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BY-LAWS OF THE SPRINGFIELD STAMP CLUB |
Article I - DUTIES OF OFFICERS |
Section 1. |
| The President shall preside at all meetings, and serve as an ex-officio member of all committees, of the Springfield Stamp Club. The President shall also be responsible for the development of the Club Program. The President shall have the authority to establish Committees and to appoint and/or approve Chairpersons and/or Committee Members as deemed necessary. The President shall assume responsibility for the recruitment of volunteers from the Membership to serve the Club in the following capacities provided as example: |
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| Club Auctioneer | Communications Director |
| Sales Book Manager | Frame Rental Coordinator |
| Club Librarian | Hospitality Chairperson |
| Membership Director | Newsletter Editor |
| Club Photographer | Publicity Director |
| Club Historian | Youth Activities Coordinator |
| SPRINGPEX Show Chairperson |
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Section 2. |
| The Vice-President shall act in the capacity of the President in the latter's absence. The Vice-President shall also assist in the activities of the Club as they relate to SPRINGPEX. The Vice-President shall assist the SPRINGPEX Show Chairperson in the recruitment of volunteers for the Membership to serve the requirements of the SPRINGPEX exhibition in the following capacities provided as example: |
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| Awards Chairperson | Awards Breakfast Coordinator |
| Bourse Coordinator | Show Cachet Sales Coordinator |
| Exhibits Chairperson | Clubs & Societies Liaison |
| Facilities Coordinator | Show Photographer |
| Show Program Coordinator | Publicity Chairperson |
| Refreshments Coordinator | Security Coordinator |
| Special Events Coordinator |
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Section 3. |
| The Secretary shall develop and maintain the official written records of the transactions of business and report the minutes of all regularly scheduled meetings of the Membership of the Springfield Stamp Club. The Secretary shall assign each new member a membership number. The Secretary may, from time to time, delegate such duties to the Membership Director, who shall act in this regard at the behest of the Governing Board of the Springfield Stamp Club. |
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Section 4. |
| The Treasurer shall be responsible for the financial transactions of the Springfield Stamp Club and shall collect dues, and receive and disburse all funds. The Treasurer shall develop and maintain a financial record of the Springfield Stamp Club, in accordance with current accounting standards, on a fiscal-year basis (July 1 through June 30) and will assist in the preparation of the budget for the Springfield Stamp Club. |
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| If required by the Governing Board, the Treasurer shall give bond for the faithful discharge of his or her duties in such sum and with such surety as the Governing Board shall determine. |
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Article II - ELECTION OF OFFICERS |
Section 1. |
| Prior to the first regularly scheduled meeting of the month of November, the President shall appoint at least three (3) individuals holding Life or Regular Membership in the Springfield Stamp Club to serve as members of an ad-hoc Nominating Committee. |
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Section 2. |
| The Nominating Committee shall meet at least once to prepare a slate of candidates for presentation to the Membership. However, the Committee is under no directive or obligation as to the procedure for evaluation and selection of a slate of nominees. As the incumbent President may be considered a candidate for elective office, the President shall be denied status as an ex-officio member of the Nominating Committee, and the Nominating Committee shall be under no scrutiny or supervision during the deliberation period. |
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Section 3. |
| The Nominating Committee shall, as part of the first regularly scheduled meeting of the month of December, submit to the Governing Board a slate of endorsed nominees for elective office. |
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Section 4. |
| The Election of Officers shall be held during the first business meeting, in which a quorum is present, in the month of January. Nominees slated by the Nominating Committee shall not require a second, the name of the nominee shall be automatically placed upon the ballot before the Membership. Additional nominations for each elective office may be made from the floor at the appropriate time preceding the vote of the Membership. |
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Section 5. |
| The conduct of the Election of Officers shall follow the guidelines set forth in Robert's Rules of Order, and the nominations/voting sequence shall occur in the following order: President; Vice-President; Secretary and, finally, Treasurer. |
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Section 6. |
| At the close of nominations for each Officer, each nominee shall be afforded a three (3) minute period to address the Membership as to the merits of his or her candidacy. The statements of the nominees concluded, the Membership shall move to the casting of ballots. The nominee for each office receiving a majority vote of the Member ship assembled at this regularly scheduled meeting shall be declared the winner. In the event of a tie, wherein no candidate shall receive a majority of the votes cast, there shall follow a run-off contest between the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes. |
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Section 7. |
| The term of all Elective Offices shall be twelve (12) months or until the next slate of Officers is elected as per Article II, Section 4. In the event that any Officer cannot, or refuses to, complete the term of office, the President shall recruit and nominate an individual holding either Regular or Life Membership to complete the term. This nomination shall be announced at the next regularly scheduled meeting, and shall require a majority vote of the assembled Membership for approval. If the President should determine that he or she cannot or will not complete the proscribed term of office, the Vice-President shall succeed to the post. The new President shall then name replacements as necessary, using the procedures above, to provide a complete Governing Board. |
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Section 8. |
| Following the adjournment of the regularly scheduled meeting at which elections have been held, the Officers whose terms of office have expired shall deliver to their successors all books, papers, funds and properties of the Springfield Stamp Club. |
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Article III - MEETINGS |
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Section 1. |
| Regular meetings of the Springfield Stamp Club shall be held on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month. Trading Sessions, those meetings held for the express purpose of furthering the exchange of philatelic information and material, may be held other Wednesdays of the month. The last Wednesday of each month normally features a club auction. |
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| An exception to the above schedule shall be observed during those months when the regular meeting location is not available, usually the summer months of each year. During this period no regularly scheduled meetings shall be held, and trading sessions may occur once per month at a location to be determined by the President. |
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Section 2. |
| The quorum required to conduct the business of the Springfield Stamp Club, including, but not limited to, the amendment of either the Constitution or By-Laws shall be set at the lower of twenty-five (25) individuals or fifteen percent (15%) of the paid membership currently holding either Life or Regular Membership in the Springfield Stamp Club. |
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Article IV - CONDUCT OF MEETINGS |
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Section 1. |
| All meetings shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures established below. |
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Section 2. |
| The normal order of business appropriate for a regularly scheduled meeting shall be as follows: |
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- Call to Order
- Reading of the Minutes of the Previous Meeting
- Reports of the Elected Officers
- Introduction of Guests and Proposals for Membership
- Announcements from the Governing Board
- Reports of Committees
- Announcements from the Membership
- Old Business
- New Business
- Door Prize Drawings*
- Adjournment
- Special Program of the Evening
- Auction (if schedule)*
- Swap Sessions - Sales - Exhibits*
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| *agenda items not required for entry into the official minutes. |
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Section 3. |
| To facilitate the orderly conduct of the regularly scheduled meetings, and to protect those items which may be a part of any scheduled auction, members will refrain from conducting individual philatelic activities until the meeting has been duly adjourned. |
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Article V - MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES |
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Section 1. |
| Regular Membership may be conferred upon an individual, eighteen (18) years of age or older, who is interested in philately and has maintained good standing in the philatelic community. Individuals in this category shall enjoy voting privileges and may hold elective or appointive office. |
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Section 2. |
| Life Members shall enjoy voting privileges and may hold elective or appointive office. Life Membership may be conferred upon an individual, eighteen (18) years of age or older, who qualifies utilizing the following criteria: |
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- has maintained active membership in the Springfield Stamp Club for a minimum of three (3) continuous years, and,
- has served one full term as an elected Officer, or SPRINGPEX Show Chairperson, of the Springfield Stamp Club, and
- has submitted a written application for Life Membership, to be accompanied by a one-time fee equal to twenty (20) times the current annual dues of a Regular Member which shall constitute the dues for Life Membership, or
- has been recommended for Life Membership, by a majority vote of the Governing Board in assembly, as a result of the services rendered to the Springfield Stamp Club, such recommendation being accompanied by a waiver of the above mentioned fee, and
- has been the recipient of a vote of approval, conducted at the regularly scheduled meeting immediately following the meeting at which such application or recommendation was introduced, equal to or greater than three-fourths of the voting members present.
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Section 3. |
| Associate Membership may be conferred upon an individual, eighteen (18) years of age or older, who is interested in philately and desires affiliation with the Springfield Stamp Club, but for whom Regular Membership status is inappropriate. This membership category shall be reserved for members of the immediate family of an individual maintaining Regular Membership status and those individuals whose residence is out-of-state. Associate Members shall have neither the privilege of voting nor that of holding elective office in the Springfield Stamp Club. |
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Section 4. |
| Youth Membership may be conferred upon an individual, seventeen (17) years of age or less, who is interested in philately and desires affiliation with the Springfield Stamps Club. |
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Article VI - MEMBERSHIP |
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Section 1. |
| Any individual may become a member of the Springfield Stamp Club upon the recommendation of any member in good standing, such member being willing to vouch for the good character of the applicant. Those applicants without sponsor shall be sponsored by the Vice-President. All applications for membership shall be announced at the next regularly scheduled meeting and shall normally be automatically approved by the Governing Board, unless objections are received, by the following regularly scheduled meeting of the membership. |
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Section 2. |
| An objection to an individual submitting an application for membership must be made in writing, addressed to the President, but may not be anonymous. The President shall present the objection verbatim to the members of the Governing Board, who shall deliberate upon the objection, and act upon the application. |
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Section 3. |
| Should the objection be perceived by the Governing Board as insufficient to warrant the rejection of the application, the Governing Board shall advise the member submitting such objection of the intention of the Governing Board to process the application in the normal manner. |
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Section 4. |
| Should the objection be perceived as a barrier to the presentation of the application to the membership, the application shall be rejected by the Governing Board. The sponsor shall be notified of the action of the Governing Board. If the rejected applicant shall have paid the appropriate dues previous to this action, such dues shall be ordered refunded. |
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Article VII - GENERAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS |
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Section 1. |
| The Springfield Stamp Club has been formed for the mutual benefit of its Membership. Each member shall put forth the requisite effort to ensure the success and growth of the Club through recruitment of new members, and to, in every action, promote the advancement of the organization and of philately in general. |
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Section 2. |
| No member shall incur any expense in the name of the Springfield Stamp Club. An exception shall be observed only in the case of expenditures deemed necessary to the conduct of the business of the Springfield Stamp Club, but only in such cases as the expenditure shall be less than fifty dollars ($50.00) per instance and if approved by the President and Treasurer of the Springfield Stamp Club. Any expenditure above fifty dollars ($50.00) per instance shall require the approval of a quorum at a regularly scheduled meeting, or shall have been previously approved through the normal budget approval process of the Springfield Stamp Club. |
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Section 3. |
| The Governing Board shall draft a budget, of its own initiative or through the creation of a select Committee, draft the budget for the Springfield Stamp Club. Upon approval of the Governing Board, the budget shall then be submitted to the Membership for approval prior to the last regularly scheduled meeting of the fiscal year. Motions to revise or reject individual budget items shall be accepted from the floor and voted upon, recognizing majority rule as the deciding factor in adoption or rejection of motions. After the budget has been approved by the Membership, expenditures for those budgeted items can be made. |
| Approved and adopted by the members of the Springfield Stamp Club, a quorum being in attendance, this thirteenth day of February, 1991. |
