A proposal to amend the EPNA bylaws to clarify vague language regarding the term of memberships.
by Jim Wold, January 1, 2022
WHEREAS: Article 5, Organization, sub section Elections, provides that officer elections occur in November and that only “members in good standing” may vote. Therefore it behooves EPNA to specify membership terms in regard to November.
WHEREAS: Memberships are paid throughout the year. A surge of memberships occurs coincident with the Festival. It would be rude to tell members, yes we’ll take your membership money in August but then end your membership 3 and 1/2 months later. Therefore extend the membership term into the following calendar year.
WHEREAS: We have some amount of past practice wherein memberships paid in April or later extended into the following calendar year. This may have “taught” some members to expect this practice. If we wish to change this practice it would help to have a “good reason” to do so. I have not heard such a “good reason”.
WHEREAS: Membership dues are not a significant source of revenue for EPNA, compared to other fund raising activities. At last look we seemed to have some 140 memberships active as of October 2021.
WHEREAS: Maggie Freespirit told me at the November meeting that she thought memberships expired in September of each year.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: that the bylaws of the Eken Park Neighborhood Association relating to membership are amended as follows: Current Article 4 is restated and divided into Article 4, Part A and Part B. All proposed new wording is underlined.
Article 4: Membership
Part A
All persons aged sixteen (16) and over, who reside in, own property in, or operate a business in the above area, are eligible for membership in the Eken Park Neighborhood Association. The EPNA shall afford equal membership opportunity to all persons who meet these eligibility qualifications, regardless of cultural heritage, citizenship, gender expression, sexual orientation, ability, age, income, or political affiliation.
Part B
Any eligible person having paid the annual membership dues shall be considered a “member in good standing.” Dues shall be set by a majority vote at a general membership meeting. Provisions may be made for eligible residents, for whom the cost of dues would present an undue financial burden.
Term of annual membership shall be from the date of dues payment, through December 31 of the calendar year in which dues were paid, provided dues are paid on or prior to before March 31 April 1 of any given year.
Term of annual membership shall be from the date of dues payment, through December 31 of the calendar year following the year of dues payment, provided dues are paid after March 31 of any given year.
AMENDMENT POLICY EXPLANATION
The underlined language above is the proposed amendment. It specifies duration of a membership term, based upon when membership was initially paid.
Under this proposal if a member pays their annual dues in April or later months, their membership begins on the date of payment and continues through the following December 31 of the year following the year they paid those dues.
Under this proposal if a member pays their annual dues in March or earlier, in a given year, their membership expires on December 31, of the calendar year in which they paid those annual dues.
This will have the effect of encouraging members to pay dues in April or later in a given year so as to effectively obtain two years of membership for the price of one.
Below is the current membership By Law language for EPNA
Article 4: Membership
All persons aged sixteen (16) and over, who reside in, own property in, or operate a business in the above area, are eligible for membership in the Eken Park Neighborhood Association. The EPNA shall afford equal membership opportunity to all persons who meet these eligibility qualifications, regardless of cultural heritage, citizenship, gender expression, sexual orientation, ability, age, income, or political affiliation. Any eligible person having paid the annual membership dues shall be considered a “member in good standing.” Dues shall be set by a majority vote at a general membership meeting. Provisions may be made for eligible residents, for whom the cost of dues would present an undue financial burden.
Membership List
The Neighborhood Association shall maintain a list of members. The list will be made available to officers of the Association and may be made available to members upon request. The membership list and all personal information therein may be used only for purposes directly related to the Neighborhood Association. The list may not be shared, sold, loaned or otherwise provided to other organizations.
Revocation of Membership
A member who engages in disruptive, hostile, or otherwise unacceptable behavior at an Association meeting or event, and who had been reprimanded for this behavior on more than one occasion, may have their membership revoked by a Co-chair. Revocation of membership is permanent unless overturned by a majority vote of membership at any meeting in which a quorum is present. A former member, whose membership has been revoked, may appeal the decision once each calendar year by contacting an officer of the Association at least one week prior to a general membership meeting. The question of restoring membership shall then be placed on the agenda for the upcoming meeting and shall remain on the monthly agenda until a quorum vote has taken place.
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