Proposal 2025-12 – Region Representatives on the WSO Board 

Submitted by: Region 2 (Greater Western USA), WEB381 (Arroyo Grande, CA, USA), CA 915 (Arroyo Grande, CA, USA) 

Issue: We are proposing that ACA reestablish the practice of seating Representatives elected by a Region onto the WSO Board. As in prior ACA practice, each elected Region representative will be empowered to vote on all matters before the WSO Board, an ACA service body. 

Background: In the past, the WSO Board was comprised of elected Region and Intergroup Representatives, as well as “at large” trustees. In the late 1980s, elected 20 representation on the service boards fragmented and disappeared. The very few remaining trusted servants provided leadership at meeting, intergroup, region, and world levels. ACA meetings elect individuals to represent them on the Intergroup service boards. Intergroups elect representatives to represent them on the Region service boards. And, mirroring some other 12-Step programs, our Intergroups and Regions used to be able to elect their representatives to serve them on the World Service Board. Today, the fellowship has sufficiently increased to reestablish the original service structure. Without having, at least, Region representatives on the Board, there are insufficient checks and balances, increased communication failures, as well as shortages of volunteers and 7th Tradition donations. The policy for selecting “at large” trustees, as stated in the Operating Policy and Procedures Manual (pp.12-14), is exclusionary as it has been applied to elected Region Representatives. The policy as applied by the Nomination Committee violates the autonomy of the Regions (Tradition 4) and the Inverted Pyramid embodied in “service boards directly responsible to those they serve” (Tradition 9). We need to restore our representative form of our service structure by automatically seating elected Region Representatives onto the WSO service board. To reiterate, this will facilitate improved trust and fellowship support. It will also improve communication and build in checks and balances. 

Resources/Implementation: To implement this proposal WSO would remove the sections of their Operating Policy and Procedures Manual (OPPM) that stipulate elected Representatives of Regions need to apply for WSO Trustee positions. WSO may want to keep their internal application process for “at large” trustees. WSO would welcome and seat elected representatives of the Regions as voting members of the WSO Board when presented with written documentation of that election from the Region. 

There is no fiscal impact to seat elected Representatives of the Regions onto the WSO Board. 

WSO Analysis: Factors to Consider: Regions are strongly encouraged and warmly invited to put forward trustee candidates to the Nominating Committee for review and approval as outlined in the Operating Policies and Procedures Manual (OPPM). The Nominating Committee’s vetting process for board applicants, along with the qualifications for board membership, is clearly outlined in the OPPM under Section II, K. 21 Nominating Committee; L. Qualification for Board Membership, and M. Regional Trustees (pages 13–15). All trustee candidates are thoroughly vetted for conflicts of interest and overall suitability by the Nominating Committee and are ratified by the delegates at the Annual Business Conference as per the bylaws. This proposal bypasses the established application and vetting process by the Nominating Committee and introduces a dual track for trustee confirmation. Since the inception of the Nominating Committee, WSO board candidates put forward by a Region have been accepted. Nominating Committee members are vetted using the same qualifications and standards as board members

Reference Links:
Find References linked at the end of the proposal at the ‘clickable links to the Ballot’, at the Ballot Prep Committee webpage at acawso.org/bpc