Draft Bylaws: Santas of Northern California (June 6, 2008)

Article I: Name: The name of this Society shall be Santas of Northern California [Santas NorCal].

Article II: Object:
The object of this society shall be to spread the love, joy, and gift-giving of the spirit of Christmas year-round by periodic social events, mutual sharing of expertise, training seminars and round-tables, as well as by media events, where the majority of members may travel to meet regularly or periodically.

Article III. Members:
The membership of this society shall consist of individuals who portray Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus, Elf, Reindeer, Santa's Helper and other supporting members, with all voices being equal in discussion and agreements. Any dues and fees will be agreed upon in separate policies and operating procedures. Resignations are allowed with notice to the society, and with all dues and fees brought current. (See Operating Procedures for specifics of dues, fees, or assessments.)

Article IV. Officers:
There shall be at least two permanent positions of meeting facilitator and recording secretary, with as many other officer positions as decided by the group and defined in the operating procedures. The titles of the permanent positions may be changed in the Operating Procedures and positions added as needed. Holding office is at the will of the society members, and can be changed by consensus or overwhelming majority (75-80%) at any time, and recorded. Elections for all positions will be considered at least annually.

Article V. Meetings:
The society shall meet at regular intervals, based on consensus and the Operating Procedures, with at least one meeting required per year. Since meeting in person is desirable on many levels, meetings should be held in person; however, if distance, time-critical or urgent response is needed, the Society and all committees are authorized to meet by electronic communication media so long as all members may participate. Members should attend regularly as they are able; quorum for meetings is a majority of the members. Some decisions may benefit by electronic communication following the regular meeting, which allows all or most members to participate, so decisions represent consensus building action.

Article VI. Executive Board:
All officers are considered part of the executive committee, or as specified in the Operating Procedures, which may act between regularly scheduled meetings by consensus agreements to be reported, explained and accepted or modified by the next regularly scheduled meeting, as needed.

Article VII. Committees:
As the society's needs change, committees will be formed based on need, as either ad hoc or standing committees, and described in the Operating Procedures. Some examples may include: finance committee, program committee, membership committee, nominating committee, and can be adjusted by consensus of regular meetings or by special electronic meetings as needed.

Article VIII. Parliamentary Authority:
The procedures described and explained in Susskind and Cruikshank, Breaking Robert's Rules: The New Way to Run Your Meeting, Build Consensus, and Get Results that empowers the assembly to reach consensus of 1) a general agreement, 2) the judgment arrived at by most of those concerned, or 3) group solidarity in sentiment and belief, by collectively working toward a shared solution as expressed by "overwhelming agreement” [page 19]. In case the solution is not supported uniformly, then a minority position is acknowledged, and if necessary to vote, a 75% to 80% majority is needed to carry. Specific strategies and procedures are found in the operating procedures. All consensus agreements are to be summarized before leaving the subject, and the notes of those agreements are to be distributed to all members in a timely basis after each meeting.

Article IX. Amendment of Bylaws:
These bylaws may be amended at any regularly scheduled meeting of the Society through consensus building action, or by an overwhelming agreement in the range of 75% to 80% if a vote is necessary. The process is the same for amending operating procedures, but bylaws require advance notice showing suggested verbiage changes.
[NOTE: Each section is to be considered one at a time with acceptance, modifications, or sending to committee. Once all sections are agreed upon through consensus, then the whole set of bylaws and Operating Procedures are adopted as a whole. Together they represent the contract or agreement between the member and Santas NorCal.]

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Operating Procedures [or Standing Orders; or Operations Policies;]
Members:
Members should be able to attend meetings fairly regularly, or if precluded by distance, to join electronically to participate with the group discussion and decisions. All members have equal voice in discussion and decisions. All members have equal opportunity to serve as officers and to serve on committees.

Officers:
Meeting Facilitator and Secretary are the main regular officers; however, all committee Chair positions may be designated as part of the Executive Committee as recorded by consensus. Chairs of standing committees are considered part of the Executive Committee that handles decisions if needed between regular meetings. As of June, Membership is the only standing committee. Other committees to consider are _______________, ________________, and _________________. Chairs of Ad Hoc committees are not normally voting members of the Executive Committee unless specifically decided by consensus of the group.

Committees:
Ad hoc committees serving for a specific function and duration are preferred; however, standing committees may be proposed and adopted at any membership meeting. Having Chair positions of many committees seems to be a desirable outcome, such as Membership, Program, and Finance.

Regular Scheduled Meetings:
Meetings should start with a social component, followed by a business meeting based on Consensus Building Approach [CBA], and perhaps finally a Santa Share to round out the event. Adjustments are made as needed through group consensus. At least one annual meeting is required, usually as part of the first social event of the New Year.

Electronic Communication Meetings:
As part of the benefit of membership, a website, forum, chat, and other electronic media are supported by membership dues and fees. If electronic communication is needed for a meeting, choices will be analyzed and proposed by those calling the meeting, at which all members of that particular group are able to participate.

Dues, Fees, Assessments:
With a pay-as-you go philosophy, annual dues shall be set and adjusted as needed; however, the assumption is that they will be low. The annual dues per person shall be set at $_____. If one-time fees or assessments are needed, advance notice is to be given to members and an appropriate meeting venue established facilitating discussion, suggestions, and consensus decisions. Another option may be for voluntary extra contributions to the Society to cover shortfalls or extras. No checking account is required; regular accounting of the funds and balance should be part of every meeting. All funds will be handled by the ______________, who will report beginning balance, debits and credits, and ending balance since the last meeting.

[NOTE: Each section is to be considered one at a time with acceptance, modifications, or sending to committee. Once all sections are agreed upon through consensus, then the whole set of bylaws and Operating Procedures are adopted as a whole. Together they represent the contract or agreement between the member and Santas NorCal.]