CORPS MEMORANDUM NO 5
THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN CORPS OF SIGNALS
CORPS COMMITTEE - CONSTITUTION
Index
501. The name of the Committee shall be "The Royal Australian Corps of Signals Committee", hereinafter known as the "Corps Committee". The Corps Committee advises the Director of Signals - Army on the domestic affairs of the Regular and Reserve components of the Corps and controls all domestic finances.
502. The Corps Committee may deal with any Corps domestic policy referred to it for consideration, will, if appropriate, obtain the view of any Defence Region sub-committee before completing action. It may make recommendation through the Director of Signals - Army, to the Department of defence (Army Office) on matters of Corps domestic policy.
503. The purpose of the Corps Committee is to:
a. Administer all Corps assets held in the Corps Property Account, for the benefit of the Corps as a whole, ensuring that they are maintained in good order and working condition.
b. Foster the 'esprit de Corps' and traditions of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals.
C. Carry out such other functions as may be approved by regular meeting of the Committee, from time to time.
504. The Corps Committee is composed of.
a. Chairman - The Representative Colonel Commandant, The Royal Australian Corps of Signals.
b. Vice-Chairman - Director of Signals - Army.
c. Members
d. Treasurer - An officer of the Directorate of Signals - Army, appointed by the Director of Signals - Army.
e. Secretary - An officer of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals appointed by the Director of Signals - Army.
Co-opted Members - The Committee may co-opt any member of the Corps, in writing, for special duties from time to time.
505. The Australian Army Reserve representative will be nominated by the Director of Signals - Army, in consultation with the Representative Colonel Commandant.
506. The recording of the proceedings of a Corps Committee meeting is to be performed by an officer(s) nominated by the Director of Signals - Army.
507. The Representative Colonel Commandant, being appointed to assist the Head of Corps in the co-ordination of the functions of the Colonels Commandant of the Corps, shall act as Chairman of the Corps Committee.
508. The Chairman shall authorise the conduct of the normal affairs of the Committee, including the convening of meetings.
509. The Director of Signals - Army, as head of Corps, shall be responsible for the implementation of any course of action recommended to him by the Corps Committee.
510. The Secretary shall be responsible for the conduct of the routine affairs of the Committee, acting under the authority of the Chairman and of the Director of Signals - Army and within the policies approved by the Committee.
511. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the maintenance of accounts over which the Committee exercises policy control.
512. A quorum is deemed to be constituted by the attendance of at least three Colonels Commandant and the Director of Signals - Army or his representative. In the absence of the Representative Colonel Commandant the Director or his representative is to act as chairman.
513. Matters arising at any meeting of the Committee shall be decided by a majority of votes of those present and shall represent a decision of the entire Committee.
514. In cases of equity of votes, the person presiding over the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.
515. The Corps Committee should meet at least annually
516. Notification to Committee members of the time, date and location of the meeting is to be given
The outline agenda is to be despatched to all Committee members by the Secretary or Treasurer at least 1 month before the meeting.
517. Copies of all papers relevant to the meeting shall be issued by the Secretary of the Corps Committee 14 days in advance to.
a. all members of the Committee,
b. officers invited to attend meetings, and
c. the SO COMMS of each Defence Region.
518. Should the Chairman or Vice Chairman consider a matter sufficiently urgent, or if consideration he matter at the next annual meeting would impose unreasonable delay, then an extraordinary -netting may be convened.
519. The Secretary or Treasurer is to notify each Committee member seven days prior to the convening of the meeting.
520. Subjects for consideration by the Corps Committee may be submitted by any member of the Corps or by a committee, association or body recognised by the Corps Committee.
521. Proposed items shall be submitted in writing together with a position paper setting out the Background, the purpose and other relevant aspects of the matter, including a recommended course of action.
522. Proposed items are to be submitted three months in advance through normal Service channels to the Director of Signals - Army, who shall decide whether it is appropriate for the matter to be referred to the Corps Committee.
523. Minutes are to be recorded and prepared by the Secretary for forwarding to the Representative Colonel Commandant for his clearance and signature within 30 days following the meeting. A copy of the final minutes is to be forwarded as soon as practicable thereafter to each committee member.
524. If a matter is deemed to be sufficiently urgent, or if consideration of the matter at the next ordinary meeting of the Committee would impose an unacceptable delay, and if the convening of an
extraordinary meeting is not considered warranted, then the matter may be submitted to all members of the Committee for out-of-session consideration.
525. Any matter referred to the Committee out-of-session shall be accompanied by a suitably detailed explanation of the case and by the Representative Colonel Commandant's recommendation in the matter.
526. Such business is to be listed for confirmation at the next meeting of the Committee.
527. Notwithstanding the period of time that shall elapse between the out-of-session decision and the next Conunittee meeting the decision shall be valid and binding until ratified by the full Committee. In the event that the decision is not confirmed or is otherwise rejected at the next Committee meeting, the out-of-session decision shall be of no force or effect from the date of the meeting at which it was not confirmed or otherwise rejected.
528. The Corps Committee's agreed policy and rules appertaining to Corps domestic matters and other matters of enduring interest to the Corps shall be promulgated by means of Corps Memoranda.
529. Corps Memoranda shall be issued by the Director of Signals - Army on behalf of the Corps
Committee.
530. The decisions of any meeting of the Corps Committee shall be final and shall remain in force
until varied, amended or annulled at a subsequent meeting.
531. The following sub-committees may be formed:
a. Defence Region sub-committees,
b. a Corps Museum sub-committee,
c. a Corps History sub-committee, and
d. special purpose sub-committees as necessary.
532. Sub-Committees are to report in writing as directed, but not less than annually, to the Corps Committee for discussion at each annual meeting.
533. Sub-Committees are to operate within the guidelines of the MPA and are to be responsive to directions given in writing by the Corps Committee from time to time.
534. A sub-committee may, at the discretion of the Corps Committee, be formed in each Defence region to deal with the administration of Corps domestic matters in that region. It may also be called upon to deal with such matters as are referred to it by the Corps Committee. Matters of general Corps domestic policy are to be referred to the Corps Committee.
535. Each sub-committee will normally include the Colonel Commandant as Chairman, the staff officer (Communications) of the region, senior representatives of each RA Sigs ARA and GRES unit and association representatives. The Colonel Commandant, at his discretion, may invite others to assist in a sub-committee's deliberations.
536. The composition and responsibilities of this subcommittee are contained in Corps Memorandum No 15.
537. The composition and Terms of Reference of special purpose sub-committees will be determined by the Corps Committee as required and promulgated by the Director of Signals - Army.
538. The Corps Committee exercises policy control over the Royal Australian Corps of Signals General Purpose Fund, hereinafter referred to as the 'Corps General Purpose Fund'.
539. The detailed administration of this fund may be delegated at the discretion of the Corps Committee, generally to the Director of Signals - Army.
540. 'Policy control' means the power to decide the purposes for which the moneys of the Corps are expended. Any individual items of expenditure, excepting Corps Shop stock, of $500 or more shall be subject to the prior approval of the Corps Committee.
541. In accordance with current instructions, the following books, ledgers and documents of account are to be maintained by the Treasurer of the Corps Committee.
a. Cash Book,
b. Receipt Book,
c. Cheque Book,
d. Bank Statements,
f. Purchase Voucher folios, and
e. Current and Previous Balance Sheets.
542. A minimum of two signatories are to operate the account. The signatories of the General Purpose funds and any Investment Account are to be the Treasurer and the Director of Signals - Army, or an officer(s) of the Directorate of Signals - Army appointed in writing by the Director.
543. The financial year for the Committee will be from 1 October until 30 September.
544. The Treasurer is to prepare a Balance Sheet, showing the financial state of the General Purpose Fund as at 30 September. The audited Balance Sheet is to be presented by the Treasurer to members of the Corps Committee at the annual meeting.
545. The Balance Sheet is to be audited annually by an officer who is not a member of the Committee and who is appointed by the Director of Signals - Army.
546. Income of the Corps funds may be derived from the following sources.
a. the subscriptions of officers and WO/SNCO based on a percentage of their
"on-promotion" daily rate of military salary. Subscriptions are to be called for by the Director of Signals - Army each March. The rate is to be determined by the Corps Committee with the concurrence of the Director of Signals - Army.'
b. profits accruing from the sale of goods such as Corps clothing and accessories, stationery and the like from the Corps Shop.'
C. the proceeds of sale of Corps property authorised by the Corps Committee,
d. gifts, bequests or grants made to the Corps with the approval of the Corps Committee', and
e. any other source that may be approved by the Corps Committee.
547. Expenditure from the General Purpose fund must be in accordance with current instructions. Any individual item of expenditure, excepting Corps shop stock, of $500 or more, shall be subject to prior approval of the Corps Committee. Approval for expenditure on items below $500 is vested with the Director of Signals - Army.
548. A cash advance of $200 is to be issued to each Defence Region SO COMMS to be used for the following purposes:
a. purchase of Corps stationery for use in Corps matters;
b. undertaking minor printing tasks;
C. purchase of wreaths;
d. entertainment of official visitors from other States and overseas, eg Colonels Commandant; and
e. such Corps activities that require cash payment in advance (such advances are to be recovered from the normal financial arrangements made in connection with the activity).
549. The authorisation of expenditure from the advance will be strictly in accordance with the conditions laid down in Annex A.
550. An advance of $100 Petty Cash is to be allocated to the Chairman of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals Museum Sub-Committee for authorised purchases. Any expenditure is to be acquitted through the Corps General Purpose Fund Account.
551. Any investment of funds must be in accordance with current instructions (MPA Vol 3 Chap 1 Para 100) and as determined by the Corps Committee.
Disposal of Funds on Disbandment
552 Prior to dissolution or in consequence of an organisational instruction, the Corps Committee, the concurrence of the Director of Signals - Army, is to determine in writing the method for disposal of surplus funds (including invested funds) from the General Purpose Fund Account. The Corps Committee may delegate this responsibility to the Trustees. (See Paras 565 to 567).
553. The following definitions are established by this Memorandum
a. 'Corps Property' is all property that has been presented to the Corps or purchased from the Corps Fund.
b. 'Mess Property' is all property bought by or presented to a Mess. Such property will remain Mess property as long as the Mess is in being.
c 'Unit Property' is all property bought by or presented to a unit. Such property will remain unit property as long as the unit is in being.
d. 'Corps Mess Property' is all property that has been presented to the RA Sigs Officers and Sergeants Messes in their capacity of Corps messes, as distinct from that of area messes.
e. Any item not definitely identifiable as unit or Mess property may be regarded as Corps property and may be redistributed by the Corps Committee.
554. Corps property will be distributed as decided by the Corps Committee. The repository for most Corps property will be the School of Signals, the Corps Officers' Mess or the Corps Sergeants' Mess as appropriate.
555. All Corps property, other than Corps Museum items, is to be covered by a comprehensive all risks insurance policy. This insurance is the responsibility of the Corps Committee and will be paid for from the Corps General Purpose Fund. Insurance may be arranged by the Corps Mess Committees and the School of Signals respectively for Corps property normally held at the three locations listed in Para 554.
Accounting, Purchase, Maintenance and Sale of Corps Property
556. Property for the Corps Messes may be purchased from time to time from the Corps General Purpose Fund. The Corps Mess Committees are to seek the prior approval of the Corps Committee for any such expenditure. Rules governing the management of the General Purpose Fund are at Paras 538 to 552. All purchases must comply with current instructions and moneys are not to be expended on:
a. articles of equipment, furniture or clothing which are within authorised scales of issue.,
b. in aid of any religious or philanthropic organisation., or
c. for any purpose not directly related to Corps matters.
557. The Corps Officers' Mess Committee is empowered to spend up to $100 per annum on the maintenance of Corps property. Expenditure by the Corps Sergeants' Mess for this purpose may be authorised in advance by the Director of Signals - Army on behalf of the Corps Committee.
558. The Property Members of the Corps Mess Committees are each to maintain the RA Sigs Corps Mess Property ledger for all such items of property in their Corps Mess. Corps property held at the School of Signals is to be recorded in the Q Account ledger as Corps property. A stocktake of all Corps Property will be carried out annually as at 30 September, with the results of each stocktake being reported to the Committee at the annual meeting.
559. The Corps Mess Committees may recommend to the Corps Committee the sale of any items of Corps property that the appropriate Mess Committee considers undesirable to retain. When approval for the sale has been obtained, the appropriate Mess Committee may negotiate the sale and crediting of the amount received to the Corps General Purpose Fund.
Loan of Corps Property to Units
560. Corps property may be loaned to RA Sigs units and to SO CONMS on request for appropriate functions. Insurance of the property during transit and on loan is mandatory and is to be the responsibility of the borrowing organisation. Units or SO COMMS requiring the loan are to apply directly to the Chief Instructor School of Signals as far in advance of the required date as possible.
561. It is essential that Corps property be carefully packed for return. Precise instructions for packing are to be shown in the inside of the lid of all boxes in which the property is forwarded.
562. On the disbandment of a unit it is desirable that the property of the Officers' and Sergeants' Messes should be regarded as being held in trust for all members of the Corps. This should be borne in mind when recommendations are made for its disposal.
563. A list of Corps property held by the unit is to be forwarded to the Chairman of the Corps Committee who will seek the direction of the Corps Committee. The unit commander is to be advised of the required distribution of the property. The unit commander is to be responsible for the safe custody of the property until such time as he is required by the Chairman of the Corps Committee to effect its redistribution.
564. The disposal of unit property is to be in accordance with current instructions. However, when disposing of items that are of enduring interest to the Corps, the intent of paragraph 562 is to be observed.
565- The Corps Committee is to appoint Trustees upon whom is vested the legal ownership upon ~, for the members of RA Sigs, of the Corps property. The number of Trustees is, so far as is practicable, four. Upon the death or resignation of any of the Trustees the Corps Committee must appoint the new Trustee to fill the vacancy. If the Committee does not fill the vacancy within six months following the death or resignation of the previous Trustee, the remaining Trustees may appoint a new Trustee to fill the vacancy. Should the Corps Committee not ratify an appointment of a Trustee by the other Trustees, instead appointing another, then the appointment becomes effective on a date decided upon by the Committee. The Trustees will be the incumbents of the following appointments:
a. the Representative Colonel Commandant,
b. the Director of Signals - Army,
c. Commanding Officer/Chief Instructor of the School of Signals, and
d. the Corps RSM.
Trustees are required to resign as trustee once they no longer hold one of the above appointments.
566. All Corps property is to be vested in the Trustees at the direction of the Committee. The Trustees shall have the custody of all deeds and documents of title relating to the Corps Property as vested. The Trustees shall deal with and dispose of all property on the advice of the Committee provided that such directions are not in violation of the trusts upon which the property is held.
567. The powers, duties and responsibilities of the Trustees are to be set out in a Trust Deed and lodged with the Office of the Registrar of Titles at Canberra in the ACT, by the Corps Committee. A copy is held by the Directorate of Signals - Army.
568. Because of the unforeseen changes that can occur in time of copies of all correspondence dealing with the arrangements made by units on mobilisation must be forwarded to the Chairman of the Corps Committee. This applies to both Corps and unit property.
569. These arrangements are to be included in unit SOP dealing with mobilisation.
Corps Property
570. On mobilisation the following procedures will apply in the case of Corps property:
a. Trustees. The Trustees shall be responsible for the safeguarding of Corps property on mobilisation.
b. Funds and Securities. These will be handed over to the Chairman of the Corps Committee who will deposit them in the bank. This will ensure that funds remain under Corps control until they are handed back to units, or otherwise disposed of in accordance with current instructions.
c. Silver and Other Valuables. The Chairman of the Corps Committee shall direct that items either will be dispatched to the Corps Messes and the Chairman of the Corps Committee advised, or will be lodged in a bank in the name of the Chairman of the Corps Committee. If the unit is overseas, silver and other valuables should be handed to the unit's local bank with instructions that they are to be dispatched to the Chairman of the Corps Committee. A list of articles stored or dispatched will always be forwarded to the Chairman of the Corps Committee.
d. Furniture. Furniture will be stored in local depositories and not Government buildings. Storage charges and insurance of Corps property will be met from Corps funds.
e. Control. No funds, plate or furniture deposited under these instructions will be withdrawn without the consent of the Corps Committee. Officers making deposits will instruct banks and depositories concerned not to hand over funds or property entrusted to their care without the written consent of the Chairman of the Corps Committee.
571. If an item is on loan to the account, the item may not be disposed of, except as required by the lender. If the lender cannot be traced and his requirement ascertained, it is to be held in trust in accordance with the Trustees of the Special to Corps Property requirements.
AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION
572. Amendments that are made to accord with Army policy may be made by direction of the Chairman or Vice Chairman.
573. Other amendments are to be made only after approval of the Corps Committee at an annual meeting or, in writing, out-of-session. The Chairman or Vice Chairman must be present at that meeting.
574. The Committee shall be dissolved by resolution agreed to by the Corps Committee (one of the members must be the Chairman) at an annual or extraordinary meeting, and for which notice of motion of dissolution had been duly given in writing.
Annex:
A- Rules for Authorisation of Expenditure from a Defence Region SO COMMS Cash Advance.
ANNEX A TO
CORPS MEMORANDUM NO 5
RULES FOR AUTHORISATION OF EXPENDITURE
FROM A DEFENCE REGION SO COMMS CASH ADVANCE
1. As a guide to SO COMMS the following policy is to be applied before authorising expenditure from Corps funds under their control.
2. The SO COMMS may authorise expenditure of up to $100 on any one occasion without reference to the Director of Signals - Army for the purchase of such items as:
a. Corps stationery for Corps purposes;
b. Corps Christmas Cards for Corps purposes;
C. stamps for Corps purposes.,
d. minor printing tasks; and
e. wreaths, either by the SO COMMS or the Colonel Commandant in the Defence Region.
Expenditure in excess of $100 for any one occasion is to be referred to the Director of Signals - Army for authorisation before committing expenditure.
Advances to Finance Corps Activities.
3. The SO COMMS may authorise advances of up to $100 for any one occasion without reference to the Director of Signals- Army, provided they are satisfied that this advance will be recouped from the normal financial arrangements made for the activity. Requests for advances in excess of $ 100 are to be referred to the Director of Signals - Army for approval, together with a full supporting case.
Entertainment of Official Visitors.
4. Entertainment expenditure is to be handled as follows..
a. All requests for expenditure from Corps funds for entertainment purposes are to be referred to Director of Signals - Army for approval.
b. Corps funds are not to be used to pay for the entertainment of serving members of RA Sigs or other members of the Army unless special circumstances exist.
c. Corps funds may be used only for the entertainment of visiting personages approved by Director of Signals - Army. They are not to be used for the payment of costs incurred in the entertainment of the general visitors' lists, nor for the personages listed at the end of this paragraph when such entertainment is part of a larger gathering, eg a dining-in night. Such entertainment costs should be borne from the normal financial arrangements for the function.
d. Persons to be entertained at Corps expense will normally come from the following categories only:
(1) Royal or Vice Regal visitors,
(2) CGS or GOC Command,
(3) Heads of Corps,
(4) allied officers representing the head of their respective Signal Corps, and
(5) Representative Colonel Commandant and Colonels Commandant.
The following accounting procedures are to be observed:
a. SO COMMS are to maintain separate account books to cover all transactions to or from their imprest account from Corps Funds.
b. Each account is to be audited by a Regional Corps Audit Board of not less than two Corps ARA or GRES officers annually as at 1 Aug.
c. Audit reports are to be forwarded to reach the Directorate of Signals - Army by the end of Aug each year.
d. Each expenditure transaction is to have full details recorded.
e. Claims for reimbursement are to be forwarded to the Director of Signals - Army. No claim should exceed $200 and the claims should be submitted not less frequently than quarterly. Each claim is to give full details together with a statement of funds remaining in the Advance.
6. Notwithstanding the intent of paragraphs 2-4, the SO COMMS may authorise expenditure at their discretion if time does not permit consultation with the Director of Signals - Army. In each case the Director of Signals - Army should be advised as soon as possible.