Their work takes time. Proposed changes then have to be read at three meetings (six weeks or more) before they’re voted on, require a two-thirds vote to pass and must (except for House Rules) be approved by the Grand Secretary (up to six months) before they take effect.
We in the FOE have 166 pages for the Aerie and 60 pages for the Auxiliary of requirements all of us must follow, as set out in the FOE’s Articles of Incorporation, Constitution, Statutes and Auxiliary Rules and Regulations. But those same requirements are chock full of phrases like “where provided for in its By-Laws”. The FOE at its Grand Convention considers By-Law changes every year, approving some and rejecting others. Throughout the Year, the FOE Grand Tribunal also rules on numerous interpretations of existing Statutes.
That’s why it makes sense (not to mention it’s required) that the President appoint a By-Laws Committee at the outset of his term to review the By-Laws you now have. It’s also important to keep them current because they have the force of law, not only with the FOE but in our civil courts, should the Aerie be sued, for example.
Here are just a few areas where a By-Law is required: abolishing the office of Outside Guard, allowing the President to appoint (rather than the Aerie elect) a Conductor and/or an Outside Guard, allow the Secretary and/or Junior Past President to also be a Trustee, limit consecutive terms in office, require past service to run for Trustee, compensate officers, discipline officers for not attending meetings and changing the meeting night.
Here are five questions the By-Laws Committee should deal with before it recommends any changes.
Does it need to be a By-Law or just a policy? Bylaws are intended to be hard to change, to make sure that’s the way things are done. Sometimes, though, you don’t need that level of protection. How bank accounts are set up to handle Aerie funds is important and must be set out in By-Laws. On the other hand, the Aerie can set up a Yard Cleanup Committee anytime it’s needed, but will it really be necessary to require the President to set one up every year?
Does it repeat or conflict with the Statutes FOE? Why complicate matters with By-Laws requiring something already required in the Statutes? It just makes the By-Laws longer and harder to understand. And if a proposed By-Law conflicts with the Statutes, the Grand Aerie will reject it anyway and your Committee has wasted its time.
Does it unnecessarily complicate officers’ duties? There’s plenty in the Statutes for your officers to do, and lots of protection to be sure they do it in accordance with the aerie’s wishes. Forget about the officers you have now and what they’re especially good at. You have elections, so anyone can fill that office in the future. Do you really want the next President to have to sing at Initiation ceremonies because this year’s President does it so well?
Do we or will we need it? You might not have a Past President’s Club, offer Life Memberships or plan to hire a full-time bar manager right now. All of those, however, require a By-Law and it takes months to complete a By-Law change. If you think you might need it you can always insert the provision now, with a By-Law saying “the Aerie may …” rather than “the Aerie shall….”
Does it have broad member support? You have a long process ahead of you reading proposed By-Law changes at three meetings before members can even debate an issue. What are the chances your proposal to increase or decrease dues, pay the President a salary or give the Trustees a five-year term of office will pass a vote? If it’s worth considering, fine, but if there’s no chance the aerie will accept it, why bother?
No comments:
Post a Comment
Would you like to read more on this topic? Have an opinion positive or negative? Something you'd like to see here that you don't see? Leave a comment and I'll do my best to provide what you need.