AAC(UK) Standing Orders
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§1 Preamble
§2 Office
§3 Membership
§4 Executive Committee
§5 Social Committee
§6 General Meetings
§7 The Alpine Team
§8 Funds
§9 Transitional Arrangements for Committee Membership
§10 Transitional Arrangements for the Annual General Meeting
§1
Preamble
1. These standing Orders are subsidiary to the 2006 Constitution for the Austrian Alpine Club (UK)/Sektion Britannia of the Oesterreichischer Alpenverein, which is based on a standard template for a Constitution for Sections/Branches of the OeAV laid down by the Gesamtverein. Henceforth this is referred to as ‘the Constitution’ in this document. They have been produced in accordance with §15 paragraph 2 Clause (h) of the Constitution.
2. The Executive Committee is the prime authority for the interpretation of these Standing Orders. The decision of the Executive Committee upon any matter affecting the club not provided in these Standing Orders or the Constitution shall be subject to ratification at the next General Meeting.
§2
Office
All communications shall be submitted to the AAC(UK) Office.
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§3
Membership
Constitution §5, §6, §7, §8)
1. Membership Categories.
The membership categories are determined by the Gesamtverein. A definition of all relevant membership categories in use shall be maintained at the office and displayed on the website as far as is practical.
2. Termination Procedure.
The circumstances in which Members may be expelled are defined in § 8 of the Constitution. In these circumstances the following procedure shall apply:
a) The member shall be informed in writing of the reasons for his/her proposed expulsion and is requested to either appear before the Executive Committee at a stated time and place to state his/her case or submit his/her case in writing;
b) If either the member has failed to state his/her case or has appeared before the Committee or submitted the case in writing, and the Executive Committee considers that the circumstances justify expulsion, then the committee shall pass a resolution to that effect.
The expulsion will be effective upon posting a letter containing a notice to that effect to the member’s last recorded address, unless notice is given of appeal;
c) Any members under sentence of expulsion in accordance with § 8 paragraph 3 of the Constitution may appeal within 4 weeks using the Arbitration Tribunal Process defined in §18 of the Constitution.
Any member under sentence of expulsion in accordance with § 8 paragraph 6 of the Constitution may appeal within 4 weeks to the Bundesausschuss.
The decisions of these appeal bodies shall be final.
3. Membership Subscriptions.
a) The subscriptions shall be determined each year by the Executive Committee, within the conditions set down in § 9 of the Constitution;
b) New and lapsed members may be required to pay a higher subscription for their category of membership for that year;
c) The subscription covers the period from the date of payment *(Note 1) until 31 December of the current year.
However in order to facilitate new membership applications and renewals over the December - January period the following concessions are made.
- For new membership applications made from 01 November onwards for the following year, membership can commence as early as 01 December and will continue until 31 January of the year after**(Notes 2, 3 and 4).
- For renewed membership applications and new membership applications made in the course of the year membership will be valid until the 31 January of the following year** (Notes 2, 3 and 4).
*Note (1): Membership begins at 00.00hours of the day after the membership fee is paid (see Note 4), but not before 01 December of the previous year. At least three working days should be allowed for membership applications submitted via the website to be processed, and in periods of high demand or in the event of force majeure an even longer time must be allowed.
**Note (2): The insurance element of the membership is only valid until 31 December of the membership year. However, if membership is renewed by 31 January of the next year then validity of the insurance element is extended up to and including 31 January of that next year. (See Notes 1 and 4).
**Note (3): Unless renewed by 31 January of the next year, membership shall cease.
**Note (4): The membership fee is deemed to be paid when the membership application has been processed by the AAC(UK) Office. Membership, including the insurance element, will be invalidated if payment of the fee is not fulfilled.
4. Membership Cards.
a) Membership cards must be signed by the member;
b) Membership cards of members under eighteen years of age must be countersigned by their parent or guardian.
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§4
Executive Committee
(Constitution §10, §14, §15, §16)
1. Composition
a) The Executive Committee shall consist of four Officers and not less than four and not more than six elected Ordinary Members. The Chairman or other nominee of the Social Committee shall also be a member of the Executive Committee with full rights. In addition up to two members may be co-opted in the interests of the Club at the discretion of the Executive Committee;
b) The officers of the Executive committee as defined in §14 of the constitution are:
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Chairman;
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Vice Chairman;
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Secretary;
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Treasurer.
Their specific duties are as defined in §16 of the Constitution.
c) The following roles shall be allocated to the Ordinary Members at the discretion of the Executive Committee:
The duties of the above are defined in §16 of the Constitution
d) At the discretion of the Executive Committee, Members who are not eligible for election (Standing order §6.I (d)) may be invited by the Committee to attend any meeting of the Executive Committee as observers;
e) The Executive Committee may at any time appoint a President of the Club. The appointment shall be subject to approval by the following and each subsequent Annual General Meeting. The President may attend the Executive Committee Meetings in a non-voting capacity.
2. Authorisation of Payments.
No member of the Executive Committee may authorize payment for goods and services for which he/she is a beneficiary or in which he/she has a direct or indirect interest.
3. Delegation of Duties.
The Executive Committee may delegate authority to discharge any of its responsibilities and duties connected with the day to day running of the Club to any person, or body of persons whether corporate or incorporate, and in the event of such delegations the Executive Committee shall be responsible to the Club for ensuring that the responsibilities and duties so delegated are properly carried out.
4. Sub Committees.
The Executive Committee may appoint sub committees for specific tasks.
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§5
Social Committee
1. Responsibilities.
The Social Committee shall be responsible for:
a) The development, coordination and publicising of:
- The programme of day walks in the UK;
- The programme of meets in the UK;
- The programme of Alpine meets in Europe;
- Other meets World Wide;
- Programme of Lectures on relevant topics;
- Social functions.
b) Decisions on matters related to the purchase, stockholding and sale of::
- Club merchandise eg sweatshirts and fleeces, cards.
2. Composition.
The Social Committee shall consist of not less than five and not more than ten elected members. The committee shall elect from among its members.
- Chairman;
- Secretary;
- Financial Controller;
- Touring Representative (Standing Order §7).
Five members of the Social Committee shall constitute a quorum.
The Chairman or other nominee of the Social Committee shall also serve as a member of the Executive Committee (See § 4. 1 (a)).
3. Standing Orders
The Social Committee shall produce Standing Orders to cover its activities and submit them for approval to the Executive Committee. These shall comply with the requirements of the Constitution and these Standing Orders.
4. Budget
The Social Committee shall produce an Annual Budget which shall be subject to Executive Committee approval.
5. Sub Committees
The Social Committee may appoint sub committees for specific tasks.
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§6
General Meetings
(Constitution §11, §12, §13)
1 Election of Officers. Executive and Social Committee Members:
a) The Officers of the Executive Committee shall he elected for a term of 3 years;
b) Ordinary members of the Executive Committee shall be elected for a term of 3 years;
c) Members of the Social Committee shall be elected for a term of 3 years;
d) In general each Officer or other Committee Member shall be restricted to a maximum of two terms in any given position (eg Chairman or Ordinary Member). Exceptions to this rule shall only be made when a candidate achieves a two-thirds majority of votes cast at an AGM/SGM;
e) Should a person be co-opted to a position on one of the Committees as a result of resignation or expulsion of a member, then he/she shall complete that term of office subject to re-election at the next AGM. He/she will then be eligible for two further terms of office under standing order § 6 1(d);
f) Any nomination for a position on one of the Committees shall be in writing, signed by two members of the Club (paid up for the year in question) and the nominee, who must have current membership of the Club. Such nominee shall also indicate his/her willingness to stand for election. The nomination must reach the Secretary not less than 7 days before the date fixed for the AGM. In the absence of sufficient written nominations, nominations may be taken from the floor of the AGM;
g) The results of all ballots shall be resolved by simple majority of those voting except where the Constitution or these Standing Orders require otherwise. For the avoidance of doubt, this means that the election be determined by the candidates with the highest number of votes in the first ballot being declared elected to the vacant position for which the particular election is taking place. In the event of a tie, the elections shall be determined by lot in a form to be decided by the Chair of the meeting.
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§7
The Alpine Team
1.The Alpine Representative, being a member of the Executive Committee and the Touring Representative, being a member of the Social Committee, shall constitute the Alpine Team and shall collaborate in producing a co-ordinated meets, tours and training programme for the Club.
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§8
Funds
1. Hut Fund
The Club does not own a hut, so in order to more fully fulfil its obligations under §3 paragraph 2 clause (g) of the Constitution, the established Hut Fund shall be maintained.
Members shall be encouraged to make voluntary contributions to the fund, which shall be used to provide grants for the maintenance of huts and paths owned by other OeAV sections. After consultation with the 0eAV Head Office in Innsbruck and other Section(s) the decision as to where the funds shall be donated shall be solely at the discretion of the Executive Committee.
2. Expedition Fund
The already established Expedition Fund shall be maintained.
Members shall be encouraged to make voluntary contributions to the fund, which shall be used to provide grants for expeditions of mountaineering interest in accordance with §2 of the Constitution. Grants shall be restricted to members of the OeAV. The decision shall be solely at the discretion of the Executive Committee.
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§9
Transitional Arrangements for Committee Membership
In order that the whole committee membership is not normally replaced at one AGM it is necessary to timetable a three-year transition starting in 2006. NB The first 'year' shall run until AGM 2007.
1. Officers of the Club (§4.1a)
One officer shall be elected for a term of one year in 2006 and then be eligible for re-election for 2 more 3 year terms of office starting in 2007.
Another officer shall be elected for a two year term in 2006 and then be eligible for re-election for 2 more 3 year terms of office starting in 2008.
The third and fourth officers shall be elected for a three year term in 2006 and then be eligible for re-election for one more three year term starting in 2009.
2. Ordinary Members of Executive Committee
Two ordinary members shall be elected for one year in 2006, and then be eligible for re-election for 2 more 3 year terms of office starting in 2007.
Two Ordinary Members shall be elected for two years in 2006, and then be eligible for re-election for 2 more 3 year terms of office starting in 2008.
Two Ordinary Members shall be elected for three years in 2006, and then be eligible for re-election for one more three year term starting in 2009.
3. Existing Ordinary Members.
Current Ordinary Members on the Executive Committee first elected in any year between 1998 and 2005 were eligible under the previous Club Rules to be re-elected each year for a total of eight years. The following transition rules shall apply.
a) Members who have served continuously after being elected to the Committee at the AGM in any of the years 1999, 2000 and 2001 shall be eligible to be elected at the AGM 2006 for a further I, 2 or 3 years respectively to complete their original 8 years of eligibility. To be elected for further terms in 2007, 2008 or 2009 respectively they must then gain at least two thirds of the votes cast in the election;
b) Members who have served continuously after being elected to the Executive Committee in the years 2002 or 2003 shall be eligible to stand for a two or three year position respectively in 2006. They shall be eligible to stand for one more three-year term in 2008 and 2009 respectively;
c) Members elected to the Committee in 2004 and 2005 are eligible to stand for a one or two year position in 2006 and shall be eligible to stand or two more three year terms, the first of which will commence in 2007 and 2008 respectively;
d) Any Member of the Executive Committee who has served continuously as an ordinary member since AGM 1998 shall be eligible to stand for election to the Executive Committee in 2006 for an agreed term up to 3 years, but he/she must gain at least two thirds of the votes cast in the election.
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§10
Transitional Arrangements for the Annual General Meeting
1. The 2006 Constitution changes the time of the Annual General Meeting from March to October.
2. The first Annual General Meeting under the Constitution and these Standing Orders shall therefore be held on 18 March 2006
3. The second Annual General Meeting shall be held in October 2007 as laid down in §11 paragraph 1 of the Constitution.
4. The Executive and Social Committees elected at the AGM in March 2006 shall serve for a approximately 19 months rather than the usual calendar year.
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Last updated: 06 May 2008