Contemporary Historical Vehicle Association By-Laws
ARTICLE I – NAME, PURPOSE AND LOCATION
SEC. 1 - This club shall be known as the Contemporary Historical Vehicle Association, a nonprofit corporation.
SEC. 2 – The purpose of this Association shall be to encourage the preservation and restoration vehicles manufactured in the model years 1928 through 25 years of age, to be known as Action Era Vehicles. Further, the preservation and study of printed material published as a result of study of the foregoing will be encouraged.
SEC. 3 – Additional coverage outside the boundaries of the Action Era will be under consideration from time to time if:
A: later vehicles are deemed significant to history, and/or
B: the majority of the membership deem it their desire through referendum to include earlier or later vehicles.
SEC. 4 – The Association shall exert leadership throughout the United States and its possessions to further the historical preservation of the aforementioned vehicles, including publication of “Action Era Vehicle”, the official CHVA magazine, hereafter referred to as “AEV”.
SEC. 5 – The Association is empowered to acquire personal property only to the extent where it is necessary to the more satisfactory service of the club. There will be no speculating.
ARTICLE II – OFFICERS
SEC. 1 – The Association shall have a total of seven Directors. Said Directors shall hereafter be called the “Board”. Term of office shall be for three years.
SEC. 2 – No officer shall hold office on the Board for more than two consecutive terms unless they receive 60% of the membership’s vote in a special referendum. If successful, their name will be placed on the ballot. When possible this shall take place on the National Annual Tour.
SEC. 3 – At least two candidates shall be elected to the Board annually in order to maintain a total of seven members. No one region shall have a majority of members serving simultaneously on the Board.
SEC. 4 – The Officers shall be: President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. Non-voting Officers may be appointed by the President to fill other positions as needed.
SEC. 5 – The President shall develop a list of candidates from members in good standing at the Annual National Tour, and present to the membership on said tour for vote. In the case where the number of nominees on the ballot is equal to the number of positions to be filled, the Board, by majority vote, may declare that the nominees are elected. Further action in the elective process will be suspended and the election shall be deemed completed by the Secretary. In the event that there is not an Annual Tour, the election process shall be determined by the existing Board. – The term of each Board member shall begin on January 1 and terminate on December 31. The President shall be elected from within the Board during the Annual National Tour. Only members of the current Board will be eligible to vote. Said election shall be overseen by the Vice-President unless that person is a candidate for the Presidency, in which case the Secretary will oversee the election. The term of President shall be one year and limited to four successive years, however the Officer may again hold the position after a one-year layoff from said office.
SEC. 6 - Should any member prove to be incapable or unwilling to fulfill their duties in a given position, the President may re-assign or instigate proceedings for removal of that member from the Board.
SEC. 7 – Non-elected Officers may be appointed by the President as deemed necessary for the operation of the Association, such as, National Historian, Editor, Office Manager, legislative Representative, Club Sales, etc. These non-elective Officers do not have a vote on the Board, but their advice will be welcome. The President may re-assign or remove these officials as deemed necessary, with the exception of the Office Manger and Editor. Board approval is necessary for appointment, reassignment or replacement of these Officers.
SEC. 8 – In the event of a mid-term vacancy, the President may fill vacancies on the Board by appointment. Such appointee shall complete the term of the Officer they are replacing, and shall have all the power and rights of the other Directors. Serving a portion of another’s term does not affect the holder’s serving two consecutive terms of their own.
SEC. 9 – Any Association Officer and/or member of the Board may be removed from office for non-performance of duties or for conduct detrimental to club purpose. Such removal must be voted by the Board and approved by at least four members of said Board. This action must be preceded by a written warning to the member. If this fails, the member will be asked to resign. Should a resignation not be forthcoming, that person will be removed from the Board.
ARTICLE III – DUTIES OF OFFICERS
SEC. 1 – The President shall preside at all meetings of the Board or the members, appoint committees, preserve order and call meetings as required. When meetings are impractical, the President shall conduct business by other means, such as: e-mail, conference call, etc., at least every other month.
SEC. 2 – The Vice-President shall assume the duties of the President, if so required, head committees, and/or carry out special projects as requested be the President. The Vice-President shall oversee the annual election of Officers.
SEC. 3 – The Secretary shall keep minutes of all official meetings, answer all normal mail and other related duties as requested by the President, and handle club insurance.
SEC. 4 – The Treasurer shall handle all funds of the Association, keep accurate books of all income and expenditures and summit such books for audit at least once a year by the appointed representatives of the President. The Treasurer shall file necessary income tax returns. The Board will require the Treasurer, at club expense to post bond, if it so desires.
SEC. 5 – All Officers shall attend meetings whenever possible and shall reply to all Board Letters within two weeks of receipt. Any member of the Board may initiate a Board Letter. Copies of all Board Letters shall go to all Board members.
SEC. 6 – Each elected Officer of the Board has one vote.
SEC. 7 – A Handbook of Officer’s Duties shall be prepared which will list the specific duties of each Officer in full detail. This Handbook should be revised periodically as needed. Such revisions must have the approval of the Board.
SEC. 8 – Any majority vote of the Board concerning club policy, unless stated in the By-laws, shall be valid, until such a time as a referendum on the subject is successful.
ARTICLE IV – MEMBERS
SEC. 1 – Any person expressing a related interest in Action Era Vehicles and paying the correct dues is acceptable. The Board may at a later date, initiate standards of membership based on character reference and moral grounds, but, in no case, upon economic status of the applicant.
SEC. 2 – Dues shall be set by the Board for a twelve-month period, based on the calendar year. Dues for new Members may be prorated to the beginning of the quarter of application. Dues may be changed by four members of the Board.
SEC. 3 – A member more than thirty days delinquent in their dues becomes a non-member until paid. Members may be expelled, by a majority vote of the Board without restitution of dues if found to engage in fraudulent or slanderous actions toward other members. Such a member shall have thirty days to refute charges brought against them.
ARTICLE V – TYPES OF MEMBERS
SEC. 1 – The first 100 members to maintain membership until the club roster reached 2000, became life members. Known as Charter Members, their numbers bear the Prefix “CM”.
SEC. 2 – Members are entitled to all benefits of the club. Each member is entitled to one vote.
SEC. 3 – Honorary members pay no dues, have no votes, and are accepted at the discretion of the Board.
SEC. 4 – Any member may become a Life Member through the payment of a sum established by the Board.
ARTICLE VI – CLUB POLICY
SEC. 1 – Any member may start a petition concerning any matter of club policy by getting 30 members to sign. This petition when summited to the Board, requires publication of the member’s desire for referendum. Interested members will then write to them and if they get an additional 20 of the members to sign, a referendum will be forced. The referendum will be decided by plural vote. The forgoing does not apply to Article IV, Sec. 2 (Dues)
SEC. 2 – At a club meeting a two-thirds vote can by-pass a petition.
SEC. 3 – The Board shall be required to publish in the “AEV” a financial report for programs with a cost in excess of $500.00. (“Programs” defined as expenditures in lieu of normal operating expenses)
ARTICLE VII – REGIONAL CHARTERS
SEC. 1 – The National Association of CHVA, as the Parent Club, is empowered to grant Regional Charters. A group of twelve or more members of CHVA must summit a Regional Charter application to the Board accompanied by a list of members and a set of Regional By-laws. A group of six members of CHVA may request a Provisional Regional Charter by using the same procedures as for a Regional Charter. The Provisional Regions will be encouraged by the Association to build their membership, and when they reach a membership of twelve, the Association will present them with a Regional Charter.
SEC. 2 – All members of said Regional group must, in the beginning, and in the future, remain members of the parent group.
SEC. 3 – A Region as a group, may set its own dues, and is required to publish a Regional newsletter of at least one page, with a minimum of one newsletter per year.
SEC. 4 – The Board and others as specified by the President may require receipt of local periodicals, advance notice of activities, changes of Regional By-laws and Officers, and an annual list of Regional members.
SEC. 5 – The right to withdraw a regional Charter is reserved by the Board.
ARTICLE VIII – AMENDMENTS
SEC. 1 – Ant proposed change to Article I, Article II, Sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, or 8, Article III, Sections 1 or 6, Article IV, Article V, Article VI, Section 1 or 2, Article VII, Section 1 or 2, or Article IX in the By-laws shall be submitted in writing to the President, who shall then submit it to the Board. If four Board members indicate approval, the proposed changes will be submitted to the club membership. If such proposal receives 60% of the votes cast, it will be considered carried.
SEC. 2 – Any proposed change to Sections other than enumerated in Article VIII, Section 1 of these By-laws shall be submitted in writing to the President, who shall then submit it to the Board. If four members indicate approval, the changes will be considered carried.