Resolutions

May 12, 2024	Deadline for receipt of resolutions. Proposals intended as official LASA resolutions must be sponsored by at least thirty LASA members in good standing. Sponsors may support a proposal by signed mail, signed fax, or by electronic communication to the Secretariat which indicates the name and address of the sponsor.
May 14, 2024	Proposed resolutions are reviewed by a Subcommittee, consisting of the LASA Vice President and two other members of the Executive Council appointed by the LASA President. This Subcommittee may seek advisory opinions from all sources it deems appropriate, and may recommend revisions.
May 19, 2024	The Sub-committee on Resolutions informs the proponents of a resolution of any changes they recommend as well as the rationale behind those changes.
May 19 - 26, 2024	Period during which proposers can revise resolutions based on feedback provided by the Subcommittee and modify or supplement the background information.
May 28, 2024	Resolutions reviewed by the Subcommittee are sent to the Executive Council along with background information provided by proposer(s). The Subcommittee recommends actions to be taken.
June 10, 2024	LASA Executive Council Meeting. Executive Council meets to conduct the constitutionally required review of all resolutions approved by the Subcommittee; the council will either forward a resolution to the membership for ratification or return it to the Subcommittee along with a report on the reasons for the council's decision to return the resolution.
June 11, 2024 (24 hours before the LASA Business Meeting)	Emergency Resolutions: Motions other than those dealing with procedural matters will be accepted only when they address unforeseen new events that preclude the use of normal resolution procedures. Such motions must be signed by thirty LASA members and presented in writing to the President of the Association at least twenty-four hours before the Business Meeting. See submission checklist for emergency resolutions.
June 12, 2024 LASA Business Meeting	Open hearing on resolutions is held during the LASA conference. All proposed resolutions approved by a two-thirds majority vote of the Executive Council shall be read at the Business Meeting. Discussion of each proposed resolution may take place, but attendees at the Business meeting shall not vote on the proposed resolution. Amendments to resolutions may be presented at the LASA Business Meeting, and if accepted as a friendly amendment by a duly empowered person present at the meeting, the resolution as amended will be sent out for a vote to the membership. If not accepted, the resolution will be sent out for vote in its original form.
June 25, 2024	All proposed resolutions shall be automatically emailed for electronic voting to each individual who is a member during the year in which the Congress is held, no later than 15 days after the close of the Business Meeting.
June 25 - August 25, 2024	Resolutions vote balloting period
July 25, 2024	Resolutions first email reminder (for internal purposes only)
August 8, 2024	Resolutions second email reminder (for internal purposes only)
August 25, 2024	Deadline for receipt of votes. Twenty percent of the current LASA membership must vote regarding a proposed resolution and the majority must vote in favor of it for the resolution to pass.
August 28, 2024	Any actions stipulated in ratified resolutions are carried out; the results of the balloting are published in the Fall issue of the LASA Forum; resolutions ratified by the membership are posted at the LASA website.

1. The content of a resolution must be consistent with the purposes of LASA, as set forth in article II of the Constitution.
2. The resolution may not contain erroneous, tortious, or possible libelous statements.
3. The resolution, if adopted, must not pose a threat to the association’s operation as a tax-exempt organization.
4. The entire text of the resolution is limited to 100 words.
5. The resolution must be accompanied by material that provides evidence in support of the resolution(s) claims. Supporting documentation is limited to 24 single-sided pages.
6. The resolution (and emergency resolutions) must be accompanied by the signatures of at least thirty current members of the association. Signatures may be submitted in any of the following ways:
   1. As a collection of signatures mailed with the resolution;
   2. As a collection of signatures faxed with the resolution text; with the original of the fax forwarded to the LASA office within seven business days; or
   3. As a collective statement of support e-mailed with the resolution text, with printouts (electronic PDF format) of the original e-mail messages signed by each originator or supported and forwarded to the LASA main email (lasa@lasaweb.org) by the deadline.

1. A resolution consists of a resolved clause or clauses that set forth the resolution’s objectives. It may also contain a preamble that sets forth the reason or reasons for the resolved clause or clauses. A preamble is, in essence, free debate; that is, it puts before the voting body some of the arguments in support of the resolution in advance of the meeting, during which debate is strictly limited. However, a preamble has some disadvantages. It may work against adoption if members agree with the resolved clauses but do not agree with the preamble or find the content of the preamble overstated or poorly expressed. Also, of course, a preamble uses some of the 100-word limit imposed on LASA resolutions and may, therefore, interfere with the careful and complete statement of the resolved clauses.
2. Writers of resolutions should avoid references to unknowable future events and activities since a resolution should not commit the association to a particular course of action in the absence of clear knowledge of a situation. By the same token, writers of resolution should state facts, not opinions.
3. LASA conventionally uses the following form for a resolution without a preamble.
   • Be it resolved that_______________; and
   • Be it further resolved that_________.
4. LASA conventionally uses the following form for a resolution with a preamble.
   • Whereas_______________________;
   • Whereas_______________________; and
   • Whereas_______________________;
   • Be it resolved that_______________; and
   • Be it further resolved that_________.
5. “Be it resolved that” should be followed by verbs in the subjunctive form.

A regular resolution is one that is submitted by May 11, 2024. The deadline is a receipt deadline. Only LASA members who are in good standing for the current year may submit resolutions.

The following materials must be submitted by the deadline to the chair of the Subcommittee on Resolutions in care of the LASA Executive Director at the LASA office. Materials may be submitted by postal mail or e-mail. See below for address information. The proposer of record must identify himself or herself and provide full contact information.

• Text of the resolution (limited to 100 words, inclusive of the preamble, if any, and resolved clause or clauses)
• 30 supporting signatures (see note 1, below)
• Complete background information (i.e., “material that provides evidence in support of the resolution’s claims”; see note 2 below)

Note 1: Original signatures are required. Only LASA members who are in good standing for the current year may offer their signatures in support of a resolution. Signatures may be submitted in any of the following ways:

1. The proposer of record may gather original signatures in advance and submit them by postal mail, to arrive at the LASA office by May 11, 2024
2. Individual supporters of a resolution may send their signatures separately by postal mail, to arrive at the LASA office by May 11, 2024
3. Signatures should be faxed (610-492-2791), collectively or individually, to meet the May 11, 2024 deadline. The original of the fax must then be mailed to the LASA office so that it arrives within seven business days of the deadline.
4. A statement of support for a resolution should be e-mailed to meet the May 11, 2024 deadline. A printout of the e-mail message (electronic PDF format) signed by the supporter must then be e-mailed to the LASA main email (lasa@lasaweb.org) so that it arrives by the deadline.

Note 2: The proposer of record should submit background information that he or she deems necessary to support the resolution’s claims. The background information may either be submitted by mail or in electronic form (PDF files or MS Word files are strongly preferred). Faxed materials are not acceptable. Limit supporting documentation to 24 single-sided pages.

Resolutions that are “occasioned by emergencies arising after May 11, 2024” are designated emergency resolutions. Emergency resolutions must be submitted at least 24 hours before the scheduled start of the LASA Business Meeting during the LASA Congress.

The following materials must be submitted to the chair of the Subcommittee on Resolutions or in care of the LASA Executive Director. The proposer of record must identify himself or herself and provide full contact information.

• Text of the resolution (limited to 100 words, inclusive of the preamble, if any, and resolved clause or clauses; see note 3 for an additional restriction on the resolution text)
• 30 supporting signatures (see note 4, below)
• Complete background information (i.e., “material that provides evidence in support of the resolution’s claims”; see note 5, below)

Note 3: Emergency resolutions shall not name individuals or institutions in such a way that, in the determination of the LASA Executive Council, a response from the named party must be sought.

Note 4: Original signatures are required. Only LASA members who are in good standing for the current year may offer their signatures in support of a resolution.

Note 5: The proposer of record should submit all the background information that he or she deems necessary to support the resolution’s claims. The background information must be submitted on paper.

The postal address to use for submitting a resolution and related materials is:

Latin American Studies Association
LASA Executive Director
4338 Bigelow Blvd
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

The fax number to use for submitting a resolution and related material is: 610-492-2791

The electronic address to use for submitting a resolution and related material is: lasa@lasaweb.org