Article I. Members

Section 1. Membership shall be open to all persons who shall make formal application to the Membership Committee and pay the Treasurer the prescribed dues.

Section 2. The officers of the Society shall have the right to refuse any new member or to terminate the membership of an existing member for cause and without prior notice. However, a terminated person may appeal to the general meeting of the Society.

Section 3. Each paid membership is entitled to one vote.

Article II. The Officers

Section 1. The officers of the Society shall be of two kinds, elective and appointive.

1. The elected officers shall be President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and the Immediate Past-President.
2. The appointed officers shall be the Editor of the Society newsletter and the chairpersons of the standing committees, and shall be appointed by the elected officers.

Section 2. No one individual may hold two or more elective offices concurrently.

Section 3. With consensus of the Executive Council, all Council positions other than President may be exempted from the two-term limit and placed on the ballot for subsequent election by the membership.

Section 4. The duties of the elective officers shall be as follows:

1. The President shall preside at meetings of the Society and its officers; shall be nominal head of the Society; shall rule on questions of procedure that may arise; shall appoint ad hoc committees at his/her discretion.
2. The Vice-President organizes the general meetings and transmits information about upcoming meetings to the membership via the newsletter. The Vice-President shall fulfill the duties of the President when the latter is absent. He/she shall assume the Presidency should that office become vacant during a term.
3. The Secretary shall maintain the records of the Society and its officers; shall record minutes for all official business meetings of the Society; shall notify the membership of pertinent business; and shall be responsible for all general correspondence of the Society.
4. The Treasurer shall keep records and accounts of the Society, including all monies received and disbursed; and shall be responsible for all financial reports required by the business of the Society. The Treasurer shall make a financial report to the membership at each general meeting and to the Executive Council at each business meeting. An outside audit shall be conducted prior to the elected Treasurer’s acceptance of the Society’s financial records by a three-member committee appointed by the Society’s President. The President shall appoint this committee in November, after the tallying of votes, in the event that a new Treasurer is elected.
5. The Immediate Past-President shall serve as an officer of the Society and as chair of the ad hoc North Carolina Herpetology Hall of Fame Committee.

Section 5. The standing committees shall be the Membership Committee, the Education Committee, the Conservation Committee, the Stewardship Committee, the Husbandry Committee, the Herp Shop Committee, the Library/Archives Committee, the Grants Committee, the Photo Contest Committee, and the Website Committee.

1. The Membership Committee will be responsible for maintaining the membership roster and mailing list, accepting and processing applications for membership, distributing the newsletter, generating a membership directory for inclusion in each July issue of the newsletter, and producing materials for the solicitation of new members.
2. The Education Committee will be responsible for developing special programs for the membership and public in accordance with the statement of purposes of the Society.
3. The Conservation Committee will be responsible for keeping the membership informed of important conservation issues and for informing the membership of ways they can promote conservation.
4. The Stewardship Committee will be responsible for oversight of properties owned or managed by the Society.
5. The Husbandry Committee will be responsible for developing responsible husbandry practices among the members and other interested parties.
6. The Herp Shop Committee will be responsible for purchasing, maintaining, transporting, and selling merchandise at functions sanctioned by the Society.
7. The Library/Archives Committee will be responsible for the maintenance and control of all Society library and archive items and will provide a means for Society members to borrow these items in an organized manner so as to serve as the safe keeper and librarian of these materials.
8. The Grants Committee will be responsible for the annual solicitation for, and review of research, conservation, or education grant proposals for funding by the Society, in keeping with the statement of purposes of the Society.
9. The Photo Contest Committee will be responsible for organizing the Society’s photo contests, to include solicitation for, compilation, judging, and presentation of entries, and award of prizes.
10. The Website Committee will be responsible for maintenance of and updates to the Society’s website and/or other web presence.

Section 6. All records and implements of office shall be turned over by any officer to his or her successor immediately subsequent to the latter’s assumption of the office.

Section 7. The duties of the Editor of the Society newsletter shall be as follows:

The Editor shall be responsible for all phases of the newsletter’s publication and may appoint staff members to assist. In as much as the newsletter is the principal mechanism for written communication to the membership, the Editor is obligated to publish all communications of the Society and its officers on first priority and to include, as space permits, other items consonant with the stated objectives of the Society. The Editor shall report annually to the officers to whom he/she is responsible.

Article III. The Executive Council of the Society

Section 1. The Executive Council shall consist of the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Immediate Past-president, Editor of the Society newsletter, and chairpersons of the standing committees.

Section 2. The Executive Council shall be empowered to manage the affairs of the Society.

Section 3. The Executive Council shall fill any vacancy occurring among the officers, except that of President, by an appointment for the unexpired term.

Section 4. The Executive Council shall be specifically responsible for any publications of the Society and shall set policy as is needed to coordinate the contents of the various media so as to further the stated objectives of the Society and to insure the availability and distribution of the several items.

Section 5. Any Executive Council member holding two or more voting positions on the Council shall be entitled to only one vote.

Article IV. Election of Officers

Section 1. Elections shall be held yearly. Terms of office shall be staggered such that elections for President and Treasurer shall be held in even years, and elections for Vice-President and Secretary shall be held in odd years.

Section 2. The President shall appoint three members of the Society to serve as a nominating committee, to include not more than one member of the current Executive Council.

Section 3. The Nominating Committee shall present a slate of at least one candidate for each office to be filled. Additional nominations may be made by the membership at the time of the fall general meeting.

Section 4. The Nominating Committee, or a member of the Society, proposing a nominee, shall obtain assent of the candidate to serve if elected.

Section 5. The slate of nominations shall be circulated to the entire membership via the newsletter not later than one month before the fall general meeting.

Section 6. Voting shall take place at the fall general meeting. Each membership may cast one vote. The Nominating Committee shall prepare the ballots and supervise the distribution and collection of the ballots. Members in good standing who do not attend the meeting shall receive an absentee ballot, either included in the newsletter prior to the fall general meeting, or mailed by the Nominating Committee or the Secretary. The Nominating Committee shall receive the ballots and count the votes. The results of the election shall be communicated to the membership via the newsletter.

Section 7. The Nominating Committee shall inform the elected candidates of their election. Newly elected persons will take office at the beginning of the next calendar year following the date of the election.

Article V. Meetings

Section 1. The Society shall hold two general meetings, one in the spring and one in the fall, at times and locations set by the Executive Council of the Society. Not more than 18 months shall elapse between meetings.

Section 2. The membership shall be informed in writing of the time and place of the general meetings not later than two months prior to the opening of the meetings.

Section 3. Special meetings may be called by vote of a majority of the Executive Council, or on a petition of a quorum of the membership. The time and place of such special meetings must be announced to the membership in writing at least two weeks prior to the meeting.

Section 4. One-tenth of the membership will constitute a quorum to petition for a special meeting.

Section 5. Meeting business sessions shall be conducted under Robert’s Rules of Order.

Article VI. Meetings of the Executive Council of the Society

Section 1. The Executive Council shall meet at least twice a year no later than two months before the opening of the general meetings.

Section 2. Any meeting of the Executive Council shall be open to attendance by interested members of the Society as observers unless the Executive Council moves for Executive Session.

Section 3. A simple majority of the Executive Council shall constitute a quorum.

Section 4. A simple majority of those present and voting shall be necessary to pass any motion.

Section 5. Meetings shall be conducted under Robert’s Rules of Order.

Section 6. Special meetings of the Executive Council may be called by the President, or by a majority of same.

Section 7. Special votes of the Executive Council may be called by the President, or by a majority of same. Special votes may be conducted via e-mail. A simple majority of the Executive Council shall be necessary to pass any special vote conducted via e-mail.

Article VII. Dues

Section 1. The Executive Council shall be authorized to establish such dues as are compatible with the financial status of the Society.

Section 2. A member in arrears for payment of dues for a period of six months after conclusion of the current membership year shall be dropped from the role after due notice from the Membership Committee.

Article VIII. Fiscal Year

The fiscal year of the Society shall embrace the period of 1 January through 31 December of the same year.

Article IX. Amendment of the By-laws

Section 1. Amendments may be proposed by the Executive Council or by petition to the Secretary by ten or more members of the Society.

Section 2. Proposed amendments must be submitted in writing to the Secretary at least three months prior to the general meeting at which time they are to be discussed.

Section 3. Such amendments shall be submitted in writing by the Secretary to the general membership at least two months prior to the general meeting at which they are to be discussed.

Section 4. To be approved, an amendment must receive a positive vote by two-thirds of those voting at the general meeting.

Section 5. Any adopted amendment shall become an integral part of the By-laws and the Secretary shall be instructed to add them to copies of the By-laws and to distribute the amended By-laws to the members of the Executive Council and to other interested members of the Society.