Senate Bill 25-26-41
| Bill ID: | 25-26-41 |
| Name: | Updates to the University Maryland Plan of Organization for Shared Governance to Establish the Committee on Policy Review |
| Proposed: | 01/14/2026 |
| Sponsor: | Special Committee on Policy Review |
| Proposal: | During the last University of Maryland (UMD) accreditation review, one of the concerns raised was the absence of a formal process for reviewing older policies to ensure their relevance and currency. To address this, the Senate formed a special committee to start the process and assess the need for a permanent committee. The committee was formed in Spring, 2025, and was charged with reviewing UMD policies, identifying those needing updates or elimination, and delivering a final report to the Senate by January, 2026. The Special Committee on Policy Review moves that the report be accepted and that a new standing Committee on Policy Review be established. To move this work forward, the committee recommends that the Elections, Representation, and Governance (ERG) Committee propose bylaw amendments to formally add the Committee on Policy Review as a standing committee. The committee also recommends that the Committee on Committees begin selecting members as early as Spring 2026 so that the committee may begin its work in Fall 2026. The committee further recommends that the Senate Executive Committee, in consultation with the University Senate Director, determine an implementation model that aligns the committee’s scope of work with available administrative capacity and the regular Senate cycle. This may include phased implementation, defined limits on the number of policies reviewed annually, or the identification of additional staffing or compensation support for the University Senate Office. |
| Active? | Yes |
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Status
| Status: | Under Review |
| Reviewer: | Plan of Organization Review Committee (PORC) |
| Received: | 2026-03-27 |
| Actions: | PORC will review and complete the charge. |
| Next Step: | SEC Review |
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| Status: | Complete |
| Reviewer: | Senate Executive Committee (SEC) |
| Received: | 2026-02-10 |
| Decision Date: | 2026-02-17 |
| Decision: | The SEC voted to charge PORC with the review of the proposal for Updates to the University Maryland Plan of Organization for Shared Governance to Establish the Committee on Policy Review |
| Actions: | Per the recommendations from the Special Committee on Policy Review, the University Senate voted to establish a standing Policy Review Committee. SEC will vote to determine which committee or council to charge with the updates to the Bylaws and the Plan of Organization, in order to establish the new standing committee. |
| Next Step: | PORC will complete the charge. |
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