
CCAR POLICY MANUAL
Chairperson Requirements |
- Prior to serving as a Committee Chairperson (except for Grievance and Professional Standards Committees) a member shall have served a minimum of one (1) year on any CCAR committee, task force, or demonstrated equivalent experience as determined by by the Executive Committee; subject to Board of Directors approval.
- Committee Chairpersons (except for Grievance and Professional Standards Committees) will be limited to serving two (2) consecutive terms as Chairperson of the same committee but are not precluded from future service as a Committee Chairperson. (Motion T, 3/25/11)
Election Committee Duties, Responsibilities & Powers |
- Conduct the annual election of Officers and Directors in accordance with the procedures established by the Board of Directors (CCAR Bylaws, Section 7(a);
- Recommend for BOD approval the election governing procedures including Record Date, opening and closing dates, and all relevant deadlines.
- Recommend the process by which additional candidates shall be recruited to ensure candidates running for each open position and as dictated in CCAR Bylaws, Section 8(e)(2). Recommendations shall include procedures for conducting a runoff election if necessary, in a manner consistent with Bylaws.
- Identify and recruit qualified candidates to run in annual election to serve as officers or directors with the goal of recruiting more than one candidate for each open leadership position.
- Review an dcertify that the qualifications of each candidate meets the requirements for the position sought as established by the Bylaws and/or BOD policy.
- Recommend appropriate conduct as it relates to the election.
- Consider offering orientation meetings for all candidates to help ensure they understand their respective duties and responsibilities.
- Consider hosting a “Candidates Forum” to allow membership to meet and question candidates in an open forum, and schedule candidate appearances for at least one meeting for each of the marketing groups.
- Consider any other reasonable requests by the CCAR BOD. (BOD Motion T, 3/25/11)
Meeting Dress Code | Attendees must wear appropriate business attire for both virtual and in-person meetings. (BOD 11/19/21)
Meeting Minutes Process | “Each Committee Chair, with the assistance of their respective Staff Liaison, will be responsible for requesting that the Executive Committee place any information or request for Board action by sending the relevant information to [email protected] mailbox. This mailbox [shall be] shared by the CEO, COO, and Executive Assistant to gather information prior to the Executive Committee meeting to allow for its inclusion in the current month’s Board meeting. When an email is opened and reviewed by one of those who have access, a return email will be sent to the respective Chair and Staff Liaison to acknowledge their email has been received and will [be included into the Executive Committee meeting agenda] for consideration. If the Committee Chair is a member of the Executive Committee, they may bring any items that need consideration directly to the Executive Committee… in lieu of sending an email.” (BOD Motion I, 3/25/11)
Meeting Venues | All CCAR Board, committee, task force, or other Director-sanctioned group meetings shall be conducted in CCAR offices, or as warranted, via electronic media. In the event that a committee has a compelling rationale to conduct a meeting elsewhere (without electronic media) it will require the written approval of either the CCAR President, or in the President’s absence,
Past Presidents Advisory Committee | The purpose of the committee shall be to:
- Advise current President and BOD in matters of key concern to the Board.
- Develop leadership training programs and mentorship programs in concert with the CEO to be approved by the BOD.
- Assist in recruiting new committee and BOD volunteers.
In order to ensure ongoing committee coordination, a Steering Committee consisting of seven (7) past presidents shall be appointed as follows:
- The immediate Past-President once removed (Past Past President) shall automatically serve on the Steering Committee.
- Each year a minimum of three (3) members shall be selected to continue service as determined by the President and approved by the BOD.
- The President shall annually appoint up to three (3) new/returning members to fill the remaining positions as approved by the BOD.
- Any vacancies created shall be filled by appointment by the President as approved by the BOD.
- The Chairperson of the Past Presidents Advisory Committee shall serve as the Steering Committee Chairperson and shall be selected at the beginning of each year by the Steering Committee and approved by the BOD.
- The CEO shall serve as the Staff Liaison to the Advisory and Steering Committees. (BOD Motion K, 3/30/12)
Teleconference Policy | Retain current Bylaws sections as recently amended regarding committee meeting absences; approve new policy for committees other than the BOD/Executive Committee. Policy provides a one-time opportunity for a committee member to participate in a meeting by teleconference; such participation not considered an absence. (BOD Motion G, 11/19/18)
Teleconference Policy During Shelter-in-Place | Committee members may participate in meetings via teleconference without restrictions while the Shelter-in-Place mandate is in effect. (BOD Motion J, 3/20)
Virtual Meetings | Committee meetings shall be conducted in person; virtual attendance will be permitted upon request and will not be limited. Upon the discretion of the Chair and staff, if the anticipated agenda requires less than 60 minutes, the chair has the authority to conduct the meeting virtually. (BOD 10/28/22)
All CCAR committee members and New Member Orientation participants are required to activate their video cameras during virtual meetings in order to be visible and confirm full engagement during the entirety of sessions, unless prior approval is granted by the Chair due to extenuating circumstances. (BOD 2/26/21)
Virtual Meeting Attendance | All CCAR committee members, due to safety, liability, and confidentiality reasons, are not allowed to participate in committee meetings while in a moving vehicle or while in an environment that does not ensure confidentiality of committee business discussions. (BOD 9/24/21)
Virtual Meeting Dress Code | Attendees must wear appropriate business attire for all meetings, whether virtual or in person. (BOD 11/19/21)
YPN Sponsorship Allocation | Fifty percent of YPN sponsorship proceeds shall be allocated to YPN Education and Events, and 50% to YPN travel. (BOD Motion D, 2/22/19)
YPN Sponsorship Package approved; incoming sponsorship proceeds shall be evenly divided into thirds to include the YPN Trave Fund, the Helping Hands Fund, and the Scholarship Foundation. (BOD Motion J, 10/28/16)
YPN Committee Time Sensitive Motions | The Executive Committee shall continue to review and approve time sensitive motions proposed by the YPN Committee through the end of 2022, with proposals to include program agenda, date and time, topics and budget. (BOD Motion M, 3/25/22)
The Executive Committee shall review and approve proposed YPN events through the end of 2021, with proposals to include program agenda, date and time, topics and budget. (BOD Motion M, 2/22/21)
The Executive Committee shall review and approve proposed YPN events through the end of 2020, with proposals to include program agenda, date and time, topics and budget. (BOD Motion E, 5/29/20)
Charitable Contributions & Donations | No financial contributions of Association funds from member dues will be made to any charitable organizations except in emergency situations of a unique and non-recurring nature. However, the net proceeds of Association activities or like-kind contributions, e.g. Special Event fundraiser will be considered by the Board of Directors upon recommendation by any committee. (11/29/92, 12/15/93)
Complaints Re. Employees | Any member having a complaint about an Association employee shall direct that complaint to the Chief Executive Officer, preferably in written form. If a complaint is received by an employee, the employee shall refer the complaining party to the Chief Executive Officer. (1997)
Event Proceeds | All event proceeds shall be directed in equal amounts to the Helping Hands Fund and the CCAR Scholarship Foundation. (Exec 3/18/11)
Advertising and Non-Discrimination | The CCAR is pledged to the letter and spirit of United States policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the nations. We encourage and support an affirmative advertising and marketing program in which there are no barriers to obtaining housing because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin. CCAR recognizes that real estate advertising is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. In addition, California has extended protection to people based on marital status. We are firmly committed to an advertising policy that adheres to the Federal Fair Housing Act. We will not knowingly accept any MLS listing or advertising for real estate which may violate the law. (2/21/93; MLS policies, IV-F]
BOD Meeting Highlights | BOD meeting highlights shall be published in the association broadcasts. When the minutes in brief of the Board of Directors meetings are published, a notation shall also be made that the full set of minutes and financial statements are available in the Association office for review. (1/22/92)
Marketing Materials Development | Creation and use of all CCAR related marketing material, including banners shall be coordinated and approved by the CCAR MAR/COM Department. (BOD Motion E, 9/30/11)
Media Requests | Due to the sensitivity of inquiries from the Media, please follow this procedure when contacted with a media request on CCAR’s behalf. If a member of the Board of Directors, a CCAR Committee Member, Executive Team Member, or CCAR Staff Member fields a media inquiry, we recommend that you immediately, (before responding to the outlet and/or journalist directly) forward or otherwise direct the request to the Marketing and Communication Department at CCAR. Immediate requests should be sent to CCAR Marketing and Communications Department. If the Marketing and Communications Department is unavailable, please direct the inquiry to Bruce Adams, [email protected], 295.9219 or Sheiren Diaz, CEO, [email protected], 295.9223. Once the Marketing Communication Department has received the media request, we will work with the internal CCAR Leadership and Staff to determine if the opportunity is in the best interest of the Association. The Marketing and Communication Department will respond to the journalist and/or outlet no later than one business day of the request coming to our attention or media deadline, whichever comes first. If it is decided that we will consider providing information or interviews, the Marketing and Communication Department will work closely with the internal stakeholders to arrange an interview, gather appropriate information (i.e. stats), work with REALTOR® references, and coordinate media interview preparation, as needed. Marketing and Communication should be present for all discussions and interviews to help control the process. If a quote from a specific CCAR representative is needed, the following is the order by which media quotes/interviews will be fulfilled. Marketing and Communication will liaise directly with these CCAR spokespersons. President, President-Elect, CEO, COO, Past President, Treasurer. MarCom will track the related media coverage and send all placements to the appropriate audiences as needed/requested. (Exec. 8/13/10)
Media Relations | Due to the sensitivity of inquiries from the Media, please follow this procedure when contacted with a media request on CCAR’s behalf.
If a member of the Board of Directors, a CCAR Committee Member, Executive Team Member, or CCAR Staff Member fields a media inquiry, we recommend that you immediately (before responding to the outlet and/or journalist directly) forward or otherwise direct the request to the Marketing and Communication Department at CCAR.
Immediate requests should be sent to Mark Appel at [email protected] 295.9216, or Chris D’Apice, [email protected], 295.9203 in Marketing and Communication. If Mark or Chris are unavailable, please direct the inquiry to Bruce Adams, [email protected], 295.9219 or Sheiren Diaz, CEO, [email protected], 295.9223.
Once the MarCom Department has received the media request, we will work with the internal CCAR Leadership and Staff to determine if the opportunity is in the best interest of the Association.
The Marketing and Communication Department will respond to the journalist and/or outlet no later than one business day of the request coming to our attention or media deadline, whichever comes first. If it is decided that we will consider providing information or interviews, the Marketing and Communication Department will work closely with the internal stakeholders to arrange an interview, gather appropriate information (i.e. stats), work with REALTOR® references, and coordinate media interview preparation, as needed. Marketing and Communication should be present for all discussions and interviews to help control the process.
If a quote from a specific CCAR representative is needed, the following is the order by which media quotes/interviews will be fulfilled. Marketing and Communication will liaise directly with these CCAR spokespersons.
President, President-Elect, CEO, COO, Past President, Treasurer.
Marketing and Communication will track the related media coverage and send all placements to the appropriate audiences as needed/requested.
Press Release – Preparation, Review, Feedback | One of the guiding principles and goals of the CCAR public relations strategy is to provide media sources with credible, objective, and newsworthy material. Consistent application of that principle helps build trust with media representatives and increases the likelihood of coverage for CCAR stories.
To that end, outbound press releases are written and edited in a manner consistent with public relations best practices. These including use of an “objective voice” that is, sticking to the facts as much as possible and avoiding overly subjective “soapbox” descriptions and copy.
Given these considerations, CCAR authorities who are asked to review and provide input for press release drafts should expect that their comments will not necessarily be included verbatim. The CCAR Marcom department will certainly capture the essence of submitted comments and integrate them per objectives and best practices. CCAR Director of Marketing and Communications and CCAR senior management will have responsibility for final edits.
These practices will ensure that CCAR provides submissions to the media that have a consistent, professional voice – characterized by objective, newsworthy content.