ARTICLE I
Composition and Membership
The Suncoast Linux Users Group (SLUG) is a membership organization of Linux
enthusiasts. Nominally based in the Tampa Bay area of Florida, membership
is open to any who apply. There are no qualifications for membership in
SLUG, other than an interest in the Linux operating system. SLUG membership
is acquired for an individual by:
- emailing SLUG a "New Member Survey" (available on the SLUG website)
- subscribing to one of the SLUG email lists.
ARTICLE II
Purposes of SLUG
The main purpose of SLUG is to help members gain expertise with Linux.
Secondarily, in order to gain more members (and thus more people being
helped to learn more about Linux) SLUG has the additional purpose to increase
awareness and acceptance of Linux in the community.
ARTICLE III
Activities
SLUG shall have the following ongoing activities:
- A website explaining what the purposes of SLUG and its activities are, who its officers are and how to contact them, how to become a member, how to subscribe to SLUG email lists, "help" articles, and links to other Linux-related resources. This website shall be "Lynx-friendly".
- Email lists, including but not limited to: The SLUG Announce list, for announcing events or meetings, and the main SLUG email list, for posing technical questions, posting Linux and computer-related news items or humor, and other group-related email (as outlined in the list charter).
- Meetings, at least one per month in the Tampa Bay area. It should be noted that groups of members in specific geographical locations within the Tampa Bay area (known colloquially as "splinter groups") may wish to have their own meetings at some alternate location, on a schedule different from the main meetings. This should be encouraged, and all members of SLUG should be invited to such meetings. All regular meetings (including "splinter group" meetings) shall be open to the public at large. Other meetings, as directed by the Executive Committee, or as voted upon by the membership, may be closed to the general public.
ARTICLE IV
Dues and Funding
There shall be no dues for membership in SLUG, nor shall admission be charged
for entrance to regular meetings nor access to the website nor mailing
lists. Attendance at special events may, however, have a nominal entrance
fee. Funding for SLUG projects and activities shall be obtained from donations,
raffles, or similar methods.
ARTICLE V
Officers and Committees
Officers of SLUG represent the group and do the work of the group. They
do not get paid or receive other compensation for their work. They are
volunteers. The following are the designated officers of the group. The
Bylaws may be amended (see below) to include other officers as the need
arises. The officers of SLUG shall form the Executive Committee.
SECTION 1
Officers
President. It is the President's job to ensure that the group
runs smoothly, and that the duties of the other officers get done effectively.
This means that if one of the other officers is absent, leaves or quits,
his duties fall to the President to do. He presides over meetings and
may act as the spokesman and
public representative of the group. And the President acts as adjudicator
of disputes among officers and members. And since his job is to ensure
that the other officers do their jobs, he may step in to handle an officer's
job where that officer has failed to do it effectively, or may deputize
another officer or SLUG member temporarily to do so. The President may, at
his descretion, be a signatory on SLUG bank accounts.
Vice-President. The Vice-President acts in the President's stead where he or she is not available, is incapacitated, or indisposed. He or she shall also act as the Seargent At Arms where no Seargent At Arms has been elected or where the position has been vacated. He or she may also attend to other duties as detailed below. The President may temporarily designate someone as Vice-President in the case of his being unavailable for short periods, such person to act in the stead of the President for brief absences.
Treasurer. The Treasurer handles the money and physical assets of the group. It shall be the Treasurer's job to ensure that SLUG has money to operate as needed, that it is spent in accordance with the wishes of the group, and that it is well-accounted for. The Treasurer shall not spend the money of the group except as approved by the Executive Committee or by the membership as a whole. The Treasurer is a signatory on any group bank accounts. In addition, it shall be the Treasurer's responsibility to maintain any physical assets of the group in good working order and attend to their maintenance or see that such maintenance is done. The Treasurer must submit a full report of group assets to the Executive Committee upon request or at predetermined periods, as specified by the Executive Committee. Should raffles or other fund raising activities be held, it shall be the Treasurer's responsibility to obtain items for raffle, or to deputize other SLUG members to do so in his place. However, items to be raffled shall be held by the Treasurer, and it shall be his responsibility to ensure their safekeeping and equitable distribution among Meeting Coordinators. Such distribution shall be apportioned by percentage of income raised for SLUG at each of the meetings. Likewise, the Treasurer shall ensure that all monies raised are deposited into the SLUG bank account, and credited to the appropriate meeting place. Meeting Coordinators shall not solicit items to be raffled without coordinating such solicitations through the Treasurer.
Seargent At Arms. The Seargent At Arms shall bring all SLUG meetings and Executive Committee meetings to order and shall ensure that they are conducted with decorum, ejecting any members or officers who are excessively disruptive. He or she shall oversee all voting to ensure the integrity and fairness of voting (unless he himself is the subject of a No Confidence Vote, in which case this duty is taken up by the Vice President). The Seargent At Arms shall at all times be aware of violations of these Bylaws and of the List Charter, and inform the appropriate officers or take personal action (if he or she is so authorized) if such violations arise.
Webmaster. The Webmaster shall maintain and update the website. He may, at his discretion and with the approval of the Executive Committee, relocate the website to a different server. However, in no case shall the website be hosted on a server that charges SLUG for hosting or insists on advertisements on the SLUG web pages, except as approved by the Executive Committee. The website shall be hosted on a server that would typically be active at all times. This would generally preclude the hosting of the website from a server in someone's home. The Webmaster shall ensure that the content of the website is up to date, and that the next meeting is announced on the website in advance of the event. He or she shall maintain and not cut corners on the content, and shall ensure that the website is first and foremost informative. Appearance is secondary, and in no case shall the website ever be Lynx-unfriendly.
List Administrator. The List Administrator shall ensure that the SLUG email lists exist and are used by SLUG members. He may, at his option and with the approval of the Executive Committee, change the host of the lists, but in no case shall the lists be hosted by a server that inserts advertisements or spam into the list, or charges SLUG for list hosting, unless also approved by the Executive Committee. Any host for the lists must be on a server that is active at all times. This would normally preclude having the lists hosted on a server in someone's home. The means to subscribe and unsubscribe members to the lists shall be provided on the SLUG website. But the List Administrator may, from time to time, for the sake of expediency, subscribe and unsubscribe members at their request. In addition, the List Administrator shall handle "bounced" emails as he or she sees fit. He or she shall enforce the List Charter and accepted rules of Netiquette and ensure that the email lists are pleasant, helpful and interesting to participate in.
Event Coordinator. The Event Coordinator shall ensure that meetings take place on a regular (at least monthly) schedule and are promoted effectively to members. He or she shall ensure that adequate facilities exist for the number of members in regular attendance. He or she shall also ensure that meetings are well attended by giving the members some incentive for coming. This may include, but is not limited to, lining up interesting presentations for the edification of members. He may enlist the assistance of the Meeting Coordinators in lining up presentations. If at all possible, regular meetings shall take place at facilities where it is possible for members to bring their machines for help and assistance with technical problems.
Meeting Coordinator. There may be several Meeting Coordinators, each of whose job it shall be to hold meetings at a particular location. This shall include opening the meeting, ensuring the meeting place is set up to accommodate attendees, optionally conducting raffles, introducing presenters, announcing group news or introducing the person who shall announce group news, closing the meeting, and other similar duties. Meeting Coordinators shall be answerable directly to the Event Coordinator. Should a volunteer wish to start holding monthly meetings at a given location where meetings have not been held before, he may do so. Such meetings may or may not be announced on the SLUG Announce list. However, before being elevated to the position of Meeting Coordinator, his meetings must continue for a period of no less than six months. At that time, the Executive Committee may vote to include him in their ranks as a Meeting Coordinator.
Expansion Director. The Expansion Director shall have the job of promoting the existence and benefits of SLUG and Linux to the community at large. This may entail issuing press releases, promotional material or advertisements, or other activities designed to promote the group and Linux. The Expansion Director may (and should) promote SLUG meetings and activities to non-members. In this respect, he or she is like the Event Coordinator. The difference is that the Event Coordinator promotes events to the membership, where the Expansion Director promotes them to non-members.
SECTION 2
Executive Committee
The Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall be
composed of all the officers of SLUG. Its duties shall be to ensure the
officers as individuals and as a group act in accordance with these bylaws,
and to make major decisions with regard to the group, where such decisions
are not submitted to a membership vote. The Executive Committee may conduct
business either in person or via email, as is deemed appropriate. However,
if one or more members of the Executive Committee are unable to attend
a scheduled Executive Committee meeting, business must be conducted instead
via email. Members of the Executive Committee (that is, officers
of SLUG), shall assume their duties by either volunteering (see below)
or by election. Because the Executive Committee acts on behalf of the SLUG
membership, their actions should take into account what they believe are
the best interests and wishes of the group as a whole. They may put matters
to a vote of the membership where they are in doubt. But such votes should be
infrequent, because part of the purpose for the Executive Committee is to
decide and act quickly where the group cannot or will not.
No Confidence Votes. The Executive Committee may, at the request of at least one percent (1%) of the SLUG membership, or at their own discretion, vote to remove an officer from their ranks. Such action shall not be taken lightly, and shall be based on immoral or illegal or unethical conduct unbecoming an officer of SLUG, repeated disruption of the group or the Executive Committee, or failure to adequately perform the functions of an office. Such a No Confidence Vote shall be taken after the accused has been allowed to answer charges before the Executive Committee, but in no case shall occur later than one week from the decision to bring such action. All activity related to a No Confidence Vote may take place by email. Results and details of the vote shall be made public to the membership, either by email or on the SLUG website. However, it shall not be permitted to slander or libel or cast aspersions on the character of the removed officer, except where the No Confidence Vote is brought about by illegal, unethical or immoral acts. In any case, only facts shall be permitted in any summaries submitted to the membership. Should an officer be voted out on a No Confidence Vote, he or she shall be required to vacate his/her office immediately. If an officer is voted out by the Executive Committee on a No Confidence Vote, and more than two percent (2%) of the SLUG membership requests that the matter be put to a group vote, the Executive Committee is obligated to hold such election. However, the vote page on the SLUG website must detail the factual findings of the No Confidence Vote, in addition to any statement the officer wishes to make (less than 200 words) in his/her defense.
Votes By The Executive Committee. Votes by the Executive Committee on any issue shall be decided on a simple majority (more than 50%) basis. Note that in all voting, each officer has one vote, regardless of how many positions he may hold. If a clear decision cannot be reached because the vote is evenly divided, the Executive Committee may opt to utilize some other method to arrive at a decision (random number generator, least senior member opts out of the vote, etc.). Any such alternate method must likewise be determined by majority vote. If the Executive Committee cannot reach a decision by majority vote or alternate method, then no action shall be taken on the matter unless they agree by majority to put the matter to a vote of the membership at large.
ARTICLE VI
Elections And Volunteers
Volunteers, Volunteering. Should a member of SLUG wish to volunteer for vacated or absent officer position, he or she should submit his/her request to the Seargent At Arms, along with reasons he/she should be elected and qualifications for the position. The Seargent At Arms shall relay the request in total with his comments to the other members of the Executive Committee. The matter shall be voted on by the Executive Committee within one week of the request. Should the Executive Committee decide in favor of the applicant, he/she may then assume the desired office until his resignation, loss in an election, death, lengthy incapacitation or No Confidence Vote. Apart from volunteering for office, any member of SLUG may volunteer for any other temporary duties, without nomination or election.
Elections. Should more than one person wish to volunteer for an office, or should a volunteer come forward to challenge an officer already seated, an election shall be held for that office. Elections shall take place by voting on a "vote" page on the SLUG website. Elections shall be promoted to all members at least two weeks prior to the event, and shall run for one week. Voting shall not be anonymous; email addresses shall be required for votes to be registered. The Seargent At Arms and one other member of the Executive Committee shall constitute a Voting Committee to count and verify the votes. The other member of the Voting Committee shall be decided on by majority vote of the Executive Committee. Voting Committee members shall strive as much as possible to ensure (by use of email addresses and other membership records) that no duplicate voting occurs. Duplicate votes shall be defined as more than one vote for the same officer or issue by the same person. Votes found to be duplicates shall be eliminated from all counting. Once such counting is done, verified and made public, the voting emails shall be destroyed. Winners shall be determined by simple majority of those voting. Ties among more than two candidates for the same office shall be broken by a runoff election. Otherwise, ties shall be broken by majority vote of the Executive Committee. Failing to reach a clear majority even then, some mutually agreeable method of random selection shall be used to select the winner. Issues of importance to the group may also be put on the ballot at regular elections, as directed by the Executive Committee. However, if less than one quarter of SLUG members vote, and unless the vote is a clear majority (more than 50%) of those voting, such issues may instead be decided by the Executive Committee, even after a vote by the membership.
ARTICLE VII
Changes To The Bylaws
These Bylaws may be altered or amended by two-thirds majority of the Executive
Committee, or by majority vote of the membership.
Paul M. Foster
Submitted 10 December 2000.
Version 1.2