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A. GUIDELINES FOR APSA ORGANIZED SECTIONS

The following guidelines were created to assist officers in the administration of their Section.

1. All Organized Sections operate under the direction of the Committee on Organized Sections.

2. All members of the Section must be members of the American Political Science Association.

3.Sections are required to adopt procedures that provide for an elected president or chair, an elected representative council or executive committee, and an elected or appointed financial officer who is responsible for submitting an annual report to the Association's Executive Director.

4. Sections must maintain the required membership of 250 members in order to remain active. See Chapters IV and VI relating to Section continuation for a more detailed description of the implementation of this policy.

5. APSA is responsible for the collection of dues, maintenance of Section membership rosters and production of labels for Section mailings. The Association will also allow Sections representation on the Annual Meeting Program Committee, and to sponsor panels at the Annual Meeting. APSA will publish any Section news in PS (at the discretion of the Executive Director), as well as seek to assist Sections with other activities, such conferences and publications, or a consultation on possible sources of external funding.

6. APSA will retain $3.00 of the Section membership dues to cover the cost of the specific services listed in item five.

7. Sections are encouraged to set dues at a minimum of $8.00 and retain the balance to finance newsletters, awards, and other activities.

8. Annual Meeting Panels sponsored by Sections will be part of the official meeting program.

B. INDEPENDENT ACTIONS BY ORGANIZED SECTIONS USING THE APSA NAME

Organized Sections are components of APSA as a whole, and thus are bound by its Constitution and legal status. The APSA Constitution, for instance, bars the Association (and consequently its Organized Sections) from supporting political parties or candidates, committing its members on questions of public policy, and taking "positions not immediately concerned with its direct purpose [to encourage the study of Political Science . . .]." APSA's tax status prohibits all but very minor levels of lobbying.

At its August 27, 1997 meeting, the Council approved the following guidelines regarding independent statements or actions by Sections :

Any time scholars in an Organized Section wish to express a public position, they may constitute themselves as an independent group of scholars and speak out as they wish. The infrastructure of the Organized Section may be a useful tool for conducting discussion or debate about such issues, or announcing the formation of an independent group.

If the Organized Section would like to speak out in its own name as an Organized Section of APSA, its position must be consistent with the APSA Constitution and legal status, and the Section should include a disclaimer in its statements that its views do not necessarily represent those of the APSA.

If an Organized Section wishes APSA as a whole to make a public statement, the position needs to be approved and expressed by the APSA Officers or Council, through whatever procedures they endorse.

The Council also endorsed the recommendation of the Administrative Committee that if a Section plans to take a position, it must have in place written procedures to determine that the position reflects the views of its members.

An important role of Organized Sections is to encourage functional communication among scholars on issues affecting scholarship in their fields. It is thus important to encourage the use of the Organized Section infrastructure -- newsletters, email lists, Section meetings, etc. -- to discuss public issues and exchange news and opinions.

C. RESTRICTIONS ON THE USE OF THE APSA NAME

Officers of Organized Sections should also understand and follow the restrictions on the use of the APSA name or office outlined in the APSA Guide to Professional Ethics in Political Science, 2nd edition (1991). The following material is taken from the Guide's Principles of Professional Conduct, Section D, "Restrictions on the Use of the APSA Name or Office."

When officers, members, or employees of the Association speak out on an issue of public policy, endorse a political candidate, or otherwise participate in political affairs, they should make it as clear as possible that they are not speaking on behalf of the Association unless they are so authorized by the Association, and they should not encourage any inference that they act for the Association unless so authorized by the Association. The use of the title of the office held in the APSA in political advertisements, even if labeled "for identification purposes only," may well be seen by others as an endorsement of a political position by the Association and should be avoided.

Officers and employees of the Association are free to engage in activities outside their obligations to the Association provided that such activities are consistent with their duties and responsibilities to the Association. When doubts arise about the activities of subordinate staff members, they should be resolved by the Executive Director in consultation with the Administrative Committee of the Association. Similarly, when doubts arise about the activities of the Executive Director, they should be resolved by the Administrative Committee.

Officers or employees of the Association should not knowingly participate in transactions involving the Association, if they have a substantial economic interest in them. Under such circumstances, they should disqualify themselves from participating in transactions involving the Association.