APOG Charter
APPENDIX J PROGRAM OWNER'S GROUP (APOG) Charter
CHARTER
Revision 1
Approved for Issue June 9, 2009
1.0 PURPOSE
The Purpose of the Appendix J Program Owner's Group (hereinafter referred to as "APOG") is to:1.1 Review all applicable guides, standards, codes, regulations and documents that govern Appendix J programs (Regulatory Guides, American National Standards, Nuclear Energy Institutes, Codes of Federal Regulations, etc) for uniform application of Appendix J Programs across the industry.
1.2 Provide expert interpretations of documents referred to in Section 1.1 of this section, as well as any applicable position papers.
1.3 Provide a means to share industry knowledge and resources.
1.4 Exchange technical information relating to the application, testing and maintenance of all components governed by Appendix J.
1.5 Increase regulatory awareness and to provide the Industry with a means to impact legislative issues.
1.6 Provide a collaborative effort to promote cost reduction, error reduction, improve performance and maintaining safety margins within the nuclear industry.
2.0 OBJECTIVES
The objectives of APOG are:2.1 Provide a forum for discussions and resolution of generic and specific Appendix J issues through communication between members of APOG and other organizations.
2.2 Provide an effective process for APOG members to make recommendations on generic and specific Appendix J issues to the Steering Committee.
2.3 Provide an effective and efficient communication process from the Steering Committee to APOG members.
2.4 Provide an effective and efficient communication process to and from industry organizations such as NEI, ANSI, EPRI, NRC, INPO etc.
3.0 MEMBERSHIP
3.1 Any nuclear utility (foreign or domestic) may be a member of APOG by paying the annual dues as specified in section 5.0 of this document.3.2 Each site may have multiple members. In the event that a site elects to have multiple members, one member shall be designated as the primary representative.
3.3 The official APOG website is www.AppendixJ.org. An active APOG membership list shall be maintained on this site. The information contained on this web site, as it relates to membership in APOG shall remain current.
4.0 ORGANIZATION
4.1 Steering Committee (SC)a) The Steering Committee consists of seven (7) members. In addition to the Steering Committee members, there will be up to four (4) Alternate Steering Committee members.
b) The Chairperson (1), Vice Chairperson (1), Treasurer (1) and Secretary (1) and each Steering Committee (3) and Alternate Steering Committee (4) members shall be elected for two-year terms by a majority vote as covered in Section 7.0.
c) In the absence of Steering Committee members at a designated meeting in which a quorum is required, designated Alternate Steering Committee Members present, shall act as regular Steering Committee members with full voting rights.
d) The Alternate Steering Committee Member has no vote other than those specified by Section 4.1 subsections c) and e), and Sections 6.1 and 7.1.
e) Any Steering Committee member or Alternate member may be removed with cause by a unanimous vote of the remaining Steering Committee members and Alternates. The cause shall be properly documented and sealed.
f) In the event of death, resignation or removal of a steering committee member, his/her successor shall be selected by a majority of the remaining steering committee members (including Alternate steering committee members) and shall serve for the unexpired term of his/her predecessor.
g) No steering committee member shall receive compensation for any service he/she may render to APOG as a steering committee member, provided however, any steering committee member may be reimbursed for his/her actual expenses incurred in the performances of his/her duties.
4.2 Committees
a) Committees are composed of active members from the APOG membership list determined by the Steering Committee.
b) Committees are established by a two-thirds majority of the Steering Committee.
c) Committees shall have a sponsor. The sponsor shall be a Steering Committee member designated by a majority vote of the Steering Committee.
d) Committees shall have a Lead that reports directly to the sponsor.
5.0 FUNDING REQUIREMENTS
5.1 Utility – Membership Dues are required to cover the administrative costs. Membership Dues are on a per site per year basis.5.2 Non-Utility Organization – There are no annual dues for non-utility organizations such as NRC, EPRI, NEI, and ANSI/ANS.
5.3 In the event that activities of APOG go beyond normal and customary administrative needs, the APOG Steering Committee shall determine the need for additional funding and the methods to be utilized to satisfy the requirement. A two-thirds majority vote of the APOG membership is required for approval of additional funding.
5.4 At no time shall a member be required to participate in funding of activities beyond normal and customary administrative needs as a requirement for membership: however, participation in funding may be a prerequisite for the utilization of information derived from the activity.
5.5 Corporate Representative – Any utility corporate representative who performs Appendix J duties as a profession may attend the APOG meeting. There are no membership dues for the Corporate Representative if at least one of the represented sites is a member.
5.6 Affiliate membership is available to non-utility companies, consultants, vendors, manufacturers, and other such firms interested in expanded participation in APOG. In additional to expanded access to the website, Affiliate membership affords the ability to advertise and promote Appendix J related products and services. Affiliate membership is available on a Steering Committee approval basis only. The membership fee structure is based on the desired term (years) of the membership
6.0 DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITES
6.1 Appendix J Program Owner's Group (APOG) shall:a) Select the Steering Committee and Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, Treasurer and Secretary from the membership.
b) Meet as deemed appropriate by the Steering Committee in order to carry out the responsibilities of APOG.
c) Propose position paper topics.
d) Vote when requested by the Steering Committee.
e) Review progress of the committees at least annually.
6.2 Steering Committee (SC) shall:
a) Direct development of and issue position papers to APOG.
b) Plan and facilitate APOG meetings and Steering Committee meetings as required to fulfill the goals and objectives of the APOG.
c) Recommend annual membership dues.
d) Determine format and function of Committees.
e) Report Steering Committee and other committee progress to APOG
f) Review and approve (majority vote of a Steering Committee is required for approval) disbursements of all funding including contract for support services.
g) Review and/or recommend issues to be presented to APOG.
h) Recommend changes or additions to existing policies to be presented to APOG.
i) Recommend projects with outside agencies when considered in the best interest of APOG to complete approved tasks.
j) Recommend to APOG the funding share to be assigned to a member who previously had not shared in the funding of a particular task, but who later desires to use the product derived from the task.
k) Request outside proposals to sponsor APOG projects and to provide a procedure for proposal request processing that will be approved by APOG.
6.3 Chairperson shall:
a) Chair APOG and Steering Committee meetings.
b) Establish agendas for APOG meetings.
c) Act as APOG spokesperson during meetings with other organizations or delegate a member of the Steering Committee to perform such duty.
d) Provide guidance to other committees.
e) Facilitate communication between the Steering Committee, APOG, and other committees.
f) Convene Ad Hoc committees as necessary.
6.4 Vice Chairperson shall:
Perform duties as delegated by the Chairperson.
6.5 Treasurer
Provide an annual report of income and expenses to APOG, as well as other duties assigned by the Chairperson.
6.6 Secretary
Preparation of minutes for APOG and Steering Committee meetings, as well as other duties assigned by the Chairperson.
6.7 Alternate Steering Committee Members
Alternate Steering Committee Members shall function as alternates for absent Steering Committee Members. Alternates have the same responsibilities as Steering Committee Members in their absence.
6.8 Committees
a) Each committee will have a mission statement that shall be approved by the Steering Committee.
b) Each committee shall develop a program plan and update it annually. The program plan will not be a part of the mission statement, but will serve to guide the committee in its mission.
c) Committees will report progress of their activities to the Steering Committee. Each committee shall submit, annually to the Steering Committee, a summary of program progress for the past year and a plan for accomplishing program goals for the upcoming year.
d) Minutes of committee meetings shall be prepared and transmitted to committee members and APOG members.
e) Based on work performed by the various committees, reports and findings shall be issued by the committee to the Steering Committee for APOG adoption. These reports shall be adopted and issued by the committee lead, based on a majority vote of the committee members.
7.0 VOTING
7.1 Voting
a) One vote per utility per site. Voting shall be in person or by proxy. A proxy vote must be emailed to the Steering Committee OR mailed in a seal enveloped to the Secretary of APOG no greater than forty-five (45) days and at least seven (7) days prior to the meeting.
b) Only the primary representative has the authority to vote, unless an Alternate member has been specifically designated by the primary representative. A Corporate representative may be designated as the primary representative.
c) Only active members are eligible to vote. An active member is a member whose dues as established in Section 5 of this document are current.
d) Quorum – A quorum shall consist of the Chairman and/or Vice Chairman and four members of the Steering Committee (five total members).
e) Charter Approvals - A majority vote of APOG membership is required for APOG Charter approval.
f) Elections – Selection of officers shall be decided by a majority vote of the APOG membership.