(1) Two messengers from each church having one hundred members or less, which is in friendly cooperation with this Convention; is sympathetic with its purposes and work; and has during the fiscal year preceding been a bona fide contributor to the Convention’s work.

(2) One additional messenger for each such church shall be allowed for each additional two hundred fifty members, or for each $250.00 contributed to the Cooperative Program during the fiscal year preceding the annual meeting, but no churches may be allowed more than ten (10) messengers.

(3) Messengers’ cards will be sent, upon request, to individual churches who meet the above requirements, from the State Convention office.
(4) Ballots will be issued to each messenger at the time one registers.

ARTICLE IV
On the occasion of its annual meeting the Body shall elect by ballot, a president, a first and second vice president, a secretary and one assistant secretary. Their duties shall be such as custom imposes upon such officers. They shall hold office until their successors are duly installed at the closing session of the annual meeting of the Body. No president shall be eligible to succeed himself in office. The President and the Vice Presidents and Secretaries of the Convention shall be the officers of the Mission Board of the Kentucky Baptist Convention.

Persons to be nominated as officers of the Kentucky Baptist Convention must be consulted and permission secured before their names are placed in nomination.

ARTICLE V
This Body has no jurisdiction over the local churches or the District Associations, and shall exercise no authority over them.

ARTICLE VI
The Body shall be a medium through which the churches in their sovereign capacity can work together in promoting all denominational enterprises which they deem necessary in carrying out the Great Commission.

ARTICLE VII
The Mission Board of this body shall consist of members from each cooperating District Association plus eight at-large members from the geographical regions of the state. The Mission Board membership from the associations shall consist of one member from each cooperating District Association with a total church membership of five thousand or less, and one more member for each additional five thousand church members, or major fraction thereof, as reported in the Convention Annual of the preceding year. Each District Association shall nominate two persons for each membership on the Board of whom one shall be elected. Should any District Association fail to exercise this prerogative, then the Committee on Nominations of the Convention shall make the nomination.

The eight at-large members shall be elected from any cooperating affiliated Baptist church. These members shall be nominated by the Committee on Nominations of the Convention.

All members of the Board shall be elected by the Kentucky Baptist Convention for a term of three years, except those who are selected to fill the vacancies. Vacancies result from death, resignation, or moving from the district association. A move of an at-large member does not constitute a need for a change in regional representation. No member shall be eligible for re-election for one year after his term has expired except one who has been elected to fill an unexpired term. Members serving two (2) years and six (6) months shall be considered as serving a full three year term. Any vacancies on the Mission Board not filled at the annual meeting of the Convention or which occur during the year shall be filled by the Mission Board upon recommendation of the Convention’s Committee on Nominations.

The retiring President of the Convention shall be an at-large member of the Mission Board for one year immediately following his term of office.

The president of the Woman’s Missionary Union and the president of the Kentucky Baptist Brotherhood shall serve as ex-officio members of the Board.

Forty members of the Board shall constitute a quorum.

ARTICLE VIII
The Mission Board shall have charge of the work of this body between its sessions, and shall appoint all officers and agencies that may be required in its work.

The Mission Board shall not contravene any Convention action.

The Mission Board shall neither create, accept nor release any institution or agency for the Kentucky Baptist Convention, unless so instructed by the Convention. The existence of an emergency in connection with an institution or agency shall be determined by a majority vote of the Mission Board in session, and the Board shall make recommendation to the Convention with reference to the emergency.

The Mission Board shall make a report to the annual Convention. At least thirty days prior to this meeting the Board shall publish in the Western Recorder its recommendations except in an emergency that may arise thereafter.

ARTICLE IX
No person shall be eligible to serve at the same time on more than one Board of Trustees or Directors or Managers of any agency or institution in Kentucky fostered and supported by the Kentucky Baptist Convention, except the Mission Board of the Convention, and shall not be eligible for election or appointment until he has been a member of a Kentucky Baptist church for at least one calendar year prior to nomination or appointment, and shall not be eligible for re-election after serving two full terms until having been out of office at least one full year, except the Kentucky Baptist colleges may have a maximum of eight (8) trustees per college from outside the state; these trustees to be nominated from candidates who are members in good standing of cooperating Baptist churches in their respective states.

Members of Boards of agencies and institutions shall be considered as having served a full term if they serve at least to a date six (6) months short of the full term. A full term defined differently in an agency or institution constitution or articles of incorporation shall be the prevailing definition. Vacancies on boards which occur between Kentucky Baptist Convention annual sessions may be filled by the Mission Board as the Convention ad interim upon recommendation of candidates by the Committee on Nominations. These actions shall be ratified at the Convention’s next annual session.

Employees of the Mission Board or any agency or institution of the Convention shall be ineligible to serve as members of the Mission Board or on a Board of Trustees or Directors or Managers of any agency or institution fostered and supported by the Kentucky Baptist Convention.

ARTICLE X
The President of the Convention and the Executive Director-Treasurer shall be ex-officio members of all committees.

ARTICLE XI
This Constitution may be altered or amended (except Article V) by the concurrence of two-thirds of the members present at any annual meeting, one year’s notice having been given to the proposed alteration or amendment.

BYLAWS

1. The session of the Convention shall be opened and closed by prayer.

2. Visitors shall have the privilege of speaking in debate but not of voting.

3. Each member, when he speaks in debate or has any communication to make to the convention, shall address the president, and when he has finished he shall be seated.

4. No member shall speak more than twice in any single debate on the same day without a two-thirds majority vote of the Convention.

5. When a member shall be called to order he shall be seated until the president has determined whether he is in order. An appeal may be made from the decision of the president in this as in any other case.

6. When the president shall desire to be heard in debate, or to be temporarily absent, the Chair can be taken by one of the vice presidents, or in case of the absence of both vice presidents, by some member whom the president may select.

7. In the election of officers by ballot, if only one nomination is made and no other person desires to nominate, the secretary may cast the ballot of the Convention. If a nominee does not receive a majority of votes cast on the first ballot, subsequent ballots shall carry the names of those who are included in the top fifty percent of the total votes cast in the previous ballot.

8. The results of all balloted votes shall be made known to all messengers and recorded in the proceedings of the Convention. It being understood that these votes refer to election of officers and any other ballot votes.

9. All resolutions, memorials and all motions except motions related to procedures made for the consideration of the annual Convention shall be presented in writing. All resolutions and memorials shall require for passage the concurrence of two-thirds of the members present and voting.

10. No new item of miscellaneous business may be introduced in the last session of the annual Convention without unanimous consent of the Body. No motions to rescind a previous action of the convention may be made in the last session of the annual Convention except by unanimous consent of the Body.

11. The Presiding Officers shall be empowered to rule on a motion when it is duly made and seconded, to determine if the subject matter is of the nature of a resolution. With an explanation for his ruling, he may refer the matter to the Resolutions Committee. However, the Body may overrule the decision of the Chair by a majority vote. The Resolutions Committee is to report to the annual Convention its disposition of all matters referred to the Committee from the floor of the annual Convention on the second day of the Convention.

12. The Committee on Order of Business shall suggest an order of business for the next meeting of the annual Convention. It shall provide periods of time during the early days of the annual Convention for the introduction of all matters requiring a vote not scheduled on the agenda, and, when introduced (unless the annual convention then gives its unanimous consent for its immediate consideration) shall fix times for the considerations of the same.

13. Twenty-five percent of the registered messengers at any annual meeting of the Kentucky Baptist Convention shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of business.

14. Any question that is not provided for by the foregoing rules shall be decided according to Robert’s Rules of Order (latest edition).

15. The foregoing rules may be altered or amended at any annual meeting by a vote of two-thirds of the members present.