What the Security Council Does

The role of the Security Council in emergencies, upgrades, governance safeguards, and the NEAR Top-Level Account Registrar.

The Security Council is responsible for protecting the security, integrity, and continuity of the House of Stake governance system. It serves as a safeguard against security incidents and other exceptional circumstances that could threaten the proper functioning of House of Stake or the implementation of governance decisions.

The Security Council also operates the NEAR Top-Level Account Registrar, executing the protocol-level actions required to create Top-Level Accounts (“TLAs”) in accordance with the Registrar Charter.

The Security Council operates within the authority granted to it by the Constitutional Documents. Its role is protective and operational: it does not determine governance policy or replace the decision-making authority of Tokenholders.

Within the House of Stake governance framework, Tokenholders serve as the primary governance decision-makers. The Council is better understood as a constitutional and operational backstop: it protects the system against decisions or circumstances that threaten the constitutional framework and executes specifically authorized on-chain actions, rather than deciding whether an otherwise valid proposal is good policy.

Responsibilities

The Security Council is responsible for:

• Constitutional oversight: Safeguard the integrity of the Foundation’s operations and ensure that governance remains consistent with HoS’s constitutional purpose and principles.
• Proposal veto: Veto proposals where the constitutional conditions for a veto are met, principally where a proposal is misaligned with HoS’s purpose or principles. This is a narrow constitutional safeguard, not a second policy or strategic review.
• Emergency Actions: Take actions under the constitutional emergency procedures when circumstances require intervention outside the normal governance process.
• Non-Emergency Actions: Execute authorized on-chain actions outside emergency circumstances in accordance with the Constitutional Documents.
• Registrar Actions: Operate the NEAR Top-Level Account Registrar and execute authorized protocol-level actions relating to the creation of TLAs.
• Emergency meetings: Convene or participate in Emergency Meetings as provided for by the governing documents.
• Coordination: Coordinate with other governance bodies and relevant technical participants when carrying out its responsibilities.
• Transparency: Document and communicate Security Council actions in accordance with applicable transparency, reporting, and confidentiality requirements.

Role as TLA Registrar

The Security Council operates the NEAR Top-Level Account Registrar on behalf of House of Stake Tokenholders.

In this role, the Council performs narrowly defined Registrar Actions, including executing valid instructions to create bare TLAs and other actions expressly authorized by the Registrar Charter. The Registrar is an execution function and has no independent authority to decide how TLAs are allocated or used.

The Registrar role is governed by the ratified proposal, the Registrar Charter, and the applicable House of Stake Constitutional Documents.

Limits of the Registrar Role

The Security Council does not operate the commercial TLA platform or determine its product and commercial policies. In particular, it does not govern:

• TLA allocation, pricing, or commercial terms;
• leases, marketplaces, customer relationships, or recovery services;
• ownership or control of individual TLAs or their subaccounts; or
• the operation and development of nearaccounts.com.

These responsibilities remain with the Platform Operator and relevant users. Neither the Security Council nor House of Stake takes custody of account keys or user assets. The Registrar’s authority ends at the boundaries established by the Registrar Charter.

Role Defined By

The role, responsibilities, and authority of the Security Council are defined by:

• HoS Foundation Memorandum and Articles — establishes the relevant legal governance structure and the Security Council’s formal relationship to the Foundation.
• HoS Foundation Bylaws — specifies governance structures, powers, procedures, and obligations applicable to the Security Council.
• Constitution — establishes the broader HoS governance framework and the Security Council’s constitutional role.
• Proposals and Voting Procedures — defines the proposal lifecycle, governance workflow, and the categories of actions available to the Security Council.
• NEAR Top-Level Account Registrar Charter — defines the Security Council’s Registrar authority, duties, procedures, and limitations.
• Code of Conduct and Conflict of Interest Policy — impose behavioral, integrity, independence, disclosure, and conflict-management obligations on Council members.

Obligations as Governance Body Members

As members of a governance body, Security Council members are required to:

• Act in good faith and in the best interests of the House of Stake.
• Act independently and exercise their judgment free from undue influence.
• Comply with the Constitution and all applicable Constitutional Documents.
• Adhere to the Participation Standards and Code of Conduct.
• Disclose and appropriately manage conflicts of interest in accordance with the Conflict of Interest Policy, including recusing themselves where required.
• Perform their duties diligently, impartially, and consistently.
• Maintain transparency by documenting and communicating Security Council actions and decisions in accordance with the applicable Constitutional Documents and the Registrar Charter.