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Standing Rules
Thousand Island Voyageurs
Introduction
This process is
known by many names; Policy & Procedures; Operational Policy or, as
in this case, Standing Rules. Without a written organizational plan, chaos is
the result. In a volunteer
environment, organizational policy is critical. Without it, the result is a few people carrying a
large burden instead of many volunteers sharing equally small
responsibilities.
Standing Rules do
not relate to parliamentary procedures, as do bylaws, but refer to
operating procedure. They are adopted by a majority vote
either by the membership, Executive Board, or
committee and may be amended by a two-thirds vote without previous
notice or by a majority vote with such notice. Standing Rules may be
temporarily suspended for the duration of a meeting by a simple majority vote.
Rules &
procedures that the Chapter may not wish to put in bylaws may be created
as needed by the Chapter and recorded in Standing Rules. While Standing Rules are not the same as
bylaws, they should not be used to circumvent bylaws and, the Chapter
should use discretion to ensure that a rule is really necessary and not
frivolous.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Authorities & Responsibilities
In addition to
duties and responsibilities imposed by the Membership at-large, there
are also duties imposed by the Executive Board and the Governing Board
of FMCA National.
1.
Executive
Board
The
Executive Board receives its authority from the Chapter membership. It
is chaired by the President of the Chapter. The Executive Board is
composed of the following:
·
President
·
Immediate
Past President
·
VP –
Canada
·
VP –
USA
·
Secretary
·
Treasurer
·
VP –
Membership
·
VP –
Newsletter
·
National
Director
·
Alternate
National Director
The Executive Board
shall:
i.
review
and approve committees recommended by the President
ii.
resolve
questions not required to ome before the the general membership.
iii.
meet a
minimum of twice a year or, as called by the President or any three (3)
sitting officers.
iv.
make
recommendations for action to the membership.
v.
approve
disbursements up to five hundred dollars ($500.00) for normal
operational requirements.
2.
President
Duties &
Authority:
1.
is the Chief Executive Officer of the Chapter
and exercises supervision and
control of the
affairs and the business of the Chapter.
2.
is responsible for the maintenance and update of the
President’s Handbook as well as all
other Handbooks distributed to other officers of the chapter.
3.
The Chapter President is
responsible for overseeing the duties and responsibilities of all
the
other chapter officers ensuring they are performed in a timely manner in
accordance
with the Chapter’s and FMCA’s requirements.
4.
The Chapter President
receives all Governing Board mailings to help keep the chapter officers
informed on national FMCA activities.
5.
The Chapter President should
see that all needed committees are duly elected or appointed.
6.
The Chapter President is responsible for
annually requesting the free offer giving
from
FMCA National. The request must be made six to twelve weeks in
advance of the
opening day of the rally.
7.
The President is responsible for the agenda of all Executive and
General Membership
meetings and will preside over those meetings as Chair in the
normal course of business.
8.
Simplifies the Process! It
is the responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next
volunteer to hold this position by finding ways to make the
current ‘job’ easier. The
purpose of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’
practices and processes in writing.
This is the most important contribution any officer can make to
the Chapter. This duty
includes but is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
9.
promotes
the welfare of the Chapter;
10.
is an
ex-officio voting member of all committees , except the Nominating
Committee
11.
Issues
directives and guidelines to fulfill the duties of office.
3.
Immediate
Past President
Duties
& Authority:
1.
act in an advisory capacity to the standing Chapter President for
the period of one year.
4.
VP –
Canada
(Senior/Junior)
Duties &
Authority:
1.
assist
the President and perform the duties assigned by the President.
2.
alternate
the Senior/Junior positions as Vice presidents in accordance with the
chapter bylaws.
3.
prepare
to assume the duties of the President in the absence of the President
4.
be
responsible for all rallies held in
Canada
by the Chapter.
5.
arrange
for Rally Hosts and Chapter business meeting sites for the operational
year, May through October.
6.
assist
the Rally Hosts in all ways possible to assure successful rallies.
7.
assume
the custodial duties of the Chapter Property retaining full
responsibility in
Canada
as assigned.
8.
assure
that rally fees and disbursements are properly reported to the
Treasurer.
9.
participate
in at least one committee for one year.
10.
maintain
the Chapter document ‘Official Rally Guide’
11.
co-coordinate
and cc-manage the duties & authority of the ex-officio position
‘Rally Host’
12.
Simplifies
the Process! It is the
responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next volunteer to
hold this position by finding ways to make the current ‘job’ easier.
The purpose of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’
practices and processes in writing. This is the most important
contribution any officer can make to the Chapter. This duty includes but
is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
5.
VP –
USA
(Senior/Junior)
Duties
& Authority:
1.
alternate
the Senior/Junior positions as Vice president in accordance with the
Chapter bylaws.
2.
prepare
to assume the duties of the President and the Senior VP in their absence
3.
be
responsible for all rallies held in the
USA
on behalf of the
Chapter.
4.
arrange
for Rally Hosts and meeting sites for the year from May through October.
5.
assist
Rally Hosts in all ways possible to assure successful rallies.
6.
assume
the custodial duties of the Chapter property retaining full
responsibility in the
USA
as assigned.
7.
assure
that rally fees and disbursements are properly reported to the
Treasurer.
8.
participate
in at least one committee for one year.
9.
maintain
the Chapter document ‘Official Rally Guide’
10.
co-coordinate
and co-manage the duties & authority of the ex-officio position
‘Rally Host’
11.
Simplifies
the Process! It is the
responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next volunteer to
hold this position by finding ways to make the current ‘job’ easier.
The purpose of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’
practices and processes in writing. This is the most important
contribution any officer can make to the Chapter. This duty includes but
is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
6.
Secretary
Duties &
Authority:
1.
record in
a Chapter Minute Book, the proceedings of all meetings of the
Chapter’s membership and its Executive Board. These minutes shall be
read and approved at the next meeting, unless said reading is waived by
majority vote. Minutes of all meetings are kept available in the event a
member of the Chapter desires to read them.
2.
facilitate
communications between the Executive Board, its members and within the
general membership.
3.
manage
and maintain business contact/communications for the Chapter.
4.
update
and maintain the Chapter Standing Rules
.
5.
update and maintain the Chapter Bylaws.
6.
provide
procedural guidance for all committees.
7.
Simplifies
the Process! It is the
responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next volunteer to
hold this position by finding ways to make the current ‘job’ easier.
The purpose of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’
practices and processes in writing. This is the most important
contribution any officer can make to the Chapter. This duty includes but
is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
7.
Treasurer
Duties &
Authority;
1.
receive,
hold and safeguard in the
capacity of trustee and fiscal agent of the Chapter, all of its funds
which shall come into your control.
2.
disburse funds only for authorized Chapter business only. Any
disbursements in excess of $500 shall be authorized by the general
membership only at a regular, annual or special meeting
3.
make a
financial report at each meeting of the membership.
4.
develop,
support and maintain a simple procurement/disbursement process and
explain same in a written procedure.
5.
deliver
to an incoming Treasurer, all monies, vouchers, books, records and
papers of the Chapter in custody after audit and immediately upon
expiration of term of office. Chapter funds shall be deposited in a
federally insured bank in the name of the Thousand Island Voyageurs –
FMCA
6.
Simplifies
the Process! It is the
responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next volunteer to
hold this position by finding ways to make the current ‘job’ easier.
The purpose of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’
practices and processes in writing. This is the most important
contribution any officer can make to the Chapter. This duty includes but
is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
8.
VP –
Membership
Duties &
Authority:
1.
assume the duties of the President in he absence of the
President and/or Senior and/or
Junior Vice Presidents.
2. maintain the membership
database.
3.
chair the Membership Committee and report its activity to
membership.
4.
recruit, meet, greet and introduce new or potential new members.
5.
upon payment of duties by a new member, notify the VP –
Newsletter/Webmaster to
update the
mailing
list.
6.
notify the Secretary to update the certified membership list.
7.
send payments to the Treasurer to be deposited.
8.
order and maintain inventory of chapter marketing supplies
including but not limited to caps,
badges, t-shirts etc.
9.
coordinate and oversee an ex-officio position ‘Procurement’,
at your discretion.
10.
coordinate and oversee an ex-officio position ‘Historian’, at
your discretion.
11.
Simplifies the Process! It
is the responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next
volunteer
to hold this position by finding ways to make the current ‘job’
easier. The
purpose
of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’ practices and
processes in writing.
This is the most
important contribution any officer can make to the Chapter. This duty
includes but is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
9.
VP –
Newsletter
Duties & Authority:
1.
obtain information from other Chapter officers pertaining to Chapter
activities, past, present and future rallies, and assemble this data
into a Chapter Membership Newsletter. Returned copies are to be referred
to the VP – Membership.
2.
contact all Executive Board members and remind them to send in their
articles for publication.
3.
develop a newsletter by the 15th of the month April –
October
4.
distribute all newsletters either by direct mail, email or text.
5.
coordinate and manage an ex-officio position ‘Webmaster’
6.
Simplifies the Process! It is
the responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next volunteer to
hold this position by finding ways to make the current ‘job’ easier.
The purpose of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’
practices and processes in writing. This is the most important
contribution any officer can make to the Chapter. This duty includes but
is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
10.
National
Director
Duties &
Authority:
1.
keep the
Chapter informed of all actions taken at the Governing Board and
committee meetings and any other information regarding FMCA operation.
2.
3.
Simplifies
the Process! It is the
responsibility of each Chapter officer to help the next volunteer to
hold this position by finding ways to make the current ‘job’ easier.
The purpose of the Officer Handbook is to put the ‘learned’
practices and processes in writing. This is the most important
contribution any officer can make to the Chapter. This duty includes but
is not limited to:
•
Maintaining their handbook, keeping it up-to-date, always!
•
Sharing ideas in a positive and constructive manner.
•
Supporting fellow officers, for the benefit of the membership.
•
Support Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules.
11.
Alternate
National Director
Duties &
Authority:
1.
fulfill
the duties of the National Director when required.
Ex-Officio Department Heads Authorities &
Responsibilities
1.
Historian
Duties &
Authority
(reporting to VP - Membership)
1. Take digital pictures
at all chapter rallies. Download same to disc with copy(s) to
Newsletter/Webmaster and file.
2.
Procurement Officer
Duties &
Authority (reporting to VP - Membership)
1. Secure
arrangements with a stamp/badge maker for chapter badge procurement
for
membership, and manage same.
2. secure all FMCA
insignia, signs materials provided chapter operations.
3. in coordination
with the chapter Webmaster, maintain any electronic storefronts.
3.
Webmaster
Duties &
Authority
4. Rally
Host
Duties &
Authority
Standing
Rules
In the general
course of operations, Chapter’s pass motions, the executive Board
establishes new procedures, and Chapter committees provide guidelines to
improve their own operations. This is where the procedure is finally
recorded for future reference.
Standing Rules are maintained by the Chapter Secretary.
Advances
The
Executive Board has authority for expenditures up to $500 per event. The
Chapter Treasurer has a process in
place to facilitate advances for Chapter requirements by any Chapter
Vice President
Badges
The chapter does not
provide badges for new members. They must be ordered using the form
provided by Procurement/Membership.
Committees
Membership
The Membership Committee shall conduct an active program to secure new
members for the
FMCA and this chapter. In addition they will actively assist the
Vice President Membership in
meeting, greeting and
introducing new members.
By
Laws
The Bylaw Committee will conduct an annual
review of Chapter Bylaws and Standing Rules to
ensure
they are compatible, current, and in accordance with the needs of the
membership. As a
result of any review, the committee may submit recommendations to the
Executive Board for further
action.
Audit
The Audit Commi8ttee shall perform an annual
audit of the Chapter records retained by the
Treasurer
and report findings to the Executive Board or membership.
Parking
The Parking Committee shall take charge of parking at all Chapter
rallies. Duties include:
·
Arrive at
rally site at least one (1) day in advance to layout plans and
procedures
·
Implement
standing rules & bylaws relating to rally parking.
·
Direct
and assist members to their assigned parking places.
Extra
parking charges resulting from early arrival of up to three (3) parking
committee members
will be paid by the Chapter.
Parking
of coaches at all TIV rallies shall provide for each and every vehicle
to have access to a
convenient exit unhindered by the presence of other vehicles for
emergency purposes.
Dues
Annual
dues for family and emeritus members are $10.00 per coach per year which
includes up to two persons. The Chapter initiation fee is $5.00 per
coach to offset member setup expenses. Membership dues are changed by a
simple majority vote of members making up a quorum at a regular general
meeting of the Chapter. Criteria
to be exempt from yearly Chapter dues include - Awarded Life Membership
by the Chapter Board
Member Emeritus
A member
who no longer owns a qualifying coach, who meets the requirements of
Chapter by-laws, and who wishes to remain a Chapter member may apply for
and be granted Member Emeritus by the Chapter board.
Meeting Eligibility
Any member
of FMCA is privileged to attend open meetings of this chapter.
Rallies
Door Prizes –
the Chapter may provide up to $00 per rally for door prizes, if
required.
Refund Policy -
financial problems arise for Rally Masters when members make
reservations and then, without notification, do not show up for the
rally. If the Chapter is required to pay for a service or commodity for
the member, based on a reservation, then the member is liable for the
amount.
Rally Fee Refund -
If a rally fee does not involve any outside contractors, the rally fee
will be refunded in full if a reservation is cancelled before or after
the reservation deadline.
Parking Fee Refund - Parking fees are usually assessed, on a physical count of the motor
homes each day. In this case, the entire parking fee will be refunded.
Should the Chapter be charged, based on a reserved number of parking
spaces, then the member will be charged accordingly.
Food Refund - If a
food provider’s charges are based on the number of meals or portions
served, then the food fee for those meals will be refunded. If a food
provider’s charges are based on the number of meals or portions
ordered, as with a caterer, then the food fee for those meals will not
be refunded. If a meal is provided by the rally committee, the food fee
for those meals will not be refunded.
Cancellation Notice - if a member cancellation is communicated to the Rally Master not later
than the day before the final number of meals is required, the Rally
Master may refund the charges for these meals.
Reports & Minutes
The Board
minutes, General Meeting Minutes and Treasurer’s Reports of the
previous rally are to be made readily available to members at the next
rally.
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