ORANGE COUNTY TOBACCO EDUCATION COALITION

OPERATIONAL GUIDELINES   (Revised and approved May, 2008)

I.    Statement of Purpose

The purpose of the Orange County Tobacco Education Coalition (OCTEC) is to provide guidance to the Tobacco Use Prevention Program (TUPP) in achieving its stated mission: to reduce tobacco use and exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in Orange County by mobilizing a broad-based network of community organizations and committed individuals; and to act on priority tobacco control issues as members bring forth. The major objectives of the Coalition are:

1)    To ensure the TUPP program and OCTEC are broad-based and reflect the needs of the community.

2)    To help set direction and priorities for TUPP by assisting in the formation of its mission and goals.

3)    To assist TUPP in outreaching to ethnic minorities and other priority populations.

4)    To ensure TUPP activities are culturally appropriate and sensitive to the populations being served.

5)    To ensure that TUPP uses tobacco prevention education and cessation methods consistent with current research literature.

6)    To enlist community leadership and participation in tobacco-related programming and policy development.

7)    To act as a spokesgroup regarding tobacco control issues within the community.

8)    To assess the progress of TUPP towards its stated objectives and recommend redirection when appropriate.

9)    To promote networking between individuals, agencies, and communities interested in tobacco control activities.

10) To advocate for increased tobacco control policies within Orange County.

11) Collaborate with TUPP and assist on high priority issues/ projects.

II.    Membership

The Coalition is composed of representatives from agencies and organizations with special experience, interest, or expertise in tobacco control, and/or are representative of the community or of the major racial /ethnic and other high risk groups within Orange County. These organizations include, but are not limited to: voluntary health agencies, schools/ universities, community based organizations, educational programs, environmental, labor, business, health care providers, youth organizations, media, law enforcement, and faith-based organizations. General membership on the Coalition is annual (July-June), with no limitation on the length of membership.

Voting Guidelines: Each member agency, including TUPP, has one vote. Each individual member not affiliated with an organization will not have a vote, but may be involved in all discussion and recommendations. A quorum consisting of at least 51% of the Coalition’s attending agencies is required to validate Coalition action.
Members are expected to make every effort to attend meetings.  In order to vote on issues, the member or agency needs to attend at least 2 meetings in the past 12 months.

III.    Organizational Structure

The Coalition has seven standing committees:

1)    Executive
2)    Strategic Planning Committee
3)    Secondhand Smoke
4)  Government Relations
5)  Membership and Recruitment
6)  Ambassadors
7)  Orientation Guidebook

The Coalition, and each of its committees, are chaired by a TEC member and staffed by TUPP personnel. The Coalition volunteer Chair and Vice-Chair are elected by the Coalition membership.  The person with the second highest vote count automatically becomes Vice-Chair. The term of office is two years from July to June, with no term maximum. The TUPP Supervisor and the Coalition Chair jointly appoint committee chairs. Each committee chair, together with the Coalition Chair, Vice-Chair,  previous Chair, and Member-At-Large make up the Executive Committee.

The Executive Committee acts as the official community spokesgroup for OCTEC, receives feedback from all subcommittees, advises on policy issues, reviews and assesses reports, and ensures that TUPP is compliant with goals and regulations.

The Strategic Planning Committee guides the Coalition on OCTEC policy activities and recommends strategies for strengthening local tobacco ordinances and policies. The committee facilitates collaboration on public policy resource development and training. This committee also reviews State and National tobacco-related legislation, and serves as an advocate for tobacco control efforts.

The Secondhand Smoke Committee meets to network, inform its members of priority issues, and to collaborate on action to meet the objectives of current policy efforts protecting the public, families, and employees from secondhand smoke indoors and outdoors.

The Government Relations Committee works on planning efforts to inform, prepare materials, meet with, and to advocate for Orange County policymakers to support tobacco control legislation at all levels of government.

The Membership and Recruitment Committee strives to meet the needs of the membership, listen to its ideas, recognized individuals and agencies, and brings in new individuals and agencies to the Coalition, especially those in priority populations, environmental, and healthcare, in order to bring new perspectives, allies, and assistance.

The Ambassadors Committee reaches out to influential parties and organizations, as well as the media, to promote the Orange County Tobacco Education Coalition.

The Orientation Guidebook Committee revises and updates the components of the Orientation Guidebook with the support of TUPP, so that all members have a full understanding of the operations of the Coalition.

IV.  Meetings

The Orange County Tobacco Education Coalition meets on a bi-monthly basis. Coalition subcommittees meet on an as-needed basis. All meetings are open to the general public, except for those associated with tobacco company or related businesses. Notification of Coalition meetings is sent out at least 10 working days prior to the scheduled date.

V. Staffing

The OCTEC volunteers and TUPP staff are jointly responsible for communication of important information, record-keeping, mailings, development of agendas, meeting support material, new member orientation, as well as the provision of special presentations / trainings at Coalition meetings.

VI.    Conflict of Interest

Members who have a conflict of interest shall so state before discussion of the issue in question and shall abstain from voting on said issue. A member is deemed to have a conflict of interest when he / she, or a relative or business associate, has one or more of the following relationships existing with a program or competing program under consideration: ownership; director, trustee, or officer; provider of goods or services; or material or other substantial interests which might inhibit an objective decision.

Members or member agencies that take funding from the tobacco industry or its allied businesses shall not be entitled to participate in Coalition votes.

VII.    Dissolution of Coalition

At which time the Tobacco Use Prevention Program ceases to exist, the Orange County Tobacco Education Coalition may choose to continue as an independent group or to disband.

VIII.    Revision of Coalition Operational Guidelines

A vote of 51% of the attending agencies is required for revision of the Operational Guidelines. Operational Guidelines are to be reviewed, and revised if necessary, bi-annually.

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