NATIONAL
FEDERATION OF THE BLIND OF FLORIDA, INC.
PINELLAS CHAPTER
CONSTITUTION
June 16, ,
2006
ARTICLE I: NAME
The name of this organization
shall be the National Federation of the Blind of
Florida, Inc.,
(For the remainder of this
document the National Federation of the Blind of Florida shall be refered to as the NFBF, and the National Federation of the
Blind shall be refered to as the NFB for purposes of
brevity.)
ARTICLE II: PURPOSE
The purpose of this
organization shall be to educate the community about the
capabilities and needs of the blind; to promote the general
well-being of the
blind in the
an integral part of the NFB.
ARTICLE III: MEMBERSHIP
Section One: Active Members
A majority of the active
members of this organization must
be legally blind. Any person may become an active member of this
organization by
a majority vote of the membership present at any
regular business meeting
following the meeting at which a candidate's membership
application was
submitted. Active
members shall have the right to vote, serve on committees
and speak on the floor.
Active members may hold office provided that they have missed no more
than
two, (2) consecutive regular business meetings without
proper notice per
calendar year.
Section Two: Affiliation
Membership in this
organization automatically establishes membership in the
NFBF and
the NFB.
Section Three: Expulsion
Any member may be expelled
for violation of this Constitution or for conduct
unbecoming a member of the NFB by a two-thirds,
(2/3) vote of the active
membership present and voting at any regular business
meeting of this organization. Any person who feels that he/she has been
unjustly
expelled from this organization may appeal to the Board of
Directors of the
NFBF.
ARTICLE IV: OFFICERS &
THEIR DUTIES
Section One: Election of
Officers
There shall be elected annually
a President, a Vice-President, a Treasurer
and a Secretary. The
terms of these offices shall begin at the close of the
regular business meeting at which they are elected and
qualified for a term of
one, (1) year. Officers
shall be elected by a majority vote of the membership
present and voting. There
shall be no proxy voting. If no nominee
receives a
majority vote on the first ballot, the person receiving the
fewest votes shall
be dropped from the list of nominees and a second ballot
shall be taken. This
procedure shall continue until one of the nominees has received
a majority vote
from the membership present and voting. Elections shall be by voice vote, standing
vote, show of hands or secret ballot. A
secret marked ballot shall be required upon the request of any active member
present and voting.
Section Two: Duties
The duties of each officer
shall be those ordinarily associated with that
office. The President
and Vice-President must be legally blind to qualify for
their office. Either
the President or Vice-President shall preside over all
meetings of this organization and shall be required to
represent the Chapter
annually at the NFBF State Convention. In the absence of the President or Vice
President there shall be a designated officer or board member to represent the
Pinellas chapter at the said state convention.
Section Three: Removal of
Officers
An officer may be removed
from his/her office for violation of this Constitution
or for conduct unbecoming an officer of the NFB by
a majority vote of the officers and Board of Directors
of this organization. An officer or
board member may not be removed without the approval of
the President of the NFBF, nor shall
his/her removal from office automatically constitute
expulsion from this
organization (see ARTICLE III: Section Three). Any officer who feels that he/she
has been unjustly removed from office may appeal to the
Board of Directors of
the NFBF.
Section Four: Replacement of
Officers
Should an office become
vacant during the course of a term due to removal in
accordance with Section Three above, resignation, or any other
reason, the
President shall, with the
approval of the Board of Directors, appoint a member
to occupy the office until such time that the present
term expires and elections
are conducted. If
for any reason the President should be removed, the
Vice-President shall assume
the duties of the President and shall, with the
approval of the Board of Directors, appoint a member to occupy
the now vacant
post of Vice-President.
ARTICLE V: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The Board of Directors of
this organization shall consist of the four, (4)
constitutional officers and at least three, (3) additional board
members. At the
discretion of the Chapter board two, (2) additional
board positions may be created. The President with approval of the board
shall fill vacant board positions until the next regular elections. Board members shall be elected and be bound
by this
Constitution at the same time
and in the same manner as is prescribed for the
officers. The Board of
Directors shall meet at the call of the President or on
request by any three, (3) members of the Board. The Board of
Directors shall advise the
President and shall have charge of the affairs of the
organization between meetings.
There must be a majority of the Board present at any Board meeting in
order to conduct business. The Board of
Directors may be polled by
telephone or mail ballot on any issue, and a majority
of the Board must be legally blind.
ARTICLE VI: MEETINGS
Section One: Regular Meetings
This organization shall hold
regular monthly meetings at a consistent time and
place to be determined by the Board in the best interest of
its membership.
Section Two: Conducting
Business
At least thirty-three and one
third percent,
(33 1/3%) of the active
members must be present to constitute a quorum to transact
business.
ARTICLE VII: COMMITTEES
The President may appoint
such committees as he/she or the Board of Directors
may deem necessary. Committees might include, but are not limited
to, areas of
interest that are supported by divisions of the NFB
on both state and national levels (i.e., student
division, deaf/blind division,
diabetic division, senior division, parents division, etc.) affording this
organization the greatest networking potential for its membership.
ARTICLE VIII: AFFILIATION
The Pinellas Chapter of the NFBF
shall be an affiliate of the NFB . This
organization shall furnish to the designated officer of the NFBF annually,
on or before March 1, , a list of the names and
addresses of its members and elected officers and Board
members. Further, a complete financial
report showing all financial transactions for the previous
calendar year shall
also be furnished to the NFBF Treasurer on or before March
1st for
appropriate accounting purposes and to comply with all 501(c)(3)
and Internal
Revenue
Service requirements. A copy of the Constitution of the Pinellas
Chapter and of all amendments
to the Constitution shall be sent to the President
of the NFBF , immediately upon their
adoption. The Pinellas
Chapter shall not merely be a social organization, but shall
formulate programs and actively work to promote the economic
and social
betterment of the blind.
This organization shall comply with the provisions of
the Constitution of the NFB. All policy decisions
of the NFB or of the NFBF (whether made by the National
or State Convention or by the
National or State Board of
Directors) are binding on this organization.
Therefore, this organization shall affirmatively participate in carrying
out
such policy decisions.
ARTICLE IX: DUES &
ASSESSMENTS
Section One: Annual Dues
The dues of the organization
shall be ten dollars, ($10.00) per year.
The chapter shall promptly forward three dollars, ($3.00) per year to
the NFBF on behalf of each member. No
person may vote until their dues are paid in full for the
current calendar year.
ARTICLE X: DISBURSEMENT OF
FUNDS
Section One: General
Expenditures
The funds of this
organization shall be deposited in a bank selected by the
Treasurer
with the approval of the President.
All financial obligations of this
organization shall be discharged by check or ATM bank debit
card. Receipts shall be required for
reimbursements for expenses other then those paid by checks.
Section two: Expenditure of
Restricted Income
Funds designated for a
specific purpose shall be held for the stated use and accounted for separatedly by the Treasurer. Restricted/designated funding may include,
but is not limited to,
sponsorship of a social activity, gifts or bequests designated to
a particular
program by the donor, and funding secured in the form of a
grant where the
grantor has designated the utilization of such income as a
condition to its
receipt. If for any
reason the Chapter is unable to utilize designated
income for its intended purpose, (i.e., a sponsored social
activity was
cancelled), the Treasurer shall notify the donor that the
Chapter was unable to
comply with their request and inquire as to how the donor
would wish the chapter to
dispose of the gift. If
the donor so chooses to lift the restriction of the gift
the Treasurer shall include the amount of the formerly
restricted gift in
his/her tally of "unrestricted" funding in the
month following the dissolution
of the donor's previous designation.
Section three: Discretionary
Expenditures
The President shall have the
power to request or issue checks for any sum not to
exceed two hundred dollars, ($200.00) at his/her discretion
should it be deemed
necessary without the approval of the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE XI: DISSOLUTION
In the event of the
dissolution of this organization (for whatever reason) it
ceases to be an affiliate of the NFBF,
its assets shall be given to the NFBF to
be held in trust for a reorganized chapter in the area. In the event that no
reorganization occurs in the area for a period of two, (2) years
from the date
of desolution this
organization shall cease to be an affiliate of the NFBF, the assets shall
become the property of the NFBF.
ARTICLE XII: AMENDMENTS
This constitution may be
amended at any regular meeting of the organization by
an affirmative vote of two-thirds, (2/3) of the active
members present and
voting, provided the proposed amendment has been submitted
in writing and read
at a previous regular business meeting, and provided it
is in compliance with
the provisions of the Charter of Affiliation received
from the NFB and with the policies of the NFBF.
_________________________________
Date: _________
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