EHSAC Guidelines

Organizational Guidelines

Committee Membership

The University of Texas System (the UT System) Environmental Health and Safety Advisory Committee (EHSAC) is composed of directors, managers, and other individuals with responsibility for environmental health and safety (EHS) from each of The University of Texas Institutions.  Each Institution will designate the person with primary responsibility for EHS to be its representative on the Committee. Each Institution shall have one vote. The UT System Office of Risk Management (ORM), Health Affairs, Academic Affairs, General Counsel, and Facilities Planning and Construction offices will also be represented by non-voting members.

Reporting

The Vice Chancellor for Business Affairs will be the principle liaison between the Committee and the UT System. The Committee Chair will coordinate with the ORM to create an annual report on EHSAC activities and the EHS Peer Review Program. ORM will present this report to the Vice Chancellor for Business Affairs with a copy to the UT Systemwide Compliance Committee.

Meeting Frequency

The Committee shall meet in executive session at least twice each calendar year at the call of the Chair. The fall meeting is held during the UT System Risk Conference (normally October or November). The Chair will determine the date and location of the spring meeting. This location customarily alternates between academic and health Institutions.

Meeting Format and Attendees

Attendance is restricted to committee members and guests specifically invited by the Chair. The final session of each meeting will consist only of Institution EHS department heads. Non-voting members, representatives of department heads, and guests do not attend this session unless invited by the Chair. This final session provides a format for candid interaction among peers.

Working Groups

The Chair may appoint working groups from the membership, as appropriate, with regard to specific matters. A working group is intended to work on a short term issue or set of issues, and is dissolved upon resolution of the issue(s).  An EHSAC member may delegate his responsibility for participation in a working group to the individual from their Institution who is responsible for, or knowledgeable in the particular area addressed by the working group.  Where appropriate, the Chair may authorize working groups to act on behalf of the Committee.

Standing Advisory Groups

A Standing Advisory Group is intended to work on an issue or set of long term, continuous, or evolving issues and will remain intact as long as the issue(s) continues to require attention.

Standing Advisory Groups Meeting Schedules

These groups shall meet at least once between each EHSAC meeting. These meetings shall occur at least 1 month prior to the EHSAC meeting. At the discretion of each group’s Chair, groups may meet on the same day or succeeding days in order to minimize travel.

Procedures for EHSAC and Standing Advisory Groups

Officers

The membership will select a Chair to serve for a period of two consecutive years.  A Chair-elect will serve as Vice-Chair during this two year cycle and then serve as Chair for a two-year term. 

A Secretary will be selected on alternate years to serve for a period of two years. Meeting minutes will be taken by the Secretary. The Secretary does not necessarily succeed the Vice-Chair.

Customarily, officer selections alternate between academic and health Institutions, and terms begin immediately after an EHSAC meeting.

Meeting Minutes

The secretary shall submit draft meeting minutes to the respective chairs for preliminary approval within 2 weeks after the meeting. The Chair shall distribute the draft minutes to the group and ORM within 2 weeks of receipt (see Group Email Lists below). ORM will maintain copies of the minutes for 5 years. The minutes will be approved at the following meeting.

Committee and Group Membership

Institution EHS department heads are responsible for assuring that their Institution is represented on the EHSAC and subgroups as appropriate. Membership changes shall be approved by the respective EHS department head. The Chair will notify ORM of changes in order for ORM to update the group email lists. Note that the group membership list may differ from the Group Email Lists below.

Group Email Lists

ORM will maintain the official group email lists for EHSAC and the subgroups. ORM will notify the group’s Chair and the appropriate Institution EHS department head of any request for changes to these lists. These email lists frequently include non-members who have a need to be kept informed via these email lists. Groups may maintain separate group email lists for specific purposes, (such as distribution to members only), but the ORM group lists will be used for all official notifications. This may require routing correspondence through ORM to ensure that the most current group email list is being used. It currently appears that some Institution’s email systems allow access to the UT System’s group email lists, but others do not.

Roles and Responsibilities of ORM
  • ORM will serve as the archivist for the EHSAC and subgroups. Meeting minutes will be maintained for 5 years, and other records as appropriate.
  • ORM will maintain the EHSAC Website. This is a public website, therefore it will not contain minutes. It will contain: the EHSAC guidelines, peer review guidelines, the current contact list, and other documents supporting the EHSAC.
  • ORM does not vote on any committees and does not serve as Chair or Vice-Chair.
  • ORM serves a support role by attending meetings and in assisting the groups and their
  • Chairs with action items between meetings. ORM will assign a staff member to provide support to each of the subgroups.
Roles and Responsibilities of the Chair
  • Schedule meetings
  • Facilitate meetings
  • Work with other Institutions to host meetings
  • Send out meeting notices (at least 2 weeks prior to meeting)
  • Create meeting agendas
  • Obtain meeting minutes from the Recording Secretary and distribute to the group no later than 4 weeks after a meeting. (Distribute minutes via ORM to assure that the latest email list is used).
  • Work with ORM to keep the group email list updated
  • Work with the group to select officers (Chair, Vice-Chair, Recording Secretary)
  • Provide guidance and documentation to the new Chair
  • Subgroup Chairs will present a summary of their group’s activities at each EHSAC meeting, and solicit EHSAC input for future activities/direction
  • EHSAC Chair will contact each group Chair every 3 months to receive an update on the group’s activities 
  • EHSAC Chair will work with ORM to create an annual EHSAC and Peer Review Report for the UT System Vice-Chancellor for Business Affairs. ORM will submit a copy to the UT Systemwide Compliance Committee.
  • EHSAC Chair will notify UT System Offices via ORM of any issues requiring contact with state or federal government agencies. The Chair will utilize the appropriate subject matter experts from the Institutions as needed.
Note

ORM may assist with these responsibilities, but the Chairs are ultimately responsible for assuring these responsibilities are completed.