CFA Breed Council Secretaries
May 2023 – April 2025 term

Miscellaneous and provisional breed committee chairs are indicated by **

Breed Council Secretary Job Description

PURPOSE:

This document is intended to provide a description of a CFA Breed Council Secretary’s (BCS) job. It is a description for performing the job.

The Breeds and Standards Chairperson can be your resource for questions, coordination, and assistance in fulfilling your job responsibilities. Consult with this individual when you have questions or need assistance.

BASIC RESPONSIBILITY:

Adopt the role of guardian for your breed standard and promoting the breed would be considered a primary responsibility of the Breed Council Secretary. Prepare a yearly breed council ballot, if appropriate. Serve as an advisor and resource person to the CFA Board, CFA Central Office, CFA Committees and CFA Judges, as requested, on matters related to your breed. Provide an atmosphere for communication for all breed council members to achieve consensus.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Have thorough knowledge and understanding of the CFA standard for your breed in order to discuss the provisions contained therein, with any interested party, as an expert on that breed.
• Respond to information requests regarding your breed from breeders, the CFA Board, CFA Central Office, CFA Committees, CFA Judges, and other interested parties.
• Plan and coordinate breed presentations at Judges’ Workshops and Schools; prepare or arrange for preparation of breed display(s) at shows or other organized CFA events. Write or arrange for preparation of CFA breed pamphlet; write or arrange for preparation of breed articles for the CFA Almanac and Yearbook, as requested.
• Attend the Breed Council Secretaries Meeting with the Board held in conjunction with the CFA Annual Meeting, if possible.
• Plan, schedule, and conduct at least one Breed Council Meeting per year, if possible. Meeting space for these meetings is made available at the CFA Annual Meeting and the CFA International Cat Show. To promote communication among or to disseminate information to members, the Breed Council Secretary may request of the CFA Central Office reasonable financial assistance for producing and mailing one set of correspondence to members, or request insertion of relevant information in the CFA Almanac.
• Prepare the annual Breed Council ballot, if appropriate, and submit it to the Breeds & Standards Committee by the deadline set each year. Verification of receipt is advised.
• Review proposed questions from current Breed Council members, submitted to the Breed Council Secretary by the established deadline each year, for possible inclusion on the annual ballot. Revise questions and rationales, as needed, and discuss proposed revisions with submitter(s); e.g. remove ambiguities in proposals or consolidate similar questions into a single question.
• Select the specific questions and rationales to be included on the Breed Council ballot. With one exception*, the Breed Council Secretary has total latitude in selecting the specific questions to be included on the ballot, the questions to be included subject to editing, the questions to be included with editorial comment, and the questions to be omitted. A Breed Council Secretary has the option to include or not include questions submitted by the Breed Council Secretary of another breed.
  *A Breed Council Secretary must include questions submitted at the official request of the CFA Board of Directors.
• Inform individuals who submit questions whether or not you will place their question(s) on the ballot.
• Submit a draft ballot to the CFA Breeds and Standards Chairperson for review.
• Maintain contact with Breed Council members via BC email list/regular mail and keep informed of new developments or issues relevant to your breed through such activities as exhibiting at CFA shows and attending the CFA Annual Meeting.
• CFA Breed Council Secretaries are expected to follow CFA mandated procedures and rules.