Subject

Year Key

Text

Current Reference

Disposition

Site Selection: Ballots

1978-01

MOVED, to amend Article III of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following:
Site selection ballots shall include name, signature, address, and membership number spaces to be filled in by the voter. The name and address information shall be separated from the ballot and the ballots counted only at the convention with two witnesses from each bidding committee allowed to observe. Each bidding committee may make a record of the name and address of every voter.

S4.5.1

Ratified in 1979

Membership

1978-02

MOVED, to amend Article III of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following:
Members of the Society paying the minimum fee towards membership with their site selection ballots shall be members of the selected convention, with the right to receive all generally distributed publications. Those who have voted may convert to members with the right of general attendance at the selected convention and its Business Meeting by paying, within 90 days of site selection, an additional fee, set by the selected convention committee, of not more than the minimum voting fee and not more than the difference between the voting fee and the attending fee for new members.

S1.5.5

Changed "Those who have voted" to "Such members" and ratified in 1979

Constitution: Standing Rules

1978-03

MOVED, to amend Article IV of the WSFS Constitution by adding Standing Rules to those rules in accordance with which the Business Meeting is to be conducted, adding Standing Rules to the items to be printed by the Convention Committee, and substitute the following for Section 3:
The conduct of all the affairs of the Society shall be determined by this Constitution together with all ratified amendments hereto and such Standing Rules as the Business Meeting may adopt for its own governance.

Ratified in 1979

Site Selection: Tallying

1978-04

Each site selection ballot shall list the options "None of the above" and "No preference" after the bidders and with equal prominence. A ballot voted with first or only choice for "No preference" shall be ignored for site selection. A ballot voted with lower than first choice for "No preference" shall be ignored if all higher choices on the ballot have been eliminated in preferential tallying. "None of the above" shall be treated as a bid for tallying. If it wins, the duty of site selection shall devolve on the Business Meeting of the Current Convention. If the Business Meeting is unable to decide by the end of the Convention, the Committee for the following Convention shall make the selection without undue delay. When a site and committee are chosen by a Business Meeting or Convention Committee, they are not restricted by region or other qualifications and the choice of an out of rotation site shall not affect the regional rotation for subsequent years. If no bids qualify to be on the ballot, the selection shall proceed as though "None of the above" had won.

S4.5

Ratified in 1979

Committees: Financial

1978-05

B. by striking the words "and should publish or have published by the following Convention Committee a final financial report" and appending the following:
Each Convention Committee shall retain an independent certified public accountant at least a year before their convention and shall publish a financial statement compiled and reviewed by said accountant within 90 days after their convention and a final financial statement within a year.

S2.9.2

The 1979 MBM amended "compiled and reviewed" to "prepared"and ratified amendment.

Site Selection: Rotation

1979-01

C. Replace Article III, Section 5, with the following:
When a convention site in the region "Outside North America" is selected, there shall be an interim Continental Convention in one of the North American Regions. Selection of the site of such Continental Convention may be by vote of the Business Meeting or by such other method as the competing bidders might agree upon.

Defeated in 1979

Site Selection: Tallying

1979-02

S4.1.4

Ratified in 1980

Site Selection: NASFiC

1979-03

(This would abolish the so-called NASFIC or Continental Convention. Basically there is no good reason for the WSFS to sponsor a convention to compete with the WORLDCON)

Defeated in 1979

Standing Rules: Meetings

1980-01

MOVED, to amend the Standing Rules by adding the following to Rule 1: One Business Meeting session shall also be designated the Site-Selection Meeting where site-selection business shall be the special order of business.
(This clarifies what the Site-Selection Meeting is. In the current Standing Rules it is mentioned only in passing in Rule 17.)

R1.3

Passed in 1980

Standing Rules: Meetings

1980-02

MOVED, to amend Rule 2 of the Standing Rules by striking "and to ‘refer to committee’ " and inserting the following in its place:
to "divide the question", to "postpone" to a later part of the Preliminary Business Meeting, and to "refer" to a committee to report later in the Business Meeting.
(This motion makes more specific and complete the list of actions customarily taken at Preliminary Business Meetings. It clarifies the deferring to the main Business Meeting of final disposition of business, unless its consideration is objected to.)

R1.2

Passed in 1980

Standing Rules: New Business

1980-03

MOVED, to amend the Standing Rules by inserting in Rule 4, after the word "attendees", the following:
unless it has actually been distributed to the attendees at the convention by the Convention Committee.
(This eliminates the requirement for the submitter to print up many copies of a motion if it is included in the Program Book or otherwise distributed by and at the convention.)

R2.2

Passed in 1980

Standing Rules: Variations of Rules

1980-04

MOVED, to amend the Standing Rules by replacing Rule 7 with the following:
Unless it is an amendment by substitution, an amendment to a main motion may be changed only under those provisions allowing modification through the consent of the maker of the amendment, i.e., second-order amendments are not allowed except in the case of a substitute as the first-order amendment.
(This changes the rules to reflect a unchallenged precedent set several years ago by Robert L Hillis acting as presiding officer.)

R5.4

Passed in 1980

Standing Rules: Variations of Rules

1980-05

MOVED, to amend the Standing Rules by deleting from Rule 16 the words "at any time".
(This motion is intended to eliminate any confusion over the fact that the motion to adjourn has traditionally been treated as non-privileged during the last session of the Business Meeting, as specified in "Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised".)

R5.7

Passed in 1980

Hugo Awards: Ballots

1980-06

MOVED, to amend Article II, Section 15 of the WSFS Constitution by inserting the following:
Nominations shall be solicited for, and the final ballot shall list, only the Hugo Awards and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best New Writer.

S3.10.2

Ratified in 1981

Hugo Awards: Tallying

1980-07

The complete numerical voting totals, including all preliminary tallies for first, second, ... places, shall be made public by the Convention Committee within ninety (90) days after the Convention.

S3.11.4

Ratified in 1981

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-08

Moved, to amend Article II of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following new section:
Best Non-Fiction Book: Any non-fictional work relating to the field of science fiction or fantasy appearing for the first time in book form during the previous calendar year.

S3.3.5

Ratified in 1981

Site Selection: NASFiC

1980-09

MOVED, to amend Article III, Section 6 of the WSFS Constitution by deleting all of Section 6 after the first sentence.
(It would have the effect of abolishing the interim Continental Convention (NASFIC) currently held in North America when the Worldcon is outside of North America.)

OTC in 1980

Site Selection: NASFiC

1980-10

MOVED, to amend Article III of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following:
In the event of a Convention site being selected within North America, there shall be an interim Non-North American Convention to be held outside North America in the same year as the North American World Science Fiction Convention. Selection of the site of such a Non-North American Convention may be by vote of the Business Meeting or by such other method as the competing bidders might agree upon.
(It sets up a new convention to be held outside of North America when the Worldcon is in North America.)

OTC in 1980

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-11

Moved, to amend Article II, Section 9 of the WSFS Constitution by inserting after "additional criteria" the following:
except that publications shall not be considered if a financial remuneration is paid to any contributors or staff thereof.

Committed to committee in 1980 (with 1980-13); new motions reported (1980-25 - 1980-27).

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-12

Moved, to amend the WSFS Constitution by deleting Article II, Section 6. (It eliminates the Dramatic Presentation Hugo.)

OTC in 1980

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-13

Moved, to amend Article II of the WSFS Constitution by deleting Sections 8 and 9, and inserting the following in place thereof:
Section 7: Best Professional Magazine. Any periodical devoted to science fiction and/or fantasy published during the previous year, produced primarily by persons for whom it is the main source of income.
Section 8: Best Amateur Magazine. Any periodical devoted to science fiction and/or fantasy published during the previous year, produced primarily by persons for whom it is not the main source of income.
Section 9: Best Non-Periodical Editor. Any person engaged in the editing of science fiction for non-periodical publication (editors of annual anthologies shall be eligible).
(It renames and redefines the Best Fanzine Hugo category, eliminates the Best Professional Editor Hugo category, and in its place creates two new Hugos: Best Professional magazine and Best Non-Periodical Editor.)

Hugo Awards: Tallying

1980-14

Moved, to amend Article II of the WSFS Constitution by inserting the words "independent accountants engaged by" between the words "of" and "the" in the first sentence of Section 16, and by deleting Section 17. (It requires accountants to be used to count the Hugo votes, and eliminates the present exclusion of Convention Committee members from Hugo consideration.)

OTC in 1980

Site Selection: Tallying

1980-15

MOVED, to amend Article III, Section 5, of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following:
Bids from sites located out of rotation may be considered only if the rule is suspended by mail ballot distributed with the Hugo nomination ballots and passed by a two-thirds majority.

OTC in 1980

Site Selection: Ballots

1980-16

MOVED, to amend Article III, Section 1, of the WSFS Constitution by striking "five dollars ($5.00)" and inserting in its place "ten dollars ($10.00)". (It increases the default site-selection voting fee.)

S4.2.2

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-17

MOVED, to amend Article II of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following new section:
Best Game: Any game or simulation relating to the field of science fiction or fantasy appearing for the first time during the previous calendar year.

OTC in 1980

Hugo Awards: Ballots

1980-18

MOVED, to amend Article II of the WSFS Constitution by deleting the first and sixth sentences of Section 15 (to be renamed "Voting"), and inserting the following new section before it:
Nominations: Selection of nominees for the final Award voting shall be done by a poll, conducted by the Convention Committee, in which each Society member shall be allowed to make five (5) equally weighted nominations in every category. Assignment to the proper category of nominees nominated in more than one category, and eligibility of nominees, shall be determined by the Convention Committee.
(It standardizes the Hugo nominations procedure to what has actually been done most in recent years.)

S3.8.2

Hugo Awards: Ballots

1980-19

MOVED, to amend Article II, Section 15, of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following: No nominee shall appear on the Final Award ballot if it received fewer nominations than the lesser of either five percent (5%) of the number of nomination ballots cast, or the number of nominations received by the third-place nominee in that category.

S3.8.5

Ratified in 1981

Committees

1980-20

It is proposed that the organization which, by vote of the WSFS members of a Worldcon, is awarded the privilege of producing the very next Worldcon, be required to apply a significant amount of time, effort, and money to the generation and timely promulgation of publicity (e.g., advertisements in major urban newspapers and national news-oriented or family-oriented magazines, posting of fliers in local business establishments and schools/colleges/state and local government facilities by volunteers recruited worldwide, etc.) designed to inform the very many members of the general public, who read science fiction books but do not subscribe to the magazines in the field, of the existence of that Worldcon. It is requested that the above proposal, if approved, be incorporated as a standing rule for all Worldcon committees to adhere to.

OTC in 1980

Committees

1980-21

It is proposed that an evaluation form be included in all future Worldcon program books for the purpose of rating the hotel(s) at which Worldcons are held. Various categories (e.g., comfortability of rooms, luxuriousness of appointments, demeanor/responsiveness of the hotel management and staff, degree of harassment of convention members by hotel detectives, etc.) will be printed on the form. Attending members would then rate the hotel in each category on a scale of one to ten and drop the completed forms into a container assigned by the Worldcon committee for this purpose. At the end of the Worldcon, these category ratings would be totaled and averaged by the number of forms actually received. The totals and averages would then be printed and forwarded to: (1) the hotel itself for purposes of feedback and (2) to the bidding organization chosen by the WSFS membership to sponsor the very next Worldcon, along with any ratings received from prior Worldcon committees for hotels located both inside and outside the region of the organization so chosen. This organization, when it came time to mail ballots to pre-registrants for choosing the site of the succeeding Worldcon, would perpetuate the ratings results received for hotels designated by the committees named on the ballot. This will encourage hotels to provide the best possible service to Worldcon attendees (in the hopes of being chosen again as the Worldcon site in three more years) as the current ratings will replace older ones.

OTC in 1980

Site Selection

1980-22

MOVED, to amend Article III of the WSFS Constitution by adding the following new section:
Each bidding committee will be restricted to a bidding expense limit, exclusive of facility deposits, of twenty-five hundred US dollars($2500.00). The current Convention Committees will have the right to increase or decrease the current limit by no more than ten percent (10%) during the year they host the World Science Fiction Convention. The expense limit for a particular bidding committee will be determined by the calendar year in which it first makes public its intention to participate in site selection. once an initial bidding committee has received an expense limit, all subsequent committees bidding for the same year must abide by the same limit. All bidding committees must present an annual budget report to the current Convention Committee and make available written copies of their budgets to any member of the Society on request. Any bidding committee exceeding their limit shall be disqualified from participating in site selection. Bidding committees having announced their intention to bid for the World Science Fiction Convention at the time this amendment is ratified shall not be subject to the aforementioned limits.

OTC in 1980

Site Selection: Ballots

1980-23

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by striking all of Article III, Section 1, except for the last sentence, by inserting the material below in place thereof, and by replacing all references to site-selection "mail" ballots elsewhere in the Constitution with references to site-selection "proxy" ballots:
The Society shall choose the location and Committee of the Convention to be held two (2) years from the current Convention at the Business Meeting of the current Convention. Voting shall be by secret ballot cast at the current Convention with run-off as described in Article II, Section 16, and shall be restricted to those who have paid at least eight dollars ($8.00) toward membership in the Convention whose site is being selected and who are either (a) attending members of the Society present in person or represented by proxy or (b) members of the Society enrolled as supporters of a bona fide bidding committee represented by proxy. The Convention Committee may adopt additional rules respecting site-selection proxy balloting, and such rules shall be printed in the Program Book of the current Convention. The current Convention Committee shall administer the balloting, collect the advance membership fees other than pre-support enrollment, and turn over those funds to the winning Committee before the end of the current Convention.

OTC in 1980

Committees

1980-24

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by adding the following provision: every Committee shall at least twice send copies of their membership list, including name, number, and address information, to all future Committees that have been selected at the time of sending. One such copy shall be sent shortly before the convention of the sending Committee, and one including any members joining at the convention shall be sent as soon as practicable after the convention of the sending Committee.

Defeated in 1980

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-25

2. Best Non-Periodical Editor: Any person engaged in the editing of science fiction for non-periodical publication (editors of annual anthologies shall be eligible).

Defeated in 1980

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-26

MOVED, to amend Article II, Section 9, by deleting all of the first sentence after "which has published" and replacing with the words "two (2) or more issues which appeared in the previous calendar year."

Defeated in 1981

Hugo Awards: Categories

1980-27

OR MOVED, to amend Article II, Section 9, by adding at the end of the section the words "except that publications shall not be considered unless they are edited primarily by persons for whom it is not the main source of income".

Both defeated in 1980

Standing Rules: Meetings

1981-01

The Preliminary Business Meetings may not pass, reject, or ratify amendments to the Constitution, but the motions to ‘object to consideration’, to ‘table’, to ‘divide the question’. to ‘postpone’ to a later part of the Preliminary Business Meetings, and to ‘refer’ to a committee to report later in the same Annual Business Meeting are in order when allowed by Robert's Rules. The Preliminary Business Meetings may alter or suspend any of the rules of debate included in these Standing Rules. Motions may be amended or consolidated at these Meetings with the consent of the original maker. Absence from these Meetings of the original maker shall constitute consent to amendment and to such interpretations of the intent of the maker as the Presiding Officer or the Parliamentarian may in good faith attempt.

R1.2

Passed in 1981

Constitution

1981-02

C) Insert "(known as the Worldcon)" after the first occurrence of "World Science Fiction Convention" and substitute "Worldcon" for "World Science Fiction Convention" where appropriate thereafter.

S2.2

Ratified in 1982

Committees: Financial

1981-03

A change of ‘in existence’ to ‘selected’ was suggested, and accepted by the maker of the motion.

S6.4

Hugo Awards

1981-04

(This amendment would clarify the definition of the Dramatic Presentation Hugo, the current text of which was written at a time before the proliferation of ‘miniseries’. It would confirm the eligibility of serialized dramas such as The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1978) or The Martian Chronicles. (1980), or the current year’s radio production of Star Wars, while maintaining the ineligibility of ‘series’ whose individual programs are separate stories.)

S3.2.4

Site Selection: Eligibility

1981-05

(The intent of this motion is to prevent a recurrence of the situation which occurred in 1981, wherein lack of information prevented a late bid from appearing on the ballot.)

S4.6.3

Ratified in 1982

Site Selection: Eligibility

1981-06

(The intent of this motion is twofold: to remove the possibility that the Constitution may be interpreted to give the current Convention Committee the right to declare an agreement inadequate; and to treat NASFiC bids equal to Worldcon bids if an agreement for either is submitted.)

OTC in 1981

Site Selection: Eligibility

1981-07

No bidding committee, nor the officers or counsel thereof, shall have standing to challenge the qualifications of a rival bidding committee. Any bidding committee which shall enter into or threaten to enter into legal action to prevent a rival bid from appearing on the site-selection ballot shall be disqualified.

OTC in 1981

Hugo Awards

1981-08

Extended Eligibility: In the event that a potential Hugo nominee receives extremely limited distribution in the year of its first publication or presentation, its eligibility may be extended for an additional year by a three-fourths vote of the intervening Business Meeting of the Society.

S3.4

Ratified in 1982

Committees

1981-09

REWRITTEN AGAIN: : MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by adding the following new section: The Convention Committee shall charge persons who are under eighteen years of age, or who are full-time college students, reduced fees for attending membership in the Convention and for attendance at such other functions as may require charges, with the exception of banquets; however, no such reduction shall be applied to the site-selection voting fee, nor to the cost of conversion to attending membership within ninety days by persons who became members by casting site-selection ballots.

Withdrawn in 1981

Committees

1981-10

MOVED, that each World Convention Committee shall be required to reduce the cost of the Convention to attendees as much as possible.

OTC in 1981

Standing Rules: Meetings

1982-01

MOVED, to amend Rule 2 of the Standing Rules for the Governance of the WSFS Business Meeting by inserting the words "(for procedural reasons, as opposed to simple dislike of the motion in question)" after the words "object to consideration".

OTC in 1982

Standing Rules

1982-02

The winning bid will be allowed five(5) minutes for a presentation.

S4.8

Passed in 1982

Mark Protection

1982-03

C) Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, any committee or other position created by a Business Meeting shall lapse at the end of the next following Business Meeting that does not vote to continue it.

S5.2

Site Selection: Rotation

1982-04

Southern: Central America, Mexico (except as above), Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kentucky, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and all states southward; and Northern: all states and provinces east of the Western region and north of the Southern region. Convention sites shall rotate in the order Western, Southern, Northern region.

OTC in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-05

If this amendment is accepted it will necessitate minor revisions in the wording of the "Best Fan Writer" and "Best Fan Artist" categories.

Rejected in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-06

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by deleting Article II, Section 10 "Best Fanzine", and in Sections 11 and 12 replacing the phrase "magazines of the type defined in Section 10 above" with "any generally available fannish publication devoted to science fiction, fantasy, or related subjects".

OTC in 1982

Hugo Awards: Tallying

1982-07

Awards Subcommittee: The Convention Committee shall select three persons who have not engaged in activities eligible for awards as defined in this Article to serve as an Awards Subcommittee. The Awards Subcommittee shall have sole authority to solicit and count nominations and votes for awards as defined in this Article and to decide questions of eligibility.

OTC in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-08

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by deleting Article II, Section 6. (to eliminate the Best Non-Fiction Book Hugo)

Defeated in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-09

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by deleting Article II, Section 7. (to eliminate the Best Dramatic Presentation Hugo.)

OTC in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-10

Best Non-Periodical Editor: Any person engaged in the editing of science fiction and/or fantasy for non-periodical publication (editors of anthology series shall be eligible).

OTC in 1982

Site Selection: Ballots

1982-11

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by inserting the words "with the right of general attendance at the current convention" between the words "members" and "who" in the second sentence of Article III, Section 1.

OTC in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-12

(9) Amend Article II, Section 12, to read:
Best Fan Artist: An artist or cartoonist whose work has appeared through publication in semiprozines or fanzines or through other public display. Any person whose name appears on the final Hugo Awards ballot ... eligible in the Fan Artist category for that year.

See below for texts passed on (1982-18, 1982-19 and 1982-20)

Site Selection: Eligibility

1982-13

The contract or letter of agreement with the principal hotel shall provide that there be no restrictions or fees on bringing in food, beverages, or supplies into hotel rooms for parties and no prohibition against holding parties in hotel rooms.

OTC in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-14

and inserting in Section 10 (Best Fanzine) at the end of the first sentence "whose highest. circulation for the year is under 1000" and striking the second sentence.

Rejected in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-15

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by deleting Article II, Sections 10, 11 and 12. [I.e. to eliminate the Fanzine, Fan Writer and Fan Artist categories.]

Rejected in 1982

Membership

1982-16

(The intent of this motion is to: 1. Reduce the cost for bringing children to a convention, but also, 2. Ensure they are present only with responsible adults.)

OTC in 1982

Site Selection: Rotation

1982-17

and deleting Article II [sic] Section 6.

OTC in 1982

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-18

B. In Sections 11 and 12 of Article II, change "in magazines of the type defined in Section 10 above" to "in semiprozines or fanzines". In Section 12, also change "final Awards ballot" to "final Hugo Awards ballot" and change "for the Fan Artist Award" to "in the Fan Artist category".

S3.3.12

Ratified in 1983

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-19

An author may withdraw a version of her or his work from consideration if she or he feels that that version is not representative of what she or he wrote.

S3.2.5

Ratified in 1983

Hugo Awards: Categories

1982-20

Best Novel: A story of forty thousand (40,000) words or more appearing for the first time during the previous calendar year in English.. A work originally appearing in a language other than English shall also be eligible in the year it was first issued in that language, provided such publication precedes the English-language publication.

Defeated in 1983

Site Selection: Rotation

1983-01

"With sites being selected three (3) years in advance, there are at least three selected current or future Worldcon committees in existence at all times. If one of these should be unable to perform its duties, the other selected current or future Worldcon Committee whose site is closet to the site of the one unable to perform its duties shall determine what action to take, by consulting the Business Meeting or by mail poll of WSFS if there is sufficient time, or by decision of the Committee if there is not sufficient time."
PROVIDED THAT the three-year advance selection shall not take effect until the 1986 Worldcon, at which both the 1988 and 1989 Worldcons shall be selected.

S4.7

Ratified in 1984

Site Selection: NASFiC

1983-02

Selection of the Continental Convention shall be by the identical procedure to the Worldcon selection except as provided below or elsewhere in this Constitution: (1) voting shall be only by written ballot at the current Convention taken after the Worldcon selection is complete; (2) bids are restricted to sites in the appropriate zone; and (3) the prospective Continental Convention voting fee can be set by unanimous consent of the prospective candidates that file with the current Worldcon Committee before the calendar year in which selection will occur."

S4.8

Site Selection: Eligibility

1983-03

The aforementioned rules and documentation of agreements, along with an announcement of intent to bid, must be filed with the Worldcon Committee that will administer the voting no later than [the close of] the previous Worldcon for a Worldcon bid and no later than the end of the calendar year before the voting for a prospective Continental Convention bid.

S4.6.3

Ratified in 1984

Hugo Awards: Ballots

1983-04

The nominee with the smallest number of points shall be eliminated. Each of the remaining nominees shall start with zero points for a repetition of the process where the top two non-eliminated nominees from each ballot shall be used. This process shall be repeated until all but two of the nominees are eliminated. At that point, only those ballots that have both nominees rated shall be examined and divided into two groups based on which nominee is rated higher on each ballot. The nominee with the larger group of supporters shall be the winner of the award. The complete numerical vote totals shall be made public by the Worldcon Committee within ninety (90) days after the convention.

Ruled out of order in 1983

Standing Rules: Meetings

1983-05

"The Business Meeting sessions shall not be scheduled for before 11 a.m. on any day except on the last day of the convention."

Defeated in 1983

Standing Rules: Variations of Rules

1983-06

"On any objection to consideration, the Presiding Officer will recognize one person raising the objection and the maker of the motion objected to ( or an alternate)for two minutes each to explain why the motion should or should not be considered."

Defeated in 1983

Standing Rules: Mark Protection

1983-07

Nominations from the floor for election to the Standing Committee shall be allowed at each Preliminary Business Meeting. All nominees must be members of the Society and give their consent in writing, which consent shall be submitted to the Presiding Officer. Elections to the Standing Committee shall be a special order of business at a Main Business Meeting. Voting shall be by written preferential ballot with write-ins allowed. The winning candidate shall be elected to the longest-term remaining vacancy and the ballots shall be recounted, with the winning candidate eliminated, if there are further vacancies. This process of selection and elimination shall be repeated until all vacancies are filled. Tied candidates shall all be considered elected if there are enough vacancies of the same length to accommodate them. Other ties shall be settled by drawing lots.

R6.2

Passed in 1983

Site Selection: Rotation

1984-01

MOVED, to amend to read that the rotation plan shall be changed dividing the world into 2 zones with the Western Zone defined as Manitoba, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mexico, Central America, and all territories west to 60 degrees E of Greenwich. The Eastern Zone is defined as Ontario, Wisconsin, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, South America, and all territories east to 60 degrees E of Greenwich. This plan, if adopted, will take effect with the 1987 selection of the 1990 Worldcon site.

Referred to committee in 1984 to report at 1985. Recommitted in 1985.

Site Selection: Ballots

1984-02

MOVED, to amend Article III, Section 2 of the WSFS Constitution to add the words "and provide for write-in votes" before the word "after", and to insert a new third sentence "For votes for a write-in to be counted, the prospective committee must present the documents required in Section 5."

S4.6.4

Site Selection: Ballots

1984-03

MOVED, to amend Article III, Section 1 of the WSFS Constitution by substituting $20.00 for the current default rate of $10.00

S4.2.2

changed "$20" to "20 U.S. dollars or the equivalent": passed in 1984. Ratified in 1985.

Site Selection: Rotation

1984-04

MOVED, to delete Article III, Section 6 of the WSFS Constitution and replace it with:
A site shall be ineligible if it is within sixty (60) miles of the site at which selection occurs. (This would abolish all bidding zones)

Withdrawn in 1984

Site Selection: NASFiC

1984-05

MOVED, to delete Article III, Section 7 of the WSFS Constitution. (This would remove mention of the NASFiC from the Constitution.)

Defeated in 1984

Constitution

1984-06

[Text as revised by the Secretary:
MOVED, to amend Article IV, Section 4 of the WSFS Constitution by adding, after the words "...Newly Revised": (or the equivalent meeting rules authority in the country of the current Worldcon, provided that such authority must be specified when a site-selection bid is filed).]

Not Ratified in 1985.

Constitution

1984-07

3) Insert "and NASFiC" after the second word in Article I, Section 6, and insert "NASFiC" into the list of marks in the notice whose publication is required by the same section.

S2.2

Mark Protection

1984-08

MOVED, to amend Article III, Section 1 of the WSFS Constitution by inserting the following at the end of the second sentence:
except for ____ which shall be turned over to the Standing Committee.

Not Ratified in 1985.

Constitution

1984-09

(b) This shall not preclude an individual who is a member of a Worldcon Committee from offering their services, funds, or supplies to a prospective Worldcon Committee.
(c) This shall not preclude a current Worldcon Committee from accepting the services of a prospective Worldcon Committee or its members, nor shall it preclude a prospective Worldcon Committee from offering services or merchandise to the members of a Worldcon.

Converted to resolution and passed in 1984

Site Selection: NASFiC

1984-10

PROVIDED THAT if passed this motion would take effect at the same time as the 3-years-in-advance Worldcon site selection, i.e. it would first apply to a possible 1989 NASFiC.

S4.8.1

"in the following year" deleted in 1985. "following the Worldcon" added after "if there is one" in 1985. Ratified as amended in 1985.

Standing Rules: New Business

1984-11

The text of any main motion presented to a Business Meeting shall contain a short title.

R2.4

Passed in 1984

Constitution

1985-01

Amend, by adding the following to Article I, Section 7: ‘The net income from running a Worldcon and earnings derived from such income shall not be used to bid for a different Worldcon except that equal grants may be given to all of the bidders who have filed by the deadline for a particular year.’

Not Ratified in 1986

Constitution: Financial

1985-02

Moved, "to delete Article I, Section 7 and replace it with the following three sections.
VII. All surplus funds remaining after accounts are settled for the current Worldcon should be used for the benefit of Science Fiction and WSFS as a whole. Each Worldcon Committee shall have the option of designating up to twenty-five (25) percent of said surplus funds to be used to benefit Science Fiction in the local area where the Worldcon was held.
VIII. All surplus funds (except for funds designated to benefit Science Fiction in the local area) shall be controlled and administrated by the Standing Committee. Such surplus funds shall be transferred to the Standing Committee no later than six months after the close of the current convention.
IX. The Standing Committee shall appoint an independent accountant for each Worldcon at least 3 years before that Worldcon. The Worldcon Committee shall provide said accountant with full access to all financial records, and shall publish preliminary financial statements prepared by said accountant no later than ninety (90) days before the current Worldcon and with[in] ninety (90) days after the current Worldcon. The Worldcon committee shall publish a final financial statement prepared by said accountant no later than one (1) year after the close of the current Worldcon. The Worldcon committee shall be responsible for the coverage of reasonable expenses incurred for the services of said accountant.

OTC in 1985

Mark Protection

1985-03

Moved "To amend Article IV, Section 5 by:
Changing the number of members appointed to the Standing Committee by the Worldcon Committees to two (2) each.
Changing the number of elected members of the Standing Committee to two (2) each year."
Should this amendment pass and be ratified, all current members of the Standing Committee will be allowed to serve out their terms regardless of the new limits imposed on Standing Committee size by this motion.

Withdrawn in 1985

Hugo Awards: Categories

1985-04

Moved: "That the Science Fiction Achievement Awards known as the Hugo Awards be extended to include an award for Best Children’s Novella and an award for Best Dramatic Presentation for Children."

substituted by a resolution: "It is the sense of the business meeting that a Con committee (1986 or 1987) should strongly consider as their Special Hugo a Children's Hugo": passed in 1985

Site Selection: Eligibility

1985-05

Redundant Notice Elimination. "Moved, to amend the World Science Fiction Society Constitution by deleting Article III, Section 4. (see 1981-05)

S4.6.3

Ratified in 1986.

Constitution

1985-06

MOVED. To amend the WSFS Constitution by striking Article IV, Section 1 and inserting the following in its place:
‘Any amendment to the WSFS Constitution must be adopted by majority vote at a Business Meeting and ratified by majority vote at the Business Meeting of the following Worldcon, except as follows: (A) one or more Worldcon Business Meetings may occur between the initial adoption and the ratification if each postpones ratification to the following Business Meeting; and (B) the version of the amendment up for ratification may be divided into severable and independent sections which may be considered separately or amended such that it is a change of lesser quantity or degree than that initially adopted provided there is no change in its nature and quality. Should any Business Meeting neither postpone nor ratify a constitutional amendment up for ratification or should the Business Meeting amend it in a way inconsistent with the restrictions above, the constitutional amendment process is thereby voided but may be restarted by a new adoption by majority vote.’

OTC in 1985

Mark Protection

1985-07

Moved: to amend Article IV, Section 5, by adding the following between the second and third sentences: ‘Of the nine elected members, no more than three may be residing at the time of election in any single North American region as defined in Article III, Section 6.’ PROVIDED THAT current members of the Standing Committee shall serve until the end of their terms with all new members elected under the above provision.

S1.8.2

Ratified in 1986

Mark Protection

1985-08

Moved: That all references to "The Standing Committee" be changed to "the Trademark Registration and Protection Committee" wherever they occur.

S1.8

"Trademark" changed to "Mark" and passed in 1985. Ratified in 1986.

Mark Protection

1985-09

MOVED, to Amend the WSFS Constitution by adding the following to Article IV:
'The Standing Committee shall submit to the Business Meeting at each Worldcon a Financial report of its activities since the previous Worldcon, including a statement of income and expense.

S1.7.2

Ratified in 1986.

Constitution

1985-10

MOVED, to Amend the WSFS Constitution by adding the following to Article I:
‘No part of the Society’s net earnings shall be paid to its members, officers, or other private persons except in furtherance of the Society's purposes. The Society shall not attempt to influence legislation or any political campaign for public office. Should the Society dissolve, its assets shall be distributed by the Standing Committee or the appropriate court having jurisdiction, exclusively for charitable purposes. In this section, references to the Society include the Standing Committee and all other agencies of the Society but not convention bidding or operating committees.’

S1.3

Ratified in 1986.

Hugo Awards: Categories

1986-01

Section 22: Special Exclusion: Except for those categories which recognize a single titled work, an individual or publication may not be nominated for any category for which that individual or publication received the Hugo the previous year

OTC in 1986

Hugo Awards: Categories

1986-02

Section 10: Best Interior Illustration: Any illustration appearing within the pages of a book or magazine dealing with science fiction or fantasy appearing for the first time within the previous calendar year.

OTC in 1986

Site Selection: Tallying

1986-03

An out-of-rotation site in North America may be selected by a three quarters (3/4) vote of all voters except those voting "No preference."

OTC in 1986

Site Selection: Rotation

1986-04

North America shall consist of Alaska, Canada, Greenland, St. Pierre and Miquelon, the continental United States, Mexico, all countries in Central America between Mexico and Panama inclusive, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and all islands of the Caribbean. A cruise ship or other moving site in port in North America shall be considered part of North America, and part of the region or regions it is in port in.

S1.8.5

OTC in 1986

Standing Rules: New Business

1986-05

Moved, to amend Rule 5 of the Standing Rules for the Governance of the WSFS Business Meeting by (1) striking the words "requiring a vote" and inserting in their place the words "for non-privileged new business" and (2) moving the last two sentences of Rule 5 to the end of Rule 4.

R2.2

Passed in 1986

Mark Protection

1986-06

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by adding the following to the end of the first sentence of Article IV, Section 5:
"One (1) voting member appointed to serve at the pleasure of each future NASFIC Committee and for each Committee of a NASFIC held in the previous two years."

S1.8.1

Ratified in 1987.

Site Selection: Rotation

1986-07

and to add this following proviso to the section:
"Provided that this begins with the NASFIC to be selected at the 1991 Worldcon."

Defeated in 1986

Site Selection: Rotation

1986-08

CENTRAL: Central America, the islands of the Caribbean and St. Pierre, Mexico (except as above), and all states and provinces between Western and Eastern regions; and EASTERN. Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, Quebec, and all states and provinces eastward, including the District of Columbia, Bermuda and the Bahamas."

S1.8.5

Committees: Financial

1986-09

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by striking the second sentence of Article I, Section 7, and inserting the following in its place:
"Each Worldcon Committee shall submit an annual financial report, including a statement of income and expenses, to each WSFS Business Meeting after the Committee's selection through the first or second Business Meeting after its Worldcon, at its option, to which it will also submit a cumulative financial report."

S2.9.4

Ratified in 1987.

Hugo Awards: Categories

1986-10

MOVED, to amend Article II, Section 6 of the WSFS Constitution by striking out "relating to" and substituting "whose subject is", and by inserting "or fandom" after fantasy. The Section would now read:
"Best Non-Fiction Book: Any non-fictional work whose subject is the field of science fiction or fantasy or fandom appearing for the first time in book form during the previous calendar year."

S3.3.5

Ratified in 1987

Hugo Awards: Nominations

1986-11

MOVED, to add to Article II a new Section, between current Sections 18 and 19, as follows:
"Notification and Acceptance: Worldcon Committees shall use reasonable efforts to notify the nominees, or in the case of a deceased or incapacitated person, their heirs, assigns or legal guardians, in each category prior to the release of such information. Each nominee shall be asked at that time to either accept or decline the nomination."

S3.9

Constitution

1986-12

MOVED, to amend Article IV, Section 8, of the WSFS Constitution, by striking the words "printed in the Worldcon Program Book, if there is one" and inserting in their place the words "distributed to all WSFS members in attendance at the Worldcon upon registration."

S2.4

Standing Rules: Official Papers

1987-01

a housekeeping measure to allow consequential amendments to be made to the Standing Rules

R4.3

Passed in 1987

Constitution

1987-02

1. Add the following to Article IV, Section 4:
"The quorum for the Business Meeting shall be twelve members of the Society physically present."
2. At the time the above amendment to the Constitution takes effect, delete the first two sentences of Standing Rule 18.

S5.1.5

Committees

1987-03

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution and the Standing Rules for the Governance of the WSFS Business Meeting as follows:
1. Insert the following new Section in Article IV of the Constitution:
"Each future selected Worldcon Committee shall send an official representative to the Business Meeting to answer questions about their Worldcon."
2. At the time the above amendment to the Constitution takes effect, add the following to Standing Rule 19:
"At the Site Selection Meeting fifteen(15) minutes shall be allotted to each of the three future selected Worldcons. During the first five (5) minutes their representative may make such presentations as they may wish. The remaining time shall be available for questions to be asked about the representative's Worldcon. Questions may be submitted in writing at any previous session of the Business Meeting and if so submitted shall have priority (if the submitter is present at Question Time and still wishes to ask the question) except that under no circumstances may a person ask a second question as long as any person wishes to ask their first question. Questions are limited to fifteen seconds and answers to two minutes. Any of these time limits may be adjusted for any presentation or question by majority vote."

R7.1

Constitution

1987-04

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution as follows:
Replace the words "Worldcon Committee" with "Mark Registration and Protection Committee" in the following Sections:-
II.2, II.17, II.18, II.20, II.21, II.21, III.1, III.4 (first occurrence only).
Replace Article III, Section 6(1), with
"Voting shall be by written ballot administered by the Mark Registration and Protection Committee at the then current Worldcon, if there is no NASFiC following the Worldcon that year, or at the NASFiC, if there is one following the Worldcon, with ballots cast either by mail or at the appropriate convention, and with only members of the appropriate convention allowed to vote."
Add the following to Article IV as a new Section after Section 7:
The Business Meeting shall by resolution provide for the funding of these processes. It shall require a 3/4 (three-quarters) vote of the Business Meeting to provide more than two US dollars ($2) per member for these processes.

OTC in 1987

Hugo Awards: Nominations

1987-05

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution as follows:
1. In Article II, Section 18, strike "WSFS Member" and insert in place thereof "member of either the administering or immediately preceding Worldcon".
2. Add to Article I, Section 4, the following: "Within ninety (90) days after a Worldcon, the administering committee shall forward its best information as to the names and postal addresses of all its members to the committee of the next Worldcon."

S3.7.1

Site Selection: NASFiC

1987-06

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution as follows:
1. In Article III, Section 4, strike "no later than the end of the calendar year before voting" and insert in place thereof "as set by the administering convention but no earlier than the close of the corresponding Worldcon voting".
2. In Article III, Section 6, strike the words "either by mail or" and the words "before the calendar year in which selection occurs".

S4.6.3

Membership

1987-07

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by substituting the following for Article I, Section 5:
Members of WSFS who cast a site-selection ballot with the required fee shall be supporting members of the selected Worldcon. The rights of supporting members of a Worldcon include the right to receive all of its generally distributed publications. Voters have the right to convert to attending membership in the selected Worldcon within ninety (90) days of its selection for an additional fee set by its committee. This fee must not exceed the minimum voting fee and not exceed the difference between the voting fee and the attending fee for new members. Attending members of a Worldcon have the rights of supporting members plus the right of general attendance at said Worldcon and at the WSFS Business Meeting held thereat. Other memberships and fees shall be at the discretion of the Worldcon committee except that they shall make provision for persons to become supporting members for no more than 125% of the site selection fee, or such higher amount as has been approved by the Business Meeting, until a cut-off date no earlier than ninety (90) days before their Worldcon.
PROVIDED, that the requirement to provide supporting memberships shall only affect Worldcons selected after it goes into effect.

S1.5.7

Membership

1988-01

MOVED, to substitute "member of the administering Worldcon" and "members of the administering Worldcon" for "WSFS member" and "WSFS members" in Articles II and III.

Not Ratified in 1989

Site Selection: NASFiC

1988-02

There shall be a NASFiC Separation and Drafting Committee which shall propose a set of governing documents for the NASFiC, together with any other necessary plans to implement the separation of the NASFiC from the WSFS. The Committee shall consist of one (1) member appointed to serve at the pleasure of each future selected NASFiC or Worldcon Committee in North America and each of the Worldcon Committees in North America for the preceding three (3) years, and between three (3) and six (6) members selected from time to time by the Business Meeting of Worldcons in North America. Of the three to six selected members, at least one and at most two may be residing, at the time of selection, in any single North American region, as defined in Article III, Section 5, and at least one shall be a citizen or resident of Canada. If vacancies occur in selected memberships in the committee, the Committee may temporarily fill the vacancies. The Committee shall determine and elect its own officers.

Site Selection: Rotation

1988-03

MOVED to add the following to Article III, Section 6, Sentence 1: unless the North American region which would be skipped was skipped in its last turn in the rotation.

Not Ratified in 1989

Mark Protection

1988-04

MOVED to insert in Article IV, Sect ion 5: Newly appointed members take their seats, and the term of office ends for elected and appointed members whose terms expire that year, at the end of the Business Meeting.

S1.8.3

Ratified in 1989

Standing Rules: Mark Protection

1988-05

MOVED to replace Standing Rule 3 with: The first seat filled will be filled by normal preferential ballot procedures. That person's votes, as well as votes for any other nominee who has now become ineligible (because a zone's quota is filled) will be eliminated, and the procedures will be restarted from the beginning. This continues until all places are filled.

R6.2

Passed in 1988

Hugo Awards: Categories

1989-01

MOVED, to amend the WSFS Constitution by adding a new section after Fan Hugos in Article II as follows:
Outstanding Service. Any person, of small group of four people or less, whose efforts or activities in the previous calendar year materially benefited the enjoyment or appreciation of science fiction, fantasy or related subjects.
This award shall not be given for any work eligible for a literary, dramatic or artistic Hugo (Sections 2 through 13), for the contribution, granting or raising of funds, or for service as the Chair or Co-Chair of the Worldcon or NASFiC in that year. However, it may be given for work in a lesser position at the Worldcon or NASFiC.

Defeated in 1989

Site Selection: NASFiC

1989-02

Whereas the presence of the North American Science Fiction Convention or NASFiC in the WSFS Constitution is a source of controversy, and
Whereas no other local, regional, national or continental convention is regulated in the WSFS Constitution,
Therefore, be it resolved, to amend the WSFS Constitution by adding a new section to Article IV:
Upon the adoption and ratification of a separate set of governing documents for the NASFiC, all references to the North American Science Fiction Convention or NASFiC shall be removed from the WSFS Constitution and the NASFiC mark shall be transferred to the new organization. The governing documents shall be adopted by any Business Meeting for a NASFiC or Worldcon in North America, and ratified by a Business Meeting for the next NASFiC or the next Worldcon in North America.

Defeated in 1989

Hugo Awards: Categories

1989-03

Moved, to amend the WSFS Constitution by adding a new section in Article II as follows:
Ineligible Materials. A book, story, dramatic presentation, or anything else that is otherwise ineligible for a Hugo in that year.

OTC in 1989

Committees: Financial

1989-04

Change Section 8 of Article 1 to require:
- submission of a financial report on the last year’s Worldcon profit/loss at the next year’s business meeting (vice the ‘one or two year’ language currently in the constitution.)
- submission of subsequent annual financial reports dealing with the disbursement of said Worldcon’s profits at each year’s business meeting by the Worldcon committee, or any alternative organizational entity established to oversee and disburse those profits, until the profits are totally expended or an amount equal to the original profit has been disbursed.

S2.9.4

Hugo Awards: Nominations

1989-05

Moved, to amend the WSFS Constitution by adding the following to Article II, Section 18, sentence 1, following the words "each member of either the administering or the immediately preceding Worldcon": as of December 31 of the previous calendar year.

S3.7.1

Changed "December 31st of the previous calendar year" to "January 31st of the same calendar year". Ratified in 1990

Hugo Awards: Categories

1989-06

To amend Article II, Section 6 of the WSFS Constitution by adding the words "science or natural philosophy or" before the words "science fiction".

Defeated in 1989

Hugo Awards: Categories

1989-07

Moved: Delete Article II, Section 9 and replace with the following sections:
Section 9: Best Book Cover: An illustration used as a cover on a Science Fiction or Fantasy novel, anthology, or collection.
Section 10: Best Magazine Cover: An illustration used as a cover of a professional magazine as defined in Article II, Section 8.
Section 11: Best Interior Illustration: An illustration from the interior of any Science Fiction or Fantasy novel, anthology, or collection, or a professional magazine as defined in Article II, Section 8.

Amended by substituting a category "Best Science Fiction Art Work". Changed to a resolution requesting a future Worldcon choose to do this as a special Hugo; adopted in 1989

Hugo Awards: Categories

1989-08

Moved, To amend Article II, Section Two (Hugo Awards) Best Novel, to split the novel category into a) Best Science Fiction Novel and b) Best Fantasy Novel.

OTC in 1989

Site Selection: Rotation

1989-09

Moved: to amend Article III of the WSFS Constitution as follows:
In Section 1, change "three(3)" to "four(4)".
In Section 6, change "the then-current Worldcon" to "the Worldcon following the one at which the overseas Worldcon was selected", and add (4) "If ‘None of the Above’ shall win on the first ballot, then no NASFiC shall be held and all voting fees shall be refunded."
In Section 8, change "three(3)" to "four(4)".

Motion divided: only the portion relating to the NASFiC (1989-13) was passed in 1989 .

Site Selection: Rotation

1989-10