Presidency

1. The Church Council Presidency chairs the meetings, manages the correspondence of the Collegium, and oversees the Church Council office.

2. If the Presidency is unable to perform its duties, the Vice-Presidency takes its place, followed by the longest-serving member of the Church Council.

1. The Church Council represents its resolutions as a collegial authority. The council members are fundamentally bound by the majority decision. The Church Council may, upon request and by majority decision, resolve to waive the obligation of collegiality for individual matters and thereby allow the representation of a dissenting minority opinion externally.

1. The members of the church council are insured by the regional church against accidents and liability claims. The premiums, with the exception of any contributions for non-occupational accident insurance, are borne by the regional church. The same provisions apply to the NBU premiums as for the other regional church personnel.

1. The members of the Church Council are insured with PERKOS in accordance with the provisions of the regulations.

1. The matters to be discussed are to be briefly explained in advance by the member responsible for the department.

2. The Church Council may establish a commission to pre-consult a matter. The competence and task of this commission are to be defined in more detail by the Church Council in each specific case.

3. For the election of employees of the regional church, the Church Council may, on a case-by-case basis, appoint a nomination commission consisting of two members of the Church Council and, if necessary, two to three members of the accompanying commission responsible for the position to be filled. This nomination commission makes one or more proposals for the attention of the Church Council. The Church Council is not bound by it.

1. The church council is quorate when the majority of its members are present. Proposals from a department are usually only considered in the presence of the person responsible for that department. In urgent cases or by arrangement, the church council presidency may also represent a matter.

2. In votes, the majority of those voting decides. In the event of a tie, the motion for which the presidency has voted is considered adopted. Voting is conducted openly.

1. In urgent cases, resolutions are passed by means of circulation. A resolution is adopted when the majority of the members have given their written consent to the proposal.

1. If the Church Council is unable to make a timely decision in matters that do not allow for delay, the Church Council Presidency shall provide for it instead. It shall inform the Church Council immediately.

2. It also decides in cases delegated by the Church Council.

1. In the appeal proceedings before the Church Council, the Church Council Presidency conducts the proceedings. It carries out any necessary investigations and obtains the required statements.

2. This task may also be delegated to the Church Council member responsible for the Legal Affairs department.

1. The recusal rule according to the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) applies.

2. If a member has to recuse themselves for personal reasons, they must leave the meeting. In other cases, they remain present but do not participate in the discussion or voting.

3. Compliance with recusal must be recorded in the resolution.

1. Members of the Church Council and the commissions appointed by it must maintain confidentiality regarding all occurrences in which the church or involved persons have an interest in keeping secret.

1. Generally, two to four sessions are held monthly. An extraordinary session is convened at the invitation of the Church Council's presidency due to pending matters or at the request of the majority of the members.

2. Members are obligated to attend the sessions. In the event of inability to attend, the presidency must be informed in a timely manner.

3. To deliberate on individual agenda items, commission members or other experts may be consulted. The presidency decides on participation, possibly in consultation with the responsible departments. Participation must be listed on the agenda.

1. The invitation and meeting documents must be delivered in a timely manner, so that they are typically in the possession of the council members two days before the meeting.

2. The meeting documents include the agenda, resolutions proposals for all significant agenda items to be decided upon, additional documents essential for forming opinions, as well as the minutes of the last meeting.

1. The agenda must list all matters subject to resolution and important briefings and preliminary discussions. In urgent cases, the agenda may be supplemented during the meeting by majority vote.

2. The order of items is determined by urgency. The person responsible for the matter must be named on the agenda.

3. At the end of the meeting, all council members, as well as the church council secretariat or its substitute, have the opportunity to inform about non-agenda items from their area of responsibility or to comment on additional points.

1. Requests or agenda items proposed by members of the church council that are submitted to the church council presidency at least seven days prior to a regular meeting shall be included in the agenda. If possible, they should be submitted as resolutions.

1. The Secretariat of the Church Council maintains a list of pending matters. This list must be periodically reviewed and updated.

1. The minute-taking in the Church Council is the responsibility of the Church Council's secretary or their deputy. The minutes are generally presented for approval at the following meeting.

2. It includes the resolutions and interim decisions, along with their reasoning. Furthermore, it contains agreements on further proceedings, as well as essential considerations and the essential content of briefings. Decisions that are not unanimously adopted must be recorded with the vote counts.

1. Resolutions - possibly as preliminary information in brief form - and deliberations of the Church Council must be communicated to the parties concerned via an excerpt from the minutes or in letter form.

1. Deliberations and resolutions of general interest shall be published appropriately unless confidentiality is required for reasons of expediency or other considerations. The publication shall be made on the website of the Evangelical Reformed Church.

2. In special cases, information may be advanced or provided in another form (e.g., press conference, informational event). These cases shall be discussed with the church council.

3. Decisions with a legislative character shall be published in the Official Gazette of the Canton of Thurgau.

1. The duties of the Church Council are assigned to departments, for which at least one member of the Church Council is responsible. A proxy regulation exists.

2. The current structure and delineation of the departments is recorded in the annual report.

**1. The Responsibilities for a Department Primarily Include the Following Tasks:**

1. Formulating short- and medium-term objectives and outlining future tasks

2. Developing a budget draft for the church council in collaboration with the office or offices

3. Preparing applications from the department to the church council, potentially in collaboration with commissions or employees of the state church

4. Representing the budget and applications before the church council and, if necessary, before the synod

5. Supervising projects that lead to church council resolutions or execute such resolutions

6. Leading or representing in the assigned commissions

7. Handling delegations

8. Operational leadership of the department: Monitoring task fulfillment and being responsible for the execution of resolutions and compliance with the budget

1. Department heads make financial decisions in their area of responsibility up to the amount of CHF 1,000. Exceptions are contractually agreed expenses. They approve the invoices but can delegate this task in whole or in part to employees.

2. Subject to differing agreements between regional church employees and the church council.

1. The Presidium shall encompass the following tasks in particular

1. Prepare and preside over church council meetings

2. Review incoming business and decide on their method of execution

3. Decide on matters whose handling is governed by regulations, decrees, or longstanding practice and record these in minutes, which are submitted to the entire authority for acknowledgment

4. Supervise the conduct of business and organize cooperation between the departments, independent subject areas, committees, administration, and workstations

5. Represent and stand for the entire authority externally and towards the parishes, as well as the administration, the service units, the holders of churchwide offices, and commissions, insofar as this task is not delegated

6. If necessary, manage the church personnel in cooperation with departmental leaders

7. Inform the public on behalf of the entire authority

1. The Church Council elects the members of the church council commissions for a term of four years, beginning two years after the start of the Church Council's term of office.

1. Commissions are generally chaired by the member of the Church Council responsible for the relevant department. Otherwise, the commissions constitute themselves.

1. The fundamental composition of the standing committees, along with the relevant legal foundations and duties, are outlined in Annex 1.

1. The duties and competencies of the commissions are established in a legal basis or in a resolution of the church council.

1. The commissions record their decisions in minutes, which they forward to the presidium of the church council. They report to the church council annually on their activities.

1. The Finance Commission of the Church Council is composed of the Church Council Presidency, another member of the Church Council, and the Treasury.

2. The Finance Commission decides in particular on the investment policy of the regional church's funds.

3. It also reviews scholarship applications in accordance with the Regulations of the Evangelical Synod of the Canton of Thurgau concerning the provision of church educational grants and makes decisions on them.

4. These decisions can be contested by filing an objection with the Church Council within 30 days.

5. The Church Council decides on the provision of loans.

1. The Audit Office consists of the Church Council Presidency and the Treasury.

2. On behalf of the Church Council, it reviews the annual financial statements of the church congregations in accordance with the ordinance of the Evangelical Church Council of the Canton of Thurgau regarding administration and accounting. To this end, it may involve specialists or, after consultation with the Church Council, assign the review.

3. If the conditions for the approval of the annual financial statement are met, it grants the approval; otherwise, it forwards the matter to the Church Council.

1. Delegates appointed by the Church Council to organizations and institutions shall exercise their mandate in the interest of the regional church. Decisions of great importance are to be discussed in advance with the Church Council.

2. Reports on the activities and occurrences within organizations and institutions shall be submitted periodically, as well as upon significant events and issues or prior to important decisions, to the Church Council.

1. The Secretariat

1. Maintains the minutes of the plenary authority,

2. Manages the archives of the cantonal church,

3. Is responsible, in collaboration with the president of the church council, for the execution of the resolutions of the synod and the church council,

4. Maintains a list of pending matters of the church council and supervises, in collaboration with the president of the church council, the progress of matters until their resolution,

5. Examines and processes legal questions of the cantonal church in collaboration with the church council member responsible for the relevant department,

6. Organizes administratively, in cooperation with the office, the proceedings of the synod,

7. And assumes other tasks assigned by the church council.

1. The Treasury Office

1. executes the financial decisions of the Synod, the Church Council, and the commissions according to the respective protocol,

2. manages the accounting of the Cantonal Church,

3. prepares the budget, financial plan, and annual financial statement for the Church Council,

4. submits a proposal regarding financial equalization contributions to the Church Council in cooperation with the Church Council Presidency,

5. administers the assets of the Cantonal Church according to general and special directives from the Church Council, Church Council Presidency, or the Finance Commission,

6. audits the accounting of the parish as well as the cantonal church offices and institutions in cooperation with the Church Council Presidency and any additional specialists with a view to their approval,

7. is responsible for the financial management of the Bernerhaus property,

8. handles the financial administration of personnel,

9. processes scholarship applications on behalf of the Finance Commission,

10. undertakes further tasks assigned by the Church Council,

11. and assumes the deputy duties of the Secretariat.

1. The church council presidency and the secretariat together have joint signing authority for the entire authority, with the treasury acting as a substitute when necessary.

2. The church council presidency and the treasury together have joint signing authority for capital investments and financial decisions of the church council or the finance commission.