PREFACE
The purpose of these Bylaws is to set up the rules by which the Chicago Section of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) shall be governed. The Bylaws, Amendments, and official action of the Chicago Section of the STLE shall not conflict with any provisions governing Sections in the Constitution, Bylaws and Operating Rules of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers.
ARTICLE I: Terminology
Section 1
This organization shall be known as the Chicago Section of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers.
Section 2
The Chicago Section of the STLE shall hereinafter be referred to as the "Section". The Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers shall hereinafter be referred to as the "Society".
Section 3
The object of this Section shall be to promote the objects and purposes as set forth in the Society's Constitution, Bylaws, and Rules.
ARTICLE II: Territory
Section 1
This Section shall generally embrace, but not be limited to; IL, northern IN, MN, WI, and other territories as designated by the Society By-Laws.
ARTICLE III: Classification of Membership
Section 1
Membership in this Section shall be by approval of the Society and classification of membership shall be as designated in the Constitution of the Society and shall consist of members, associate members, student members, honorary members, industrial members, life members, Section sustaining members and such other classes of members as may be adopted by the Society.
Section 2
Each member of the Section shall be entitled to one vote on each matter submitted to a national vote of the members, except associate and student members. Student members have no voting right; associate members have voting rights in local Section matters. Student members have no chair privileges (excepting Student Chapters). Associate members have chair privileges in local sections.
Section 3
Restrictions upon membership in this Section shall be the same as those imposed upon membership in the Society which are set forth in the Constitution, Bylaws, and Operating Rules of the Society covering suspension and expulsion, resignation, reinstatement, and transfer of membership (Article III, Constitution).
ARTICLE IV: Officers
Section 1
The officers of this Section shall consist of a Chair, Vice-chair, and Secretary
Section 2
Officers shall be elected for terms of one (1) year and no officer shall be eligible for election for more than two (2) consecutive terms to the same office. Per Article VII, Section 2B of the Society Constitution, only individuals who have served for a full term on a committee within the Section shall be eligible for nomination as an officer.
Section 3
Officers shall serve as members of the Section Executive Committee.
Section 4
Any officer may be removed by a majority vote of the Executive Committee whenever, in its judgment, the best interest of the Society and the Section would be served thereby.
Section 5
In case a vacancy occurs in the office of Chair during the Section year, the Vice-Chair shall become Chair. In case a vacancy occurs in the office of Vice-Chair, the Secretary shall become Vice-Chair and a new Secretary shall be elected by a majority vote of the Executive Committee to serve the balance of the term.
ARTICLE V: Duties of Officers
Section 1
Chair: The chair shall be the principal executive officer and the official representative of the Section. They shall preside over all regular and special meetings of the section and at all meetings of the Executive Committee. They shall represent the Section at Regional Meetings called by the Regional VicePresident. They may also represent the Section at the Annual Business Meeting held on the first day of the Annual Meeting of the Society. With the exception of the Nominating Committee, the incoming Chair shall be a member ex-officio of all committees They shall submit a report, prepared by the Secretary, showing receipts and disbursements for the year and a financial statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth at the close of the Section year, to the Executive Secretary of the Society not later than June 30 of each year, in accordance with printed forms supplied by the National Office.
Section 2
Vice-Chair: The Vice-Chair shall fulfill the duties of the Chair when they, for any reason, are unable to act in their official capacity. They shall keep the minutes of all business meetings of the Section and the Executive Committee. They shall notify all members of the Executive Committee of meetings and arrange a meeting place. They shall submit copies of the minutes of all Section Business and Executive Committee meetings to the Regional Vice-president, if requested
Section 3
Secretary: The Secretary shall have charge of all funds of the Section and shall disburse such funds as outlined in Article XI. They shall keep the accounts belonging to the Section which, at all times, shall be open to inspection and subject to auditing by the Executive Committee. The Secretary may, at the discretion of the Executive Committee, be bonded at Section expense for the faithful discharge of their duties in such sum and with such surety as the Executive Committee may determine. They shall submit to the Section Chair an operating statement for the Section year showing receipts and disbursements and a financial statement showing assets, liabilities, and net worth at the close of the Section year no later than June 30 of each year.
Section 5
All Officers: In addition to such duties as may be provided for elsewhere in the Bylaws, all officers shall perform the duties incident to the offices which they hold, and such other duties as may be prescribed by an act or resolution of the Executive Committee.
ARTICLE VI: Executive Committee
Section 1
The Executive Committee of the Section shall consist of not more than seven (7) members, comprising the three (3) officers and four (4) Trustees.
Section 2
Trustees shall be elected for terms of two (2) years. No elected trustee shall be eligible for immediate reelection to the same office. The trustees shall represent the interest of the Section membership and be responsible for voting on issues brought before the Executive Committee, for auditing the Secretary's activities and for those duties as designated by the Chair. Each trustee will familiarize themself with these Bylaws.
Section 3
In case a vacancy occurs on the Executive Committee as a trustee, a member shall be elected by a majority vote of the Executive Committee to serve the balance of the term.
Section 4
Any elected member of this committee may be removed, as in the case of officers (Article IV, Section 4), by an act of the Executive Committee, for incompetence, refusal to act, or absence from three consecutive meetings of the Executive Committee.
ARTICLE VII: Duties of Executive Committee
Section 1
The affairs of the Section shall be governed by the Executive Committee as outlined in Article VI, Section 1.
Section 2
The Executive Committee shall hold at least one meeting every three months. One meeting must be held in February, or on a date prior to that of the March meeting of the Section, for the purpose of electing a Nominating Committee in accordance with the provisions in Article VIII, Section 1.
Section 3
A majority of the Executive Committee members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting. If less than a majority of the Executive Committee members are present at any Executive Committee meeting, the meeting will adjourn and reconvene at a later date as arranged by the Vice-Chair.
ARTICLE VIII: Nomination and Election of Officers and Executive Committee Members
Section 1
The Nominating Committee of this Section shall consist of a chair and a minimum of three (3), or a maximum of five (5) members. The chair shall be the upcoming past chair of the Section. The other members, at least one (1) of whom is a current trustee of the Executive Committee, shall be appointed by the Chair of the Nominating Committee. At least one (1) of the appointed members shall be a former officer or trustee of the Section. The Committee shall present to the members at the March Section Meeting nominations for offices of Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary to serve for one (1) year, and two (2) trustees to serve for two (2) years.
Section 2
All voting shall be by secret ballot and shall take place before the Annual Meeting of the Society. The Nominating Committee Chair shall be responsible for convening the Nominating Committee as needed, conducting the election, and tabulating the results. Only current members shall be entitled to vote. The member list maintained by the Society shall be the authority for voter eligibility. The candidates receiving the highest number of votes are elected to the office for which they were running.
Section 3
The results of the election of the Executive Committee members shall be announced at the April meeting of the Section. The newly elected Executive Committee members shall assume their duties on July 1st and serve until their successors are elected and qualified.
ARTICLE IX: Section Meetings
Section 1
The Section shall hold no less than four (4) section meetings throughout the STLE calendar year
Section 2
The meetings shall be held at a time and place arranged by the Program Committee, with the approval of the Executive Committee. The Program Chair shall be responsible for ensuring all members are notified of section meetings.
Section 3
Special Meetings: Special Meetings may be called at any time by the Executive Committee or upon written request to the Secretary by one-eighth of the listed membership. The Secretary shall notify the members at least five (5) days in advance of the date fixed for the Special Meeting. Official business may be enacted if there is a quorum of fifteen percent (15%) of voting members. In the event the action involves the removal from office, which in effect is a denial of a privilege to a member, the matter may be referred to the Board (Constitution – Article III, Section 5 and 7).
ARTICLE X: Committees
Section 1
The standing committees for the Section shall include a Program Committee, a Membership Committee, a Media Committee, and such other Committees as may be deemed necessary by the Chair or the Executive Committee.
Section 2
The Chair and committee members of a committee are voluntary positions. The number of members on each committee may be designated by the committee Chair, at their discretion. The Section Chair and Secretary shall be ex-officio members of all committees, with the exception of the Nominating Committee. The committees shall function until the newly elected Executive Committee assume their duties.
ARTICLE XI: Finances
Section 1
The Section year shall be defined as the twelve-month period from July 1 to June 30.
Section 2
The Secretary, or in their absence, the Chair shall sign all checks.
Section 3
The Secretary, with the approval of the Executive Committee, shall determine the bank in which funds are to be kept.
Section 4
The Secretary shall approve all bills within the budget, as approved by majority vote of the Executive Committee. Otherwise, approval of bills within the budget will be made by the Chair. Expenditures outside of the approved budget will require approval by majority vote of the Executive Committee.
Section 5
Payments to the Section from the Treasury of the Society shall be made and controlled in accordance with the standard procedure of the Society.
Section 6
In addition to financial support from the Society, the Section, when it is deemed necessary, may make provisions for raising additional funds. It may also receive contributions and shall have entire control of all funds raised and received. It shall be understood, however, that contributions to any special funds
shall be voluntary and that any failure to contribute shall not deprive any member of the Section of Section Privileges.
ARTICLE XII: Review and Amendments to the By-Laws
Section 1
These Bylaws are to be reviewed every 5 years and may be amended by a majority vote of the Executive Committee, followed by approval by the Section members. The Secretary shall submit notification of the amendment(s) approved by the Executive Committee, in writing, along with a ballot, to all Section members. There will be a waiting period of 30 days before final approval. Negative votes from one third of the voting Section members will cause the amendment(s) to be rejected.
Section 2
Any amendment adopted by membership action in accordance with the provisions of Article XII, Section 1, is not final and does not take effect until after it has been officially approved by the Society Rules Committee.
Section 3
The Secretary of the Section shall submit to the Secretary of the Society a full text of the amendment(s) adopted in accordance with Article XII, Section 1, with a request for official approval or rejection.
ARTICLE XIII: Appeals
Section 1
All actions taken by the Section are subject to appeal to the Society Board of Directors through due process procedures. The appeals process is as follows:
1. The applicant shall have 60 days to appeal an action to the Society Board of Directors through the Society Executive Director or President.
2. The applicant has the right to present their position to the Board in person or in writing.
3. If the Board denies the appeal, the Board must notify the applicant in writing of the reasons.
4. The Board's action shall be final, subject only to the right of the Board itself to grant a rehearing at its discretion.
ARTICLE XIV: Rules of Order
Section 1
The rules contained in Robert's Rules of Order (Revised) shall govern the Section in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these Bylaws or with any rules adopted by an act or resolution of the Executive Committee.