• Article 2. Objectives
• Article 3. Organizational Structure
• Article 4. Steering Committee
• Article 5. Presidency
• Article 6. Technical Secretariat
• Article 7. Membership Requirements
• Article 8. Financing and Budget

The Clean Air Initiative seeks to improve air quality in Latin American cities to protect the health of its habitants and to mitigate global pollution by bringing together the efforts of the appropriate authorities of each city represented, from the private and social sectors, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), international organizations, and governmental international aid agencies.

The Initiative has the following objectives:

• To protect the health of habitants exposed to atmospheric contamination generated in the cities.
• To promote the development and strengthening of clean air action plans in the cities, based on the participation of all the relevant actors.
• To facilitate the exchange of knowledge and experience among participating members.
• To facilitate public participation and the active involvement of the private sector to stimulate innovation in the use of low-emission, low-carbon technologies.
• To achieve institutional and financial sustainability of the Initiative.

The Initiative will be organized as follows:

• Steering Committee.
• Presidency.
• Technical Secretariat.

The Steering Committee has the following duties:

• Approve, evaluate, and, if needed, modify the annual work program and budget proposed by the presidency.
• Approve, evaluate, and, if needed, modify the financing plan prepared by the Technical Secretariat in coordination with the presidency.
• Approve, evaluate, and, if needed, modify the criteria for membership, the rights and obligations of the members, as proposed by the presidency in coordination with the Technical Secretariat.
• Approve, evaluate, and, if needed, modify the proposal to transfer to regional institutions the functions of the Technical Secretariat as proposed by the presidency.
• Establish, and, if needed, modify the mission, Verify the operational effectiveness of the Initiative by assigning its management to
  regional institutions.
• Revise the implementation of the Initiative based on the annual report prepared by the Technical Secretariat, and evaluate annually the fulfillment of its objectives.
• Agree upon its own Rules of Operation.
• Evaluate and agree on income requests from new members.

The Steering Committee will be formed by representatives of the following:

• Local governments.
• NGOs.
• Private sector.
• Governmental international aid and environmental agencies
  International organizations.

In the case of local governments, those cities that show interest will be able to become members of the Initiative by providing a written request stating the following:

• Their commitment to develop or improve a clean air participative action plan and to implement it.
• Their interest in counting with technical and/or financial assistance for the development or strengthening of the plan, and
• Their interest in joining the Initiative.

NGOs, international aid governmental agencies, and international organizations will make a tangible contribution, previously agreed upon with the Steering Committee, which will be evaluated annually. The participation of these members will not cause expenditure of any of the financial resources with which the Initiative counts. Private sector members have to make a minimum annual contribution of US$50,000 (fifty thousand dollars).

At least two ordinary meetings will be held annually. Extraordinary meetings must be convened by the presidency of the Steering Committee in coordination with the Technical Secretariat.

Whenever possible, there must be a consensus of the cities for the Steering Committee to make decisions. When this consensus is not achieved, there must exist an absolute majority of cities votes in the Steering Committee.

It is required that there be an absolute majority of votes from the members of the Steering Committee for the approval of decisions.
There should exist a minimal quorum of two-thirds of the members to submit issues for consideration for the approval of the Steering Committee.

The presidency of the Steering Committee will be elected between representatives of the participating cities.
The presidency will rotate each year.

The presidency will have the following functions:

• Propose to the Steering Committee the work program and annual budget for the Initiative, to be prepared in coordination with the Technical Secretariat.
• Prepare with the Technical Secretariat and propose to the Steering Committee the financial plan.
• Prepare with the Technical Secretariat and propose the criteria for membership and the rights and obligations of the members.
• Develop with the Technical Secretariat and propose to the Steering Committee the proposal to transfer to regional institutions the functions of the Technical Secretariat.
• Elaborate and propose the Rules of Operation of the Steering Committee.
• Convene meetings of the Steering Committee in coordination with the Technical Secretariat.
• Promote the Initiative across its own networks.
• Propose, in coordination with the participating cities and the Technical Secretariat, the contents for the website and distance learning courses.
• Support the cities in preparing their action plans.|
• Maintain a permanent and current list of contacts within the cities.
• Resolve, in coordination with the Technical Secretariat, issues not foreseen within these Rules of Operation.

The World Bank will function as Technical Secretariat during the first three years, starting from December 1998, and at the end of this period the Steering Committee will reconsider transferring the Technical Secretariat.

• Prepare, in coordination with the presidency, the work program and annual budget for the Initiative.
• Prepare the financial plan in coordination with the presidency.
• Prepare, in coordination with the presidency, the criteria for membership and the rights and obligations of the members.
• Prepare, in coordination with the Presidency, the proposal to transfer to regional institutions the functions of the Technical Secretariat.
• Implement the financial strategy agreed upon by the Steering Committee.
• Ensure that the activities established in the annual program are developed in a technically adequate manner and within the established budget.
• Ensure that the Initiatives goals are fulfilled.
• Prepare a detailed annual report of activities conducted in each of the cities and in each of the components, based on the work program and annual budget of the Initiative.
• Promote the participation of cities representatives and of other decisionmakers in regional and international conferences.
• Be in charge of generating financing.
• Organize, in coordination with the presidency, meetings for the Steering Committee.
• Contribute technically in the development and/or strengthening of clean air action plans, and identify possible sources of financing.
• Contribute in the organization of clean air workshops, which will be carried out as support to and in the context of the development or strengthening of the cities action plans.
• Resolve, in coordination with the presidency, issues not foreseen within these Rules of Operation.

There will be an annual evaluation of the performance of each member of the Steering Committee to assess and comment on members performance and, where necessary, to provide the approval of members continued membership in the Initiative.

• The budget will have an annual allocation.
• The financial and in-kind contributions of all members will be recorded in the budget, and the type of contribution will be recorded for all nonprivate sector members.