National Council

Some national delegates are automatically delegates because of positions or offices they hold or have held at the national level. These include members of the National Board, the National Board Development Committee, and past presidents of GSUSA, and all of these can be called ex officio delegates.*  USA Girl Scouts Overseas chooses delegates as specified in their governing documents.

Councils choose their national delegates as specified in their council bylaws; in many councils, there is an application process followed by election or approval by the membership at a council’s annual meeting.  Regardless of the process used by a council, our national constitution requires that all national delegates be citizens of the United states who are members of the Girl Scout Movement and 14 years of age or older.

The composition of a council’s delegation varies widely among councils, partially because of differences in the total size of the council’s delegation. National delegates from councils may be girl members 14 years of age or older, operational volunteers, governance volunteers, or executive staff.  Per the GSUSA Constitution, the number of executive staff may not exceed the number of volunteers in a council’s delegation.  In some councils, some national delegate positions may also be ex officio delegates. For example, some council bylaws state that the board chair and/or the CEO are automatically delegates.  Many councils, especially those with a large enough delegation, make a point to include girl members and operational volunteers in their delegations

*Ex officio is a parliamentary term that means “by virtue of the office.”  A common misunderstanding is that ex officio members are not allowed to vote; that is true only if the governing documents such as constitution or bylaws state that the ex officio member has no vote. Per our national constitution, all national delegates, whether ex officio or elected, have full speaking and voting rights as members of the National Council.

Source:  GSUSA Constitution/Article IV/Section 3 and Section 6

Related FAQ:

A council’s determined number of National Delegates is based on the number of girls it has registered as of September 30th the year before the regular session of the National Council.  Each council gets a minimum of three national delegates:  two delegates and then one additional delegate for up to every 3,500 girls after the first 3,500 girls.

USA Girl Scouts Overseas uses the same formula as councils.

However, the 3,500 number can be changed to make sure the total number of National Council members does not exceed 1,500.  GSUSA therefore notifies councils of the total number of delegates the council is allowed.

Source: Constitution/ARTICLE IV/THE NATIONAL COUNCIL/Membership.

In addition to inspirational speeches and presentations, recognitions, discussion topics, and other agenda items deemed necessary by the planners, the following are things that can be covered and acted upon during a National Council Session by the National Council:

• Hold elections
• Amend the Constitution
• Establish requirements for credentials
• Determine the general lines of policy of the Girl Scout Movement and program by considering and acting upon proposals directed toward the fostering and improvement of Girl Scouting
• Receiving and acting upon reports of its National Board of Directors
• Giving guidance to the National Board upon general lines of direction of the Movement and program.

Source:  Constitution/ARTICLE V SESSIONS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL/Responsibilities 2.

The National Council has the following powers:

• Amend the Constitution¹
• Act on proposals¹
• Guide the National Board upon general lines of direction of the Movement and program¹
• Call a special session of the National Council (20% membership required that represent 25% of chartered councils)²
• Establish requirements for certificates of membership, local council charters, and all other credentials³
• Elect the National Board of Directors⁴
• Elect the officers of the National Board of Directors⁵
• Elect distinguished citizens as honorary officers of the National Council⁶
• Elect the National Board Development Committee⁷
• Authorize contributions for the purposes of GSUSA⁸
• Adopt bylaws⁹

¹ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE V/SESSIONS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL/Responsibilities
² Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE V/SESSIONS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL/Special Sessions
³ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE VIII/CREDENTIALS/Requirements
⁴ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE X/NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS/Election of Members
⁵ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE XI/OFFICERS/Election Term
⁶ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE XI/OFFICERS/Honorary Officers
⁷ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE XII/NATIONAL BOARD DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE, NOMINATIONS, AND ELECTIONS/Election
⁸ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE XIV/FINANCE/Contributions
⁹ Defined in the Constitution under ARTICLE XVI/BYLAWS/Adoption

Either the National Council or the National Board.

Source: Constitution/ARTICLE XVI/BYLAWS

The Constitution can only be amended by the National Council.

Source:  Constitution ARTICLE XVII/AMENDMENTS

The National Council elects the National Board of Directors at the National Council Session (NCS).  The National Board Development Committee prepares a single slate of candidates, and there is also provision for nominees from the floor provided the board chair is provided notice and written consent of the nominee at least 48 hours prior to the published start time of the NCS meeting when the election is to be held.  In between National Council sessions, the National Board has the authority to fill vacancies until the next NCS.

Source:  Constitution/ARTICLE X NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS/ELECTION OF MEMBERS TERMS 3. & Constitution/ARTICLE X NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS/VACANCIES 5.

The membership of the National Council consists of:

1. Delegates elected by Girl Scout councils who are registered through their local council
2. Delegates from USA Girl Scouts Overseas
3. Members of the National Board of Directors
4. Members of the National Board Development Committee
5. Past Presidents of Girl Scouts of the United States of America
6. Other persons who are elected by the National Council

At least four-fifths of the entire body of delegates must be from local councils and from USA Girl Scouts Overseas.

Source:  Constitution/ARTICLE IV/THE NATIONAL COUNCIL/Membership

The single slate by the NBDC is called for by Article XII, Section 9 of the GSUSA Constitution, which states: “The committee shall present at each regular session of the National Council a single slate of nominees for: a) the President; b) the Vice Presidents; c) the Secretary; d) the Treasurer; e) members‐at‐large of the National Board of Directors; and f) members of the National Board Development Committee. No member of the National Board Development Committee shall be eligible to be nominated for any officer position. A nominee for President shall be a current member of the National Board of Directors.”

Also, in Robert’s Rules, 12th edition (see 46:11), it says, “It is usually not sound to require the committee to nominate more than one candidate for each office, since the committee can easily circumvent such a provision by nominating only one person who has any chance of being elected.” If the National Council doesn’t like the slate presented, it has the power to make nominations from the floor for any position provided that notice is given to the President and the Chair of the National Board Development Committee at least 48 hours prior to the Session starting.

Source:  2017 Board Slate Frequently Asked Questions and Constitution/ARTICLE XII NATIONAL BOARD DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE, NOMINATIONS, AND ELECTIONS/Nominations