San Bernardino Alumnae PHC Bylaws | |
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San Bernardino Alumnae Panhellenic
Bylaws
LAST UPDATED: September 25, 2010
ARTICLE I- NAME
The name of this organization shall be the San Bernardino Alumnae Panhellenic (SBAPH), herein referred to as Organization or APH
ARTICLE II- MISSION
Section I: Purpose Statement
1. To inform fraternity women of current trends, to promote the fraternity system, to improve the Panhellenic image, and to stimulate a continuing interest in Panhellenic affairs.
Section II: Objectives
1. To promote interfraternity friendship and collaboration;
2. To publicize the high ideals, purpose and accomplishments of the fraternity system;
3. To support local university Panhellenic Greek systems to increase membership, promote scholarship and lifetime commitments to our organization;
4. To promote educational projects by offering scholarship to needy and/or deserving high school and college students;
5. To further the interest in community services and philanthropic efforts.
ARTICLE III – MEMBERSHIP
Section I: Eligibility
1. Alumnae of any National Panhellenic Conference fraternity who live in San Bernardino and the surrounding cities become members of San Bernardino Alumnae Panhellenic upon payment of prescribed dues. The NPC member fraternities represented on the membership roll of this Alumnae Panhellenic are:
Alpha Delta Pi Alpha Phi Kappa Delta Zeta Tau Alpha Phi Mu
Section II: Classes of Membership
There shall be three classes of members:
1. Active members shall be from those fraternities that have fully qualified for membership as specified by NPC and that have been duly admitted to membership in NPC.
2. Associate members shall be from those fraternities that have not fully qualified for active membership in NPC but which have been admitted to associate membership.
3. Affiliate members shall be those women's fraternal organizations that are included in a College Panhellenic or comparable governing body.
Section III: Documentation
1. All applicants for membership in this organization shall present proof of membership in such sorority.
Section IV: Definition of Good Standing
1. Current dues paying member of the organization.
ARTICLE IV- FINANCES
Section I: Fiscal Year
1. Fiscal year of the San Bernardino Alumnae Panhellenic shall be July 1 to June 30.
Section II: Dues
1. Each member must pay annual dues of $25.00. Dues are payable by the first meeting of the fiscal year.
2. All dues must be paid in full by August 1st
Section III: Expenses
1. All disbursement checks must be signed by one of the following officers: President, Treasurer or Vice President.
2. Expenses under $100 will be reimbursed with receipts and the President’s Approval.
3. Expenses between $100 and $500 will require at least two Board member’s approval prior to committing fund and will require receipts for reimbursement.
4. Expenses exceeding $500 must have Executive Board approval prior to committing to expenditure and require receipts for reimbursements.
Section IV: Margaret E. Douthit Fund
1. The principal of the bequest received from the estate of Margaret E Douthit shall be placed in the Margaret E Douthit Scholarship Fund.
2. The fund will be managed and invested prudently by the Treasurer upon approval of such investments by the Executive Board with recommendation from the Investment Committee. Income from the investments shall be used to award college scholarships in memory of Margaret Douthit to graduates of local high schools.
3. The expense of the administration of the Scholarship Fund may be deducted from the income of the fund.
4. No part of this fund may be used for any purpose other than scholarships.
5. No withdrawals may be made from this fund except for approved purposes and upon approval of the Executive Board.
ARTICLE V – MEETINGS
Section I: Meeting Guidelines
1. Meetings shall be held in the County of San Bernardino, State of California.
2. The meetings of this organization shall be governed and controlled by the rules for Parliamentary Procedure as set forth in the most recent edition of Robert’s RULES OF ORDER, newly revised in brief.
3. Cancellation of meetings will be voted on by the Executive Board, members will be notified within 48 hours via phone and/or email.
4. The members present at a given meeting will constitute a quorum for all purposes.
5. Voting by proxy is prohibited. Voting via email or survey monkey will be allowed. Items voted on via email must receive a two-thirds approval from the entire membership.
Section II: Regular Meetings
1. There will be a minimum of six regular business meetings per year.
Section III: Special Meetings
1. Special meetings may be called by the president and one officer and shall be called upon written request of three members. A 72 hour notice shall be given for all special meetings.
ARTICLE VI- OFFICERS
Section I: Eligibility
1. Any member of the organization in good standing is eligible to run for a position.
2. Only members who have served on the Executive Board for at least one year are eligible to run for President.
Section II: Elected Officers
1. The elected officers of this organization shall consist of (6) officers: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Recording Secretary, Scholarship Chair, and Ways and Means Chair.
2. The term of office for the elected positions shall be two years. President, Recording Secretary, and Treasurer shall be voted on in even years, and positions of Vice President, Scholarship, and Ways and Means Chair shall be voted on in odd years to establish continuity and ease the transition of new officers.
Section III: Appointed Officers
1. The appointed officers of this organization shall be: Marketing/Publicity Chair, Membership Recruitment Chair, Social Chair, Southern California Council of Alumnae Panhellenics Delegate, Panhellenic Files/ Formal Recruitment Chair, Parliamentarian, and Corresponding Secretary.
2. The term of office for all appointed officers shall be one year.
Section IV: Other Officers
1. Other officers and committee chairs may be appointed as required by the President, with the advance approval of the Executive Board.
2. Any officer may appoint an assistant or committee chair for routine or special tasks. These appointments must be approved by the Executive Board. Such appointees will not be considered members of the Executive Board, unless specifically determined by a vote of the general membership.
Section IV: Governance
1. The governance of this organization shall be vested in the executive board, consisting of the elected officers as described in Section II of this article.
ARTICLE VII - ELECTION OF OFFICERS
Section I: Nominations
1. The Nominating Committee shall consist of a member appointed by the Executive Board and two members elected by the general membership. The chair shall be one of the above and shall be appointed by the President.
2. The chair shall be one of the above and selected by the President.
3. The Nominating Committee shall be organized at the April meeting and shall present a slate of officers, in writing, to the general membership five days prior to the next regular or special business meeting. Advance consent must be obtained from all nominees.
4. Letters of intent may be submitted to the nominations committee chair for up to two weeks following the April meeting.
5. Nominations from the floor will be accepted at the elections meeting.
Section II: Voting
1. Elections will take place at the next regular meeting following the April meeting.
2. All members referenced and meeting the requirements of Article III will be eligible to vote.
Section III: Transition
1. All outgoing officers must pass on all manuals and other items to the incoming officers before installation occurs.
Section IV: Installation
1. All officers, elected and appointed, shall be installed at the meeting following elections meeting and shall immediately assume the responsibilities of office. This meeting is to occur no later than June 30th.
2. Vacancies of elected officers, except for President, shall be filled by general membership vote. Appointed office vacancies will be filled by appointment by the President and approval by the executive board.
ARTICLE VIII - DUTIES OF ELECTED OFFICERS
1. The President shall be the chief elected officer of the organization. She shall preside at all meetings of the membership and of the Executive Board; exercise general supervision of all affairs of the organization. She shall be responsible for submitting all reports requested by the NPC. The president shall provide a job description for each officer; maintain the official files of the organization and review the bylaws as needed. The president is an ex-officio member of all committees; and has such powers and performs such functions as required.
2. The Vice President shall take the place of the President in her absence and shall assume the office of President if a vacancy should exist. She shall be responsible for arranging programs for meetings as set by the Executive Board. She shall be in charge of hospitality, including notifying members of all meetings. She shall take on the role of maintaining the organization website with assistance from other officers.
3. The Treasurer shall be custodian of all monies and shall render at each organization meeting a report of the receipts, disbursements, and account balances. She shall pay the annual dues of the Southern California Council of Alumnae Panhellenic and the National Panhellenic Conference. She shall maintain adequate and correct accounts of all financial transactions of the organization collect all dues and fines and pay all bills of the organization. She shall also serve on the scholarship committee, and chair the Investment Committee.
4. The Recording Secretary shall keep a written record of each business meeting and Executive Board meetings of this organization, shall keep attendance records, present the minutes from each meeting at the following regular business meeting or special meeting, and forward a copy of all meeting minutes to the President, to be sent to the Area NPC Advisor within a month of each meeting. She shall present all bylaw changes to the membership and maintain copies of all prior drafts. She shall preside in the absence of the President and Vice President at regular Organization or Executive Board meetings.
5. The Scholarship Chair shall be responsible for all scholarship activities, including chairing all scholarship committee meetings related to scholarships funds awarded by the organization. She will collaborate with the Panhellenic Files/ Formal Recruitment Chair for all recruitment events regarding high school students.
6. The Ways and Means Chair shall be responsible for all fundraising activities of the organization. All fundraising activities shall be reviewed with and approved by the Executive Board. The main responsibility of the Ways and Means chair will be to focus on philanthropic efforts and our fundraising efforts. She shall preside over the Ways and Means committee.
ARTICLE IX - DUTIES OF APPOINTED OFFICERS
1. The Marketing/Publicity Chair shall be responsible for all community service activities of the organization; submit to local newspapers and other media notices of all membership meetings and other activities requiring publicity. Community Service activities shall be reviewed with and approved by Executive Board.
2. The Membership Recruitment Chair shall organize activities for finding new potential members, and activities for maintaining continued membership. She shall correspond with prospective new members and inspect credentials of applicants for membership in this organization. She will prepare and maintain an annual directory. She may collaborate with the Social Chair on events and membership retention.
3. Social Chair shall be responsible for and organize all functions other than regular membership meetings. She may collaborate with the Membership Chair on all events.
4. The Corresponding Secretary shall attend to all written correspondence, prepare and deliver the annual newsletters, and notices as required by the organization. She shall attend to the correspondence of the Organization. She shall maintain the existing
Panhellenic email account and keep updated emailed address for all members in the organization.
5. The Southern California Council of Alumnae Panhellenics Delegate shall attend all meetings of the Southern California Panhellenic Conference and report information from such meetings to the general membership. In the event that she is unable to attend a given meeting, she will be responsible for finding an alternate representative.
6. The Panhellenic Files/ Formal Recruitment Chair shall be responsible for maintaining permanent recruitment files. She shall correspond with NPC as required by the Area Advisor. She will work collaborate with scholarship to promote the Greek system to graduating high school seniors. She shall serve on the scholarship committee.
7. The Parliamentarian shall have parliamentary authority at all meetings, as described in Article V, Section III.
ARTICLE X- COMMITTEES
Section I: Appointments
1. All Chairs will appoint their own committee.
Section II: Standing Committees:
1. The Investment Committee shall consist of the Treasurer and a minimum of two additional members. The committee shall include, if possible, a Certified Public Accountant.
2. The Scholarship Committee shall administer the organization’s scholarship programs, including the selection of the scholarship recipients and plan any other educational-related projects approved by the organization. The committee will review the scholarship program each year and if necessary propose changes. Changes to the scholarship program must be approved by the organization membership. The committee shall consist of the organization current Treasurer. Panhellenic Files/Formal Recruitment Chair Scholarship Chair, and a Past President. The Scholarship Chair will chair the committee and will appoint other members to the committee as needed with approval from the Executive Board.
3. The Nominating Committee will operate according to Article VII, Section I. The committee will provide a slate for all elected officers and make recommendations for appointed offices.
4. The Ways and Means committee shall explore fundraising and grant opportunities to support the organizational objectives. The committee shall consist of the Ways and Means chair and at least two additional members.
ARTICLE XI- REMOVAL/RESIGNATION FROM OFFICE
1. If an officer fails to perform or is unable to perform the duties assigned to her, she shall be asked by the Executive Board to resign. If she does not resign, she shall be removed from office.
2. If any member of the Executive Board is absent at more than two Executive Board meetings, except for reasons acceptable to a majority of the other members of the
Executive Board, the position may be vacated upon the motion and approval by a majority vote from the Executive Board.
3. Any member may resign at any time by sending a written notice of resignation to the President; such resignation shall take effect upon receipt. Email is an acceptable form of communication for this matter.
ARTICLE XII- BYLAW AMENDMENT ADOPTION
1. These bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting of the Council by a two-thirds vote, provided notice of the proposed amendment has been given at the preceding meeting, or written notice has been sent to each member of the Council at least 48 hours prior to the meeting, and approval of the NPC Area Advisor has been secured. Email is acceptable form of communication for disseminating the bylaws.
2. If the above conditions have been met, a vote to change the bylaws will occur at the beginning of the business meeting. If approved, the changes go into effect immediately.
ARTICLE XIII- STANDING RULES
1. Standing rules are not a part of the bylaws and may be suspended by a majority vote at any meeting; the suspension expires at the close of that meeting. Rules may be adopted, amended or rescinded by a simple majority vote without previous notice.
2. Bylaws may never be suspended and require a two-thirds vote for adoption or amendment, plus previous notice. Therefore, rules that require less rigid observance are placed in the standing rules. Standing rules may include such items as the order of business at the meetings, special requirements for committee chairmen, the committee chairman to whom special information should be submitted and other provisions.
ARTICLE XIV- MISCELLANEOUS
1. No officer, agent, or member of the Executive Board or membership shall have the authority to bind the organization by any contract or monetary responsibility without the approval of the Executive Board. The President is the only entity eligible to sign these contracts on behalf of the organization.
2. The Executive Board has the authority to act in the name of the organization in all matters not specifically referred to in these by-laws.
The name of this organization shall be the San Bernardino Alumnae Panhellenic (SBAPH), herein referred to as Organization or APH
ARTICLE II- MISSION
Section I: Purpose Statement
1. To inform fraternity women of current trends, to promote the fraternity system, to improve the Panhellenic image, and to stimulate a continuing interest in Panhellenic affairs.
Section II: Objectives
1. To promote interfraternity friendship and collaboration;
2. To publicize the high ideals, purpose and accomplishments of the fraternity system;
3. To support local university Panhellenic Greek systems to increase membership, promote scholarship and lifetime commitments to our organization;
4. To promote educational projects by offering scholarship to needy and/or deserving high school and college students;
5. To further the interest in community services and philanthropic efforts.
ARTICLE III – MEMBERSHIP
Section I: Eligibility
1. Alumnae of any National Panhellenic Conference fraternity who live in San Bernardino and the surrounding cities become members of San Bernardino Alumnae Panhellenic upon payment of prescribed dues. The NPC member fraternities represented on the membership roll of this Alumnae Panhellenic are:
Alpha Delta Pi Alpha Phi Kappa Delta Zeta Tau Alpha Phi Mu
Section II: Classes of Membership
There shall be three classes of members:
1. Active members shall be from those fraternities that have fully qualified for membership as specified by NPC and that have been duly admitted to membership in NPC.
2. Associate members shall be from those fraternities that have not fully qualified for active membership in NPC but which have been admitted to associate membership.
3. Affiliate members shall be those women's fraternal organizations that are included in a College Panhellenic or comparable governing body.
Section III: Documentation
1. All applicants for membership in this organization shall present proof of membership in such sorority.
Section IV: Definition of Good Standing
1. Current dues paying member of the organization.
ARTICLE IV- FINANCES
Section I: Fiscal Year
1. Fiscal year of the San Bernardino Alumnae Panhellenic shall be July 1 to June 30.
Section II: Dues
1. Each member must pay annual dues of $25.00. Dues are payable by the first meeting of the fiscal year.
2. All dues must be paid in full by August 1st
Section III: Expenses
1. All disbursement checks must be signed by one of the following officers: President, Treasurer or Vice President.
2. Expenses under $100 will be reimbursed with receipts and the President’s Approval.
3. Expenses between $100 and $500 will require at least two Board member’s approval prior to committing fund and will require receipts for reimbursement.
4. Expenses exceeding $500 must have Executive Board approval prior to committing to expenditure and require receipts for reimbursements.
Section IV: Margaret E. Douthit Fund
1. The principal of the bequest received from the estate of Margaret E Douthit shall be placed in the Margaret E Douthit Scholarship Fund.
2. The fund will be managed and invested prudently by the Treasurer upon approval of such investments by the Executive Board with recommendation from the Investment Committee. Income from the investments shall be used to award college scholarships in memory of Margaret Douthit to graduates of local high schools.
3. The expense of the administration of the Scholarship Fund may be deducted from the income of the fund.
4. No part of this fund may be used for any purpose other than scholarships.
5. No withdrawals may be made from this fund except for approved purposes and upon approval of the Executive Board.
ARTICLE V – MEETINGS
Section I: Meeting Guidelines
1. Meetings shall be held in the County of San Bernardino, State of California.
2. The meetings of this organization shall be governed and controlled by the rules for Parliamentary Procedure as set forth in the most recent edition of Robert’s RULES OF ORDER, newly revised in brief.
3. Cancellation of meetings will be voted on by the Executive Board, members will be notified within 48 hours via phone and/or email.
4. The members present at a given meeting will constitute a quorum for all purposes.
5. Voting by proxy is prohibited. Voting via email or survey monkey will be allowed. Items voted on via email must receive a two-thirds approval from the entire membership.
Section II: Regular Meetings
1. There will be a minimum of six regular business meetings per year.
Section III: Special Meetings
1. Special meetings may be called by the president and one officer and shall be called upon written request of three members. A 72 hour notice shall be given for all special meetings.
ARTICLE VI- OFFICERS
Section I: Eligibility
1. Any member of the organization in good standing is eligible to run for a position.
2. Only members who have served on the Executive Board for at least one year are eligible to run for President.
Section II: Elected Officers
1. The elected officers of this organization shall consist of (6) officers: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Recording Secretary, Scholarship Chair, and Ways and Means Chair.
2. The term of office for the elected positions shall be two years. President, Recording Secretary, and Treasurer shall be voted on in even years, and positions of Vice President, Scholarship, and Ways and Means Chair shall be voted on in odd years to establish continuity and ease the transition of new officers.
Section III: Appointed Officers
1. The appointed officers of this organization shall be: Marketing/Publicity Chair, Membership Recruitment Chair, Social Chair, Southern California Council of Alumnae Panhellenics Delegate, Panhellenic Files/ Formal Recruitment Chair, Parliamentarian, and Corresponding Secretary.
2. The term of office for all appointed officers shall be one year.
Section IV: Other Officers
1. Other officers and committee chairs may be appointed as required by the President, with the advance approval of the Executive Board.
2. Any officer may appoint an assistant or committee chair for routine or special tasks. These appointments must be approved by the Executive Board. Such appointees will not be considered members of the Executive Board, unless specifically determined by a vote of the general membership.
Section IV: Governance
1. The governance of this organization shall be vested in the executive board, consisting of the elected officers as described in Section II of this article.
ARTICLE VII - ELECTION OF OFFICERS
Section I: Nominations
1. The Nominating Committee shall consist of a member appointed by the Executive Board and two members elected by the general membership. The chair shall be one of the above and shall be appointed by the President.
2. The chair shall be one of the above and selected by the President.
3. The Nominating Committee shall be organized at the April meeting and shall present a slate of officers, in writing, to the general membership five days prior to the next regular or special business meeting. Advance consent must be obtained from all nominees.
4. Letters of intent may be submitted to the nominations committee chair for up to two weeks following the April meeting.
5. Nominations from the floor will be accepted at the elections meeting.
Section II: Voting
1. Elections will take place at the next regular meeting following the April meeting.
2. All members referenced and meeting the requirements of Article III will be eligible to vote.
Section III: Transition
1. All outgoing officers must pass on all manuals and other items to the incoming officers before installation occurs.
Section IV: Installation
1. All officers, elected and appointed, shall be installed at the meeting following elections meeting and shall immediately assume the responsibilities of office. This meeting is to occur no later than June 30th.
2. Vacancies of elected officers, except for President, shall be filled by general membership vote. Appointed office vacancies will be filled by appointment by the President and approval by the executive board.
ARTICLE VIII - DUTIES OF ELECTED OFFICERS
1. The President shall be the chief elected officer of the organization. She shall preside at all meetings of the membership and of the Executive Board; exercise general supervision of all affairs of the organization. She shall be responsible for submitting all reports requested by the NPC. The president shall provide a job description for each officer; maintain the official files of the organization and review the bylaws as needed. The president is an ex-officio member of all committees; and has such powers and performs such functions as required.
2. The Vice President shall take the place of the President in her absence and shall assume the office of President if a vacancy should exist. She shall be responsible for arranging programs for meetings as set by the Executive Board. She shall be in charge of hospitality, including notifying members of all meetings. She shall take on the role of maintaining the organization website with assistance from other officers.
3. The Treasurer shall be custodian of all monies and shall render at each organization meeting a report of the receipts, disbursements, and account balances. She shall pay the annual dues of the Southern California Council of Alumnae Panhellenic and the National Panhellenic Conference. She shall maintain adequate and correct accounts of all financial transactions of the organization collect all dues and fines and pay all bills of the organization. She shall also serve on the scholarship committee, and chair the Investment Committee.
4. The Recording Secretary shall keep a written record of each business meeting and Executive Board meetings of this organization, shall keep attendance records, present the minutes from each meeting at the following regular business meeting or special meeting, and forward a copy of all meeting minutes to the President, to be sent to the Area NPC Advisor within a month of each meeting. She shall present all bylaw changes to the membership and maintain copies of all prior drafts. She shall preside in the absence of the President and Vice President at regular Organization or Executive Board meetings.
5. The Scholarship Chair shall be responsible for all scholarship activities, including chairing all scholarship committee meetings related to scholarships funds awarded by the organization. She will collaborate with the Panhellenic Files/ Formal Recruitment Chair for all recruitment events regarding high school students.
6. The Ways and Means Chair shall be responsible for all fundraising activities of the organization. All fundraising activities shall be reviewed with and approved by the Executive Board. The main responsibility of the Ways and Means chair will be to focus on philanthropic efforts and our fundraising efforts. She shall preside over the Ways and Means committee.
ARTICLE IX - DUTIES OF APPOINTED OFFICERS
1. The Marketing/Publicity Chair shall be responsible for all community service activities of the organization; submit to local newspapers and other media notices of all membership meetings and other activities requiring publicity. Community Service activities shall be reviewed with and approved by Executive Board.
2. The Membership Recruitment Chair shall organize activities for finding new potential members, and activities for maintaining continued membership. She shall correspond with prospective new members and inspect credentials of applicants for membership in this organization. She will prepare and maintain an annual directory. She may collaborate with the Social Chair on events and membership retention.
3. Social Chair shall be responsible for and organize all functions other than regular membership meetings. She may collaborate with the Membership Chair on all events.
4. The Corresponding Secretary shall attend to all written correspondence, prepare and deliver the annual newsletters, and notices as required by the organization. She shall attend to the correspondence of the Organization. She shall maintain the existing
Panhellenic email account and keep updated emailed address for all members in the organization.
5. The Southern California Council of Alumnae Panhellenics Delegate shall attend all meetings of the Southern California Panhellenic Conference and report information from such meetings to the general membership. In the event that she is unable to attend a given meeting, she will be responsible for finding an alternate representative.
6. The Panhellenic Files/ Formal Recruitment Chair shall be responsible for maintaining permanent recruitment files. She shall correspond with NPC as required by the Area Advisor. She will work collaborate with scholarship to promote the Greek system to graduating high school seniors. She shall serve on the scholarship committee.
7. The Parliamentarian shall have parliamentary authority at all meetings, as described in Article V, Section III.
ARTICLE X- COMMITTEES
Section I: Appointments
1. All Chairs will appoint their own committee.
Section II: Standing Committees:
1. The Investment Committee shall consist of the Treasurer and a minimum of two additional members. The committee shall include, if possible, a Certified Public Accountant.
2. The Scholarship Committee shall administer the organization’s scholarship programs, including the selection of the scholarship recipients and plan any other educational-related projects approved by the organization. The committee will review the scholarship program each year and if necessary propose changes. Changes to the scholarship program must be approved by the organization membership. The committee shall consist of the organization current Treasurer. Panhellenic Files/Formal Recruitment Chair Scholarship Chair, and a Past President. The Scholarship Chair will chair the committee and will appoint other members to the committee as needed with approval from the Executive Board.
3. The Nominating Committee will operate according to Article VII, Section I. The committee will provide a slate for all elected officers and make recommendations for appointed offices.
4. The Ways and Means committee shall explore fundraising and grant opportunities to support the organizational objectives. The committee shall consist of the Ways and Means chair and at least two additional members.
ARTICLE XI- REMOVAL/RESIGNATION FROM OFFICE
1. If an officer fails to perform or is unable to perform the duties assigned to her, she shall be asked by the Executive Board to resign. If she does not resign, she shall be removed from office.
2. If any member of the Executive Board is absent at more than two Executive Board meetings, except for reasons acceptable to a majority of the other members of the
Executive Board, the position may be vacated upon the motion and approval by a majority vote from the Executive Board.
3. Any member may resign at any time by sending a written notice of resignation to the President; such resignation shall take effect upon receipt. Email is an acceptable form of communication for this matter.
ARTICLE XII- BYLAW AMENDMENT ADOPTION
1. These bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting of the Council by a two-thirds vote, provided notice of the proposed amendment has been given at the preceding meeting, or written notice has been sent to each member of the Council at least 48 hours prior to the meeting, and approval of the NPC Area Advisor has been secured. Email is acceptable form of communication for disseminating the bylaws.
2. If the above conditions have been met, a vote to change the bylaws will occur at the beginning of the business meeting. If approved, the changes go into effect immediately.
ARTICLE XIII- STANDING RULES
1. Standing rules are not a part of the bylaws and may be suspended by a majority vote at any meeting; the suspension expires at the close of that meeting. Rules may be adopted, amended or rescinded by a simple majority vote without previous notice.
2. Bylaws may never be suspended and require a two-thirds vote for adoption or amendment, plus previous notice. Therefore, rules that require less rigid observance are placed in the standing rules. Standing rules may include such items as the order of business at the meetings, special requirements for committee chairmen, the committee chairman to whom special information should be submitted and other provisions.
ARTICLE XIV- MISCELLANEOUS
1. No officer, agent, or member of the Executive Board or membership shall have the authority to bind the organization by any contract or monetary responsibility without the approval of the Executive Board. The President is the only entity eligible to sign these contracts on behalf of the organization.
2. The Executive Board has the authority to act in the name of the organization in all matters not specifically referred to in these by-laws.