Carolinas SETAC - Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

Carolinas SETAC Constitution

Article I: Name

The name of this organization shall be the Carolinas Regional Chapter of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. This Chapter shall be an independent non-profit scientific and professional organization which is affiliated with the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

Article II: Purpose

1. To promote research, education, training and development of the environmental sciences, specifically environmental toxicology and chemistry, hazard assessment and risk analysis.

2. To encourage interactions among environmental scientists and disseminate information on environmental toxicology and chemistry and its application to the disciplines of hazard and risk assessment.

3. To sponsor scientific and educational programs and provide a forum for communication among professionals in government, business, academia and other segments of the environmental science community involved in the use, protection, and management of the environment, and the protection and welfare of the general public.

Article III: Membership

The membership of the Chapter shall consist of: Active, Emeritus, Student and Regional members. Active and Emeritus members of the Chapter must be current members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

1. Active Members are qualified professionals who share the stated purpose of the Chapter and who have education, research or applied experience in environmental toxicology and/or chemistry. Active Members, Emeritus Members and Regional Members constitute the voting membership of the Chapter; only Active Members may hold office.

2. Student Members are persons who share the stated purpose of the Chapter and are students showing promise of becoming qualified for Active or Regional Member status at a later date.

3. Emeritus Members are those qualified voting Members selected and honored in recognition of their contribution to environmental toxicology and/or chemistry by the Chapter.

4. Regional Members are qualified professionals who share the stated purpose of the Chapter and who have education, research or applied experience in environmental toxicology and/or chemistry. Regional Members do not have to be members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

5. Membership to all of the above membership classes requires the payment of dues as determined by the Chapter.

Article IV: Management and Elections

1. The affairs of the Chapter shall be managed by the membership through a Board of Directors and Executive Committee in accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws.

2. The Board of Directors shall consist of at least seven (7), and no more than twelve (12) Active Members. The immediate past president of the Chapter will serve as an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors. One student member will be included in the Board of Directors.

3. Nomination for the Board of Directors shall be solicited from the voting membership. Candidates for the Board of Directors will be nominated by the nomination committee or by membership proxy and elected by ballot by the voting membership. There shall be no vote cast by proxy.

4. The members of the Board of Directors shall serve for a three (3) year term to be staggered so that no more than 3 terms expire in any one year. However, the student member of the Board will hold office for a 1-year term. To initiate the process, approximately one-third of the board members shall be elected for a 1-year term, approximately one-third elected for a 2-year term, and approximately one-third elected for a 3-year term.

5. The Officers will be elected by the Board from the members of the Board of Directors.

6. The officers shall be four (4): President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer.

7. The Vice-President shall be elected for a single term of one (1) year at the conclusion of which the Vice-President shall serve as President for one (1) year. The Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected for a term of two (2) years.

8. If a vacancy, except that of President, occurs between terms, the Board of Directors shall appoint a successor to serve the remainder of the term. Should the post of President become vacant for any reason the Vice-President shall assume the post of President and serve the remainder of the term as acting President and shall succeed to the Presidency.

9. The President shall serve as Chairman of the Board.

10. The Executive Committee shall have four (4) voting members consisting of the President as the presiding officer, the Vice-President, the immediate past president and one other voting member of the Chapter appointed by the President.

11. The Board of Directors shall determine the number, times and places of the Chapter meetings.

Article V: Duties

1. The duties of the President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer are those customarily performed by such officers, unless otherwise directed by the Board of Directors.

2. The duties of the Board of Directors shall be:
a) To manage the business, functions, programs, and activities of the Chapter.
b) To establish annually the dues for Active, Regional, Emeritus and Student Members.
c) To establish a policy and take such action as seems desirable and appropriate to promote the objectives of the Chapter.
d) To examine the eligibility of applicants for membership and convey its findings to the Chapter.
e) To appoint such committees as necessary.

3. The duties of the Executive Committee shall be determined by the Board of Directors of the Chapter.

Article VI: Quorum

Five (5) voting members of the Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum. Three (3) voting members of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum. Twenty (20) percent of the voting membership of the Chapter shall constitute a quorum of members.

Article VII: Amendments

An amendment to the Constitution and Bylaws may be proposed in writing by the Board of Directors or the voting membership of the Chapter. An amendment is consummated and ratified when approved by a quorum vote of the membership of the Chapter and additionally approved by the Board of Directors of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

Article VIII: Relationship with the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

The Chapter is an independent, non-profit scientific and professional organization which is affiliated with the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. The Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry shall have no legal, contractual, or financial responsibility of any kind for the affairs of the Chapter.

Before the Chapter publishes technical information or otherwise publicly issues any statement upon a policy matter which purports to represent the opinion of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, it must obtain the consent of the Board of Directors of the Society. The Chapter also agrees that from time to time the Society may restrict, limit, or prohibit the use of its name by the chapter in certain publications, meetings or similar activities involving communication with the public.

The Chapter also will not conduct any meetings or conferences which conflict with the National Annual Meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

Article IX: Procedures

Procedures and other items not specified in this Constitution or in the Bylaws or by action of the Board of Directors shall be in accordance with Robert's Rules of Order Revised.

Article X: Dissolution

Dissolution of the chapter, for any cause, shall follow the same procedure as Constitutional amendments and must be in accordance with the applicable regulations of the 1956 Internal Revenue Code, Section 506, or any amendments thereto.

All funds and other assets of the Chapter, including any rights to funds, present or future, contingent or actual, shall be irrevocable, assigned and transferred to any successor organization which has among its principal purposes the encouragement, development and dissemination of knowledge in the environmental sciences, and has qualified as an exempt organization, under Section 501 of the 1956 Internal Revenue Code. Such activities or any amendments thereto need not be the only purpose of the successor organization.

The selection of the successor organization must be approved by a two-thirds (2/3) Vote of the Board of Directors of the Chapter and a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Board of Directors of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry and named in the Board of Directors minutes and its articles of dissolution, but need not be named in the motion of the petition for dissolution.

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