SARASOTA CHAPTER OF THE FLORIDA COUNCIL OF THE BLIND, INC. BY-LAWS


(Revised May 2006; Amended May 18th, 2007)

ARTICLE I, Name of Organization
ARTICLE II, Objectives
ARTICLE III, Membership
ARTICLE IV, Dues
ARTICLE V, Voting and Quorum
ARTICLE VI, Officers, Board of Directors and Committees
ARTICLE VII, Meetings
ARTICLE VIII, Dissolution of Chapter
ARTICLE IX, By-Laws and Amendments
ARTICLE X, Parliamentary Procedures

ARTICLE I, Name of Organization

The name of this organization shall be "Sarasota Chapter of Florida Council of the Blind, Inc. (abbreviated SC/FCB)."

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ARTICLE II, Objectives

The objectives of this Chapter are to afford the blind an opportunity (1) to promote better understanding between blind and sighted people, (2) to offer their views on issues of importance to local, state and national entities and, (3) to promote the social and economic welfare of persons who are blind or vision-impaired.


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ARTICLE III, Membership

A majority of the Sarasota Chapter membership shall be legally blind.


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ARTICLE IV, Dues

A. Members shall pay fifteen dollars ($15.00) upon admittance to the Chapter, eight dollars ($8.00) to be paid to the State Council and seven dollars ($7.00) to remain with the Chapter.

B. Annual dues shall be paid by the 15th of November to the Chapter, eight ($8.00) of which will be forwarded to the State Council. Members who join after the due date shall pay dues but shall not be counted as a voting member for the State Council.


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ARTICLE V, Voting and Quorum

A. Each member, in good standing with dues paid, is entitled to vote for officers, delegates, amendments and any action requiring a vote during a regular business meeting.

B. A Quorum of this Chapter shall consist of thirty (30) percent of the registered members.

C. The majority present must be blind voting members.

D. A majority of the Officers shall constitute a Quorum at a Board Meeting.


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ARTICLE VI, Officers, Board of Directors and Committees

A. Officers
1. The Officers of Sarasota Chapter shall be President, 1st Vice-President, 2nd Vice-President, Recording Secretary, Membership Secretary and Treasurer. Officers shall be elected at the regular November meeting and shall assume duties at the January meeting. Terms are for 1 year. The President and Vice-Presidents shall not serve in the same office for more than 4 consecutive terms. There shall be no restriction on the number of consecutive terms the Recording Secretary, Membership Secretary and Treasurer may serve. In case of a vacancy, the Board of Directors may fill the office until the next election.

2. The President and Vice-Presidents shall be legally blind. This restriction does not apply to all other elected Officers.

3. The Historian and Delegate(s) shall be elected each year by a majority vote of eligible voting members at the Sarasota Chapter regular November meeting.

4. State by-laws require that one delegate represent up to ten (10) members in a chapter.

5. Eligibility for an office requires that a person be a member of the Sarasota Chapter in good standing with dues paid.

B. Duties of the President

1. The President shall represent the Chapter at the Convention and the Mid-Year FCB Board Meeting (unless the President is a State Officer). The Board of Directors will appoint another Board member to represent the Chapter in the event the President is unable to attend State Council functions.

2. The President shall report to the membership on all Convention, Mid-Year Board Meeting and Committee actions during the next regular Sarasota Chapter meeting following these functions.

3. The Historian shall be responsible for preserving all documents i.e., By-Laws, Chapter Webpage, Past year’s roster, photographs, published articles and all other important reports and papers.

C. Expenses

1. Expenses incurred by the Chapter representative while attending authorized Florida Council of the Blind functions will be paid by the Chapter.

2. The Chapter shall give Delegates to the Convention one hundred dollars ($100) to help defray expenses.

3. One Chapter member may attend the Florida Council of the Blind Convention as a "First-Timer." The Sarasota Chapter representative and "First-Timer" must attend First Timers Meeting, if held. The Sarasota Chapter shall give one hundred dollars ($100) plus a voucher to the Florida Council of the Blind, Inc. during the Convention First-Timer Meeting, if held. If the Florida Council of the Blind has a First-Timers Program, appropriate monies will be given to the Sarasota Chapter "First-Timer" before the end of the Convention.

D. The Board of Directors shall consist of the elected Officers and the Immediate Past President.

E. The calendar year shall constitute the fiscal year.

F. Committees

Standing and special committees of the Sarasota Chapter, including their chairs, shall be appointed by the President with the exception of a Nominating Committee, which shall be formed at the September meeting. The 1st Vice-President shall chair this Committee and seek two (2) additional members approved by the membership.


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ARTICLE VII, Meetings

A. There shall be a minimum of 8 Sarasota Council of the Blind monthly meetings a year, six (6) of which must be business meetings.

B. Election of Officers shall take place at the November regular business meeting.


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ARTICLE VIII, Dissolution of Chapter

A. The Sarasota Chapter shall not be dissolved until it has fewer than three (3) blind members in good standing.

B. In the event of dissolution of the Chapter, all money and property held by the Chapter shall revert to the Florida Council of the Blind, Inc.


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ARTICLE IX, By-Laws and Amendments

A. Chapter by-laws shall be submitted to the State Council, annually.

B. By-laws shall be amended as follows:

1. Any proposed revisions must be first formally read at a regular monthly meeting.

2. Copies of the proposed Amendments shall be made available to the membership.

3. The same revisions would then be re-read, discussed and voted upon at the next monthly meeting.

4. Revisions must be approved by a majority vote of those members present at any monthly meeting.


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ARTICLE X, Parliamentary Authority

The conduct of the regular monthly business meeting or Board meeting of the Sarasota Chapter shall be governed by rules of parliamentary procedure in the most recent revision of Roberts Rules of Order Revised.



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