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ARTICLE I Name Section 1. The name of this
organization shall be the Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature, referred
to hereinafter as the TISL. ARTICLE II Purpose Section 1. The purpose of this
organization shall be to: a. Promote interest in both state and federal government. b. Strive for a more perfect knowledge and experience of judicial and legislative processes. c. Provide leadership training in an environment that permits the expression and examination of a wide range of ideas. d. Promote cooperation in solving problems of general interest to the Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature. ARTICLE III Membership Section 1. Every accredited
institution of higher education in Tennessee may participate in TISL and may appoint
its own delegation in a manner prescribed and administered by that institution. Section 2. Every delegate will be
enrolled and in good standing at a participating institution. ARTICLE IV General Organization Section 1. The departments of TISL
shall be the Executive, Judicial, and Legislative Departments. ARTICLE V Officers Section 1. Delegates at large, as
defined by law, shall elect a Governor. The Governor shall: a. Serve as the Chief Executive Officer of the TISL. b. Give to the General Assembly and Executive Council information on the state of the TISL. c. Appoint such officers as he/she deems necessary, and remove them at will. d. Call and preside over meetings of the Executive Council. e. Perform such other duties as shall be enjoined by law. f. Inform all Tennessee institutions of higher education about events and policies relating to the TISL. g. Execute all powers and duties in this Constitution and in the laws of the TISL. h. Be responsible for administrative matters not expressly delegated to the Legislative or Judicial departments. Section 2. The General Assembly
shall, in joint session, elect a Secretary of State. The Secretary of State
shall: a. Keep a record of all official acts and proceedings of the General Assembly and the Executive Council. b. Appoint such officers as he/she deems necessary for the functioning of his/her office, and remove them at will. c. Perform such other duties as shall be enjoined by law. Section 3. Each house shall elect
a Speaker. The Speaker shall: a. Appoint such officers as he/she deems necessary to provide for the proper functioning of the house and remove them at will. b. Preside over sessions of his/her respective house, and assume all responsibility and authority normally delegated to one of his/her position. c. Perform such other duties as shall be enjoined by law. d. The Speakers of each respective house shall agree to appoint committee officers for each standing committee of the General Assembly. Shall the Speakers not agree upon a single appointment, the Governor shall have the vested power to declare the committee chair of the two submitted nominees. Section 4. Each house shall elect
a Speaker Pro Tempore. The Speaker Pro Tempore shall: a. Succeed to the position of Speaker if a vacancy should occur in that office. b. Preside in the absence of the Speaker. c. Perform such other duties as shall be enjoined by law. Section 5. The General Assembly,
in joint session, shall elect a State Treasurer. The State Treasurer shall: a. Serve as the Chief Financial Officer of the TISL. b. Comply with and enforce the Financial Procedures Act. c. Perform such other duties as shall be enjoined by law. d. Appoint such officers as he/she deems necessary, and remove them at will. Section 6. An Attorney General
shall be appointed by the Judges of the Supreme Court at their session
coinciding with the General Assembly. The Attorney General shall: a. Take all necessary steps to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Charter of the TISL Foundation, this Constitution, the Financial Procedures Act, and any other Act of the TISL General Assembly, or any other relevant governing or legal instrument. b. Likewise be guilty of committing the violation if he/she shall have knowledge of a violation of any of the aforementioned legal documents and shall fail to take action or prevent or punish that violation. c. Be responsible for overseeing any and all elections by the General Assembly. d. Perform such other duties as shall be enjoined by law. e. Prepare written opinions on constitutional or legal issues when requested by two members of the Executive Council. f. Represent TISL before the Tennessee Intercollegiate Supreme Court. g. Appoint such officers as he/she deems necessary, and remove them at will. Section 7. A majority of all votes
cast shall be necessary for election or confirmation. The General Assembly
shall adopt an Election Procedures Act. Section 8. Neither the Governor,
the Secretary of State, Attorney General, nor the Speaker of either house shall
serve as a voting delegate from any institution during his/her term of office.
All other officers may serve as voting members. No officer shall vote except as
a member of his/her delegation or when rules of procedure require or allow. Section 9. In case of a vacancy in
the office of Governor, the authority and responsibility of the office shall devolve
on the Speaker of the Senate, and in the case of a simultaneous vacancy in the
office of Speaker of the Senate, the authority and responsibility of the Governor
shall devolve on the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Any vacancies not
otherwise provided for shall be filled by the Executive Council, if the General
Assembly is not in session. Section 10. The term of office
extends from adjournment of the General Assembly at which the officer is
elected until adjournment of the next General Assembly. Section 11. No officer shall serve
two (2) consecutive terms of office in the same office. No officer who has
served more than six (6) months of a term of office to which some other person
was elected shall serve a consecutive term in the same office. Section 12. Any member of the Executive
Council may be removed from office for regularly failing to participate in
official TISL meetings and events, for corruption or for failing to perform the
duties of his/her office. a. Until twenty (20) days before each General Assembly, the Executive Council, with the concurrence of a majority of the members to which it is entitled, may petition the Supreme Court to have an officer removed for a cause stated above. The officer in question shall be notified and shall have at least ten (10) days to respond to the initial petition. b. During the General Assembly, an officer may be removed for a cause stated above by a concurrent vote of two-thirds of the members of the Senate and of the House of Representatives, voting separately, after receipt of a petition setting forth specific cause for removal and signed by fifty (50) registered delegates. An
officer removed under this section is disqualified from future service on the
Executive Council or the Supreme Court. Section 13. Every officer must be a
student at a participating institution at the time of his/her election and and
must remain enrolled for all academic terms, except interim or summer. Any
officer who is not so enrolled shall be automatically removed. ARTICLE VI Executive Department Section 1. All executive powers
granted herein shall be vested in the Executive Council, hereinafter referred
to as the EC, which shall consist of the Governor, as chairperson, the Speakers
of the Senate and House of Representatives, the Speakers Pro Tempore of the
Senate and House of Representatives, Secretary of State, Attorney General,
Chief Justice and the State Treasurer, each of whom shall be selected in accordance
with Article V of this Constitution. Section 2. The EC shall: a. Call special sessions of the General Assembly by three-fourths (3/4) majority. Such call shall be issued at least two (2) months before the special session is to convene. b. Set the date for the regular sessions of the General Assembly, at least six months in advance. c. Review, repeal or amend at will the decisions of all officers except those areas of authority reserved to the officer by this Constitution, by legislation of the General Assembly, or by the courts. d. Establish reasonable institutional and delegate fees for participating institutions and delegates, which fees should not be barriers to participation. e. Take actions and make policies and regulations, when the General Assembly is not in session, to perpetuate the continued existence of TISL. f. Establish rules and procedures for the General Assembly, which shall be subject to review, repeal or amendment by the General Assembly. g. Oversee compliance by the Governor and State Treasurer with the Financial Procedures Act. h. Call special sessions of the Executive Council with the consent of the majority of the Council. i. Perform such other duties as shall be enjoined by law. Section 3. Any decision or policy
of the EC is subject to review, repeal or amendment by the General Assembly. ARTICLE VII Legislative Department Section 1. The legislative
authority of the TISL shall be vested in a General Assembly, which shall
consist of a Senate and House of Representatives. There shall be one General Assembly
in each academic year; there may be more than one session of each General
Assembly. Section 2. The number of
Representatives shall be 99 (ninety-nine) and shall be apportioned among
institutions proportional to enrollment in a manner to be established by the
General Assembly. Any law affecting the apportionment of the House of
Representatives shall take effect after the adjournment of the General Assembly
at which it is adopted. The
minimum number of seats for each institution shall be two unless the number of
participating institutions exceeds 25 (twenty-five), in which case the minimum
shall be one. The maximum number of seats in total, including bonus seats, shall
be nine. House
seats unclaimed at the close of business on the first day of the General
Assembly shall be reallocated, proportional to enrollment, among participating
institutions with extra delegates present and eligible to serve in the House. Unclaimed
seats shall be delegated according to representation ratio, in descending
order, beginning with the institution with the highest ratio. Each institution
shall receive only one unclaimed seat. Section 3. The number of Senators
shall be equal to the number of participating institutions. All participating institutions
shall have one seat in the Senate. Section 4. Each institution's delegates
must be enrolled students at that institution. The Senate and House of Representatives
shall be judges of the qualifications of their own members. Section 5. Not less than a
majority of all the members to which each house shall be entitled shall
constitute a quorum to do business. Section 6. Any bill may be
amended, altered or rejected by either house. Section 7. No bill shall become
law until it has been passed in identical form in each house by a majority of
the members present and voting. Section 8. Every bill which may
pass both houses of the General Assembly shall, before it becomes a law, be presented
to the Governor to be signed. If,
upon consultation with the Executive cabinet, the Governor shall refuse to sign
it, it shall be returned with objections to the Secretary of State, who shall
notify each house, to be read in open session. Either house may proceed to
again consider the bill. If, in each house, a majority of the members present
and voting shall agree to pass the bill, notwithstanding the objections of the
Executive, it shall become a law. The votes of both houses shall be determined
by an enumerated vote. Official communication from one officer to another or to
a house of the Legislature shall be in writing. If
the Governor shall fail to return any bill by 9 a.m. of the next day after it
shall have been presented to him/her, it shall become a law without his/her signature. ARTICLE VIII Judicial Department Section 1. The judicial power of
TISL shall be vested in the Tennessee Intercollegiate Supreme Court. Section 2. The Supreme Court
shall consist of five judges. When they are appointed, no two shall be enrolled
at the same institution, and each grand division shall be represented by at
least one justice enrolled at an institution in that grand division. The judges
shall designate one of their own number who shall preside as chief justice. The
concurrence of three of the judges shall in every case be necessary to a decision. Section 3. Judges of the Supreme
Court shall be appointed by the Governor from the nominees of a commission to
be established by the General Assembly. Section 4. The term of office
shall begin upon the adjournment of the General Assembly and be for one year or
until the judge is no longer qualified under this Constitution, whichever
occurs first. A judge may serve three terms. Every judge shall be enrolled for
fall and spring semesters at a Tennessee college or university, and none shall
be enrolled in a college of Law. During the term for which he/she was appointed,
a judge shall not seek another position or serve in any other capacity within
TISL. Section 5. The Supreme Court
shall have original and sole jurisdiction in cases arising from the TISL
Constitution and the laws of TISL and such additional jurisdiction as may be enacted
by the General Assembly. Section 6. Said court shall be
held at Nashville concurrently with the regular session of the General Assembly
and at such other times and places as may be provided by law. Section 7. The Court, by majority
vote, shall appoint officers and adopt rules of procedure consistent with the
general laws of TISL. Section 8. Judges may be removed
from office by a concurrent vote of both houses of the General Assembly, each
house voting separately; but two-thirds of the members to which each house may
be entitled must concur in such vote. The judge against whom the Legislature
may be about to proceed shall receive notice thereof accompanied with a copy of
the causes alleged for his/her removal, at least ten days before the time at
which either house of the General Assembly shall act thereupon. Section 9. If a vacancy occurs
before the expiration of a judge’s term, the Executive Council, without the
participation of the Attorney General or the Chief Justice, shall elect a
qualified judge to serve the remainder of the term. ARTICLE IX Miscellaneous Provisions Section 1. The Tennessee Intercollegiate
State Legislature and its General Assembly are an unincorporated function and
division of the Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature Foundation, a
Tennessee non-profit organization. Section 2. The General Assembly
shall adopt a Financial Procedures Act, which shall govern all financial
matters. A violation of this Act shall be grounds for removal of any officer. Section 3. All actions, agreements
or debts entered into by the TISL under previous Constitutions or other organizational
documents shall continue to be valid as if adopted under this Constitution. Section 4. Any action, written document
or other procedure that is in conflict with this Constitution or the Charter of
the Tennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature Foundation shall be rendered
invalid by this section. Section 5. The General Assembly
shall have the powers to create a standing set of by-laws, which can be amended
as deemed necessary. A simple majority of both houses of the General Assembly
shall be necessary for passage and amendment of the by-laws. While the General
Assembly is not in session, the EC shall be allowed to amend the by-laws by a
two thirds (2/3) majority. Section 6. Any law affecting
eligibility to vote in TISL elections or referendums shall take effect after
the General Assembly at which it is adopted. ARTICLE X Amendment Section 1. Amendments to this
Constitution must be approved in a regular session by two-thirds (2/3) of the
members to which each House is entitled. |
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