HARC

Constitution
 

Constitution of the Hattiesburg Amateur Radio Club

Originally chartered by the American Radio Relay League in 1949

March 2011 revision

 

Article I. Name:

A. The organization shall be the Hattiesburg Amateur Radio Club and is referred to herein as “the club”.

Article II. Objectives:

A. To encourage and promote emergency preparedness, and to make the resources of the club available to concerned organizations in case of national or local emergency.

B. To promote good fellowship among the members of the club and among the amateur radio fraternity as a whole.

C. To establish working relationships among amateur operators and the rest of the community.

D. To encourage and promote interest in the art of amateur radio.

E. To insist on strict compliance with the rules and regulations governing amateur radio as set forth by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Article III. Membership:

A. Persons eligible to apply for membership shall be those who are now, or are interested in becoming licensed amateur radio operators or in supporting their operations.

B. Applicants will be considered full members upon payment of dues and acceptance of their application by the executive board.

C. To maintain membership in good standing, a member must have dues and assessments paid currently and attend a minimum of one meeting per year. Members not meeting these requirements may be dropped from the rolls after review by the executive board.

Article IV. Officers:

A: Elected:

Elected officers are the president, vice-president, treasurer, and secretary. The executive board shall consist of the elected officers plus the president from the preceding year. If a president is elected for a second term the serving past president shall serve another term on the board.

Article V. Elections:

A. Candidates for elected office shall be licensed amateur radio operators whose membership in the club is in good standing and have been members of the club for at least one year prior to taking office. The president and vice-president shall be holders of a valid General or higher class license.

B. Candidates who consent to run for elected office may be nominated during the October and/or November meeting by a nominating committee or by nominations from the floor.

C. Elections may be by a plurality of the members in good standing present using show of hands or by secret ballot at the November club meeting.

D. Elected officers shall assume office at the end of the November club meeting. Club documentation should be passed to new officers at the November meeting.

E. The term for elected officers shall be one year.

F. The president and vice-president may be re-elected to their same office for one additional year. Such officers shall again be eligible for election to that office after a lapse of one year. There is no term limit for treasurer or secretary.

Article VI. Removal from office:

A. Any officer may be removed from office by announcing the removal attempt at a regular meeting and by a two-thirds vote of those members in good standing attending the next regular meeting.

B. The president may appoint any otherwise qualified club member in good standing to complete the unexpired term of any elected office. If the unexpired term is for the presidency, the vive-president shall assume that office and may appoint a new vice-president. In lieu of appointing a member to complete an unexpired term of office, the president may, at his option, call a special election at the next meeting.

Article VII. Committees:

A. The president is empowered to appoint standing committees and special committees necessary for the efficient operation of the club.

Article VIII. Meetings:

A. Meetings shall be held and conducted as outlined in the bylaws.

Article IX.  Dues:

A. Dues and/or assessments as required shall be collected as established in the bylaws.

Article X. Quorum:

A. A quorum for regularly scheduled meetings, including executive board meetings, shall consist of the members present. The quorum for other meetings shall be 20% of the membership in good standing as determined by the executive board.

Article XI. Ratification:

A. This constitution shall be considered ratified if accepted by a two-thirds majority of the members present at the time of submittal for ratification.

B. Bylaws as needed may be developed and proposed by the executive board for ratification by the membership. Bylaw ratification shall require a majority of members present at a regularly scheduled meeting if the proposed bylaw has been introduced at a previous meeting.

Article XII. Amendments:

C. A. After ratification and adoption, these articles may be amended by a vote of two-thirds of the members present at a regularly scheduled meeting provided the proposed bylaw has been introduced at a previous meeting or has been advertised to the membership by mail at least one week in advance of the meeting.

Article XIII. Affiliation:

A. The club shall maintain a charter of affiliation with the American Radio Relay League.

END