Bylaws

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Contents

These bylaws were approved on Wednesday - October 7, 2009.

Article I — NAME, MISSION, and PURPOSE

Section 1 — Name

The name of the organization shall be Harford Hackerspace and may be abreviated as HaHa. It shall be a nonprofit organization incorporated under the laws of the State of Maryland.

Section 2 — Mission

Harford Hackerspace is organized exclusively for charitable, scientific, and educational purposes. The mission of this organization is:

  • To unify community members with similar interest in order to share their knowledge in an educational environment and to engage the next generation with hands-on, technical experiential activities.

Section 3 — General purpose

Harford Hackerspace is organized exclusively for charitable, educational, and scientific purposes within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code.

Article II — MEMBERSHIP

Section 1 — Eligibility for Membership

(a) Standard Members are defined as any individual that supports the mission statement in Article I, Section 2 of the bylaws. Individuals not 18 years of age must have their parent or gaurdians written approval to join.
(b) Board Members are defined as Standard Members or Charter Members who have been elected to serve in a position on the Board of Directors.
(c) Charter Members are defined as the group of individuals involved in the creation of the organization. More specifically Charter members are members who paid dues and contributed donations prior to Harford Hackerspace renting or owning realestate. A Standard Member can become a Charter Member with a unanimous vote of all existing Charter Members.
(d) Student Members are defined as individuals who are actively enrolled in a school and elect not to be a Standard Member. A student members is also known as a Starving Hacker.
(e) Guest Members are defined as individuals who are related to members with the qualifying relationship being limited to spouses and offspring under the age of 18. Therefore, cousins, uncles, mothers, fathers, grandparents, etc. are not eligable for guest membership.

Section 2 — Membership dues

Section 2.1 — Standard Member Dues

(a) The amount, payment period, due date and acceptable methods for collection of dues shall be reviewed each year at the annual meeting. The board may accept pledges that are not monetary, such as maintaining property, advertising the organization, etc.

Section 2.2 — Board Member Dues

(a) The amount, payment period, due date and acceptable methods for collection of dues shall be reviewed each year at the annual meeting. The board may accept pledges that are not monetary, such as maintaining property, advertising the organization, etc.

Section 2.3 — Charter Member Dues

(a) Charter Member dues shall be set by the Charter Members at the beginning of each fiscal year, and may be changed by a 3/4 vote of all Charter Members during the year at a Specially called meeting of the Charter Members. Continued Charter Membership is contingent upon being up-to-date on membership pledge.

Section 2.4 — Student Member Dues

(a) The amount, payment period, due date and acceptable methods for collection of dues shall be reviewed each year at the annual meeting. The board may accept pledges that are not monetary, such as maintaining property, advertising the organization, etc.

Section 2.5 — Guest Member Dues

(a) Guest defined in Article II. Section 1 (e) are exempt from dues.

Section 3 — Rights and Responsibilities of Members

Section 3.1 — Regular Members

(a) Members may vote in organization elections.
(b) Members may serve on the board of the organization.
(c) Members shall vouch for guest, taking responsibility for the property of the organization upon themselves.
(d) Members may request unsupervised access to the organization's facilities.
(e) Members shall follow all rules set by the board.

Section 3.2 — Board Members

(a) Board Members may vote in organization elections.
(b) Board Members shall serve a term of one year.
(c) Board Members shall be allowed to serve an unlimited amount of terms.
(d) Board Members shall vouch for guest, taking responsibility for the property of the organization upon themselves.
(e) Board Members shall state an intended pledge amount to help offset the costs of the organization.
(f) Board Members shall follow all rules set by the board.
(g) Board Members shall have unattended access to the property of the organization.
(h) Board Members shall be able to motion for a vote on issues.

Section 3.3 — Charter Members

(a) Charter Members shall have unattended access to the property of the organization.
(b) Charter Members may Reset the Board with a 3/4 vote in favor by the Charter Members. All previous Board members may re-run for the open Board positions after a Board Reset. Board members must be voted in by majority after a Board Reset, candidates may not be elected by default.
(c) Charter Members may serve as a Board member in addition to the already existing Board Members only while present at a Board Meeting or by proxy.
(d) Charter Members shall vouch for guest, taking responsibility for the property of the organization upon themselves.

Section 3.4 — Student Members

(a) Student Members shall not vote in elections.
(b) Student Members shall not serve on the board.
(c) Student Members shall vouch for guest, taking responsibility for the property of the organization upon themselves.
(d) Student Members shall state an intended pledge amount to help offset the costs of the organization.
(e) Student Members are required to complete a specified amount of service hours set by the board.

Section 3.5 - Guest Members

(a) Guest Members shall not vote in elections.
(b) Guest Members shall not serve on the board.
(d) Guest Members shall follow all rules set by the board.

Section 4 — Resignation and termination

(a) Any member may resign by filing a written resignation with the secretary.
(b) A non Charter Member can have their membership terminated by a majority vote of the membership.
(c) Upon resignation or termination all property loaned to the terminated/resigned member by Harford Hackerspace must be returned. Similarly all property the resigning member has loaned to the collective space will be returned to the resigning member or made available for the individual to pick up. The terminated/resigned shall have 30 days from the date written on a signed resignation or notice of termnination to pick up any property. If the property is not collected it is considered abandoned and becomes property of Harford Hackerspace.

Article III — MEETINGS OF MEMBERS

Section 1 — Regular meetings

(a) Regular meetings of the members shall be held at minimum once quarterly, at a time and place designated by the chair.

Section 2 — Annual meetings

(a) An annual meeting of the members shall take place for the purpose of:
  • Electing a new board
  • Creating or terminating additional board positions.
  • Allow board members to motion for a vote on any outstanding issues.

Section 3 — Special meetings

(a) Special meetings may be called by the chair or a simple majority of the board. A petition signed by no less than fifty one percent of voting members may also call a special meeting.
(b) New Board positions may be created during special meetings only when forming a committee.

Section 4 — Voting

(a) Board members shall motion to vote and a second motion is required for all issues.
(b) Members must be present to vote or they must submit a vote to the secretary, by proxy, either on paper or via e-mail.

Section 5 — Quorum

(a) At a duly called meeting, at least 25% (one quarter) of the entire voting membership shall constitute a quorum.

ARTICLE IV — BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1 — Board role, size and compensation:

(a) The board is responsible for overall policy and direction of the association, and delegates responsibility of day-to-day operations to volunteers and committees.
(b) There shall be up to Ten (10) officers but no fewer than Three (3) officers collectively referred to as 'The board'. The shall always be a President also referred to as the Chair, a Treasurer, and a Secretary.
(c) No officer shall be compensated for their service as an officer, though the corporation may provide insurance and indemnity for officers as allowed by law.

Section 2 — Terms

(a) All board members shall serve one year terms.

Section 3 — Meetings and notice

(a) The board shall meet at least quarterly, at an agreed upon time and place. An official board meeting requires that each board member receive written notice (such as email) at least 14 days in advance.

Section 4 — Board election protocol

(a) Any member can nominate a candidate to the slate of nominees.
(b) Nominations should be submitted to the Secretary.
(c) Elections will be held at the Annual Meeting except in the event of a vacancy or during a special meeting to form a new committee.
(d) At least three board members must be elected to fill the positions of Chair, Treasurer, and Secretary.
(e) The Board shall have up to 10 elected members, but no fewer than 3.
(f) To be elected, nominees must receive a majority vote by the members present at the annual meeting or special meeting or by proxy.
(g) Votes will be accepted on paper, ballot style to be taken up and counted by the secretary.
(h) Additional board positions may be created or terminated at the annual meeting or special meeting by a majority vote of the members in attendance or by proxy.
(k) Members shall be elected for any additional board posistions.

Section 5 — Quorum

(a) Two thirds (2/3) of board members constitues a quorum for business transactions to take place and motions to pass.

Section 6 — Officers and duties

(a) There shall be no less than three officers of the board, consisting of a Chair, Treasurer, and Secretary. Additional board positions are optional and their duties shall be amended to the bylaws in writing.
(b) The Chair shall convene regularly scheduled board meetings, shall preside or arrange for other members of the Executive Committee to preside at each meeting. If the chair cannot make the meeting, the Chair shall arrange for another board member to preside at the meeting.
(c) 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, distributing copies of minutes and the agenda to each board member, and assuring that corporate records are maintained.
(d) The Treasurer shall make a report on finances at each board meeting. The treasurer shall chair the finance committee, assist in the preparation of the budget, help develop fundraising plans, and make financial information available to board members and the public.
(e) The Safety Coordinator shall be responsible for ensuring that safety information is freely available to all persons using the Hackerspace for all relevant subjects,to include, but not limited to Operators manuals, safety tip sheets, warning signs and notices, and MSDS's. The Coordinator will ensure that safety instruction is available for anyone in the Hackerspace upon request. The Coordinator will be the contact for notification of defective or unsafe equipment and situations and will co-ordinate the removal from service and repair/return to service of such situations. This is an optional Board position.
(f) The Public Affairs Contact shall serve as a contact point for the Harford Hackerspace with regards to its dealings with the public and other organizations. The Contact shall be in charge of the upkeep of the official calendar of events for the Harford Hackerspace. Any member may initiate or conduct conversations with any person or group on behalf of the Hackerspace, but it is expected that the Public Affairs Contact be kept advised of such actions in order to avoid confusion and having the organization committed beyond its' resources. A majority decision of the Board is required to commit Hackerspace funds for any outside activity. This is an optional Board position.
(g) The Location Scouting Coordinator shall act as the leader and point of contact for the Location Scouting Committee. The Coordinator shall delegate responsibility for contacting property owners, landlords, and agents to prescreen potential locations on behalf of Harford Hackerspace, Inc. If a property is fit for use by Harford Hackerspace, Inc. the Coordinator is responsible to scheduling a showing of the place to all Harford Hackerspace members who wish to see the location. Only after the showing of the property to the members will a vote take place with regards to leasing or purchasing the location. The Coordinator shall submit a proposal to the secretary for review by the Board of Directors prior to voting. The Coordinator shall present a summary of findings at the monthly Board Meetings.
(h) The Events Coordinator shall act as the leader and point of contact for the Events Committee. The Coordinator shall delegate responsibility for finding local events which Harford Hackerspace may want to attend and also for organizing Harford Hackerspace events such as workshops and fundraisers. The Coordinator shall present a summary of findings at the monthly Board Meetings.

Section 7 — Vacancies

(a) When a vacancy on the board exists mid-term, the secretary must receive nominations for new board members from present board members one week in advance of a board meeting. These nominations shall be sent out to board members with the regular board meeting announcement to be voted upon at the next board meeting. These vacancies will be filled only to the end of the particular board member's term.

Section 8 — Resignation, termination, and absences:

(a) Resignation from the board must be in writing and received by the Secretary. A board member may be terminated from the board due to excess absences defined as more than two unexcused absences from board meetings in a year. A board member may be removed for other reasons by a three-fourths (3/4) vote of the remaining directors.
(b) Resignation as a Charter Member must be in writing and received by the Secretary. A Charter Member may be removed for other reasons by a unanimous vote of the remaining Charter Members.

Section 9 — Special meetings

(a) Special meetings of the board shall be called upon the request of the chair or one-third (1/3) of the board.
(b) Notices of special meetings shall be sent out by the secretary to each board member at least two weeks in advance except when all Board Members are present at the monthly Board Meeting and the chair or one-third (1/3) of the board calls for a special meeting. With regard to the preceeding exception a vote of one-third (1/3) of the board may reject the proposal for a special meeting until 2 weeks notice has been given.

Article V — COMMITTEES

Section 1 — Committee formation

(a) The board may create committees as needed, such as fundraising, facilities, public relations, data collection, etc.
(b) The board chair appoints all committee chairs.

Section 2 — Finance Committee

(a) The treasurer is the chair of the Finance Committee, which may include three other board members.
(b) The Finance Committee is responsible for developing and reviewing fiscal procedures, fundraising plans, and the annual budget with Member volunteers and other Board Members.
(c) The board must approve the budget and any changes to the budget. All expenditures must be within budget.
(d) The fiscal year shall be the calendar year.
(e) Monthly and Annual reports are required to be submitted to the board showing income, expenditures, and pending income. The financial records of the organization are public information and shall be made available to the membership, board members, and the public.

Article VI — AMENDMENTS

Section 1 — Amendments:

(a) Proposed amendments must be submitted to the Secretary to be sent out with regular board announcements.
(b) Approved amendments must be appended in writing to Appendix A of these bylaws and should never be removed or altered after approval.
(c) If changes are required to the amendment it must be in the form of a new amendment.
(d) These bylaws may be amended when necessary by two-thirds majority of the board of directors.
(e) Article I of the bylaws may only be amended with a unanimous vote in favor by the board of directors.
(f) A reasonable effort must be made to contact the Charter Members immediately following a proposed and seconded movement to amend these bylaws.

Article VII — TERMS OF USE

Section 1 — Personal responsibility

(a) All persons using the facilities of the Harford Hackerspace agree, as a condition of such use, to release from liability and hold harmless the Harford Hackerspace from any claim for any damages whether direct or indirect, including those resulting from any negligence by any member or guest of the Harford Hackerspace.
(b) It is the sole responsibility and duty of any person using any equipment provided by the Harford Hackerspace, (whether such equipment is the property of the Hackerspace or loaned to it by any person or other entity), to insure that they understand and follow all operating and usage instructions, including especially but not limited to, safety precautions and best practices, and to act in such a way as to prevent damage to the equipment and/or the surrounding environment. Many items of equipment are dangerous and/or expensive and the user assumes all liability, including liability for damage to themselves or the equipment as a condition of using any equipment at the Harford Hackerspace.
(c) Notwithstanding the above all persons using the Harford Hackerspace agree as a condition of such use to comply with any reasonable requests, including requests to desist use of any equipment or leave any area, made by any Member of the Harford Hackerspace. Any person is entitled to know why a Member makes such a request and may appeal such a request to a Charter or Board Member or request assistance or clarification from any available Member in the event of a disagreement. Note that the presence or absence of any request or statement from any Member of the Hackerspace in no way constitutes an endorsement by the Hackerspace of any course of action. All statements by Members of the Harford Hackerspace are their own and create no corporate liability on the part of the Hackerspace.
(d) The Harford Hackerspace reserves the right to eject or refuse entrance or service to any person for any reason at any time. Such right may be exercised by a majority decision of the Hackerspace Members present at anytime, however members are cautioned that such extreme measures should only be used in cases of pressing danger or immediate threat. In normal circumstances a request to ban a person from the Hackerspace should be presented to the Board and handled in an expeditious, fair and open manner.

Section 2 — Donation and loan of property

(a) Members or other persons may loan or donate equipment or tools to the Harford Hackerspace with the understanding that Harford Hackerspace is not responsible for the upkeep or protection of the equipment and is not liable for any harm, damage, or injury directly or indirectly resulting from the use of said equipment or tools. The Harford hackerspace will make reasonable attempts to provide upkeep and protection for such equipment, as well as a safe environment and adequate training for the use of such equipment and tools, but is unable to and makes no representation to, provide any particular level of service.
(b) Tools or equipment donated to the Hackerspace become the sole property of Harford Hackerspace and are subject to use and disposal by Harford Hackerspace with consent of The Board. Donations to Harford Hackerspace shall be recorded in writing and such records shall be maintained by the treasurer as required by Maryland law.
(c) Tools and equipment loaned to Harford Hackerspace shall be available for use by any person or group at Harford Hackerspace for any legitimate purpose during the operating hours of Harford Hackerspace, subject only to a requirement that a user demonstrate an understanding of the correct and safe use of the tool or equipment in question.
(d) Tools and equipment purchased by or donated to Harford Hackerspace should be clearly marked as "Property of: Harford Hackerspace" using the most permanent method possible. (ie. engraving, branding, permanent marker, label coated with liquid acrylic). Records which include a photo, manufacturer name, model number, and serial number should be kept for the duration of the items existance in Harford Hackerspace.

Article VIII — DISSOLUTION

Section 1 — Dissolution

(a) The organization may not dissolve less than 30 days from the time a proposal to dissolve passes. A reasonable effort must be made to contact the Charter Members immediately following a proposed and seconded dissolution movement.

Section 2 — Asset Distribution

(a) In the event that a movement to dissolve the organization passes, assets may be liquidated to pay off any debt the organization may have accrued. Members who have loaned items to Harford Hackerspace will be notified via U.S. Mail to pick up these materials. If members cannot be contacted or do not respond within 14 days items loaned to Harford Hackerspace will be treated as an asset of Harford Hackerspace. Any remaining assets of the organization must be donated to a charitable, educational, or scientific endeavor.

CERTIFICATION

These bylaws were approved at a meeting of the board of directors by a two-thirds majority vote on .


Jason McMahon__________________________________________10/7/2009
Secretary_________________________________________________Date

APPENDIX A

Reserved For Amendments

APPENDIX B

Reserved for Example Forms

Membership Application

Version 1 - Updated: July 10, 2009 (PDF)

  • This is the latest Membership Application. You may print and fill or fill in directly on the PDF and then save and print the application and sign.

APPENDIX C

Reserved For Sample Letters to Members

March 2010 - Membership Guidelines

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