Revision as of 19:19, 11 February 2013

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

Regular members must have two signatures from board sponsors on a completed membership application.

Section 1.2 - Board Members

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

Section 2 – Rights and Responsibilities of Members

Section 2.1 - Regular Members

The organization recognizes the rights of all members to have unattended access to the organization’s facilities. The 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. The organization requires members to pledge a monthly contribution which the member may change at his or her discretion. This contribution may take the form of volunteered services to the organization if a member is unwilling or unable to pledge a monetary donation. Members must follow all rules set by the board pertaining to the organization’s facilities and must adhere to behavior befitting a member of the 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 member. 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 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. He or she 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.

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 forth of current members will overturn this decision and invoke a public election for the given board positions.

Section 3.3 - Inactivity

A member is deemed inactive if he or she fails to provide a monthly pledged contribution for three months and shall forfeit membership.

ARTICLE III – Voting

Section 1 - Proposals

Written proposals must be submitted to a board member for sponsorship. If sponsored, a proposal must be made publicly available for review for no less than three days before the proposal may be voted on. 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. Majority of non-abstaining nay votes will cause vote to fail.
2. Minimum two nays to reconsider proposal vote at next meeting.
3. A membership vote can only be reconsidered once. A second vote resulting in at least two "Nay" votes causes a proposal vote to fail.
4. Given less than two "Nay" votes, majority of non-abstaining "Yea" votes will cause the motion to pass.
5. Once called to vote, a motion is open for vote for five days or until all votes are cast. At this time, the motion passes, fails, or is reconsidered.

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 active 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.

Article IV – Revisions to These Bylaws

Section 1 – Revisions

Proposed revisions must be submitted to the Secretary to be sent out with regular board announcements. These bylaws may only be changed by a unanimous decision by the sitting board of directors.

Article V – Dissolution of the Organization

Section 1 – Dissolution

The organization may 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 the organization passes, assets may be liquidized to pay off any debt the organization may have accrued. Any remaining assets of the 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.