Governance Playbook

Common decision patterns for institutions on ICN. Each pattern maps to an ICN ProposalPayload variant and includes the typical governance flow, threshold guidance, and API example.

Use these as templates when your institution encounters these decision types.

Budget Decisions

Annual Budget Approval

When: Start of fiscal year or planning cycle. Payload: Allocation Typical threshold: Two-thirds supermajority of steering/board. Who votes: Steering committee, board, or full membership (depends on charter).

{
  "title": "2026 Annual Operating Budget",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Allocation",
    "pool_amount": 10000,
    "unit": "USD",
    "options": [
      { "name": "programs", "amount": 4000, "description": "Core program delivery" },
      { "name": "operations", "amount": 3000, "description": "Rent, utilities, admin" },
      { "name": "outreach", "amount": 1500, "description": "Marketing and recruitment" },
      { "name": "reserve", "amount": 1500, "description": "Emergency contingency" }
    ],
    "purpose": "Allocate operating funds for calendar year 2026"
  }
}

Flow: Finance committee drafts → deliberation period → board/steering votes → on acceptance, allocations become ledger entries.

Single Expenditure Approval

When: A specific expense exceeds committee delegation authority. Payload: Budget Typical threshold: Simple majority of governing body.

{
  "title": "Approve venue deposit — Albany Convention Center",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Budget",
    "amount": 1500,
    "currency": "USD",
    "recipient": "did:icn:z6Mk...",
    "purpose": "Venue deposit for 2026 summit. Non-refundable. 200-person capacity, fully accessible."
  }
}

Flow: Committee researches options → recommends one → proposal to governing body → vote → on acceptance, ledger settlement authorized.

Budget Amendment

When: Committee needs more than originally allocated. Payload: Budget (additional allocation to specific account) Typical threshold: Same as budget approval.

{
  "title": "Marketing budget amendment — additional $300 for print materials",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Budget",
    "amount": 300,
    "currency": "USD",
    "recipient": "did:icn:z6Mk...",
    "purpose": "Print run for summit brochures. Original $500 allocation exhausted on digital ads."
  }
}

Membership Decisions

Admit New Member

When: A person or organization wants to join. Payload: Membership Typical threshold: Simple majority (for individuals), two-thirds (for organizations joining a federation).

{
  "title": "Admit GreenStar Food Co-op to federation",
  "description": "GreenStar (Ithaca, NY) is a consumer food cooperative with 12,000 members. They've participated in the last 3 summits and align with federation values.",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Membership",
    "action": "Add",
    "member": "did:icn:z6Mk..."
  }
}

Flow: Applicant submits request → membership committee reviews → proposal created → members vote → on acceptance, entity added to membership roster.

Remove Member

When: Member violates charter or becomes inactive. Payload: Membership Typical threshold: Two-thirds supermajority with extended deliberation.

{
  "title": "Remove inactive member organization",
  "description": "Organization has not participated in governance or sent delegates for 2 consecutive years. Per charter section 4.3, this triggers removal review.",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Membership",
    "action": "Remove",
    "member": "did:icn:z6Mk..."
  }
}

Governance Configuration

Change Governance Parameters

When: Adjusting thresholds, voting periods, quorum requirements. Payload: ConfigChange Typical threshold: Two-thirds supermajority with deliberation period.

{
  "title": "Lower committee quorum from 50% to 40%",
  "description": "Committee attendance has averaged 45%. Current 50% quorum means decisions frequently fail. 40% still ensures representative participation.",
  "payload": {
    "type": "ConfigChange",
    "new_config": "{\"committee_quorum\": 0.4}"
  }
}

Form New Committee

When: Creating a new working group or committee. Payload: Text (followed by entity creation on acceptance) Typical threshold: Simple majority of governing body.

{
  "title": "Create Volunteer Coordination Committee",
  "description": "Scope: Recruit, train, and manage event-day volunteers. Authority: Autonomous volunteer recruitment and scheduling. Budget: $200 from operations allocation. Initial members: [names]. Coordinator: [name].",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Text",
    "body": "Establish a Volunteer Coordination Committee under the organizing cooperative. Scope, authority, budget, and initial membership as described."
  }
}

Post-acceptance action: Create Community entity with parent_id pointing to the parent co-op, assign members.

Selection Decisions

Venue / Vendor Selection

When: Choosing between options for a significant commitment. Payload: Text (structured comparison in body) Typical threshold: Simple majority.

{
  "title": "Select 2026 summit venue",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Text",
    "body": "## Options\n\n### Option A: Albany Convention Center\n- Cost: $1,500 deposit, $3,000 total\n- Capacity: 200\n- Accessibility: Full ADA compliance\n- Transit: Amtrak station 0.5 mi\n\n### Option B: Buffalo Conference Hall\n- Cost: $1,200 deposit, $2,500 total\n- Capacity: 150\n- Accessibility: Limited (2nd floor, elevator available)\n- Transit: Metro Rail 1 mi\n\n### Recommendation: Option A (Albany)\nHigher cost justified by capacity, accessibility, and transit access."
  }
}

Speaker / Program Approval

When: Approving the overall program structure (not individual sessions, which committees handle autonomously). Payload: Text Typical threshold: Simple majority.

{
  "title": "Approve 2026 summit program structure",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Text",
    "body": "## Proposed Structure\n- 1 keynote (Saturday AM)\n- 4 tracks: Worker Co-ops, Food Systems, Housing, Cross-Sector\n- 16 breakout sessions (4 per track)\n- 2 emergent/unconference slots\n- Panel: State of NY Cooperatives\n\nContent committee has autonomous authority to fill sessions within this structure."
  }
}

Emergency Decisions

Freeze Member

When: Account compromise, malicious behavior, or safety concern. Payload: FreezeMember Typical threshold: Two-thirds supermajority with fast voting period (24 hours).

{
  "title": "Emergency freeze — suspected compromised account",
  "payload": {
    "type": "FreezeMember",
    "member": "did:icn:z6Mk...",
    "reason": "Unauthorized transactions detected from this DID. Freezing pending investigation.",
    "duration_seconds": 604800
  }
}

Duration: 604800 = 7 days. Set null for indefinite (until explicitly unfrozen).

Veto a Proposal

When: A passed or in-progress proposal needs to be overridden. Payload: VetoProposal Typical threshold: Supermajority.

{
  "title": "Veto proposal #42 — venue contract",
  "payload": {
    "type": "VetoProposal",
    "target_proposal_id": "prop-42",
    "reason": "New information: venue has unresolved ADA violations. Cannot proceed until resolved."
  }
}

Force Close a Proposal

When: Proposal must be halted immediately. Payload: ForceCloseProposal Typical threshold: Highest threshold in charter.

{
  "title": "Force close budget proposal — superseded",
  "payload": {
    "type": "ForceCloseProposal",
    "target_proposal_id": "prop-38",
    "reason": "Grant award changed total available funds. New budget proposal (prop-45) supersedes.",
    "forced_outcome": "Rejected"
  }
}

Resolutions and Records

Text Resolution

When: Recording a decision, statement, or policy that doesn't require a specific system action. Payload: Text Typical threshold: Simple majority.

{
  "title": "Resolution: Affirm commitment to cooperative principles",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Text",
    "body": "The federation affirms its commitment to the seven cooperative principles as defined by the ICA. All member organizations are expected to operate in accordance with these principles."
  }
}

Decision Record

When: Recording a decision made in a meeting for institutional memory. Payload: Text Typical threshold: Simple majority or consensus.

{
  "title": "Decision record: 2026 summit date confirmed October 18",
  "payload": {
    "type": "Text",
    "body": "Steering committee confirmed October 18, 2026 as the summit date. Factors: venue availability, academic calendar, weather, conflict check with other cooperative events."
  }
}

Proposal Best Practices

Title should be a complete sentence: "Approve 2026 budget" not "Budget"
Description explains why, not just what: Include context, alternatives considered, and rationale
Use deliberation periods for significant decisions: Let people read, ask questions, and discuss before voting opens
Link related proposals: Reference prior decisions that inform this one
Keep scope focused: One decision per proposal. Don't bundle unrelated items.
Record the outcome context: Even for Text proposals, explain what changes as a result