ARTICLE I
NAME
The name of the organization will be Democratic Club of the Santa Rita Area, herein referred to as "DCSRA." The Democratic Club of the Santa Rita Area shall serve as an official unit of the Pima Country Democratic Committee and the Arizona State Democratic Committee in accordance with ARS Title 16, Sections 821-828. Nothing in these DCSRA bylaws shall be in nonconformance to the bylaws of the Pima County Democratic Party.
ARTICLE II
DCSRA shall influence, foster, encourage and promote the aims and objectives of the Democratic Party and aid in the election of Democratic candidates for public office.
ARTICLE III
MEMBERSHIP
Membership in the Club shall be open to all interested persons in the Santa Rita area. The dues shall be renewed on the anniversary date of joining. A notice for membership dues renewal will be sent or phone calls made during the month of the due date. The amount of dues will be set by the Executive Board and be approved by a majority vote of the membership present and voting at the May DCSRA meeting.
ARTICLE IV
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Section 1. Members
The Executive Board of DCSRA shall consist of a President, a First Vice President, a Second Vice President, a Recording Secretary, a Corresponding Secretary, a Treasurer, a Membership Chairperson, a Publicity Chairperson, and three Board Members at Large. The Executive Board shall be responsible for handling the day-to-day affairs of DCSRA to insure the purpose of Article II. A representative and an alternate to the Pima County Executive Committee shall be chosen by the DCSRA Board.
Section 2. Duties
a. The President shall preside at all meetings of DCSRA and the Executive Board and shall appoint all standing and ad hoc Committees subject to the approval of the Executive Board. The President shall be an ex officio member of all committees except the Nominating Committee.
b. The First Vice President shall, in the absence of the President, assume all the duties of the President. The President may assign other duties as required.
c. The Second Vice President shall, in the absence of the President and First Vice President, assume the duties of the President. The President may assign other duties as required.
d. The Recording Secretary shall keep a record of all proceedings of the DCSRA meetings and have such other duties as necessary. The Secretary shall preside at meetings in the absence of the President and the Vice Presidents. The President may assign other duties as required.
e. The Corresponding Secretary shall write thank you notes on request and correspondence with members. The President may assign other duties as required.
f. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the collection and disbursement of all funds in a manner approved by the DCSRA and Executive Board. The Treasurer shall keep all financial records and submit regular reports to the Board, serve as ex officio member of the Finance Committee and file reports as required by state law. The Treasurer shall reimburse expenditures of three hundred dollars or less and any expenditures exceeding three hundred dollars shall require approval by the President or by the Executive Board. A financial review committee shall be appointed by the President to review the financial records biannually or upon the resignation of the Treasurer.
g. All Executive Board members, including the three members at large, may be responsible for a committee, assigned by the Executive Board. The assigned Board member does not have to be the committee's chairperson.
h. In view of the expectation of fairness and equal treatment for all Democratic candidates, DCSRA Executive Board members are encouraged to refrain from using the titles of their offices in public endorsements of candidates involved in contested Democratic Primary elections. If they make endorsements as individual citizens, that is their right.
Section 3. Nominations
No later than the regular October DCSRA meeting, the President shall appoint three members of the DCSRA to serve as a Nominating Committee. This Committee shall present a slate of nominees for the DCSRA Executive Board at the November DCSRA meeting, at which time additional nominations may be made from the floor with the consent of the nominee.
Section 4. Elections
The President, First Vice President, Recording Secretary, Membership Chair and one member at large shall be elected in odd numbered years for two-year terms. The other six Executive Board members shall be elected in even numbered years for two-year terms.* Executive Board members will be elected at the December DCSRA meeting. When there is only one candidate for an Executive Board position, the election shall be by raised hands of the voting members of the DCSRA present. When there is more than one candidate for an Executive Board position, the election shall be by secret ballot of the voting members of the DCSRA present. Elections require a simple majority of members present at the December DCSRA meeting. Terms of office shall be two years.
Section 5. Removal from Office
Any DCSRA Executive Board member with three consecutive absences from the Executive Board meetings, or who fails to fulfill the duties of the office, may be asked to resign by the President. An Executive Board member may be removed by a two-thirds majority vote of the membership present at a special meeting.
Section 6. Vacancies
Any vacancy occurring on the Executive Board shall be filled with a DCSRA member elected by a majority of the Executive Board. The member so elected shall serve out the unexpired term until the next election.. In the event of a vacancy in the office of President, the First Vice President shall act as President until the election is held. In the event an Executive Board member runs for public office, the member shall resign prior to announcing his/her candidacy.
ARTICLE V
MEETINGS
Section 1. There must be no fewer than six (6) regular DCSRA meetings with no more than two (2) months between meetings in each calendar year. Executive Board meetings shall be held monthly with infrequent cancellations authorized by the President.
*To implement this provision of the By-Laws, in 2008, the President, First Vice President, the Membership, Secretary, the Publicity Chair and one member at large will be elected for a one year term.
Section 2. The President as approved by the Executive Board will set time and place of all regular DCSRA and Executive Board meetings.
Section 3. Special meetings may be called by the President or by a majority of the Executive Board, or by 25% of the membership of the DCSRA.
Section 4. Notice of the DCSRA meetings shall be announced through media releases, e-mail, the DCSRA web site and/or telephone calls at least one week prior to the meeting.
Section 5. Meetings will be conducted in accordance with these Bylaws and Robert’s Rules of Order.
Section 6. At DCSRA meetings, a majority of the members present shall constitute a quorum for the purposes of passing any motions that require voting. At Executive Board meetings, six members shall constitute a quorum.
ARTICLE VI
COMMITTEES
Section 1. There shall be the following standing committees:
Section 2. Ad Hoc Committees may be created by the President for special purposes.
Section 3. Descriptions of standing committees are attached to these bylaws.
ARTICLE VII
BYLAWS
Section 1. Effective date
These bylaws shall be in effect immediately upon their adoption.
Section 2. Amendments.
Following prior announcement within 30 days of the intent to revise the bylaws, they may be amended by a 2/3 vote of the members present and voting at a regular DCSRA monthly meeting.
Section 3. Review.
The Bylaw Committee shall review these bylaws at least biannually and shall recommend amendments as required.
ADOPTED IN A REGULAR MEETING OF THE DEMOCRATIC CLUB OF THE SANTA RITA AREA ON November 2008
Attested to by:
President
Recording Secretary
DEMOCRATIC CLUB OF THE SANTA RITA AREA STANDING COMMITTEES
Membership:
To recruit, welcome, and retain members in the Club; to help members identify Club activities with which they wish to be involved.
Program and Fundraising:
To develop and present programs at the Club's general meetings and special events that are of interest to members of the Club and the public and to work with the publicity committee to enhance attendance. To identify and sponsor activities which help the Club raise money for the support of Club goals and activities.
Finance:
To work with the Club Treasurer to assist him/her in monitoring the Club budget. To develop a budget for the fiscal year, September 1 to September 1, and present the budget to the Executive Board for approval at its August meeting.
Nominating:
Three members of the DCSRA appointed by the President of the Club will present a slate of nominees for DCSRA offices.
Bylaws:
To review Club bylaws at least biannually and recommend amendments as required.
Publicity:
To publicize Club programs and activities among Club members and interested others through the media, via telephone, direct mail, and e-mail.
Get Out The Vote Committee:
To organize, educate and energize the electorate on a local level by encouraging volunteers to reach out to their own neighbors.