184th Annual Convention
October 24-25, 2003
Bangor Civic Center

Delegate Responsibilities and Registration Information
canon and constitutions regarding delegates

Delegate Responsibilites

1. Attend Convention

ü       Debate and vote on resolutions that come before Convention

ü       Elect Diocesan Officers

ü       Adopt a 2004 budget for the Diocese of Maine

2. In advance of Convention, be familiar with and prepared to discuss and vote on business to come before Convention
3. Attend an area pre-Convention gathering
4. Attend the hearings Thursday evening before Convention if desired (this information will have been covered at area gatherings)
5. Abide by the Rules of Order adopted by Convention
6. Report back to your congregation the result of elections and action taken by Convention on resolutions
7. Expenses

ü       Mileage to and from Convention

ü       Cost of meals and hotel room

Registration Information

Here are the materials you will find helpful in preparation for the 183rd ANNUAL CONVENTION, scheduled to begin with registration at 8 a.m. on Friday, October 24, at the Bangor Civic Center and adjourn when business is completed on Saturday, October 25. Any updated materials will be given to delegates at registration.

REGISTRATION

1. Registration will be from 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. on Friday, October 24, in the lobby of the Bangor Civic Center. Delegates and alternates are to present themselves at the Registration Tables. Posters marked with the name of the congregation TOWN will be placed at the registration tables.

2. Delegates and alternates will be given their registration packets when they register. Pre-printed name tags will be available at an adjacent table.

3. Only delegates authorized to vote will be given voting cards and ballots.

4.  Registration will cease at 9:00 a.m.  Any delegate who wishes to be seated for the 183rd Convention after that time must present him/herself to the "Late Registration" table just inside the door of the convention floor.

LUNCH AND REFRESHMENTS

Beginning at 7:30 a.m. on Friday morning, a continental breakfast will be offered. A bag lunch, consisting of a sandwich, chips, fruit, dessert and beverage is available for $6.00. If you have not already done so, please complete the reservation form on page seven of The Northeast or at www.diomaine.org/lunch.htm  and return it to the diocesan office no later than Monday, October 17, 2003. Pre-paid tickets will be located at the Saleable Items table in the registration area. A light continental breakfast will be available beginning at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday morning.

All voting members of the convention will receive a voting card. All "voice votes" and "show of hands" votes will be made by holding up a colored card that will be given to delegates when they register. One ballot will be used for all elections to save printing costs and to expedite the election process.

Eat, Drink, and Support the Youth Ministries’ Haiti Mission Project!
An optional Friday dinner will be held following Evening Prayer at St. Patrick’s, Brewer, which is located about 2 miles from the Bangor Civic Center.   This will be festive and lots of fun!  Seating is limited, reservations are required.  Watch for ticket information in upcoming issues of The Northeast and on the Convention webpages.

CHURCH BANNERS

Congregations are encouraged to bring their free-standing banners to display around the convention hall.

CONSTITUTION AND CANONS

 NATIONAL CHURCH
TITLE I, CANON 17, SEC. 3
“Communicants In Good Standing”

Section 3.  All communicants of this Church who for the previous year have been faithful in corporate worship, unless for good cause prevented, and have been faithful in working, praying and giving for the spread of the Kingdom of God, are to be considered communicants in good standing.

DIOCESE OF MAINE

CONSTITUTION, ARTICLE III

            Section 4.  Each Parish in union with the Convention, or the Vestry thereof, and each Organized Mission in union with the Convention, or the Bishop's Committee thereof, having not less than ten communicants in good standing, may, at any meeting duly convened for the purpose, elect Lay Delegates to represent them in the Convention as follows:

(1) Each having not less than ten or more than twenty-five communicants in good standing may elect one Delegate.

(2) Each having more than twenty-five and not over one hundred communicants in good standing may elect two Delegates.

(3) Each having over one hundred communicants in good standing may elect three Delegates, and one additional Delegate for each one hundred communicants in good standing above the first one hundred.  Any fraction over one-half of the stated number shall be counted as that number.

Section 5.  Lay Delegates shall be persons of at least 15 years of age, communicants in the Parish or Mission by which they are elected, regular supporters of its work, and shall meet the eligibility standards of the Laws of Maine.

Section 6.  (1)   No delegate from a Parish or Mission shall be allowed to vote in the Convention unless the Parish or Mission which he or she represents shall have paid all assessments levied upon it pursuant to any Canon within the preceding calendar year.  Such delegate shall, however, be entitled to be seated and to participate in the deliberations of the Convention.

(2)     No delegate shall be allowed to vote in the election of a Bishop unless the Parish or Mission he or she represents shall have paid all sums due to the Episcopate Fund within the preceding three calendar years prior to the year in which the election is to occur.

(3)  No delegate shall be allowed to vote in the election of a Bishop unless the Parish or Mission he or she represents shall have been represented by at least one lay delegate in the three preceding annual Conventions.  This provision shall not apply in the event that such a Parish or Mission shall have been in union with the Convention for a lesser period.

(4)  The Convention for good cause shown and by two-thirds majority vote, may excuse the delegates of any Parish or Mission from the requirements of subsection 3 of this section so long as the Parish or Mission shall have been represented by a lay delegate at at least one of the three preceding annual Conventions.

(5)  Any Parish or Mission wishing to apply for the excuse provided in subsection 4 shall state its case in writing to the Credentials Committee of the Convention, which shall report its recommendation to the Convention on such requests.

Section 7.  The definition of the words "communicant in good standing”, the manner of ascertaining the number of Delegates to which each Parish or Mission is entitled, and of conducting and certifying their election shall be established by Canon.

Section 8.  The evidence of the election of a Lay Delegate shall be a certificate signed by the Rector or Priest in Charge (if there be one), and a Warden or Clerk of the Vestry or Bishop's Committee, which certifi­cate shall declare that the provisions of this Article have been complied with.

Section 9.  The Treasurer of the Diocese, the Treasurer of the Maine Episcopal Missionary Society, and the Chancellor of the Diocese shall be entitled to seats and votes in the Convention.

Section l0.  No Lay Delegate shall be entitled to a seat in any Convention other than that for which the Delegate was elected.

DIOCESE OF MAINE
CANON 19
Of Delegates to the Annual Convention 

Section1.  The number of Lay Delegates to which a parish or mission is entitled at any convention of the Diocese of Maine will be based on the number of Communicants in Good Standing specified in the Annual Parochial Report for the calendar year just passed.  All doubtful cases shall be submitted to the Bishop for decision.

            Section 2.  Where no Annual Parochial Report is filed for the calendar year just passed, the parish or mission shall not be entitled to any delegates.  In the case of a parish or mission newly admitted to union with the convention, the number of delegates shall be based on the number of Communicants in Good Standing at the time of union.

            Section 3.  Lay delegates may be elected by their Vestry or at the Annual Meeting of the congregation.  A certificate of the Delegates elected to the Convention shall be verified, signed, and sent by the Rector or Priest in Charge, or in the absence of either, by a Warden.

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