| Berkeley County Republican Club Bylaws
Article I
Name
The name of this club shall be the Berkeley County Republican Club.
Article II
Objects
The objects of the Berkeley County Republican Club shall be to promote the
principles of the Republican Party; to increase the number of registered
Republicans in Berkeley County; to encourage worthy Republicans to become
candidates for public office; to encourage greater voter participation in
the election process so that the best men and women may be nominated and
elected; to assist in the election of Republican candidates in general
elections; to participate in the political education of members to broaden
understanding of Republican aims in government; and to provide opportunities
for fellowship while working to fulfill these purposes.
Article III
Policy
Section 1. In a primary election, the Club shall remain neutral: it shall
neither endorse nor oppose, work for or against, any candidate for
nomination to the Republican ticket or the Republican Executive Committee.
The Club president, who is spokesman, shall not publicly endorse or oppose
any Republican candidate in the primary election. Other Club officers may
endorse and support particular Republican candidates in the primary election
provided they do so as individuals and not as Club officers. In a general
election, the Club and its officers shall endorse, promote, and assist the
Republican candidates.
Section 2. Voting Members shall be entitled to vote on all matters
brought before the Club, with the exception that a member must attend a
minimum of two regular meetings within the ten months preceding the November
Annual Meeting to be eligible to vote in the election for Club officers. On
all matters voted upon by the Club, only Voting Members present and voting
shall be counted by the presiding officer in determining the outcome. Proxy
voting is prohibited. A majority vote shall determine all questions except
as specifically provided otherwise in these bylaws.
Section 3. The Club may take positions on public policy issues by a
three-fourths affirmative vote at a regular meeting, provided that during
the preceding regular meeting a written Resolution defining the position
shall have been presented, and provided further that copies of the
Resolution, obtained and paid for by the proposer, are distributed at both
meetings to all members present.
Section 4. The minutes and membership records of the Club shall be open to
the inspection of members at the regular meetings. At the October meeting,
the treasurer shall provide a membership list to each member requesting one.
This list shall be up-to-date as of October 1st of the current year and
shall contain each member's name, address, telephone number, lifetime
membership status, and type of membership--Voting, Regular Associate, or
Junior Associate member.
Article IV
Membership, Dues, & Fiscal Year
Section 1. Registered Republicans or Independent voters residing in
Berkeley County, West Virginia, shall be eligible to become Voting Members.
With the exception that the office of president may be held only by a Voting
Member who is a registered Republican, Voting Memberswhether Republican or
Independentshall be entitled to hold office, vote, and enjoy all other
privileges of membership provided dues are paid by May 1st, or, in the case
of a new member, when making application. Voting Members, however, shall
have attended two regular meetings during the ten months preceding the
Annual Meeting in order to become eligible to vote in the Clubıs November
election of officers; new members must be accepted into membership by the
September meeting to be able to meet this requirement.
Section 2. Persons not eligible for voting membership but who subscribe to
the principles of the Republican Party are eligible to become Associate
Members--Regular Associate Members or Junior Associate Members. If of voting
registration age, an Associate Member shall become a Regular Associate
Member. If not of voting registration age, an Associate Member shall become
a Junior Associate Member. Associate Members shall not vote or become
officers, but shall be entitled to enjoy the privileges of membership not
specifically reserved to Voting Members.
Section 3. Individuals may apply for membership by filing an application
that includes advance payment of one year's dues if applying for Voting or
Regular Associate membership. Junior Associate members shall not be required
to pay dues, but must file a membership application. The application shall
be referred to the Membership Committee for verification of eligibility for
Voting, Regular Associate, or Junior Associate membership. This committee
shall report its findings at the next regular meeting that occurs at least
two weeks after it receives the application. A majority vote shall elect to
membership. Dues paid in advance are refunded to an applicant who fails to
win approval.
Section 4. An Associate Member shall automatically become a Voting Member
upon establishing eligibility. A Voting Member who is no longer a
registered Republican or Independent or who no longer resides in Berkeley
County shall automatically become an Associate Member.
Section 5. Dues are payable in advance on or before February 1st of each
year. The treasurer shall attempt to notify members who are three months in
arrearsthose not paid by May 1st. Whether receiving notification or not,
however, members whose dues are not paid by June 1st shall automatically be
dropped from membership and must reapply as new members. Voting members and
Regular Associate members have the option of becoming lifetime members by
the payment of a one time lifetime membership fee. Upon payment of the
lifetime membership fee, the member shall be provided written verification
of lifetime paid membership status. The verification may be in the form of a
letter or a special membership card signed by the President and by the
Treasurer.
Section 6. Dues shall not be prorated. However, applicants elected to
membership in the months of October, November, or December shall be credited
as having paid their dues in full through December 31st of the following
year except when dues have increased; if dues have increased, such
applicants shall be credited as having paid their dues in full through
December 31st of the following year upon payment of the difference (see
Section 5 for due dates); members who fail to pay the difference by June 1st
shall automatically be dropped from membership and must reapply as new
members.
Article IV
Membership, Dues, and Fiscal Year (Continued)
Section 7. The dues amount to be paid by Voting and Regular Associate
members for the next membership year shall be determined by a majority vote
at each Annual Meeting.
Section 8. The calendar year shall be the Clubıs fiscal and membership
year.
Article V
Nomination & Election of Officers
Section 1. Officers of the Club must be Voting Members and the Club
president must also be a registered Republican (Article IV, Section 1). The
officers shall be a president, a vice-president, a secretary, a treasurer,
and five trustees. These nine officers shall serve as the Clubıs Executive
Board (Article VIII).
Section 2. A Nominating Committee composed of five members, one of whom
the trustees shall designate as chairman, shall be appointed by the trustees
of the Club and announced to the membership at the regular September
meeting. It shall be the duty of the Nominating Committee to nominate at
least one candidate for each office and it shall make its report at the
October meeting. Nominations from the floor shall also be accepted, but
only at the October meeting, after which nominations shall be closed.
Section 3. No member shall hold more than one office at a time, and
except for the offices of secretary and treasurer, no member shall be
eligible to serve more than two consecutive terms in the same office. A
member may be elected to serve four consecutive terms as secretary or
treasurer. Elected public officials and candidates for public office shall
not serve as Club president. A Club president who announces candidacy for
public office shall vacate the office as soon as a successor can be chosen
(Article VI).
Section 4. The president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer shall
be elected to serve for one year or until their successors are chosen.
Section 5. The trustees shall each be elected to serve for two years or
until their successors are chosen. Two trustees shall be elected in the odd
calendar years, and three in the even.
Section 6. The officers shall be elected by ballot at the Annual Meeting
in November. A plurality vote shall elect. In case of a tie vote, the
presiding officer shall, by chance, select the winning candidate.
Section 7. The dues amount to be paid by Voting and Regular Associate
members for the next membership year shall be determined by a majority vote
at each Annual Meeting. The fee for lifetime membership shall also be
determined by a majority vote at each Annual Meeting. Increases in the
lifetime membership fee, however, shall not apply to those who have already
attained lifetime membership status.
Section 8. The officers shall be installed as the last order of business
at the December meeting. Their terms of office shall begin on January 1 of
the new calendar year, and they shall hold their first meeting as the new
Executive Board no later than one week before the first regularly scheduled
meeting of the new calendar year (Article VIII, Section 2).
Article VI
Vacancy in Office
The membership shall fill a vacancy in office at the next regular meeting
after the vacancy occurs. The newly-elected officer shall be installed
immediately to finish out the term of office of the person who vacated it or
until a successor is chosen. It shall be the duty of the Clubıs Executive
Board to make recommendations for each vacancy, but nominations may be made
from the floor. All Voting Members shall be eligible to participate in
elections to fill vacancies.
Article VII
Duties of Officers
Section 1. Each of the nine officers shall perform the duties prescribed by
the bylaws and by the parliamentary authority of the Club (Article XIV).
Whenever there is disagreement between the two, the bylaws shall govern.
Section 2. President: The president shall preside at all meetings of the
membership and of the Executive Board (Article VIII). He shall appoint and
be an ex officio member of all committees except the Nominating, Elections,
and Audit committees. The president may appoint a parliamentarian to rule on
parliamentary procedures.
Section 3. Vice-President: The vice-president shall preside at all
meetings of the membership and of the Executive Board in the absence of the
president. He shall also perform the presidentıs duties should there be a
temporary vacancy in the office.
Section 4. Secretary: The secretary shall record the minutes of the
meetings of the membership and the Executive Board and be custodian of all
Club records not specifically assigned to another officer. The secretary
shall maintain an inventory of the Clubıs personal property along with a
receipt showing the custodian of each item. The secretary shall conduct all
correspondence of the Club requested by the president or the Executive
Board. The secretary shall keep a record of the committees, including the
purpose, and names of the chairman and members. The secretary shall
cooperate with the Audit Committee during its year-end audit by making the
records of the Club available. The secretary shall preside at meetings of
the membership and of the Executive Board in the absence of both the
president and the vice-president.
Section 5. Treasurer: The treasurer shall be the custodian of the Clubıs
funds and shall keep them in a non-interest bearing checking account in a
bank approved by the Executive Board. All checks drawn on the account shall
be signed by the treasurer and the president, or in their absence, by two
officers designated by the Executive Board. The treasurer shall keep a
record of all receipts and disbursements and shall submit a report, in a
format prescribed by the Executive Board, at each regular meeting, a copy of
which is to be in writing and delivered to the secretary. The treasurer
shall collect the dues and maintain separate lists of Voting,
Regular Associate, and Junior Associate members. A separate list shall also
be maintained of Voting and Regular Associate members who have attained
lifetime membership status. The treasurer shall attempt to notify all
members whose dues are not paid by May 1st, and shall automatically drop
from membership any whose dues are not paid by June 1st (Article IV, Section
5.) At the October meeting, the treasurer shall provide a written
membership list, upon request, to any member in attendance. This list shall
be up-to-date as of October 1 of the current year and shall
contain each memberıs name, address, telephone number, and type of
membershipVoting, Regular Associate, or Junior Associate Member, and
shall identify those Voting and Regular Associate members who are
also lifetime
Article VII
Duties of Officers (Continued)
members. It shall be the Treasurerıs duty to see that each lifetime member
receives written verification, signed jointly by the Treasurer and the
President, of the memberıs paid lifetime membership status upon receipt of
the lifetime membership fee. The treasurer shall also cooperate with the
Audit Committee during its year-end audit by making the records of the Club
available.
Section 6. Trustees. In addition to serving on the Executive Board
(Article VIII), the five trustees shall sit as a special committee, a quorum
of which is three, for the following special duties: a) appoint five
members, designating one to be Chairman, to the Nominating Committee
(Article V, Section 2); b) name a chairman of the Elections Committee
(Article V, Section 7); c) announce these appointees at the regular
September meeting (Article V, Sections 2 & 7) and familiarize the appointees
with their duties under the bylaws; and d) immediately following the
November election of officers, serve as the Clubıs Audit Committee, naming
one trustee to be chairman, and conduct an audit of the current yearıs books
(Article X).
Article VIII
The Executive Board
Section 1. The Clubıs Executive Board shall consist of its nine officers:
president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and five trustees.
Section 2. The Executive Board shall meet no later than one week before the
first regularly scheduled meeting of the new calendar year to: a) review the
clubıs records and prepare the annual budget; b) give the President the
opportunity to announce committees; and c) to conduct such other business as
may come before the Board. Thereafter, the Executive Board shall meet at
least one time between the regular meetings of the Club.
Section 3. A quorum of the Executive Board shall be five of its members.
Section 4. The Executive Board, in addition to transacting the authorized
business of the Club between meetings of the membership, shall: a)
designate the time and place for the membership meetings; b) manage the
property of the Club; c) recommend any changes in dues at the Annual
Meeting; d) make recommendations to fill vacancies in office; e) submit an
annual budget to the membership at the first regularly scheduled meeting of
the new calendar year; and f) otherwise manage the affairs of the Club in
accordance with the directives of the membership, the bylaws, and the
parliamentary authority.
Article IX
Standing Committees & Their Duties
Section 1. There shall be the following standing committees:
Education Program
Fund-Raising Publications
Hospitality Publicity
Membership Revisions and Bylaws
Political Action Website
Article IX
Standing Committees & Their Duties (Continued)
Section 2. Within the first month after taking office, the president shall
appoint a chairman and such additional members as the work of each standing
committee may require.
Section 3. The duties of the standing committees shall be as follows:
Education Committee. This committee shall be responsible for planning and
producing special educational seminars, workshops, or other political
education events to help further an understanding of the Republican aims in
government. With respect to the programs sponsored by this committee, this
responsibility includes the procurement of speakers and meeting facilities,
the formulation of agendas, and coordination with the other committees to
ensure successful events.
Fund-Raising Committee. This committee shall be responsible for the
development and conduct of fund-raising activities and events to finance the
programs of the Club as set forth in the budget approved by the membership.
This committee shall work closely with the Education, Program, Publications,
Publicity, and Website Committees.
Hospitality. This committee shall be responsible for the decoration of
facilities used for monthly and special meetings and events, and shall
coordinate regularly with the Program Committee. The committee shall also be
responsible for appointing ³greeters² for meetings and special events and
for registration of members and guests. The committee shall maintain all
Club decoration supplies such as banners, pennants, and flags.
Membership Committee. This committee shall be responsible for all matters
pertaining to the enlistment of members, including procurement and
determination of the eligibility of prospective members (see Article IV,
Section 3) and the development of special membership drives and programs.
It is also this committeeıs responsibility to develop and maintain a
³telephone tree² of members to be used to inform the membership and other
individuals of club activities and to conduct pre-election telephone bank
activity in the general election.
Publications Committee. This committee shall be responsible for the
publication of a Club newsletter, voter guide, or other publication, to be
distributed to Republicans and Independents, and at the discretion of the
clubıs Executive Board, to other voters. The purposes of the publications
shall be to obtain new members by promoting the activities and functions of
the Club, to provide registration, legislative, election, and candidate
updates, to promote Republican principles, to encourage individuals to
register Republican, to assist the fund-raising committee, and during
general elections, to provide a forum for Republican candidates.
Political Action Committee. This committee shall be responsible for
coordinating the clubıs political activities, including, but not limited to,
financial and non-financial support for local, state, and national
Republican candidates in general elections, and coordination with
candidate campaign managers. The committee will work closely with the
Fund-Raising, Program, Publications, Publicity, and Website Committees.
Program Committee. This committee shall be responsible for establishing and
producing monthly and special Club meetings and programs. This
responsibility includes the procurement of speakers and meeting facilities,
the formulation of program agendas, and coordination with all of the other
committees to ensure a successful program schedule.
Article IX
Standing Committees & Their Duties (Continued)
Publicity Committee. This committee shall promote club programs and other
activities by establishing and maintaining contact with local, regional, and
national media outlets such as newspapers and other print publications and
radio and television stations. This committee will also be charged with the
design and production of poster, flyer, and sign layouts for club programs.
The committee will work in close coordination with the Program Committee on
all monthly and annual programs and with the Education Committee.
Website Committee. This committee, composed of two club members, shall be
responsible for working with two members from the Berkeley County Executive
Committee, in the continuing development and maintenance of the Republican
website sponsored jointly by the Club and the Berkeley County Executive
Committee under the joint policies as agreed to by both organizations.
Revisions and Bylaws. This committee shall be responsible for preparing
proposed amendments to the Bylaws for submission to the membership.
Proposed amendments to the Bylaws may include changes proposed by the Board
of Directors or by any member. All proposed amendments shall be submitted in
writing to the chairman not less than sixty days prior to the date of the
regular meeting at which they are to be announced and distributed. The
committee shall be authorized to initiate amendments to eliminate existing
inconsistencies, or those arising from amendments submitted, or to clarify
the text or improve the form.
Article X
Special Committees & Their Duties
Section 1. There shall be three special committees:
Nominating
Elections
Audit
The president may appoint such other special committees as may be needed.
Section 2. The composition and duties of the Nominating and the Elections
committees are set forth in Article V, Sections 2 & 7.
Section 3. The Audit Committee shall be composed of the five trustees for
the upcoming year and it shall begin its work immediately following the
Annual Meeting. The committee shall designate one of its members to be
chairman (Article VII, Section 6). The Audit Committee shall audit the Club
records for the period January 1st to December 31st of the current year
and shall submit its report to the membership at the first regular meeting
in the new calendar year. The purpose of the audit shall be to verify that
all funds are properly accounted for and to inspect the minutes and
membership rolls to verify that they are up-to-date and ready to be turned
over to the newly elected officers by January 1st. In its report, the Audit
Committee may include recommendations for improvements in the Clubıs records
process.
Article XI
Meetings & Quorum
Section 1. The regular monthly meeting of the Club shall be held at a
time and place designated by the Executive Board.
Section 2. The president may call special meetings when the interests of
the Club require it. The president shall call a special meeting upon
receipt of a request, in writing, by not less than ten percent of the
membership.
Section 3. The regular November meeting of the Club shall be the
Annual Meeting and it shall be held at least one week after the General
Election.
Section 4. A quorum of the Club shall consist of no fewer than twenty
Voting Members. A quorum of the Executive Board shall consist of five
members.
Section 5. Unless changes are approved by majority vote, the Order of
Business at a regular meeting shall be as follows:
Secretaryıs Report
Treasurerıs Report
Reports of Other Officers
Reports of Standing Committees
Reports of Special Committees
Special Orders
Unfinished Business and General Orders
New Business
Good and Welfare of the Club
Article XII
Disciplinary Proceedings
Section 1. All members have an obligation to: 1) obey the Clubıs By-laws;
2) obey the legitimate orders of the presiding officer during a meeting; and
3) refrain from disorderly or other conduct, whether during a meeting or
outside a meeting, that injures the good name of the organization, disturbs
its well-being, hampers it in its work, or is counter-productive to its
objects and policies.
Section 2. The voting members shall have the right to censure, suspend,
or expel any member it finds guilty of misconduct in the enforcement of this
Article provided that due process in disciplinary procedures, as set forth
in the Clubıs Parliamentary Authority (Article XIII), is followed.
Section 3. A majority vote may censure or suspend a member; a two-thirds
vote shall be required to expel a member.
Article XIII
Parliamentary Authority
The rules contained in the current edition of Robertıs Rules of Order Newly
Revised shall govern the Club in all cases to which they are applicable and
in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any special rules
of order the Club may adopt.
Article XIV
Amendment of bylaws
These bylaws may be amended, in whole or in part, at a regular meeting of
the Club by a two thirds affirmative vote, provided that the
proposed amendment shall have been announced and copies shall have been
distributed at the previous regular meeting, and provided further that at
least ten days before the meeting at which the amendment is to be voted on
1) either a copy of the proposed amendment shall have been mailed to each
member or 2) A notice shall have appeared in a local newspaper of general
circulation announcing that the Club will be voting on a bylaws amendment
and listing the date, time, and place of the vote, and a place where a copy
of the amendment will be available.
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