when there is a vacant position filled?
A: Yes. Section 411.01(5)(d) 4, F.S., requires FOEL to “adopt rules establishing” criteria for the approval of School Readiness Plans. FOEL is entering into rule promulgation process regarding School Readiness Plans. In accordance with the criteria of this proposed rule, a coalition must submit each coalition’s board membership to Florida’s Office of Early Learning through the plan approval process. If changes are made to the membership roster, the early learning coalition must submit an amended membership roster to FOEL 1|P a g e
F i n a l : J a n ua ry 2 7 , 2 0 1 2
Florida’sOfficeofEarly Learning
TechnicalAssistancePaper#2012‐01
QuestionsandAnswersRelatedtoBoardTerms&UniformLengths
through the plan amendment process within 60 days of board approval, and before implementation. AppointedMembers
4. Q: At what time did the limited term requirements begin? A: The limited term requirements began when the early learning coalitions formed in 2005. 5. Q: What is the maximum length of a single term for appointed board members? A: The maximum length of a single term for appointed board members is four years. 6. Q: Must board members be appointed to four‐year terms? A: No, the board determines the time limit of each term for appointed board members and includes this in the coalition by‐laws. 7. Q: Can board members be appointed for one, two, or three year terms or for some other increment? A: Yes, as long as the term lengths are consistent for all appointed board members. The coalition should specify this in its by‐laws. 8. Q: What is a staggered term? A: Staggering refers to the arrangement of alternating time periods for terms of service for coalition board members so that all members are not selected at the same time. 9. Q: What is the purpose of “staggering” appointed board member terms? A: Florida Statutes require appointed board member terms to be staggered to avoid a situation where several board members depart from the board at the same time. This would leave the board with fewer experienced members while trying to recruit new members and continuing to conduct coalition business simultaneously. 10. Q: Section 411.01(5)(a) 13, F.S., states that terms “must be a uniform length.” What does this mean? A: The meaning of a “uniform length” is terms of appointment which are identical in length for each member subject to the uniform term length requirement. 11. Q: Which members are required to have uniform term lengths? A: Governor‐appointed board members and coalition‐appointed private sector business members are required to have a uniform term length. Individuals who participate as 2|P a g e
F i n a l : J a n ua ry 2 7 , 2 0 1 2
Florida’sOfficeofEarly Learning
TechnicalAssistancePaper#2012‐01
QuestionsandAnswersRelatedtoBoardTerms&UniformLengths
members of the early learning coalition board as required by section 411.01(5)(a) 6, F.S., are not required to serve for uniform term lengths. 12. Q: What is the maximum number of consecutive terms an appointed board member may serve? A: Two. 13. Q: Does this mean that a coalition appointed board member who served two consecutive four‐year terms cannot continue serving after he/she has reached the eight year maximum? A: Yes. A coalition appointed board member must be dismissed from membership upon expiration of his or her second consecutive term. 14. Q: May a Governor appointed board member who served two consecutive terms continue serving after he/she has reached the term limit? A: Yes. A Governor appointed board member may serve beyond the expiration of his or her second consecutive term if the coalition has requested that the Governor appoint a replacement for the member. A Governor appointed board member who has reached the term limit may only serve until his or her replacement has been appointed. 15. Q: If an appointed board member has served two consecutive terms but desires to continue serving, what length of time must that board member wait before he/she can be reappointed? A: In accordance with statute, appointed board members may not serve more than two consecutive terms. Section 411.01(5)(a) 13, F.S. requires the coalition to advertise for a position when it becomes vacant. Therefore, if an appointed member has served two consecutive terms, he or she may not immediately reapply for the position he or she has vacated or be immediately appointed to another position. FOEL is entering into rule promulgation process regarding board membership and will provide additional clarification on this matter through rule. 16. Q: If an appointed member vacates his or her position before the expiration of his or her term, can a new appointed board member appointed to fill the vacant position serve for the time remaining in the unexpired term and then serve two additional terms? A: Yes. If a member is appointed to serve out the remainder of a partial term, the member is not barred from subsequently being appointed to serve two full terms. 3|P a g e
F i n a l : J a n ua ry 2 7 , 2 0 1 2
Florida’sOfficeofEarly Learning
TechnicalAssistancePaper#2012‐01
QuestionsandAnswersRelatedtoBoardTerms&UniformLengths
RequiredMembers
17. Q: What are “ex officio member positions”? A: The term “ex officio” means “by reason of office”. Coalition board members who hold ex officio member positions are those members who participate on the coalition board because they hold a particular office or position with another organization. The coalition board members who hold ex officio member positions are listed in section 411.01(5)(a) 6, F.S. These members are often referred to as “required board members”. 18. Q: What are the term limits for required or ex officio board members? A: Currently, there are no term limitations placed on board members that are required by section 411.01(5)(a) 6, F.S., to serve on the coalition board as ex officio members. These members may serve for as long as they hold the position(s). In multicounty coalitions, more than one individual may be eligible to fill each ex officio member position, so the coalition should ensure that only one individual per position has voting rights and that voting rights are distributed equitably among members representing different counties. Additional requirements regarding limitations on the participation of ex officio members will be provided through rule. 19. Q: For child care provider representatives elected through child care provider
associations, what should be their term of membership?
A: Provider representatives are ex officio members required to serve by section 411.01(5)(a) 6, F.S. As described in 18. above, these members have no term limits and may serve for as long as they hold the required position(s). 20. Q: What is the definition of a "faith‐based" child care program as it relates to a coalition board member position? A: For purposes of coalition board membership, a faith‐based provider is “a child care facility which is an integral part of church or parochial schools . . . accredited by, or by a member of, an organization which publishes and requires compliance with its standards for health, safety, and sanitation” and which is licensed or licensed‐exempt per section 402.316, F.S. 21. Q: Should these provider representatives be elected annually or every two years? A: The term length of service is determined by the coalition and specified in the bylaws and could be a decision by the providers association regarding how long it wants its representative to serve. Length of service is decided by the factor each coalition values 4|P a g e
F i n a l : J a n ua ry 2 7 , 2 0 1 2
Florida’sOfficeofEarly Learning
TechnicalAssistancePaper#2012‐01
QuestionsandAnswersRelatedtoBoardTerms&UniformLengths
most, including the needs and priorities of the community it serves or greater institutional memory or more diverse membership on the coalition board. 22. Q: For multi‐county coalitions, how frequently should board membership rotate to accommodate equal representation in accordance with Florida Statutes? A: If a board membership seat has been held by an official representing a single county for two consecutive terms, the coalition should provide for the rotation of the membership position to another county served by the same coalition. Per section 411.01(5)(a) 6, F.S., coalition boards in multi‐county coalitions may have “ex officio” members or multiple nonvoting members with only one voting member seated per ex officio member position. Additional requirements related to rotation of voting member positions in multi‐county coalitions will be provided through rule. 23. Q: If a board has multiple ex officio members seated for one member position (for example two school superintendents representing two different counties) do both seated positions count toward the maximum number of members allowed under section 411.01(5)(a)4., Florida Statutes? A: Yes. If a multi‐county coalition has more than one member seated in the same ex officio member position, each individual is counted as a separate member for the purposes of reaching the maximum number of members allowed by statute. However, only one of the individuals may be designated as the voting member for that ex officio member position at any given time. PLEASE DIRECT QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS TO
FLORIDA’S OFFICE OF EARLY LEARNING AT [email protected]
5|P a g e
F i n a l : J a n ua ry 2 7 , 2 0 1 2