By-Laws of the Libertarian Party
of Boulder County
Adopted 08/10/94. Amended 09/14/00,
10/11/01,
03/13/03,
07/08/04.
[The three 07/08/04 amendments are highlighted in yellow]
Name and Address
Affiliation
Purpose
Membership
Board of Directors
Duties of Officers
Sub-Committees
Endorsement of Candidates and Initiatives
Actions Prohibited to the LPBC
Amendments to By-Laws
I. Name and Address
The name of this organization is the Libertarian Party of Boulder
County, or LPBC. The LPBC is a Political Party Committee under the
Fair Campaign Practices Act, duly registered with the Boulder County Clerk and
Recorder's office. The legal address of the LPBC is:
2525 Arapahoe Ave., Suite E4, PMB 427
Boulder, Colorado 80302
II. Affiliation
The LPBC is affiliated with the
Libertarian Party of Colorado.
III. Purpose
To promote the election of Libertarian Party candidates and the
passage of ballot initiatives that embody the precepts of the Libertarian
Party Principles
and Platform;
To provide a forum for dissemination and discussion of libertarian
ideas and the programs of the
Libertarian Party;
To provide an environment in which members will be able to grow in
their ability to understand, express, and lead others to libertarian ideals.
IV. Membership
There are two types of membership: Voting members and
Contributing members.
Contributing members are those persons who are current in their annual
dues. Contributing members receive Liberty News, the monthly
newsletter of the LPBC.
Voting members are those persons who are current in their annual dues and
who have signed and dated the following Libertarian Pledge: "I hereby certify
that I do not believe in or advocate the initiation of force as a means of
achieving political or social goals."
Voting All
members are entitled to make motions and vote at meetings of the Board of
Directors.
Voting members are entitled to inspect the minutes and financial records
of the LPBC.
Voting members also receive a subscription to Liberty News.
V. Board of Directors
The Board of Directors of the LPBC is composed of the following
Officers: Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Director, Publicity
Director, Campaigns Director, Fund-Raising Director, Outreach Director, and
Newsletter Editor.
The Board shall meet at least once during each calendar month in a
public location at a time and place announced in the previous month's issue
of Liberty News. Board meetings shall be open to all Voting members,
who may make motions and vote on any resolutions. More frequent meetings may
be scheduled, so long as they are publicized in advance in writing to the
voting membership.
The Board shall have full powers to conduct all business of the LPBC,
including authorizing the spending of funds belonging to the LPBC. No
spending of funds or official action of the LPBC may be undertaken except
by:
Passage of a resolution introduced at a scheduled meeting of the Board
at which a quorum is present, OR
A vote of Board officers taken by e-mail, where the votes are formally
collected by the Chair and saved for a period of one year and made available
to any Voting member on request. E-mail votes are only permissible if:
The matter being voted on requires an expenditure of $100 or less and
does not involve any changes to the by-laws, and there is a time deadline
involved that makes it impractical to wait until the next scheduled board
meeting; OR
A resolution is introduced and passed at a prior scheduled meeting of
the Board at which a quorum is present specifically authorizing a later
e-mail Board vote on a specific issue, which vote must be taken prior to the
next scheduled Board meeting, or a new resolution authorizing it will be
required. Any voting member who is present at a meeting where a resolution
authorizing an e-mail vote is passed may participate in the vote, by
providing his e-mail address to the Chair in writing, and will then be
included when the Chair calls for an e-mail vote.
The meetings of the Board shall be conducted according to Robert's Rules
of Order, except where these By-Laws may supercede provisions of Robert's.
Passage of resolutions requires a three-fourths majority of those Voting
members casting votes, not including any abstentions.
To pass resolutions, a quorum must be present. A quorum is defined as
fifty percent or more of the sitting Officers of the Board, among whom must
be included the Chairman and the Secretary, or those deputized to act for
them, subject however to the provisions of paragraph J below.
Officers of the Board are expected to attend Board meetings; but if an
Officer must be absent that officer may deputize any other Voting member to
attend the meeting and exercise that office in his place. The minutes kept
by the Secretary must record that such a substitution has occurred.
Election of Officers of the Board
Officers are elected by the Voting members of the LPBC for terms of one
year, beginning at the monthly Board meeting held in July and expiring at the
meeting held in July of the year following.
Only Voting All members are eligible for election as
Officers. Members wishing to run for an office must advise the Publicity
Director of their intention no later than the June Board meeting. The
Publicity Director is responsible for creating an announcement of all
candidates for each office, and submitting it to the Newsletter Editor for
inclusion in the July issue of Liberty News. Absentee ballots will
also be provided in or with the July newsletter.
Votes will be cast at a meeting of the membership held in the month of
July. Votes may be cast in person, or by mail using the ballot provided with
the July newsletter, if such ballots are signed and dated and received by the
Secretary on or before the day of the July meeting.
Votes will be counted by the Chairman and Secretary. In the event of a
tie, there shall be an immediate run-off vote between all tying candidates,
with all Voting members present eligible to cast votes. This process shall
be repeated as necessary until one candidate receives the highest number of
votes.
"None of the above" (NOTA) is recognized as a legitimate candidate for
any office, and if NOTA should win, the balloting must be repeated with any
defeated candidates ineligible.
Elected candidates take office immediately.
No person may simultaneously hold or be a candidate for more than one
office.
Officers may be removed from office by a resolution passed at the
discretion of the Board if they have:
Ceased to be Voting
members of the LPBC;
Been convicted of a felony while in office;
Substantially and consistently failed to fulfill the responsibilities
of their office as detailed in section VI below.
In the event of a vacancy among the Officers of the Board, the Board
shall have the authority to select an acting replacement for the remainder of
the term by passage of an appropriate resolution. For the purposes of this
section [J], a quorum shall be defined as fifty percent of the sitting
Officers of the Board, or their duly authorized deputies. If a vacancy
persists due to a person being neither elected nor appointed to a particular
position on the Board, that position shall not be considered as "sitting",
and thus that vacancy shall not be counted for purposes concerning a quorum.
Resignations must be submitted to the Board in writing.
VI. Duties of Officers
Chairman
Take a leading role in determining the goals, direction, and plans for
the LPBC;
Ensure that the regular activities of the LPBC are conducted in a
timely, responsible manner that brings credit to the LPBC;
Chair all meetings of the Board;
Prepare and submit to the Newsletter Editor a feature article for each
issue reporting on recent and/or future activities of the LPBC;
Prepare an agenda for Board meetings and distribute copies to all
Officers;
Act as a contact point for interfacing to other Libertarian Party
organizations, affiliates, and political campaigns.
Secretary
Record the official minutes of all Board meetings. These minutes must
be submitted for review and approval at the following month's Board meeting.
A copy must also be submitted to the Newsletter Editor for summarization in
the following month's issue of Liberty News;
Regularly check the LPBC's Post Office Mailbox for incoming
correspondence, and make any mail received available to the Board at
meetings;
Maintain the master copy of these By-Laws and incorporate into them any
and all amendments made.
Treasurer
Keep all financial records of the LPBC according to generally accepted
accounting practices;
Maintain a bank account in the name of the LPBC, and sign all checks
drawn upon that account;
Make monthly reports to the Board at meetings showing all incomes,
expenditures, and resulting balances, including the sources of income and the
nature and purpose of expenditures;
Prepare an annual written report summarizing the past twelve monthly
reports, suitable for inclusion in the July issue of Liberty News;
Participate in an annual audit of the financial records, to be conducted
in January by at least two other Officers. The results of this audit must
be communicated to the February Board meeting.
Membership Director
Take a leadership role in the task of increasing the membership of the
LPBC;
Maintain the membership roll of the LPBC, including members' current
name, address, phone numbers, membership and dues status, and copies of the
signed and dated pledges for each Voting member;
Maintain a computer database of all members, prospective members,
registered Libertarians, and other interested parties in Boulder County.
(Information in this database is not to be released to any party outside the
LPBC without the prior authorization of the Board);
Prepare and distribute in a timely manner informational packets to
prospective members who have requested such information from the LPBC;
Forward requests for information to other Libertarian Party
organizations or affiliates where appropriate;
Provide for the Newsletter Editor a membership report for inclusion
in each month's newsletter, together with a complete set of mailing labels
for all eligible recipients of that particular issue.
Newsletter Editor
Receive submissions from LPBC members and others for possible inclusion
in the monthly publication of the LPBC, Liberty News. Serve as editor
and publisher for this newsletter, in sole discretion except for the
following features which are mandatory:
Notes from the Chairman
Membership report
Libertarian Party contact information, listing principal officers of
the LPBC, LP of Colorado, and National LP
Calendar of upcoming events, especially Board meetings
Summary of Secretary's minutes from the previous Board meeting
Treasurer's annual report (July issue only)
Announcement of candidates for Officers and vote-by-mail ballot
(July issue only);
Establish and implement a publication schedule for the newsletter such
that each issue will typically be received not less than one week before each
month's Board meeting;
Sell advertising in the newsletter at rates determined by the Board, and
maintain records on expiration of ads;
Interface with editors of other Libertarian publications, to ensure that
appropriate information and features are shared and kept current;
Keep records of costs for printing and postage for each month's issue,
and submit these expenses, together with receipts, to the Treasurer. The
Treasurer is authorized to reimburse expenses related to the newsletter
without prior action of the Board.
Publicity Director
Interface to the mass media regarding announcement of LPBC Outreach
meetings and other events, including (but not limited to) the Boulder Daily
Camera and the Colorado Daily;
Devise and submit (with Board approval) any paid advertisements made by
the LPBC in print, audio, video, or electronic media;
Write and distribute press releases when so directed by an action of the
Board;
Generally promote the creation of favorable publicity for the LPBC
and its activities in Boulder County.
Campaigns Director
Co-ordinate all political campaigns of the LPBC;
Identify political races and ballot issues;
Recruit and qualify candidates;
Identify and/or assist in candidate training opportunities;
Assist candidates with "paperwork" (e.g. filing and reporting
requirements).
Fund-Raising Director
Initiate and operate fund-raising activities (e.g. bowl-a-thon,
fund-raising letter campaigns);
Report income and expenses to the Board.
Outreach Director
Lead outreach efforts to expand LPBC awareness and help grow
membership;
Identify suitable outreach events (e.g. Boulder Creek Festival,
city/county fairs, gun shows);
Initiate and co-ordinate LPBC-sponsored events (e.g. guest speakers,
Tax Day protests);
Organize LPBC participation (e.g. register for events, solicit
volunteers, supervise activities);
Maintain/enhance LPBC outreach materials (e.g. outreach booth and its
associated supplies, brochures, banners, etc.).
VII. Sub-Committees
The Board may create by resolution any committees deemed necessary to fulfill a
designated purpose. Such committees may be temporary or ongoing, and may
exercise any powers of the Board that the Board authorizes, with the exceptions
that they shall not be granted powers to spend funds or endorse candidates.
VIII. Endorsement of Candidates and Initiatives
The LPBC may nominate candidates for public office and urge the passage
of ballot initiatives and referendums that will or may appear on ballots in a
given election anywhere in Boulder County. Such endorsements are to be made
public by means of a press release arranged by the Publicity Director. If a
notarized statement of nomination is required, the document must be approved
by the Board and carry the signatures of the Chairman and the Secretary.
Any candidate seeking nomination to public office must have signed the
Libertarian Party Pledge or Statement of Principles, and in addition have
been a registered Libertarian Party voter or a dues-paid Libertarian Party
Member, for a period of not less than 60 days prior to the last date on which
the party can file its certificate of designation with the appropriate
election official.
Nominations of candidates and endorsement of ballot initiatives will be
performed by simple majority vote of the Voting members present at any Board
meeting.
IX. Actions Prohibited to the LPBC
The following actions may not be taken by this organization, irrespective of
majoritarian support:
Participation in any activity or condoning of any member's participation
in any activity which violates the laws of the United States, the State of
Colorado, or of any county or municipal jurisdiction. Any Board resolution
which would result in or urge a violation of any law is hereby null and void;
Endorsement of a candidate for office who is an announced candidate of a
party other than the Libertarian Party;
Overdrafts of the LPBC bank account;
The borrowing of money at interest, from any source whatsoever.
LPBC members may donate money, items, or services for which the Board may
vote to reimburse them at original face value at a later date. Receipts for
all reimbursed expenses must be submitted to the Treasurer.
X. Amendments to By-Laws
These By-Laws may be amended by a resolution of the Board at any regular
monthly meeting, by a four-fifths vote. Any such amendments must previously
have been sent in writing to the Voting membership at least one week prior to
the Board meeting at which the amendment is to be approved.
Initial ratification of these By-Laws shall be by four-fifths vote of
the Voting members present at the August, 1994 Board meeting.
All resolutions passed by the LPBC Board of Directors prior to the
adoption of these By-Laws are hereby ratified as recorded in the minutes,
except where any such resolutions may conflict with these By-Laws.
Last updated 07/27/04 by
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