CLUB CONSTITUTION

EAST LEINSTER AMATEUR RADIO CLUB CONSTITUTION 

  1. The Club shall be known as the East Leinster Amateur Radio Club (ELARC). 

  2. The aims of The Club shall be to: 
    1. further the knowledge and promote the Amateur Radio arts in all aspects, b. support our community where possible, 
    2. have fun and not take the hobby too seriously.

  3. Membership shall be open to all persons interested in the aims of the club, at the discretion of  the Committee. 

  4. Honorary life membership may be granted to any person who, in the opinion of the committee,  has rendered outstanding service to the radio community. 

  5. Guests may be invited by current members and may attend a maximum of three meetings (but  not the AGM) and any special functions upon payment of appropriate fees as directed by the  committee. 

  6. Prospective members are also invited to attend a maximum of three meetings (excluding the  AGM) prior to applying for membership and any special functions upon payment of appropriate  fees as directed by the committee.  

  7. All members shall abide by the constitution of the Club and give permission for various checks to  be carried out upon themselves to verify their fitness to be a member of the Club. 
    1. Membership of the Club may be refused, withheld or withdrawn if the behaviour of the  applicant is deemed to bring the good standing of the Club or amateur radio into  disrepute. 
    2. The decision to refuse, withhold or withdraw membership/application rests with the  elected Committee. Such a decision must be carried by at least two-thirds of the total  Committee membership. 
    3. No Member shall be expelled without first being given the opportunity to appear before  the Committee.  
    4. The decision to expel a Member will be put to the Membership for ratification at the  next club meeting, and the Member expelled by the Committee will be given the  opportunity to address the Members attending. 
    5. All new members shall be given a copy of the constitution as soon as reasonably  possible after payment of the membership fee. 
    6. After an AGM (or EGM called to change the constitution - see rule 13.b. any new  constitution shall be made available to the membership at the next meeting. 

  8. There shall be four classes of member: 
    1. Full Members 
    2. Junior Members (those under 16 at the start of the membership year) 
    3. Country Members (a member, who, by reason of their place of residence could not  normally be expected to attend regular meetings).
    4. The Membership Year is defined as beginning on 21 June and ending on 20 June 

  9. The financing of The Club shall be carried out by annual subscriptions, Club event attendance  payments, commissions on Club sales and by any other way approved by the Committee. 
    1. Annual subscriptions shall be decided from time to time by either an Annual General Meeting (AGM) or an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM). 
    2. The annual subscription is payable within two calendar months of the AGM. c. There will be a reduced subscription for Junior and Country Members. 
    3. The Committee may reduce any individual subscription at its discretion. 

  10. The Club's affairs shall be administered by a committee. The committee is responsible for the  Club's property. The Committee shall comprise of: 
    1. A Chairperson, who will be responsible for the conduct of meetings. No member may  hold this position for more than two consecutive years. A chair may be re-elected after  a break of one year. 
    2. A Secretary, who shall be responsible for the general running of the Club, and who is  responsible for ensuring that all members are made aware of the future programme of  club meetings and activities. Ensure all club correspondence is correctly handled. 
    3. A Treasurer, who shall present a statement of the Club's accounts at the AGM and shall  be responsible for managing the club finances. 
    4. Additional members may be co-opted to serve on the Committee as and when  necessary. 

  11. Conduct of meetings: 
    1. The Annual General Meeting shall be held in July of each year, and the members of the  Club shall be notified at least one month prior to the chosen date. The date of the AGM  shall be chosen by the Committee. The business of the AGM shall include the election of  the Committee, the presentation of the balance sheet, and the setting of annual  subscription rates. 
    2. An Extraordinary General Meeting may be called by the Committee at any time, or by a  minimum of one third plus 1 member. 
    3. To call an EGM the date of the EGM and all motions to be considered by the EGM must  be notified to all club members a minimum of two weeks prior to the proposed date. d. The voting on motions shall be by a show of hands and motions shall be carried by a  majority of two-thirds of those present and eligible to vote. Committee members shall  be elected by a simple majority. Proxy, Postal votes may be accepted either on paper or  in electronic format, by any member of the committee. 
    4. A quorum for an EGM or AGM is defined as: 
      1. two-thirds of the current membership. 
    5. This number of members present who are eligible to vote shall constitute a quorate  AGM or EGM subject to due notice of the AGM or EGM being given. 
    6. Members who have submitted a proxy or postal vote are considered to be present for  the purposes of counting a quorum.
    7. All members who have paid their annual subscription are eligible to vote at an AGM or  EGM. An AGM is always considered as being part of the preceding year, an EGM as  being part of the current year. 
    8. For clarification, notices may be delivered electronically or on paper. A notice is deemed  to be delivered if emailed to the club member’s provided email address and no  rejection or failure notice is received, or if sent by a recognised postal service. In the  event that an email is notified as failed, an alternative notification shall be sent in its  place as soon as is reasonably practicable. If this second notice arrives later than the  notice period specified for an AGM or EGM that will not invalidate the notification  process. 

  12. Constitutional and Other Changes 
    1. This constitution may only be amended by a motion at a fully quorate AGM or EGM.  Such a motion may make any changes to this constitution that it may wish. 
    2. A proposal for a change to be made to the rules or constitution of The Club may be  submitted by any member at an AGM. This proposal must be included in the agenda  distributed with the AGM notice. 
    3. A quorum for the AGM or an EGM is competent to make any changes to club running or  procedure that it may wish. 

  13. The Club endorses the rules and guidelines of the Irish Radio Transmitters Society (IRTS). 

  14. Winding up the Club. 
    1. The decision to wind up the Club may be taken only at an EGM by a two thirds majority.
    2. The funds of the Club shall, after the sale of all assets and the payment of all  outstanding debts, be disposed of as directed by members at the final EGM 

This version of the constitution was adopted at a general meeting of the Club on 28th July 2020. 

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