[alabama] State Constitution

[Mary Kay Otts]

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS OF THE



ALABAMA COUNCIL OF THE BLIND, INC.



Revised November, 2005



PREAMBLE



We, the blind of Alabama, knowing that we are a part of society, recognizing 
and accepting our responsibilities to society, and believing that through an 
organization we may more ably discharge our obligation by improving the 
social and economic well-being of the blind; do ordain this Constitution and 
Bylaws.



ARTICLE 1 NAME



The name of this organization is and shall be the Alabama Council of the 
Blind, Inc.



ARTICLE 11 MEMBERSHIP



SECTION 1 Membership:

Membership in the Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc. shall consist of three 
(3) classes: affiliates, members-at-large and Corporate/sponsoring members.

           A. Any organization composed of five (5) or more persons may 
become affiliated with the Alabama Council of the Blind,

Inc., provided that at all times a majority of its members are legally blind 
as determined by the definition used by the Internal Revenue Service.

           B. An individual, eighteen (18) years of age or older, may become 
a member-at-large of the Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc., provided that 
at all times a majority of such members-at-large are legally blind as 
determined by the definition used by the Internal Revenue Service.

           C. Corporate/Sponsor Members are Honorary Memberships to 
companies and individuals work with the Alabama council of the blind inc. 
and affiliates: these entities are not voting members.



SECTION 2 Affiliation:

           A. Any organization seeking affiliation with the Alabama Council 
of the Blind, Inc. must make an application for membership to the Council's 
Board of Directors, and submit a constitution and bylaws which is not in 
conflict with the provisions of this Constitution and Bylaws. An affiliate 
will

be accepted to membership when a majority of the Board of Directors favor 
acceptance. To remain in good standing, an affiliate must comply with this 
Constitution and Bylaws, and accept the will of the convention as the 
supreme authority of the Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc.

           B. Any member-at-large seeking affiliation with the Alabama 
Council of the Blind, Inc. must make an application for membership to the 
Council's Membership Secretary. The application must be accompanied by one 
(1) year's dues and the designation of his/her preferred format of the 
Braille Forum. A certified member of an affiliate shall not simultaneously 
be eligible to be a member-at-large. To remain in good standing, a 
member-at-large must comply with this Constitution and Bylaws, and accept 
the will of the convention as the supreme authority of the Alabama Council 
of the Blind, Inc.





SECTION 3 Affiliate Officers

           Affiliates shall elect and install officers in accordance with 
their Constitutions and bylaws.  The names, addresses, e-mail addresses, and 
phone numbers of all elected officers, including the state Board member and 
alternate state Board member, shall be forwarded to the office no later than 
February 15 of each year.



SECTION 4 Affiliate Name:

All affiliates of the Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc. shall be identified 
by any name not previously taken.



SECTION 5 Dues:

Dues for all members, affiliate and member-at-large, shall be determined 
each year by the  annual convention. The national dues for all members shall 
be paid to the American Council of the Blind, Inc. from the treasury.



ARTICLE III OFFICERS



SECTION 1 Officers:

The officers of the Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc. shall be: President, 
First Vice President, Second Vice President, Recording Secretary, Membership 
Secretary, and

Treasurer: The President shall be elected for a term of three (3) years and 
the remaining officers shall be elected for a term of two (2) years. The 
outgoing president shall serve on the Board of Directors until superseded by 
the next out going president.



SECTION 2 Restrictions:

No sighted member shall be eligible for election as President, First Vice 
President, Second Vice President, or for election to the Board of Directors.



SECTION 3 Nominations:

The nomination of officers shall originate in the Nominating Committee; 
members may make nominations for any office from the convention floor.



SECTION 4 Elections:

An officer shall be elected upon receipt of a majority vote of all delegates 
and registered members present at convention.  In case of a tie vote, the 
presiding officer shall vote to break the tie. Officers shall be installed 
at the same convention at which they are elected.



SECTION 5 Expenses:

These officers and member serving as a member of the board of directors or 
board of publications of the American Council of the Blind shall have an 
expense account as determined in the report of the budget committee.



Section 6 Board of Publications

Their shall be a Board of Publications comprised of four elected members and 
chaired by the President. The terms for the members shall be two (2)  years. 
Two of the members are elected during the non officer election years.



Section 7 Duties of Board of Publications

It shall be the duty of the board of publications to work with the President 
on such projects as, brochures, news letters, email list, web-site, and 
other projects the President and Board of Directors deem necessary.



ARTICLE IV DUTIES OF OFFICERS



SECTION 1

The President shall preside over all meetings of the organization and of its 
Board of Directors; call all special meetings; call meetings of the Board of 
Directors; vote at conventions or board meetings only to break a tie vote; 
appoint all committees; serve as an ex-officio member of all committees 
except the Nominating Committee; serve as the official delegate of the 
Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc. to any national convention of the 
American Council of the Blind Inc.; poll the members of the Alabama Council 
of the Blind, Inc. present at any national conventions, on the convention 
floor at time of vote, and cast the official vote as tallied. The President's 
expenses to the convention of the American Council of the Blind, Inc. shall 
be paid from the organization's treasury. The President shall carry out the 
policies set forth by the organization's convention.



SECTION 2

The First Vice President shall perform all duties of the President in the 
President's absence or on the President's request.



SECTION 3

The Second Vice President shall perform the duties of the President or First 
Vice President when neither is able to perform and other duties as assigned 
by the president.



SECTION 4

The Recording Secretary shall keep the minutes of all business transactions 
of each meeting of the organization and of its Board of Directors; furnish 
each board member with a copy of the minutes of each convention and board 
meeting within sixty (60) days; read the minutes of each preceding meeting.



SECTION 5

The Membership Secretary shall keep a file of all member affiliates which 
shall include the names, addresses, phone numbers and The Braille Forum and 
newsletter format preference (Braille, audio CD, computer disc or large 
print) of the members of each affiliate; submit the list of subscribers to 
The Braille Forum office and newsletter editor immediately following the 
convention, submit the corrected membership list and dues to the national 
office of the American Council of the Blind,  Inc. in accordance with 
requirements of its constitution; chair the Credentials Committee; provide 
other members of the committee with a written list of the membership, 
delegates and alternates on the first day of the convention, hand roll call 
votes and provide the recording sectary the official results.



SECTION 6

The Treasurer shall keep a record of all money received and expended by the 
organization; receive all money and spend it as authorized by the 
organization or its Board of Directors; reimburse authorized expenses of 
officers upon receipt of signed written expense vouchers; furnish blank 
voucher forms on request; submit a check for national dues to the Membership 
Secretary; provide an itemized financial report to each affiliate at all 
board meetings and at the convention, and serve as a member of the Budget 
Committee.



ARTICLE  V MEETINGS



SECTION 1. The Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc. shall hold one regular 
meeting annually.  The meeting site shall be determined by Executive Board, 
who shall also serve as a Planning Committee. The state will receive all 
proceeds from the convention.



SECTION 2. The number of delegates from each affiliate to the annual 
convention of the Alabama Council of the Blind, Inc. shall be determined as 
follows: Each affiliate shall be entitled to one (1) delegate for each five 
(5), or major fraction thereof, of its members. Each affiliate President or 
an appointed alternate shall cast the votes for that affiliate on the floor 
of the convention. Each duly certified delegate to any of the organization's 
meetings shall be entitled to one (1) vote.



SECTION 3. Voting:         Each voting member attending an annual convention 
shall be entitled to one (1) vote. In addition, official delegates from 
affiliates shall cast the number of votes to which their organization is 
entitled. Voting on all issues at annual conventions shall be conducted in 
one (1) of two (2) manners: voice vote, by which the presiding officer calls 
for the oral ayes and then for the oral nays, or record vote. A record vote 
shall be composed of two (2) distinct components: a standing vote by which 
the individual votes of certified voting members and members-at-large are 
taken, and a roll call of affiliates by which official affiliate delegates 
shall announce the votes of their respective organizations. Elections where 
there are contests of officers must be conducted by record vote. If a voice 
vote on any issue, in the opinion of the presiding officer, is too close to 
determine the result, the presiding officer shall have the discretion to 
order a record vote on the issue. A record vote on any issue shall also be 
ordered by the presiding officer if any ten (10) certified voting members 
and/or members-at-large identify

themselves from the floor of the convention and request a record vote.



SECTION 4. Each affiliate shall forward to the Membership Secretary the 
annual dues, along with a list of names, addresses, phone numbers and The 
Braille Forum format preference (Braille, audio CD, computer disc or large 
print) of its members, along with a list of delegates and alternates. This 
information must reach the Membership Secretary on or before February 15th.



ARTICLE VI. COMMITTEES



SECTION 1. The Nominating Committee shall be composed of a chairperson 
appointed by the President and the presidents of each affiliate present. The 
committee shall nominate one (1) candidate for each office.



SECTION 2. The Legislative Committee shall be composed of a chairperson 
appointed by the President and five (5) additional members.





SECTION 3. The Auditing Committee shall be composed of a chairperson 
appointed by the President and the treasurers of each affiliate present.



SECTION 4. The Resolutions Committee shall be composed of  a chairperson 
appointed by the President, and one member from each affiliate present. All 
members of the Resolutions Committee shall caucus with their delegation 
prior to the business meeting to apprise them of all forthcoming 
resolutions.



SECTION 5. The Credentials Committee shall consist of the secretaries of all 
affiliates present and be chaired by the Membership Secretary.



SECTION 6. The Ways and Means Committee shall consist of five members with 
the chairperson being appointed by the President.



SECTION 7. The Scholarship Committee shall consist of five (5) members: a 
chairperson appointed by the President, and four (4) members appointed by 
the President for a term of two (2) years. These terms will be established 
so that two (2) of the four (4) members will be appointed each year. Other 
than the Byrd Bryan Scholarship, each additional scholarship name will be 
approved by the Board of Directors. It shall be the duty of the Scholarship 
Committee to set guidelines for the dispersal of funds under the control of 
the committee and to submit such guidelines to the Board of Directors for 
approval from time to time as it becomes necessary to change any guidelines; 
to notify the Executive Board of scholarship recipients; and to raise any 
and all monies used for the purpose of giving scholarships based on the 
guidelines of the committee. All fund raising projects must have the 
approval of the Board of Directors.



SECTION 8. The Budget Committee shall consist of the treasurer, serving as 
chair, and a member from each affiliate present. The committee shall prepare 
a budget for presentation to the convention. The budget shall include, but 
not be limited to: money for national dues; contributions; expense accounts 
for officers to cover the cost of performing organizational business; and 
expenses of the meetings of the Board of Directors. Guidelines for 
reimbursement of expenses shall be formulated.





SECTION 9. Other special or standing committees may be appointed by the 
President from time to time to carry on the work of the organization.



ARTICLE VII. BOARD OF DIRECTORS



SECTION 1. The organization shall have a Board of Directors consisting of 
the officers and one (1) member elected by each affiliate, who shall serve 
for a period of two (2) years. The Board shall meet at the call of the 
President.



SECTION 2. It shall be the duty of the Board of Directors to conduct the 
business of the organization occurring between the regular meetings of the 
organization; approve applications for affiliate membership; approve fund 
raisers; and approve recommendations of the Scholarship and Ways and Means 
Committees.



SECTION 3. The elected officers shall constitute an Executive Committee 
which will be empowered to act when quick decisions are imperative, and to 
make recommendations to the full Board. This committee shall accept 
nominations, and select a recipient for the Marguerite McKinnon and Exie 
Hill Award.



ARTICLE VIII. FINANCES



SECTION 1. All fund raisers accepted by the Alabama Council of the Blind, 
Inc. must be approved by the Board of Directors, or by the Executive Board 
between Board Meetings.



SECTION 2. The state may also raise money through sweepstakes opportunities 
through its own members.  All sweepstakes proposals must comply with section 
1 of this article.



ARTICLE IX. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY



The rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order Newly 
Revised shall govern this organization in all cases where they are 
applicable and are not in conflict with this Constitution and Bylaws.



ARTICLE X. AMENDMENTS



Any proposal to amend any part of this Constitution and Bylaws must be 
presented at a regular meeting of the organization, and to be adopted must 
receive approval of two thirds (2/3) majority of the members present. Any 
proposed amendment to this Constitution shall require that the affiliates 
and all members-at-large be notified by mail, email, or fax, at least one 
(1) month before the meeting at which it is to be presented.