Bylaws

Bylaws of Makers Local 256

ARTICLE I — NAME AND PURPOSE

Section 1 - Name

The name of the organization shall be Makers Local 256. Makers Local 256 shall be a nonprofit organization incorporated under the laws of the State of Alabama.

Section 2 - Purpose

Makers Local 256 is organized exclusively for charitable, scientific and education purposes. In addition to exploring the benefits of productivity through volunteer collaboration, the organization’s primary objectives are to create, educate, and learn.

ARTICLE II — Members

Section 1 - Eligibility

Section 1.1 - Regular Members

A person must have two signatures from board sponsors on a completed membership application to be eligible for membership in this organization.

Section 1.2 - Board Members

A member is eligible for a position of the Board of Directors if they have remained a member for at least 3 consecutive months immediately preceding the election.

Section 2 – Rights and Responsibilities of Members

Section 2.1 - Regular Members

This organization recognizes the rights of all members to have unattended access to this organization’s facilities. This organization also recognizes the rights of members to vote in all elections opened to regular members. This includes, but is not limited to, election of the Board of Directors. This organization requires members to pledge a monthly contribution which the member may change at his or her discretion by notifying the secretary of this organization. This contribution may take the form of volunteered services to this organization if a member is unwilling or unable to pledge a monetary donation. Members must follow all rules set by the board pertaining to this organization’s facilities and must adhere to behavior befitting a member of this organization.

Section 2.2 - Board Members

Board members inherit all rights and responsibilities of regular members. The Board of Directors shall vote on all matters concerning the acquisition or release of resources, maintenance of facilities or organization, changes to these bylaws, membership requests, and any other matters not delegated to a board officer. They shall also hold at least one meeting per quarter.

Section 2.3 - Board Officers

Officers of the Board of Directors shall be selected by the newly elected board and consist of willing board members. Board officers may appoint a willing board member to temporarily fulfill the duties of the office in the event of their absence. Board officers may also lead a committee composed of members and/or board members which fulfills the duties of the office. Semi-permanent officer positions may be created and destroyed via proposals. Semi-permanent officer creation proposals shall contain the name of the position and a description of duties to be fulfilled by the position.

Section 2.3.1 - Chairman

The Chairman shall be responsible for leading general and board meetings.

Section 2.3.2 - Secretary

The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping records of board actions, including overseeing the taking of minutes at all board meetings, sending out meeting announcements, and assuring that corporate records are maintained.

Section 2.3.3 - Treasurer

The treasurer shall have custody of, and be held accountable for, all funds and securities of the organization, receive and give receipts for all monetary transactions of the organization, and deposit all such monies in the name of the organization. The treasurer shall publish a monthly financial report.

Section 3 - Resignation and Expulsion

Section 3.1 - Regular Members

A member may be expelled from the organization at the discretion of the Board of Directors if he or she fails to observe the responsibilities of a regular member.

A member may be abruptly terminated without warning if he or she commits a criminal act upon person or property while on organization premises or at organization functions.

A member may be expelled from the organization for behavior unbefitting a member of this organization after being given an actionable warning for an initial actionable complaint and receiving a second actionable complaint for the same category of offense. When a member is expelled, votes leading directly to the expulsion and the nature of the associated complaints will be made available to members of the organization and the person in question will be denied access to organization functions and organization facilities for three months.

Section 3.2 - Board Members

A member may submit a proposal to cast a revote for one or more given board positions during the elected member’s term. If this proposal is struck down by the board, a petition signed by one quarter of current members will overturn this decision and invoke a public election for the given board positions.

A board member shall be expelled from the board for behavior unbefitting a member of this organization after receiving an actionable complaint and associated actionable warning. When a board member is removed from the board, votes leading directly to the removal and the nature of the associated complaint will be made available to the members of the organization.

Section 3.3 - Delinquency of Pledge

Membership is forfeited if the member fails to provide a monthly pledged contribution for three months.

ARTICLE III – Voting

Section 1 - Proposals

Written proposals must be submitted to a board member for sponsorship. If sponsored, a proposal must be made available to the membership for review for three days before the proposal comes up for a vote. Proposals shall be voted upon by the board of directors. The methods for determining the result of proposal vote (with the exception of bylaws amendments) are as follows:

1. Two or more nay votes cause the proposal to fail.
2. Yea votes failing to exceed nay votes causes the proposal to fail.
3. Once called to vote, a proposal is open for vote for five days or until further votes can not affect the outcome. At this time, the proposal passes or fails.

Section 2 - Board of Directors

Elections for the Board of Directors shall occur semiannually at dates determined by the sitting Board of Directors and shall be open to all members. Each voter shall vote “Yea” or “Nay” for each candidate. The number of "Yea" votes for a candidate must exceed fifty percent of votes cast for the candidate to be elected. When the election results are confirmed and announced, the board seats are vacated and assumed by the newly elected members.

Section 3 - Complaints

Section 3.1 - Member Complaints

A complaint from one person against a member of the organization delivered to the Board of Directors in writing will be evaluated for actionability by a vote of the Board of Directors. A simple majority of non-abstaining votes in favor of the complaint make it actionable. Board of Directors members directly involved in the complaint as plaintiff or defendant are forced to abstain from the vote on the actionability of said complaint. Multiple complaints about the same incident will be considered as a single complaint, regardless of when the complaints are made known. Actionable complaints will be made known to the defendant in writing. Non-actionable complaints will be made known to the defendant verbally or in writing. The determination of actionability will occur no more than 72 hours after first contact by the defendant after the complaint is presented. Contact shall include direct response to the board by the defendant, in person communication with the defendant, or any usage of the organization's facilities by the defendant.

Section 3.2 - Non-Member Complaints

A complaint against a non-member delivered to the Board of Directors in writing will be evaluated for actionability by a vote of the Board of Directors. A simple majority of non-abstaining votes in favor of the complaint make it actionable. Board of Directors members directly involved in the complaint as plaintiff are forced to abstain from the vote on the actionability of said complaint. Multiple complaints about the same incident will be considered as a single complaint, regardless of when the complaints are made known. Actionable complaints will be made known to the defendant in writing. Non-actionable complaints will be made known to the defendant verbally or in writing. The determination of actionability will occur no more than 72 hours after first contact by the defendant after the complaint is presented, or if the non-member is unavailable, at the Board's discretion. Contact shall include direct response to the Board by the defendant, in person communication with the defendant, or any usage of the organization's facilities by the defendant. A non-member may be expelled from the organization for misbehavior after being given an actionable warning for any actionable complaint. If a non-member is expelled, votes leading directly to the expulsion and the nature of the associated complaints will be made available to members of the organization and the person in question will be denied access to organization functions and organization facilities for a period chosen at the Board's discretion, up to and including perpetuity.

Article IV – Revisions to These Bylaws

Section 1 – Revisions

Proposed revisions to these bylaws must follow the same process as a proposal with one exception; changes to these bylaws require a unanimous decision by the sitting board of directors in the affirmative to pass and take effect.

Article V – Dissolution of the Organization

Section 1 – Dissolution

The organization shall not dissolve less than 30 days from the time a proposal to dissolve passes.

Section 2 – Asset Distribution

In the event that a movement to dissolve this organization passes, this organization's assets shall be liquidated to pay off any outstanding debt if necessary. Any remaining assets of this organization must be donated to an IRS 501c3 compliant charitable, educational, or scientific endeavor.

CERTIFICATION

These bylaws were approved at a meeting of the board of directors by a unanimous vote on October 6, 2009.