Proposal 6 – Delegate-Driven Conference Committee

SubmittedbyWEB1019, TEL0341, WEB0609, WEB0616, WEB0841, CA1312.

Cottonwood, CA, USA, WEB1169, IG595 Washington State, USA, WA0190, Olympia, WA, USA, Region 5 (NE USA), CA915, Arroyo Grande, CA, USA, CA1006, San Luis Obispo, CA, USA, WEB381, IG76, Central Coast, CA, USA

Issue:The 2024 ABC Delegates authorize creation of an autonomous Conference Coordinating Committee, directly responsible to the Conference of Delegates, to partner with ACA World Service Organization (WSO) in planning, organizing, and implementing ACA’s annual and quarterly business meetings (ABC and QDMs).

This committee would initially consist of at least 5-10 delegates. Funding of up to $500 annually for independent communications platforms would be allocated from WSO’s 7th Tradition contributions.

Background:The group conscience process of the ACA fellowship is expressed through delegate voting at the Annual Business Conference and the Quarterly Delegate Meetings. Currently, Trustees of ACA’s World Service Organization organize these meetings, aided by committees responsible to the Board, including the ABC Committee and the Ballot Prep Committee.

On p.62 of the 2023 Delegate Binder, the ABC/AWC Study Group recommended that “in order to create a healthy relationship between the Annual Business Conference Delegation and the World Service Organization Board of Trustees, we believe the delegation needs to be empowered to take on more responsibility” (see link below). This aligns with the division of responsibilities between the ABC on the one hand and the WSO Board of Trustees on the other as outlined in Concept VI.

Creating a Conference Coordinating Committee, in accordance with Tradition 9, is seen as a first step in the direction of delegates sharing responsibility with WSO for materializing the fellowship-wide group conscience process.

A number of other 12 step programs use Conference Committees to facilitate the fellowship-wide group conscience process . As with ACA’s foundational documents (Steps, Traditions, Concepts), authors of this proposal acknowledge that this works for other programs and look to those programs for inspiration and guidance as we formulate what works for ACA.

Resources and Implementation:Although a number of delegates involved in drafting this proposal are ready to offer service on this committee, the invitation to participate on the committee will be open to all delegates. Upon approval of this proposal, interested delegates will present volunteer bios and statements of interest 30 days before the QDM in August.New committee members may be added by Delegate vote at any subsequent ABC or QDM, following the same voting procedure.

By suggesting the establishment of independent communications platforms (such as Gmail account/drive, Slack or Discord chat platform, and/or a ZOOM account to facilitate committee meetings), authors of this proposal aim to achieve structural separation from WSO as a foundation for a healthy and balanced partnership, in service to the ACA fellowship as a whole.

Finally, below is a list of links referencing some of the fellowship resources informing this approach, specifically Tradition 9, Concept VI, the 2023 Report from the ABC Study Group, and a Comline Blog post presented by the Ballot Prep Committee in August 2023:

• Tradition 9 (https://adultchildren.org/literature/traditions/)
• Concept VI (https://adultchildren.org/literature/the-twelve-concepts-of-aca/)
• 2023 Report from the ABC Study Group (2023 ACA WSO Annual Business Conference Delegate Binder -v 1.3

https://adultchildren.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2023-ACA-WSO-Annual-Busines s-Conference-Delegate-Binder-v-1.3.pdf), pp.59-69

• Transformations – a Comline Blog post presented by the BPC (https://adultchildren.org/comline/fellowship-news/transformations/)

WSO Analysis:

Response:

An ABC (planning) Committee already exists. Their statement of purpose is:

• Oversee the planning and implementation of the Annual Business Conference/Quarterly Delegate Meetings.
• Strive to facilitate an effective assembly establishing the collective conscience of our fellowship regarding the maintenance of ACA World Services.
• Support those who serve the ABC/QDM.
• Include Delegate feedback to prepare agendas.

While it is a WSO committee, they are committed to ensuring that the delegates’ direction is followed in the planning and the agenda setting of the ABC/QDM. The ABC Committee is composed of former and current delegates, intergroup representatives and WSO volunteers. All delegates are invited to join.

As a result of previous ABC motions, there is also an ABC Study Group tasked with writing a Conference Charter, which would set the stage for Conference-driven Committees. Please see links in the Resources section below to previous ABC Motions.

Factors to consider:

• Other major 12 Step World Services that have conference committees first created a Conference Charter and an updated Concepts document before creating the conference committees. These foundational documents were used to inform the purpose and scope of the committees so their path forward was clear.
• These ACA foundational documents that will inform the work of a future conference-driven committee are currently being developed at the direction of the delegates in the ABC Study Group and the Concept 2 & 6 Study Group.
• When/if a conference-driven committee is created an implementation plan will need to be developed for the delegates’ consideration at a future ABC.

Resources(for more background information) https://acawso.org/bpc/ Relevant Motions Passed at the 2022 ABC

Motion: To create an ad-hoc committee that will study Concepts II ands VI and report to the 2023 ABC on possible revisions. Delegates and the fellowship will be notified of the study and invited to join the ad-hoc committee.

Motion:I move to direct the ABC AWC Committee to coordinate an in-depth and inclusive study regarding possible changes to the ABC and AWC structures. The study will consider all fellowship viewpoints, and all delegates and members of the fellowship will be invited to participate. Findings will be presented to the 2023 ABC, and regular updates will be provided to 2022 ABC delegates and the fellowship.

Relevant Motions Passed at 2023 ABC/QDMs

Motion: To request a six month extension, with a detailed update at the next Quarterly Business Meeting, to complete proposed revisions to Concepts 2 & 6, but to affirm that concept 2 will define the conference as the voice and conscience of the ACA fellowship.

• At the 2023 ABC, 91% of the delegates approved to continue the study and expand its scope to include a conference charter.

Motion:To approve extending the ABC/AWC Study to provide recommendations without limitation, including:

• Drafting a charter for the conference, and
• Recommendations for changes in other areas, depending on availability of adequate resources, and
• Separating the AWC study from the ABC study, creating an additional study as resources permit, and
• that the delegates will receive regular updates until the study is completed.