By Laws

Upon an affirmative vote by a majority of members present, these Bylaws shall be adopted and will supersede any previous or existing bylaws.

Article 1. Name
The name of this organization shall be Bay Area Writers League (BAWL), hereinafter referred to as League.

Article 11. Purpose
Section 1.
The purpose of this League shall primarily be educational; mutual assistance; literary encouragement; informational networking; and the engagement of speakers to increase individual skills; and secondarily, to hold conferences, contests, and other writing-related activities.

Section 2.
This League is organized exclusively for nonprofit educational purposes; including, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt under Section 50 1 (C)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Section 3.
No part of the net earnings of the organization shall be used for the benefit, or be distributed to, its members, directors, officers or other private persons, except that the organization shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions to furtherance of the purposes set forth in these articles.

Section 4.
No part of the activities of this organization shall consist of carrying on propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the organization shall not participate or intervene in any political campaign (including the publishing or distribution of statements) on behalf of any candidate for public office.

Article III. Membership, Rights and Dues
Section 1.
Membership is open to all persons pursuing the art of writing, and the purpose of the League. The privileges of membership are conferred upon full receipt of one year's dues, and will remain in effect for one calendar year thereafter.

Section 2.
Privileges are deemed to be full participation in all League activities, some partial reductions or discounts in sponsored events and full participation in all elections and referendums.

Section 3.
There is no discrimination of members on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; and no person is to be excluded from service or from holding office in the organization because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

Section 4.
Annual dues shall be proposed by the Board and approved by the members.

Section 5.
Any member may be automatically dropped from the rolls of the League for failing to pay dues within 30 days of their anniversary date, the date the member joined the League. Members delinquent in payment of dues shall not be entitled to vote in the election of officers, and on other issues necessary to the function of League Business, and shall not receive a newsletter. Payment of dues in arrears shall reinstate membership in full.

Section 6.
Any member or officer of the League may be removed for cause by an affirmative vote of two- thirds of the membership whenever in its judgment the best interest of the League will be served thereby. Notification of vote for removing a member or officer shall be by announcement one month in advance. A notice of any dismissal shall be sent by registered mail to the member in question. Notice may also be fulfilled by publication in the Monthly Newsletter in the two immediate months preceding the scheduled vote.

Section 7.
The following acts shall be grounds for expulsion:

Admission of an act of plagiarism or copyright infringement or being found guilty of such in a court of law;
Failure to pay, following receipt of written demand, financial obligations due the League, other than annual dues;
Conduct which shall be considered offensive or disruptive at any meeting or sponsored event;
Misuse or unauthorized use of League property, records or funds;
Illegal or unethical conduct in an election process.
Section 8.
Any member considered for expulsion will be notified of the date, time and place of the Board meeting to consider such action and will be given the opportunity to respond and present evidence in his/her own behalf.

Article IV. Board Of Directors
Section 1.
The affairs of the League shall be managed by its Board of Directors, hereinafter referred to as the Board. The Board shall establish policy and procedures in accordance with these Bylaws.

Section 2.
The Board shall be composed of the following:

Section 3.
Announcements of nominations will be made in March. Nominations for officers may be made from the floor by active members at the April meeting. Each nominated person will submit a short biography to be published in the Newsletter before the May meeting. Elections will be held at the June meeting and the new Board will take office at the July meeting. Election shall be by a simple majority of those members present and voting during the election.

Section 4.
Any Board member may resign at any time by delivering in hand or by registered mail his or her resignation to the President or Secretary, or to the principal address of the League.

Section 5.
Any vacancy occurring on the Board shall be filled by appointment by the Board within sixty (60) days of the vacancy, and shall be for the unexpired portion of the term.

Article V. Duties of Officers
Section 1. President.
The President, when present, shall preside at all meetings. He/she shall see that books, reports and certificates are properly kept and filed by the concerned Board member. The President shall perform such duties and have such powers in addition to the foregoing as the League shall designate. The President shall have signature authority for writing checks. The President shall serve as ex-officio member of all committees.

Section 2. Vice President.
In the event of absence or inability of the President to perform his/her duties, the powers and duties of that office shall be performed by the Vice President with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities belonging to that office. The Vice President shall be responsible for the scheduling of speakers and shall be able to sign checks.

Section 3. Secretary.
The Secretary shall keep the minutes and give copies to the Newsletter Editor for monthly publication. All minutes and copies of official correspondence shall be kept by the Secretary in appropriate books. If unable to attend a meeting, the Secretary shall insure a replacement person is available to perform these duties.

Section 4. Treasurer.
The Treasurer shall have the care and custody of all funds belonging to the League. The funds shall be placed in banks designated by the Treasurer with approval of the League, and no funds shall be set aside from these accounts. All monies received shall be deposited within fourteen days. The treasurer shall be the principal officer to sign checks. All checks over $500.00 shall require two authorized signatures. He/she shall keep accurate books and make no expenditures other than operating expenses approved by the membership or other budgeted expenses approved by committee chairpersons. The Treasurer shall be responsible for submitting quarterly financial reports to the membership and to the Newsletter Editor for publication within the month following the end of each quarter.

Section 5. Newsletter Editor.
The Newsletter Editor shall be responsible for publishing a monthly newsletter. The newsletter will contain monthly minutes, quarterly treasurer reports and then in priority the following: local success stories, publishing opportunities and technical information such as grammar lessons or comparable information. The Newsletter Editor will also consider additional articles deemed of interest to membership as room permits. The Newsletter Editor shall determine guidelines and deadlines. The Newsletter shall be sent to all current members.

Article VI. Committees
Section 1.
Standing committee chairmen shall be appointed by the Board and approved by the membership. The Standing Committees are as follows:

Section 2.
Chairpersons of Ad Hoc Committees, such as Conference, will also be appointed by the Board and approved by the membership. Chairpersons of other recurring Ad Hoc Committees,such as Nominating and Bylaws Committees will be appointed by the President.

Section 3.
The Board shall compose the Executive Committee and may include the chairmen of the Standing Committees at the discretion of the Board.

Article VII. Amendments.
Section 1.
An amendment to these Bylaws may be proposed in either of the following ways:

Section 2.
All proposed amendments shall be referred to the Board for determining that the proposed amendment does not conflict with other provisions of the Bylaws. The Board shall be authorized to redraft the proposed amendments in order to avoid or reconcile potential conflicts with the existing provisions of the Bylaws.

Section 3.
After the Board has reviewed the proposed amendment(s) pursuant to Section 2 of this Article, the Secretary shall send a copy of the proposed amendment to the Newsletter Editor who shall publish the proposed amendment in the issue prior to the next meeting, and, upon favorable vote of a majority of all present members at that next meeting, such amendment shall be adopted.

Article V111. Dissolution
In the event of dissolution of the League, the assets of the League, after all obligations have been paid, shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(C)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future Federal tax code.

End of Bylaws

Signed by the President:

Copyright © 1999 The Bay Area Writers League, All Rights Reserved.