STATUTES EUROPEAN YOUTH PARLIAMENT EYP POLAND Chapter I General provisions § 1. "European Youth Parliament EYP Poland" (hereinafter referred to as the Association) is an association acting based on the Law on Associations. § 2. The registered office of the Association is the capital city of Warsaw. § 3. The area of operation of the Association is the area of the Republic of Poland. § 4. The Association may undertake activities also outside the borders of the Republic of Poland, in particular, with other National Committees of the European Youth Parliament, as well as establish cooperation with national, foreign and international governmental and non-governmental institutions, with the same or similar profile of activities. § 5. The mission of the Association is to inspire young people to become open, tolerant and active citizens of Polish and European society. § 6. The activities of the Association are based on the voluntary work of its members. § 7. The Association may use a seal and a distinctive graphic sign determined by the Board. § 8. The Association is established for an indefinite period. Chapter II Objectives and forms of action of the Association § 9.
The objectives of the Association are: a) promoting values close to those of the European Youth Parliament, (hereinafter EYP) , independence, non-partisanship, democracy, openness, empowerment, active contribution, cooperation, pluralism and respect for other cultures; b) encouraging active participation in the political and social life of the Republic of Poland and Europe; c) supporting social initiatives of groups and individuals; d) promoting intercultural dialogue and exchange of information and ideas; e) informing members of the Association about EYP sessions in Europe; f) organising an annual Selection Session to select delegates to the EYP International Sessions. § 10. The Association pursues its objectives by: a) organising regional, national and international EYP meetings; b) cooperation with national committees of countries where EYP is represented, fostering bilateral and multilateral projects of EYP; c) creating a network of local representatives, called Regional Coordinators; d) cooperation with national, foreign and international governmental, self-governmental and non-governmental organisations pursuing objectives aligned with those of the Association; e) cooperation with all institutions, authorities and persons whose support or cooperation is justified by the Association's statutory activities; f) carrying out informational, promotional and training activities; g) actively soliciting and assisting organisations and individuals involved in achieving the Association's statutory objectives in raising funds for the achievement of these objectives.
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Chapter III Members, their rights and obligations § 11.
Members of the Association are divided into: a) ordinary members, b) honorary members, c) supporting members. § 12. An Ordinary Member may be: a) an adult having full legal capacity, b) a minor over sixteen years of age with the written consent of a parent or legal guardian, wishing to realise the aims of the Association. § 13. A foreigner may also become an ordinary member, even if he does not have a place of residence in Poland. § 14. Decision regarding membership shall be made by a resolution of the Board after consideration within 14 days from the date of receipt of a written membership declaration together with a cover letter in English. § 15. The Board shall inform the interested person about the admission or refusal of admission by an e-mail to the e-mail address indicated in the declaration within 14 days from the date of the resolution. § 16. The declaration and the motivation letter, as well as the appeal mentioned below, shall be submitted by e-mail. § 17. In case of refusal of admission to Ordinary Membership, the candidate has the right to appeal to the Board within 14 days from the date of delivery of the resolution. The appeal shall be considered by the next General Assembly of Members whose decision shall be final. § 18. AnOrdinary Member: a) has an active and passive right to vote for the authorities of the Association (the Board, the Audit Committee), b) has the right to vote at the General Assembly of Members, c) has the right to make proposals and requests to the Association authorities on matters related to the activities of the Association and to request information on how these proposals and requests are implemented, d) has the right to use the assistance and resources of the Association in activities undertaken following its statutory objectives. § 19. An Ordinary Member is obliged to: a) comply with the provisions of the Statutes, regulations, resolutions and decisions of the Association authorities, b) participate actively in the activities of the Association, c) preserve the good name of the Association, d) make regular payments of the annual membership fee, which obligation shall be updated in the year of acceptance as a member of the Association. In cases particularly justified by the personal situation of a member, the Board may, after consulting the Audit Committee, exempt him from the obligation to pay the membership fee. § 20. The Board may adopt a resolution to remove a member from the list of members if: a) the member has resigned, b) the member has been convicted of an intentional crime, c) the member acts to the detriment of the Association, does not comply with the provisions of the Statutes, impairs the good name of the Association, violates the resolutions of the Association or the Charter of the EYP and Policies of the EYP, d) has not paid the outstanding annual membership fee despite having been requested to do so.
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§ 21. A member of the Association has the right to appeal against the resolution referred to in § 20 to the General Assembly of Members. §§ 15 and 17 apply respectively. § 22. Membership in the Association expires upon the death of a member. § 23. AnHonorary Member of the Association may be a natural person of particular merit for the development of a civil society or the Association itself who declared his willingness to accept this title. § 24. The title of Honorary Member shall be conferred by the General Assembly of Members at the request of the Board. § 25. An Honorary Member has the right to participate in the General Assembly of Members in an advisory capacity. § 26. ASupporting Member may be a natural person, a legal person or an organisational unit without legal personality, which identifies itself with the objectives of the Association and declares its support in achieving these objectives in a manner agreed with the Board. § 27. The title of Supporting Member is conferred by a resolution of the Board, of which the Board provides information to the General Meeting of Members. The Board shall also present information on the form of support received from the Supporting Members. § 28. A Supporting Member has the right to: a) participate in the General Assembly of Members in an advisory capacity, b) use the external insignia of the Association and to make use of its assistance and resources in the activities undertaken, according to the rules agreed with the Association Board. § 29. The provisions of § 20 items a) - c) and § 22 apply accordingly to Honorary and Supporting Members. A decision to revoke the honorary member's title is made by a resolution of the Board. Chapter IV. Authorities of the Association. § 30.
The authorities of the Association are: a) General Assembly of Members, b) the Executive Board, c) the Audit Committee. § 31. The Board and the Audit Committee are appointed for a term of one year and their mandate lasts until the election of new authorities of the Association. § 32. Both the entire Board and the Audit Committee as well as individual members of these bodies may be dismissed at any time by the General Assembly of Members. If a vacancy occurs, a supplementary election is held. If the number of members of the Board decreases less than two months before the end of the term of office, the body continues its work in the reduced composition, provided that more than three of its members remain. § 33. The General Assembly of Members is the highest authority of the Association. § 34. The General Assembly of Members may be held in one of the following modes: a) ordinary (Ordinary Assembly of Members), b) extraordinary (Extraordinary Assembly of Members). § 35. The date of the General Assembly of Members, together with the proposed agenda, shall be announced by the Board by e-mail 14 days before the planned date of the meeting. § 36. The Ordinary General Assembly of Members is convened annually by the Board and passes resolutions on the following matters: a) to approve the report on the activities of the Association, b) to approve the financial statements, c) others, including those not on the agenda. § 37. The competences of the General Assembly of Members, apart from the matters listed in § 36 and other matters indicated in the Statutes, include: a) adoption of the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly of Members, b) consideration of appeals on membership matters, 3
c) conferring the title of Honorary Member upon a proposal by the Board, d) adopting resolutions on the programme directions and strategy of the Association, including approval of the strategy of activities and development of the Association prepared by the Board and its changes, e) passing a resolution to amend the Statutes, f) passing a resolution to dissolve the Association and to allocate its assets. § 38. The Extraordinary General Assembly of Members shall be convened by the Board: a) on its own initiative, b) at the request of the Audit Committee, c) at the written request of at least 1/3 of the total number of members. § 39. The Extraordinary General Assembly of Members must be held no later than 30 days after the request is made. § 40. The meeting is opened by the President of the Association, and in his absence by the most senior member of the Association, and chaired by the Chairman of the General Assembly of Members elected by those present. § 41. Chairman of the General Meeting of Members: a) chairs the Meeting and appoints its secretary, b) gives the floor, c) has a deciding vote in the event of a tie in the voting. § 42. Resolutions of the General Assembly of Members are passed in open voting by a simple majority of votes cast regardless of the number of members present. § 43. The General Assembly of Members may also be conducted remotely (without the physical presence of participants in one place), provided that real-time transmission of the meeting proceedings and real-time bilateral communication is maintained, and that mechanisms are in place to ensure the integrity of the voting process and to provide opportunities for all interested parties to participate. § 44. The Board of the Association. The Board manages the whole activity of the Association and represents the Association, as well as adopts resolutions in matters not reserved for other authorities of the Association. § 45. The Board shall be composed of three to seven persons elected under the procedure laid down in Chapter V, including the President and two Vice-Presidents. § 46. The Board is obliged to: a) perform the statutory tasks following the guidelines, resolutions and recommendations of the General Assembly of Members, b) report on its activities to the General Assembly of Members and the Audit Committee, c) manage the assets and adopt resolutions on grants, donations, inheritances, bequests, funds from public donations, subsidies and state contracts. § 47. The Board may adopt Rules of Procedure for its work. If Board meetings are conducted remotely, § 43 shall also apply. § 48. The Board shall meet at least once a quarter. Meetings of the Board may be convened by the President or at the initiative of no less than 2 Board members. § 49. Resolutions of the Board are adopted by a simple majority of votes cast in the presence of at least half the number of Board members. § 50. Deliberations of the Board shall be chaired by the President or one of the Vice-Presidents. The session does not require minutes to be prepared, however, the adopted resolutions shall be documented by indicating the procedure followed, the content of the resolution, the date of its adoption and persons participating in the adoption of the resolution as well as the result of voting. § 51. The signatures of two members of the Board are required to make declarations of will in all property matters of the Association, to conclude agreements and to grant powers of attorney. § 52. The Audit Committee is the controlling body of the Association. § 53. The Audit Committee shall consist of three persons: Chairman and two members. § 54. Members of the Audit Committee cannot be members of the Board at the same time. 4
§ 55.
The Audit Committee has the duty to: a) control, at least once a year, all the activities of the Association, b) present to the Board comments and conclusions as well as post-audit recommendations concerning the statutory and financial activities of the Association, c) monitor the implementation of the Strategy for the activities and development of the Association by the Board, d) to report on its activities to the General Assembly of Members. § 56. Members of the Audit Committee are entitled to participate in Board discussions in an advisory capacity. § 57. Resolutions of the Audit Committee are adopted by a simple majority of votes in the presence of all its members. § 58. The Advisory Committee may adopt Rules of Procedure for its work. In the event of remote deliberations, § 43 shall apply. Chapter V Procedure for the election of Association authorities - electoral code § 59. The Electoral Code sets out the rules and procedures for elections to the Board and the Audit Committee. § 60. Every ordinary member of the Association has active and passive voting rights to the Board and the Audit Committee. § 61. Elections to the Board and the Audit Committee shall be general, equal, direct and shall be held by secret ballot using an online platform that allows for secret and direct voting, as well as uncontested tallying of votes. § 62. The election shall be conducted under the responsibility of an impartial and non-candidate Election Commissioner appointed by the Board at least 2 months before the election, who shall set the date for the elections and is in charge of organising them. The Election Commissioner, after consulting the members of the Association, indicates the number of members of the Board and their responsibilities (e.g. Board Member for International Coordination, Board Member for Administration, Secretary, etc.). § 63. The Election Commissioner shall, within 7 days from the date of being appointed by the Board, send electronically to all members of EYP Poland a candidate form inviting them to nominate themselves as candidates within 7 days and indicate the date of the election not earlier than 18 and not later than 25 days from the date of sending the form. § 64. Anyone may run for one or more positions (portfolios) on the Board. § 65. Upon receipt of applications for candidacy, the Election Commissioner shall immediately announce the list of candidates with a breakdown for the following elections: - election of the President, - election of the other Members of the Board, - election of the Audit Committee. § 66. From the announcement of the list of candidates until the election, election campaigns shall be conducted, but campaigning shall not be permitted 24 hours before the first vote and during voting. § 67. In elections to the Board, the following shall be elected in separate ballots: - President - Board Members. § 68. First, elections are held for the President, who becomes the person who received the largest number of votes among the candidates for this function. § 69. Thereafter, the Election Commissioner shall announce the person who has been elected the President of the Board and order the election for the Members of the Board. § 70. The number of positions and responsibilities on the Board shall be determined by the Election Commissioner according to § 62. 5
§ 71. A candidate for the Board shall indicate the desired scope of responsibilities. § 72. A member of the Association casts as many votes as there are seats to be filled on the Board. § 73. The persons who have received the largest number of votes in a given area of responsibility are elected to the Board. § 74. A candidate who has received the highest number of votes in more than one area of responsibility shall indicate which area of responsibility he is interested in, and his result shall be disregarded in the other areas. § 75. At the first Board meeting a resolution is passed on the constitution of the Board. The resolution shall also indicate which of the Members of the Board will serve as Vice-Presidents. This resolution requires the countersignature of the Election Commissioner, which may also be given by e-mail. § 76. Parallel with the election of the President of the Association, the three-persons Audit Committee is elected.If the number of candidates exceeds three, the persons who obtained the largest number of votes become Members of the Committee. § 77. At the first meeting of the Audit Committee a resolution is passed on its constitution.The resolution shall also indicate which member of the Committee will act as the Chairman. This resolution requires the countersignature of the Election Commissioner, which may also be given by e-mail. § 78. Each voting period shall last not less than 24 and not more than 48 hours. The time of opening and closing of voting shall be indicated by the Election Commissioner when ordering elections. § 79. In the event of a tie, the Election Commissioner shall order an election between candidates with the same number of votes, from among those who received the most votes. § 80. If only one person stands as a candidate, his/her election is subject to a vote of confidence, i.e. not less than 50% of the votes in favour are required for election. § 81. After the voting has taken place and the resolutions constituting the Board and the Audit Committee have been passed, the Election Commissioner will immediately announce the results and draw up an election protocol which he will sign. The protocol should contain data of persons who participated as candidates in the election, number of votes cast for each candidacy, an indication of persons elected with the position. A copy of the resolutions constituting the Board and the Audit Committee are annexed to the election protocol. § 82. The Commissioner shall forward the election protocol to the President of the Association within 7 days of its preparation. Chapter VI Assets and financial management § 83.
The assets of the Association are: a) Membership fees of Ordinary Members, b) support provided by the Supporting Members, c) donations, legacies and bequests, and funds derived from public donations, d) income from statutory activities, e) income from assets of the Association, f) grants and subsidies. § 84. The amount of the annual membership fee is determined by the General Assembly of Members and is valid until changed by another resolution.If not agreed otherwise, the membership fee should be paid by the 31st of March of each year for the current year.
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Chapter VII Amendment of the Statutes and dissolution of the Association. § 85. Amendments to the Statutes require a resolution of the General Assembly of Members passed by a majority of 2/3 of votes cast. § 86. The decision to dissolve the Association requires a resolution of the General Assembly of Members taken by a majority of 2/3 of votes cast. § 87. When passing a resolution on the dissolution of the Association, the General Assembly of Members appoints a Liquidation Committee or a liquidator and also indicates foundations and associations with objectives as close as possible to those of the Association, to which the assets of the Association will be transferred after the satisfaction of its liabilities and creditors. Chapter VIII Additional provisions § 88. For informing a member of the Association regarding requests and resolutions concerning him, it is sufficient to send the correspondence by e-mail to the e-mail address given in the membership declaration. The member of the Association communicates with the authorities of the Association in the same way. A member of the Association can change his electronic mail address. The correspondence is considered to have been delivered on the day following its sending unless the addressee has previously confirmed its receipt. § 89. If the Rules of Procedure of the General Assembly of Members, the Board and the Audit Committee have not been adopted, the deliberations of these bodies are moderated by, respectively: Chairman of the General Assembly of Members, President (Vice President) of the Board, Chairman of the Audit Committee, who shall ensure that the conduct of the deliberations allows every entitled person to speak, the deliberations are conducted in an efficient and cultured manner, and in the event of a vote, the deliberations meet the standards indicated in § 43. § 90 This Statute was introduced by the resolution of the General Assembly of Members from the 1st of September 2020 and replaces the previous Statutes.
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