ARTICLE I

Name

The name of this organization shall be the Council of Organizations Serving Deaf Alabamians (COSDA) and shall be referred to hereafter as the Council.

ARTICLE II

Purposes

Section 1. The purpose of the Council shall be to provide a communicative network among organizations; to be a forum for presenting issues to every organization; to conduct regular conferences of associations of/for deaf and hard of hearing persons and any other interested persons and organizations; to provide recognition to individuals or agencies for outstanding service to deaf and hard of hearing persons.

Section 2. The Council shall not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, age, sex or disability.

ARTICLE III

Members

Section 1. The membership of the Council shall consist of independently functioning agencies, religious groups, education facilities, and organizations of/for deaf and hard of hearing persons involved in providing services or employment to deaf and hard of hearing persons in Alabama.

Section 2. As new organizations of/for deaf and hard of hearing persons emerge, the Council will solicit their membership. Each new organization will apply for membership by submitting a written application to the Council President. The completed application will be given to the membership committee for consideration. The standards of membership are determined by:

1. Purpose of the organization,
2. Stability of the organization,
3. Balance of interest groups represented in COSDA, and
4. The geographic location and area served by the organization.

The membership committee will make membership recommendations at the annual business meeting and new memberships will be awarded contingent on a majority vote of the Council.

Section 3.   An official list of member organizations shall be maintained by the Council.

Section 4.   Individuals who are represented by a member organization will be eligible to serve as officers and committee members and will be provided voting privileges during his/her tenure as an officer, if elected.

ARTICLE IV

Dues

Dues shall be set and/or changed by the Council at any scheduled meeting.

ARTICLE V

Officers

Section 1.   The officers of the Council shall be President, President-Elect, Secretary, and Treasurer. These officers shall perform the duties prescribed by the Bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Council.

Section 2.   Duties of Officers.

a.   The President shall moderate Council meetings, direct planning for the annual conference, approve all financial arrangements, serve as official contact in the recruitment of new member organizations, attend to correspondence of the Council, appoint chairpersons for all standing committees, serve as ex-officio member of all standing committees, coordinate committee activities to prevent overlap of committee responsibilities, and to establish Ad Hoc committees as deemed necessary.

b.   The President-Elect shall succeed the President and shall preside at meetings in the absence of the President, serve as ex-officio member of all standing committees and assist in coordinating committee activities.

c.   The Secretary shall take minutes and distribute copies of them to all members and representatives, handle phone contacts as designated by the President, keep an updated roster of member organizations with the mailing addresses of all contact persons, and maintain a record of the Council.

d.   The Treasurer shall handle all monies related to Council activities except those monies allocated to the Conference Committee, keep an accurate account of all monies received and expended, present financial reports at meetings, compile a annual financial statement, sign checks, secure an annual audit of Council finances by the President and President-Elect, and serve as chairperson of the Finance Committee. The President also has authority to sign checks. The Treasurer may appoint a comptroller to assist in the handling of the organization’s official matters.

Section 3.   Election of Officers:

a.     At least two months before a General meeting in the year elections will be held, a nominating committee shall be appointed by the President. No officer presently on the Board shall serve on this committee. It shall be the duty of this committee to solicit nominations from the membership. Nominations for office shall also be received from the floor at the General meeting.

b.    The officers shall be elected by ballot to serve for one year or until their successors are elected, and their terms of office shall begin on September 1.

c.     No member shall serve more than one office at a time, No officer may serve more than two consecutive terms.

ARTICLE VI

Meetings

Section 1.   The Council shall meet annually in conjunction with the COSDA conference for the purpose of electing officers, receiving reports of officers and committees, and for any other business that might arise. General meetings shall be open to the public except for executive sessions.

Section 2.   Special meetings may be called by the President or the Executive Board. The purpose of the meeting shall be stated in the call. Upon the written request of five member organizations, a special meeting may be called. Prior notice of at least two weeks shall be required.

Section 3.   A quorum shall consist of 25% of the representatives of the member organizations.

ARTICLE VII

Voting

Section 1.   Ballot Allotment – Active membership organizations shall cast one vote per motion brought before the meeting.

Section 2.   Voting Procedures – Voting shall be by show of hands, unless otherwise decided by the Council.

Section 3.   Proxy Voting – There shall be no proxy voting.

Section 4.   Dual Representation – No individual shall represent more than one (1) member organization.

ARTICLE VIII

The Executive Board

Section 1.   The Executive Board shall consist of the current officers of the organization, the immediate Past-President, and the chairpersons of each of the standing committees. The Executive Board shall have the authority to expend funds, enter into contracts, make decisions between the annual meetings, and conduct other business as required.

Section 2.   The standing committees of the organization shall be the Nominating Committee, the Bylaws Committee, the Conference Committee, the Awards Committee, the Finance Committee, the Membership Committee and the Financial Grant Committee.

a. The Nominating Committee shall secure candidates for all offices to be filled prior to the annual business meeting and submit the slate to the Council.

b. The Bylaws Committee shall process recommendations of the Council for modification of the Bylaws and serve in an advisory capacity on interpretation of the Bylaws.

c. The Conference Committee shall plan the conference and designate persons to serve on appropriate sup-committees. It shall be the responsibility of the Conference Committee to see that each of the sup-committees fulfills its responsibilities relative to the conference.

d. The Awards Committee shall solicit nominations for the annual award from members and representatives at least two months prior to the recipient of the annual award from the nominees at least one month prior to the annual conference.

 e. The Finance Committee shall plan the annual budget. The Treasurer shall serve as chairperson of the committee.

f. The Membership Committee shall recommend organizations and agencies eligible for membership and assist the Secretary in maintaining an official list of member organizations.

g. Under the direction of the President and the Executive Board, the Financial Grants Committee shall develop and maintain guidelines governing the Financial Grants Program.

Section 3.   Should a vacancy in the Executive Board be created by the resignation, death, removal from office, or inability to serve of any member of the Executive Board, the resultant vacancy shall be filled in accordance with the following procedures.

a. If the vacancy is in the Presidency, the President-Elect shall automatically become President and shall serve for the remainder of the year in addition to the term for which the officer was previously elected. The resultant vacancy in the office of the President-Elect shall not be filled until the next election.

b. In the event that there is a vacancy in the office of the President-Elect not caused by elevation to the Presidency, another Executive Board member shall become President-Elect, based on a majority vote of the Executive Board members, until a new President-Elect can be nominated and elected at a regular or special meeting called by the President or the Executive Board.

c. If there is a vacancy in other offices of the Executive Board, the Executive Board shall elect a replacement by the majority vote. The replacement shall serve for the remainder of the year.

d. If the vacancy occurs in the office of the Past-President, the most immediate Past-President willing to serve shall complete the unexpired portion of the term.

e. If there is a vacancy by any of the standing of ad hoc committee chairpersons, the President shall appoint a replacement to complete the unexpired portion of the term.

ARTICLE IX

Membership Year

The membership year shall begin on September 1 and end on August 31.

ARTICLE X

Dissolution of the Council

In the event of the dissolution of the Council, all remaining assets, real property of whatever nature shall be dispersed by a decision of the majority vote of the member organizations.

ARTICLE XI

Parliamentary Authority

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, shall govern the organization in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these Bylaws and any special rules of order the organization may adopt.

ARTICLE XII

Amendments

These Bylaws can be amended at any regular meeting of the organization by a two-thirds majority of members present and voting, providing the amendment has been submitted in writing to the membership thirty days in advance, and then voted upon t the next meeting after that.
 

Revised  November 16, 1999
 

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