HAWAI`I BEEKEEPERS' ASSOCIATION
BYLAWS
(As Amended February 24, 2003)
ARTICLE I
The name of this organization shall be the Hawai`i Beekeepers' Association (HBA). It is a non-profit corporation formed under the laws of the State of Hawai`i, with the purpose to assist and educate beekeepers, to maintain our individual rights as beekeepers, to encourage beekeeping as a hobby and as an industry, to promote natural beekeeping and methods and to create a positive public image of beekeeping. The offices of HBA shall reside in the City and County of Honolulu, Hawai`i, in a place designated by the Board of Directors.
Section 1. Individuals who are interested in beekeeping and subscribe to the objectives of this organization may join by submitting an application to the Treasurer and paying dues.
Section 2. There shall be five categories of Membership in the HBA as follows:
- Regular Member – shall be entitled to all benefits of the Association and voting privileges;
- Family Member – A Regular member may sponsor immediate members of his/her family as a Family Member; such Family Member being entitled to benefits of the Association less voting privileges.
- Associate Member – shall be entitled to receive the newsletter only.
- Sustaining Member – an individual who sponsors beekeeping through contributions to HBA, also receives the newsletter.
- Corporate Member – a business entity which sponsors beekeeping through contributions to HBA, also receives the newsletter.
Section 3. The Board of Directors shall set the dues for each category of membership annually. Dues shall be due and collected based on the calendar year commencing in January of each year.
Section 4. The current dues structure for membership shall be:
- Regular - $15;
- Family - $15 Regular Membership plus $5 for each named family member to a maximum of $25 for all;
- Associate - $12;
- Sustaining - $50 or more;
- Corporate - $100 or more.
Section 5. Only Regular Members in good standing may vote at any meeting. Members in arrears (dues not paid) for sixty (60) days shall be dropped from the rolls.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 1. The
Board of Directors shall be the governing body of the Association and shall be
responsible for managing the property of and conducting the business and all
other affairs of the Association not delegated to the membership or to
committees so authorized by the Charter of Incorporation or these Bylaws. The Board shall consist of seven (7)
Directors, such officers being the President, Vice President, Secretary,
Treasurer and three (3) At-Large Directors.
Section 2. The
Board of Directors shall be elected by ballot at the annual meeting for a term
of two years. No member shall be
elected to the Board for more than two consecutive terms unless an insufficient
number of candidates are nominated.
Section 3. Any
vacancy occurring on the Board between Annual Meeting of the Association shall
be filled by affirmative vote of the remaining Directors. A Director so selected shall serve
until the next Annual Meeting.
Section 4. At
the first meeting of the Board following the Annual Meeting the Board shall
elect the principal officers of the Association by a majority vote of the
Directors, shall organize itself and organize its committees and committee chairs.
Committees Chairs shall attend Board meetings as business may require. The Board shall have the power to make
rules for its own governance.
Section 5. The
Board of Directors shall meet at least once a month. Special Meetings may be called by the President or by any
three Directors provided notice is given each other Director at least three
days prior to the Special Meeting, its purpose clearly stated and no other
business conducted at such meeting. The President may permit, or not permit,
members and others to attend Board meetings as observers or as business may
require. A quorum of the
Board shall be required to conduct any business of the Association, such quorum
being at least four Directors.
Section 6. No
Director, Officer, Committee Member, or any volunteer member working on behalf
of the HBA shall be held liable for any of their actions excepting gross
negligence and shall be indemnified and held harmless from any consequences of
their actions. (24 Feb '03)
ARTICLE IV
Section 1. It shall be the duty of the President to preside at meetings of the Association, coordinate its activities, and perform all duties usually pertaining to this office.
Section 2. In the absence or disability of the President, the Vice President shall perform all the duties of the President. The Vice President shall also serve as the Chair of the Nominating Committee and act as the primary election official, supervising nominations, elections and balloting.
Section 3. The Secretary shall perform such duties as are usual to this office; shall keep the minutes of all proceedings and record the same, maintain historical documents and conduct routine correspondence for the Association.
Section 4. The
Treasurer shall take applications for new membership and keep a roster of
members; receive all funds of the Association and deposit same in a two
signature checking account in a federally insured bank. The Treasurer will disburse funds only
as authorized by a majority vote at any meeting of the organization, provided a
quorum is present, maintain accurate records of income and disbursements and
make these records available to any member on request. The Treasurer shall make an annual
report of receipts and disbursements and perform such duties as are usual to
this office, including filing the annual Non-Profit Corporation Exhibit with
the State of Hawaii.
Section 5. The Board of Directors shall also be responsible either through its Directors or its Committees or special assignments to publish and mail, or email, to all members, a quarterly newsletter; to interact with the media, educators, public officials or the general public to disseminate information on the Association and on beekeeping; to ensure the membership is kept fully informed of legislation affecting beekeepers, of beekeeping techniques, diseases or any scientific or technical matter affecting beekeeping.
Section 6. The Board of Directors shall present to the membership, for its approval, at the first scheduled meeting following the Annual Meeting in November a budget for the upcoming year. Once approved, the Board shall authorize expenditures in accordance with the budget and may exceed budget line items by not more than 10% without approval of the membership. In any case the Board may not expend any funds in excess of $500 without approval of the membership.
ARTICLE V
COMMITTEES
Section 1. At the first organizational meeting of the Board, the Directors shall organize committees and appoint the Chairs by a majority vote of the Directors; Chairs may appoint other volunteer members to their committees as needed. Committees shall work under the guidance and direction of, and shall report to, the Board. The Board may accept or reject by a majority vote, those recommendations relative to the direct business responsibilities of the Board. Those recommendations from the Committees which may require a vote of the membership may be accepted or rejected for presentation to the membership by a majority vote of the Board.
Section 2. The standing committees of this association shall be:
A. A Nominating Committee to present a list of candidates for election to office the following year. The Vice President is the Chair of this committee.
B. A Public Relations Committee to formulate Association policies to be submitted to the Board and the membership for endorsement and to disseminate such approved policies when and where appropriate.
C. A Scientific Committee to maintain current knowledge of apiary sciences and so advise the Board and the membership. The Chair of the Scientific Committee shall also maintain a library of documents related to beekeeping for use by the members.
D. An Auditing Committee to report on the correctness of the Treasurer's accounts, to ensure that expenditures are consistent with the budget and other authorizations and to conduct an audit at least annually in the month following elections, or at any time the Treasurer's duties are passed to another member.
E. A Newsletter Committee to manage, edit and publish the HBA newsletter known as the "HI Bee News". The "HI Bee News" is the official newsletter of the HBA and shall also serve as an appropriate medium for disseminating notices of meetings, agendas and other information from the Board. This committee shall publish and or update directives guiding the operation of the newsletter, such directives to be authorized by the Board. It shall also be authorized to maintain a separate monetary account for the newsletter expenses and income from ads and, as an objective, seek to be financially self-sufficient.
Section 3. The Board shall appoint other special committees as needed or as may be directed by majority vote of the members present at any meeting, provided a quorum is present.
ARTICLE VI
MEETINGS, PROCEDURES AND QUORUM
Section 1. Meetings shall be held on the last Monday of the month designated. Four meetings per year shall be designated as business meetings to be held in February, May, August and November, and the President shall notify the membership of such meetings and the agenda. The November meeting shall be designated the Annual Meeting, for elections and other business.
Section 2. Special
Meetings of the membership may be called by the President or, in his absence,
by the Vice President; or upon application of 15% of the members, the President
shall call such a meeting. Notice
of time, place and purpose of the meeting together with statement of business
to be voted upon, shall be given in writing, personally, or mailed, or emailed
to each member, not more than 20 days or less than 10 days before the
meeting. No other business shall
be transacted except that for which the meeting was called.
Section 3. 15%
of the membership in good standing, present and in person shall constitute a
quorum for the transaction of business.
Section 4. Members
in good standing shall be entitled to one vote. Elections shall be by ballot and plurality of votes cast
shall elect. All other matters
shall be by a majority vote of members present in person and voting unless
otherwise provided by law or in these Bylaws. For any and all voting, members may vote by only one of the
following methods: 1) in person at the meeting called for that purpose, 2) by
official ballot mailed or otherwise delivered to the member by the Board or its
designated Nominating Committee and returned in accordance with its
instructions, 3) by mail or email to the
Vice President or other appointed Officer, 4) by on-line voting procedures on
the HBA web site(24 Feb '03) or, 5) in the case of a Special
Meeting where a specific agenda may be voted upon, by proxy given by one member
to another member to vote in his stead, said proxy submitted in writing and
verified as being from a member in good standing. The proxy must contain at least the information contained in
the following example:
Official HBA Proxy
I (Member's name) hereby empower (voting member's name) to vote for me at the (month/year) meeting. This proxy is valid only for the meeting mentioned above and any legal adjournment thereof.
________________________ Member's Signature _____________ Date
Section 5. Nominations may be made from the floor provided that the nominee is present and consents to the nomination or has given such consent in writing when not present.
Section 6. The calendar year shall be the fiscal year.
Amendment
These Bylaws may be amended at any meeting by a two-thirds vote, a quorum being present, provided notice of such amendments and the nature thereof shall have been mailed to the membership at least ten days prior to the date of the meeting
ARTICLE VIII
Robert's Rules of Order, as revised, shall govern all proceedings of this Association.