Treasurer Council Charter
Status: v1.0 draft. The Council is the profession's first-instance peer governance body — currently-serving Treasurers electing their own to administer routine compliance review, provide consultation on Programme parameter changes, and nominate Selection Committee members. Counsel posture confirmed by Drew 2026-06-05; counsel review continues as a parallel workstream.
Preamble
The Treasurer Council exists because the Treasurer profession needs a peer body of its own. The TEP Methodology v2 and the Treasurer Agreement v2 shift routine tier progression, parameter consultation, and conduct-review-initial-instance away from Circlworld staff to peer-led decision-making. The Council is that peer body. Its existence is what makes the contractor framing operationally real: the profession governs its own admission, advancement, and routine discipline — Circlworld provides infrastructure and records the outcomes.
Section 1 — Mandate
The Treasurer Council's mandate is:
(a) Routine compliance review — assess minor breaches of the Treasurer Code of Conduct, pattern issues across multiple Circles, sustaining-criteria concerns at any tier. Recommend remediation or refer material matters to the Selection Committee.
(b) Routine tier progression review — review applications for progression to Community Organiser, Community Leader, and (initial review) Community Architect against published criteria. Approve, request additional information, or refer to the Selection Committee.
(c) Programme parameter consultation — provide Treasurer-side input on proposed Programme parameter changes under TEP Methodology §16.1, before notice issues to Treasurers.
(d) Selection Committee nominations — nominate two senior Treasurers to each Selection Committee proceeding (per TEP Methodology §6.2(b)).
(e) Code of Conduct + Custody Framework amendments — propose amendments to the Treasurer Code of Conduct and the Custody Framework Charter through the platform's amendment procedure on behalf of the Treasurer profession.
(f) Mentor-pairing oversight — administer the Tier 1 mentor-pairing programme; ensure newly-certified Community Builders have a senior-Treasurer mentor; resolve mentor-pair concerns.
(g) Annual review report — publish an annual report on the state of the profession: tier composition, certification outcomes, conduct trends, parameter change history, Selection Committee proceedings (anonymised where appropriate).
The Council does NOT:
(h) Adjudicate material breach allegations (those go to the Selection Committee under TEP Methodology §6.2(b)).
(i) Set TEP rates or platform parameters unilaterally (the Council consults; Circlworld + Town Hall finalise).
(j) Substitute for Circlworld's regulatory or AML obligations (the Council is not a regulator).
(k) Operate as a trade union or collective-bargaining body (the Council is governance, not collective bargaining).
Section 2 — Composition
2.1 Size
The Council is composed of seven (7) Treasurers elected by the Treasurer community.
2.2 Eligibility for Council membership
A Treasurer is eligible to stand for Council election if:
(a) the Treasurer is currently serving at Community Organiser (tier 2) or above; (b) the Treasurer has held their current tier for at least 12 months; (c) the Treasurer has no upheld conduct violations in the prior 36 months; (d) the Treasurer is not currently subject to a Selection Committee proceeding; (e) the Treasurer has not been suspended from the TEP in the prior 36 months.
2.3 Term length and staggering
Council members serve two-year terms. Terms are staggered so that approximately half the Council rotates each year — preserving institutional knowledge while admitting new perspective.
Initial seeding of the Council elects four members to two-year terms and three members to one-year terms; thereafter all elections are for two-year terms.
2.4 Term limits
A Treasurer may serve a maximum of three consecutive two-year terms on the Council (six years total). After the third consecutive term, the Treasurer may not stand again for at least two years.
2.5 Geographic + tier balance
The Council's composition aims for:
(a) At least one Council member from each operating jurisdiction (currently UK and Jamaica).
(b) At least one Council member from each tier (Community Organiser, Community Leader, Community Architect, Circlworld Ambassador) when the Treasurer community has Members at all tiers.
The election procedure (Section 3) implements these balance criteria. Where the community has no candidates from a target group, the seat goes to the next-eligible candidate by vote.
Section 3 — Election
3.1 Election cadence
Elections are held annually, with approximately half the seats up for election each year.
3.2 Nomination
Any eligible Treasurer (Section 2.2) may self-nominate or be nominated by another Treasurer. Each nomination requires:
(a) Treasurer's consent to stand.
(b) A 300-word statement from the candidate on what they would bring to the Council, including their custody-model experience (Member-to-member, escrow-held, Multi-custody) and any jurisdictional or cultural perspective they would represent.
(c) A 100-word endorsement from one other Treasurer (the nominator if not self-nominated).
3.3 Voting
(a) Every currently-serving Treasurer at Community Builder (tier 1) and above is entitled to vote.
(b) Voting is conducted electronically over the platform with secret ballots.
(c) Voting period is 14 days.
(d) Voting uses Single Transferable Vote (STV) — Treasurers rank candidates by preference; seats fill by quota with surplus transfers and elimination of low-preference candidates.
(e) The geographic and tier-balance criteria (§2.5) override the raw STV count in the following way: after STV identifies the top-N candidates, the bottom STV candidate(s) within the elected group may be replaced by the highest-STV unelected candidate from an unrepresented target group, where the balance criteria are not otherwise met.
3.4 Independent verification
Election outcomes are independently verified by the Dispute Settlement Centre's records office. The DSC publishes the certified result; Circlworld records it.
3.5 Filling vacancies
Where a Council seat becomes vacant mid-term (resignation, withdrawal of TEP enrolment, removal under §4 below), the seat is filled by the highest-STV unelected candidate from the most recent election for the remaining term. Where no eligible alternate exists, the seat remains vacant until the next regular election.
Section 4 — Council member conduct
4.1 Council member's own standards
A Council member is bound by the Treasurer Code of Conduct at all times. The Council member is held to a higher visibility standard than a Treasurer not on the Council, reflecting the Council's role in administering the standards.
4.2 Recusal
A Council member recuses themself from any matter where:
(a) the matter concerns a Circle the Council member administers;
(b) the matter concerns a Treasurer with whom the Council member has a personal or business relationship outside the Circlworld platform that would create a reasonable appearance of bias;
(c) the matter concerns a candidate for tier progression or a subject of conduct review who is a family member of the Council member;
(d) any other circumstance the Council member or another Council member identifies as creating bias.
Recusal is recorded in the Council's minutes.
4.3 Confidentiality
Matters before the Council are confidential until the Council's decision is published. Council members do not discuss pending matters outside the Council's proceedings.
4.4 Removal of a Council member
A Council member may be removed from the Council on:
(a) failure to attend at least two-thirds of Council meetings in any six-month period without reasonable excuse;
(b) breach of confidentiality (§4.3);
(c) breach of recusal (§4.2);
(d) demotion below Community Organiser tier;
(e) any conduct that would itself be a Selection Committee proceeding under the Treasurer Code of Conduct.
Removal requires a 5-of-7 vote of the remaining Council members on a written motion that the affected Council member has had 14 days to respond to. The affected Council member may appeal to the Selection Committee under the standard appellate procedure.
Section 5 — Proceedings
5.1 Meeting cadence
The Council meets monthly in regular session, with additional sessions called by the Chair as needed.
5.2 Quorum
The Council's quorum is 5 of 7 members. Decisions require a majority of those present and not recused.
5.3 Chair
The Council elects from its number a Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary for one-year terms. The Chair convenes meetings, sets agendas in consultation with the Vice-Chair, and represents the Council externally. The Secretary maintains minutes and the public record of decisions.
5.4 Public record
The Council publishes:
(a) Meeting agendas — at least 7 days before the meeting.
(b) Decisions — within 14 days of the meeting, anonymised where appropriate.
(c) Annual report (per §1(g)) — within 30 days of each fiscal year-end.
The Council does NOT publish:
(d) Identifying details of Treasurers subject to conduct review unless they consent.
(e) Substance of confidential consultation matters before the consultation concludes.
5.5 Treasurer right to address the Council
Any currently-serving Treasurer may request to address the Council in writing or in person at a Council meeting on any matter within the Council's mandate. Requests are received and scheduled by the Chair within 60 days of receipt where the matter relates to a specific case affecting the requesting Treasurer.
Section 6 — Decision-making
6.1 Routine matters
Routine matters (tier progression approvals where eligibility is clearly met, minor compliance items, parameter consultation responses) are decided by majority vote of those present and not recused.
6.2 Material matters
Material matters (referrals to the Selection Committee, Selection Committee nominations, Code of Conduct amendment proposals, removal of a Council member) require a 5-of-7 vote.
6.3 Recorded reasons
Every Council decision is accompanied by a written reasoned record. The reasoned record forms part of the published decision unless confidentiality applies under §5.4.
6.4 Appeals from Council decisions
A Treasurer subject to a Council decision may appeal to the Selection Committee within 30 days of receiving the written decision. The Selection Committee's appellate review applies the same evidentiary standard the Council applied; the Committee may affirm, vary, or remit.
Section 7 — Relationship with Circlworld
7.1 Independence
The Council operates independently of Circlworld staff. Circlworld does not appoint Council members, vote in Council proceedings, attend Council deliberations as a member, or veto Council decisions.
7.2 Circlworld's administrative support
Circlworld provides the Council with:
(a) The platform infrastructure (voting platform for elections; meeting-record infrastructure for proceedings).
(b) The evidence base for routine compliance review (Treasurer performance data, accrued activity, sustaining-criteria progress, any flagged matters).
(c) Administrative support for record-keeping and publication.
(d) A non-voting Circlworld observer at Council meetings (the Help Office Liaison) — available for procedural questions and for recording outcomes; does not deliberate.
7.3 Circlworld's regulatory carve-outs
Where the Council's decision would require Circlworld to act in a way that conflicts with the platform's regulatory obligations (AML, sanctions compliance, court order, statutory reporting), Circlworld informs the Council, complies with the regulatory obligation, and records the conflict. The Council may consider the matter further once the regulatory obligation has been satisfied.
Section 8 — Amendment of this Charter
8.1 Material amendments
Material amendments to this Charter (changing composition, term length, election procedure, decision rules, removal grounds, relationship with Circlworld) require:
(a) Treasurer Council recommendation by 5-of-7 vote.
(b) 60 days' notice to all Treasurers.
(c) Consultation in the Forum.
(d) Town Hall governance approval.
(e) Counsel review.
8.2 Minor adjustments
Minor adjustments are recorded in the version history.
8.3 Annual review
The Charter is reviewed annually for alignment with the Treasurer Code of Conduct, the TEP Methodology, and the broader platform constitutional framework.
Acknowledgement
By standing for Council election, the Treasurer acknowledges this Charter as the governing document of the Council and accepts its standards on Council member conduct, recusal, confidentiality, and removal.
By voting in a Council election, the Treasurer acknowledges the Council's mandate to govern routine compliance, advise on parameter changes, and nominate to the Selection Committee on behalf of the profession.
— End of the Treasurer Council Charter —
Version history
| Version | Date | Change | Process | |---|---|---|---| | v1.0 | 2026-06-03 | Initial draft | Drafted 2026-06-03; counsel posture confirmed 2026-06-05 + Treasurer consultation before binding |
Plain-language one-line summary
The Treasurer Council is the peer body — seven Treasurers elected for staggered two-year terms — that handles routine compliance review, recommends on Programme parameter changes, and nominates senior Treasurers to the Selection Committee, so the profession's day-to-day governance comes from the profession itself rather than from Circlworld staff.