BYLAWS of the American Council of the
Blind of Maine
As Amended March 4,
2021
1. Dues:
1.1 Annual dues will be
assessed at twenty dollars ($20.00) per year (effective as of
January 1, 2024 for the 2024 membership year).
2. DUTIES of
OFFICERS:
- 2.1 President: Duties shall be to preside over
the annual convention, meetings of the Board of Directors, and all other
duties as outlined in Roberts’ Rules of Order, Revised.
- 2.2 Vice-President: Duties shall be to conduct
the business of this organization in the absence of the
President.
- 2.3 Chairperson of the Board: Duties shall be to
conduct the business of this organization in the absence of the President
and Vice-President.
- 2.4 Secretary: The duties of the secretary of
this organization, in addition to the usual duties of such an office,
shall be to furnish any Member upon request a summary of all official
actions taken at conventions or meetings of the Board of Directors,
respond in writing to pertinent inquiries that have been received by this
organization and authorized by the Board of Directors, and making written
contact with individuals or organizations. The Secretary shall also
maintain contact information of current and past Members. The Secretary
shall post the approved minutes on the ACB of Maine website within 10 days
of acceptance of such minutes.
- 2.5 Treasurer: The duties of the treasurer of
this organization, in addition to the usual duties of such an office,
shall be to present a financial report at the annual convention, a current
financial report to the Board of Directors upon request, and to serve on
the Finance Committee. The Treasurer will post the approved Treasurer
Report on the ACB of Maine website within 10 days of acceptance or
approval of such reports.
3. POWERS and DUTIES of the BOARD of
DIRECTORS:
The Board of Directors is empowered to
conduct the ongoing business of this organization between the annual
conventions as long as this does not conflict with actions taken at the
annual convention.
- 3.1 The Directors shall elect a Chairperson to
preside in the absence of the President and Vice-President.
- 3.2 Any Member of the Board of Directors who
fails to attend three (3) consecutive regular board meetings without
authorization by the President or Chairperson of the Board shall be
notified by the President or Chairperson of the Board that absence of the
Member at the next board meeting shall be deemed an indication of the
absent Member’s wish or necessity to resign from the Board of Directors.
If the Member fails to attend the next board meeting, that Member will be
deemed conclusively to have resigned and the President shall appoint a
Member to fill that position until the next annual
convention.
4. COMMITTEES:
Upon the recommendation of the Board of
Directors, the President will appoint a Chairperson of any committee, who
in turn will recommend one or more Members to serve on such a committee.
The President is ex-officio Member of all Committees.
- 4.1 All Committees shall report at the annual
convention, and to the Board of Directors upon request.
- 4.2 Standing
Committees shall be Finance Committee, Convention Planning Committee,
Legislative Committee, Membership Committee, Fund Raising Committee, and
the Constitution and Bylaws Committee.
- 4.2.1 The Finance
Committee shall prepare the annual budget, monitor the investments and
make financial recommendations to the Board of
Directors.
- 4.2.2 The Convention Planning Committee shall
plan the annual convention.
- 4.2.3 The
Legislative Committee shall monitor legislative activity and make
recommendations of action to the Board of Directors.
- 4.2.4 The Membership
Committee shall monitor membership levels and recruit new
Members.
- 4.2.5 The Fundraising Committee shall present
ideas for raising funds for the general use of the
organization.
- 4.2.6 The Constitution and Bylaws Committee
shall periodically review and recommend changes to the constitution and
bylaws of this organization.
5. OFFICIAL
STIPENDS:
- 5.1 Stipends for the secretary and treasurer
shall be set at one hundred-fifty ($150.00) dollars per annum. This
stipend is subject to change by action of the Board of Directors at the
annual convention, and shall be issued annually
6. DRAFTS
on the TREASURY:
- 6.1 Drafts
on the Treasury must be authorized by two (2) out of the five (5)
following officers:
- 6.1.5 Chairperson of the Board
7. INVESTMENT
POLICY:
- 7.1 The purpose of the endowment investment
policy is to provide long term direction to the Board of Directors. The
ACB of Maine’s endowment is used to provide an income for ACB of Maine
to use for general purposes. The endowment is not to be spent. The
investment policy contains provisions to ensure that the value of the
endowment grows at the rate designed to maintain the endowment’s
relative value over the long term, as well as provisions for continued
income. A copy of the ACB of Maine’s investment policy is maintained
with the organization’s secretary.
8. SCHOLARSHIP
FUNDS:
- 8.1 A line item for an academic scholarship, in
the amount of one thousand five hundred dollars ($1500.00), must be
included in the ACB of Maine’s annual budget. A scholarship or
scholarships with a combined total not to exceed $1500.00 (one thousand
five hundred) may be awarded to one or more BVI residents of the state of
Maine who is/are currently enrolled in a post-secondary education program.
In the event no scholarship is awarded in any particular year, the funds
will not accrue for scholarships in subsequent years.
- 8.2 The Board of
Directors of the ACB of Maine shall function in lieu of a Scholarship
Committee. Thus, the entire Board of Directors are responsible for
recruiting prospective applicants, marketing this grant to organizations
that know of potential applicants, and reviewing and/or revising written
sets of guidelines concerning submissions and subsequent evaluation of
applications for all scholarships to be awarded by this organization.
Furthermore, the Board of Directors shall also have the responsibilities
for the final screening and evaluating of scholarship grant applications
and for making the selection of all scholarship grant winners. The Board
of Director’s selection of scholarship grant recipients shall be final.
The identity of such recipients shall be announced during each annual
conference and convention, and payment of the scholarship sent to the
winner within 10 (ten) days following the Annual Convention.
