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BY-LAWS OF THE CHESAPEAKE AMATEUR TELEVISION SOCIETY

Approved by CATS November 14, 2009

Article I. Membership

  1. Membership classes. This Club shall consist of two classes of membership: regular and associate.

 

  1. Regular members. Regular members shall consist of currently licensed amateur radio operators whose privileges allow operation of an amateur television station and who are not associate members.

  2. Associate members. Associate members shall consist of licensed or unlicensed individuals including persons residing outside the local area who do not wish to hold regular membership in this organization. They shall not have the right to vote and shall not be eligible to hold Club office. They may have other privileges and responsibilities defined by Club policy from time to time.

 

  1. Admission to membership. Any person who wishes to apply for membership in the organization and who meets the criteria for the type of membership in which they are interested may apply by submitting an application for approval by the Club, a copy of their current amateur radio license if they are licensed, and paying dues in accordance with Article II of these By-Laws. Approval of membership shall be determined by a majority affirmative vote of the membership at the time when their application is considered.

 

Article II. Membership Dues

 

  1. Dues. Membership dues, in an amount, or amounts, to be determined by the Executive Board and approved by the membership, shall be assessed annually.

  1. When payable. Dues shall be due and payable on January first of each calendar year for each individual who is not a new member of the Club.

  1. New members. For new members who join the Club after January of a calendar year, their initial dues shall be prorated on a monthly basis for that year. The dues of new members joining the Club in January of a calendar year will not be prorated. Dues shall be payable for new members on the date the individual is admitted to Club membership.

  1. Non-payment. Failure to pay dues within thirty days after they are due shall be considered cause for removal from membership. Members removed for non-payment of dues may be reinstated to membership upon payment of dues for the current fiscal year.


Article III. Fiscal Year

  1. The fiscal year for transacting all business of the Club shall be from January 1st through December 31st of the year.

Article IV. Officers and Elections

  1. Officers. The officers of the Club are the President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary. All regular members in good standing are eligible to hold office­. Officers will be elected annually by secret written ballot, and serve until their successors are installed. Installation of officers will take place in the month following their election unless unusual circumstances occur, in which case they will be installed as soon as possible thereafter.

  1. Nominations. At the February meeting, the presiding officer will appoint a Nominating Committee of three members and name the chairman. The Committee shall submit a written slate of can­didates for each office at the March meeting. No nomination for office should be made without prior permission of the candidate. The election shall take place thereafter as set forth below.

  1. Elections. The chairman of the Nominating Committee will preside over the election process at the March meeting. For each elected office, nominations will be accepted from the floor immediately prior to balloting. No floor nomination should be made without prior permission of the nominee.

  1. Upon the close of nominations for all offices, balloting for all offices shall commence by secret written ballot.

  2. If there are no additional nominations from the floor, the candidate selected by the Nominating Committee shall be declared elected by acclamation; otherwise, each officer shall be elected upon receipt of a simple majority vote.

  1. Removal from office. Any Club officer who has been absent for more than six consecutive meetings without justification or reasonable excuse, or is delinquent in dues for more than thirty days, may be removed from office by majority vote of members present and voting.

  1. Vacancies. Should an elected office other than the President be vacated due to death, resignation, or removal from office, the vacancy shall be filled by a member selected by a majority vote of the members present and voting. Should the office of President be vacated, the Vice-President shall resign and become President for the remainder of that term.

Article V. Duties of the Officers

  1. The President. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Club and at all meetings of the Executive Board. He shall be an ex-officio member of all committees.

  1. The Vice-President. The Vice-President shall assume all the duties of the President in the absence of the President. The Vice-President shall assist the President in all functions of the office.

  1. The Treasurer.

  1. The Treasurer shall receive all monies for the Club and shall keep an accurate and current record of all receipts and expenditures. The Treasurer shall disburse funds as authorized in Article VIII of these By-Laws.

  2. Upon request of the Executive Board, the Treasurer shall present a detailed report of receipts, expenditures, receivables and liabilities.

  3. The Treasurer shall make a summary report of the Club’s financial status at the Club’s meeting each month.

  4. The Treasurer shall, at the expiration of his term of office, relinquish to his successor all Club records and Club property in his possession. The incoming Treasurer shall confirm in writing the receipt of such records and property and control of the Club’s accounts and he shall verify the accuracy of the cash balances.

  1. The Secretary.

  1. The Secretary shall keep an accurate record of the proceedings of all meetings of the Executive Board and all meetings of the Club. The Secretary shall be required to store the following items:

  1. A current copy of the Charter and By-Laws.

  2. A list of control operators assigned to Club repeaters by the Executive Board and emergency contact information for them.

  3. An accurate, current list of all equipment owned by the Club.

  4. A list of equipment currently on loan to or by the Club.

  1. The Secretary may not transfer documents in his custody to any other person except as herein provided. He may, upon request from the presiding officer, produce a photocopy of any such document for the use of any officer of the Club or chairman of any standing committee. The Secretary shall, at the expiration of his term of office, deliver to his successor all Club records and Club property in his possession. The succeeding Secretary shall personally verify the stored documents and property before signing a receipt for them.

  2. The Secretary shall have a current copy of the Charter and By-Laws in his possession at every meeting.

  3. The Secretary shall handle the correspondence of the Club. The Secretary shall perform all other duties as may be assigned by the President.

Article VI. Audit

  1. At any time, the President may appoint an Audit Committee consisting of a chairman and two additional members, none of whom are members of the Executive Board. The Committee shall verify that the Treasurer’s records are accurate and that the Secretary has maintained all required documents. The Audit Committee shall submit to the Executive Board a written statement of their findings within sixty days of their appointment. The statement of audit shall be presented to the general membership at the next regular meeting of the Club thereafter. The report of the Audit Committee shall become a part of the permanent records of the Club and shall be retained by the Secretary.

Article VII. Membership Meetings

  1. A regular meeting of the Club shall be held each month. The meeting shall be devoted primarily to the conduct of Club business and educational programs. The date, time, and place of these meetings shall be determined by the Executive Board with the approval of the Club membership. During the week immediately prior to each regular meeting, the President of the Club shall provide all Club members with a proposed agenda for the meeting and solicit input thereon from them. A final agenda shall be prepared by the President and made available at the meeting. The Secretary shall maintain a copy of each final agenda as part of the permanent records of the Club.

Article VIII. Budget

  1. Approval of Budget. At a November membership meeting, the Executive Board shall submit a proposed budget to the membership showing expected income and expenses for the subsequent fiscal year. Subject to amendment by the membership, the budget shall be adopted. The budget shall serve as a basis for all expenditures of the Club.

  1. Subsequent Modifications of Budget.

  1. After the budget has been approved as provided in Paragraph A hereof, it may be modified by the following procedure:

  1. Any Club member may make a motion to modify the budget. After a second to the motion, a discussion may be held, but if the motion is for an increase of $500 or more, it will automatically be tabled until the next regular meeting of the Club. If the motion to modify the budget is for a value of less than $500, it may be voted upon immediately.

  2. During the interval between regular meetings, the Executive Board is to meet to consider the motion for any increase of $500 or more to the budget and report its recommendation concerning the proposed modifications at the next regular meeting with a quorum.

  3. After the Executive Board report is given, the budget may be modified by a majority vote of Club members.

  4. N/A

  1. If, in the opinion of the President, or, in his absence, the Vice-President, an emergency expenditure is required which cannot be delayed in accordance with the above procedure, he shall poll the members of the Executive Board by the most expedient means available. The budget will be modified and the emergency expenditure authorized upon the affirmative vote of a simple majority of the Executive Board. An example of an emergency expenditure would be one required to preserve the Club’s property or it’s tax-exempt status.

Article IX. Quorums

  1. A quorum of the Executive Board shall consist of four members of that board present.

  1. A quorum at a regular Club meeting shall consist of at least 1/3 of the regular members in good standing; three of whom must be Club officers.

  1. In the absence of a quorum at a membership or Executive Board meeting, no action taken shall be considered official. When a quorum is present, a majority of those present and voting may act for the Club or the Executive Board.

Article X. Executive Board

  1. Composition and Structure. The Executive Board shall consist of the current elected Club officers, the Chairman of the Technical Committee as a member-at-large and the immediate past President. The past President shall serve for one year immediately following their term as President. If the current President has been reelected, he shall appoint an additional member-at-large to fill that vacancy. The chairman of any standing committee may also be invited to join the Executive Board when their committee is working on a major program or project.

  1. Duties and Function. The Executive Board shall be responsible for overseeing the conduct and effect of all business of the Club as set forth in this document and the Articles of Incorporation.

Article XI. Committees

  1. Appointment to committee. The President may establish such committees as may be necessary to carry out the duties and responsibilities of the Club. The President shall appoint committee chairmen who shall serve at his pleasure. The committee chairmen, with the approval of the President, shall appoint committee members.

  1. In addition to the committees specified elsewhere in these By-Laws, the following standing committees shall be appointed:

  1. Repeater Committee. The Repeater Committee shall be in charge of initiating, constructing and maintaining Club repeaters.

  2. Technical Committee. The Technical Committee shall be responsible for providing expert guidance and other assistance to any Club member in any technical area related to amateur radio, including amateur television.

Article XII. Dissolution of the Club

  1. Upon the dissolution of the Corporation or the forfeiture of the Charter of the Corporation, the Executive Board shall have the power to dispose of the assets of the Corporation after first paying or making provision for the payment of all the liabilities of the Corporation. The Executive Board shall distribute or dispose of the assets of the Corporation by transferring or conveying such assets or the proceeds of the sale of such assets to another corporation or organization which is organized and operated exclusively for charitable, educational or scientific purposes and which shall qualify as an exempt corporation or organization under section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, or a corresponding provision or any future revenue code. In the event the Executive Board fails or is unable to distribute such assets in accordance with the provisions of this section, any member may petition a court of appropriate jurisdiction to assume jurisdiction over the assets and accomplish a distribution in accordance with the intent and purpose of this section.

Article XIII. Amendments to the By-Laws

  1. The By-Laws of the Club may be amended upon two-thirds vote of the voting members present and constituting a quorum at any meeting of the Club. No amendment to the By-Laws shall be entertained unless the proposed changes have been presented at a previous meeting. Notice shall be provided by the Secretary to all members setting forth the proposed changes and giving the date of the meeting at which the vote is to be taken. This notice shall be provided fifteen days prior to the meeting at which the vote is to be taken.

Article XIV. Rules of Order

  1. All meetings, of whatever kind, shall be conducted in accordance with Robert’s Rules of Order, Revised.

Article XV. Board of Directors

  1. As provided in the Articles of Incorporation, all business and affairs of the Club shall be under the direction and control of the Board of Directors. Duties of the individual directors shall include responsibility for serving as committee chairmen, where appropriate, and performing such other administrative and/or technical functions as may be agreed between them and the President.

  1. All members of the Board of Directors shall be members of the Club in good standing and shall hold a valid amateur radio operator’s license issued by the Federal Communications Commission.

  1. The Board of Directors shall consist of five members, of whom two shall be the President and Vice-President of the Club, and three shall be Directors-at-large. One of the Directors-at-large shall be, with his concurrence, the immediate past President of the Club, unless he shall be a current Officer.

  1. Term of Office. Each director shall hold office for a period of one year. For the directors who are the President or Vice-President of the Club, that term will correspond with their term of office as an officer. For Directors-at-large, their terms of office shall be for one year, or until they are replaced by their successors. Election of Directors-at-large shall take place concurrent with the election of Club officers.

  1. Quorum. Three members of the Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum.

  1. Vacancies. A vacancy on the Board of Directors shall be filled by appointment by the Board of a qualified individual for the unexpired term involved.