BYLAWS OF
YOUNG DEMOCRATS OF GREATER SAINT LOUIS
ARTICLE I – NAME AND PURPOSE
Section 1 – Name: The name of the organization shall be Young Democrats of Greater Saint Louis. It shall be a nonprofit organization incorporated under the laws of the State of Missouri.
Section 2 – Purpose: Young Democrats of Greater Saint Louis’ mission is to support the efforts of the Democratic National Committee and related organization through the recruitment and engagement in the political process of young people in the Greater Saint Louis.
ARTICLE II – MEMBERSHIP
Section 1 – Eligibility for membership: Application for voting membership shall be open to any persons under the age of 36 who considers himself or herself a resident, property owner, business operator, or employee within the Saint Louis area. Membership is granted after completion and receipt of a membership applications and annual dues. All memberships shall be granted upon a majority vote of the committee.
Section 2 – Annual dues: The amount required for annual dues shall be $20 each year, unless changed by a majority vote of the Executive Committee. Continued membership is contingent upon being up-to-date on membership dues.
Section 3 – Rights of members: Each member shall be eligible to cast one vote in elections. Votes are not transferable to other persons.
Section 4 – Resignation and termination: Any member may resign by filing a written resignation with the secretary. Resignation shall not relieve a member of unpaid dues, or other charges previously accrued. A member can have their membership terminated by a majority vote of the membership.
Section 5 – Non-voting membership: The executive committee shall have the authority to establish and define non-voting categories of membership.
ARTICLE III – MEETINGS OF MEMBERS
Section 1 – Regular meetings: Regular meetings of the members shall be held quarterly, at a time and place designated by the chair.
Section 2 – Annual meetings: An annual meeting of the members shall take place in the month of January, the specific date, time and location of which will be designated by the chair. At the annual meeting the members may engage in such activities as electing officers, receive reports on the activities of the association, and determine the direction of the association for the coming year.
Section 3 – Special meetings: Special meetings may be called by the chair or the Executive Committee not less than 24 hours before the meeting start time. A petition signed by five percent of members may also call a special meeting.
Section 4 – Notice of meetings: Notice of each meeting shall be given to each voting members, not less than two weeks prior to the meeting. Notices may be delivered by mail, telephone, email, or posting in a public domain such as a website.
Section 5 – Quorum: The members present at any properly announced meeting shall constitute a quorum.
Section 6 – Voting: All issues to be voted on shall be decided by a simple majority of those present at the meeting in which the vote takes place.
ARTICLE IV – EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Section 1 – Committee role, size, and compensation: The committee is responsible for overall policy and direction of the association, and delegates responsibility of day-to-day operations to the committees. The committee shall have up to 9, but not fewer than 5 members. The committee receives no compensation other than reasonable expenses. The Chair has the right to invite or remove members of the Executive Committee outside of other elected positions.
Section 2 – Terms: All committee members shall serve two-year terms, but are eligible for re-election for up to five consecutive terms.
Section 3 – Meetings and notice: The committee shall meet at least quarterly, at an agreed upon time and place. An official committee meeting requires that each committee member have written notice at least two weeks in advance.
Section 4 – Committee elections: New and current office holders shall be elected or re-elected by the voting representatives of members at the annual meeting. Office holders will be elected by a simple majority of members present at the annual meeting.
Section 5 – Election procedures: Any member can nominate a candidate to the slate of nominees. All members will be eligible to place one vote per office election.
Section 6 – Quorum: A quorum must be attended by at least forty percent of committee members for business transactions to take place and motions to pass.
Section 7 – Officers and Duties: There shall be five officers of the committee, consisting of a chair, vice-chair, secretary and treasurer. Their duties are as follows:
The chair shall convene regularly scheduled committee meetings, shall preside of arrange for other members of the Executive Committee to preside at each meeting in the following order: vice-chair, treasurer, secretary, membership chair.
The vice-chair shall chair committees on special subjects as designated by the committee.
The treasurer shall make a report at each committee meeting. The treasurer shall chair the finance committee, assist in the preparation of the budget, help develop fundraising plans, and make financial information available to committee members and the public.
The secretary shall be responsible for keeping records of committee actions, including overseeing the taking of minutes at all committee meetings, sending out meeting announcements, distributing copies of minutes and the agenda to each committee member, and assuring the corporate records are maintained.
The membership chair shall serve as the primary contact for new members, encourage and facilitate member participation, and to assess and improve the club’s membership situation and the effectiveness of membership growth and retention efforts.
Each member of the Executive Committee (both elected and appointed) are required to donate and/or raise a minimum of $500 for the organization’s Political Action Committee (PAC).
Section 8 – Vacancies: When a vacancy on the committee exists mid-term, the secretary must receive nominations for new members from present committee members two weeks in advance of a committee meeting. These nominations shall be sent out to committee members with the regular committee meeting announcement, to be voted upon at the next committee meeting. These vacancies will be filled only to the end of the particular committee member’s term.
Section 9 – Resignation, termination, and absences: Resignation from the committee must be in writing and received by the Secretary. A committee member shall be terminated from the committee due to excess absences, more than two unexcused absences from committee meetings in a year. A committee member may be removed for other reasons by a three-fourths vote of the remaining directors.
Section 10 – Special meetings: Special meetings of the committee shall be called upon the request of the chair, or one-third of the committee. The secretary shall send out notices of special meetings to each committee member at least two weeks in advance.
ARTICLE V – OTHER COMMITTEES
Section 1 – Committee formation: The committee may create committees as needed, such as Political, Policy, Membership, PAC Development, and Special Events. The committee chair appoints all committee chairs.
Section 2 – Finance Committee: The treasurer is the chair of the Finance Committee, which includes three other Members. The Finance Committee is responsible for developing and reviewing fiscal procedures, fundraising plans, and the annual budget. The Executive Committee must approve the budget and all expenditures must be within budget. The committee or the Executive Committee must approve any major change in the budget. The fiscal year shall be the calendar year. Annual reports are required to be submitted to the committee showing income and expenditures. The financial records of the organization are public information and shall be made available to the membership and public.
ARTICLE VI – POLITICAL ENDORSEMENTS
Section 1 – Confirmation of Authority: As it is consistent with the mission of the organization, Young Democrats of Greater Saint Louis may choose to endorse political campaigns from time to time as deemed appropriate by the Executive Committee.
Section 2 – Endorsement Process: The Executive Committee reserves the right to endorse a political campaign on behalf of the Membership. The Executive Committee shall set policies and procedures to facilitate a fair endorsement process. Any member of the Executive Committee involved in a campaign through a candidate, staff, or consultant role must recuse himself or herself from participation in the endorsement process as it relates to the campaign and election under consideration.
Section 3 – Rights of the Membership: The Executive Committee must allow for open comment from the Membership as it relates to political endorsements. It is incumbent upon the Executive Committee to facilitate this process during the course of a regular meeting of the Membership.
ARTICLE VII – DIRECTOR AND STAFF
Section 1 – Authority to hire staff: The Young Democrats of Greater Saint Louis is an all-volunteer organization and may not hire staff to carry out the organization’s operations.
ARTICLE VII – AMENDMENTS
Section 1 – Amendments: These bylaws may be amended when necessary by a majority of the Membership. Proposed amendments must be submitted to the Secretary to be sent out with regular committee announcements.
CERTIFICATION
These bylaws were approved at a meeting of the Membership by a majority vote on ___April 4, 2011____.