Constitution

Article I- Name

1.         The name of this Chapter shall be the Metropolitan Washington Provisional Chapter of  NIGP

Article II – Objective

  1. The objectives of this Provisional Chapter are to establish cooperative relationship among its’ members for the development of efficient purchasing methods and practices in the field of educational, governmental and public institutional procurement; to encourage maintenance of ethical standards in buying and selling; to promote uniform public purchasing laws and simplified standards and specifications; to collect and disseminate useful information for its’ members; to promote the interchange of ideas and experience within the purchasing professions; to encourage research and investigation; to promote ongoing training and certification of those engaged in the profession; to sponsor such other activities as may be useful in providing its’ members with knowledge for efficient procurement; to strive by all legitimate means to advance the purchasing profession; and to observe the Purposes, Aims, and Objectives of the National Institute of Government Purchasing.

Article III- Membership

  1. The membership shall consist of regular, honorary and retired membership.

  1. Regular Membership: (a) Membership in the Provisional Chapter shall be open to all public institution procurement and management personnel including Federal, State, County, municipal and township activities, public school systems, colleges, universities, hospitals, commissions, authorities and any other political subdivisions of the Washington Metropolitan Area.  (b) Full time employees if the above agencies provided they spend the majority of their time involved in purchasing, or the material management function.  (c) A person with full time employment in a position having a direct influence on the public procurement process such as elected or appointed officials, department heads, and certain educators.

 

  1. Honorary Membership: Honorary membership may be conferred by unanimous vote of the members upon individuals who have mad distinguished contributions to the purchasing profession, or this Provisional Chapter.  Honorary members shall not be entitled to vote or hold office and shall be exempt from payment of dues.

 

  1. Retired Membership:  Retired membership may be conferred upon members of this Provisional Chapter upon their retirement from the pursuit of their livelihood through active employment, and upon written request for such membership.  Retired members shall not be entitled to vote or hold office and shall be exempt from payment of dues.

 

  1. Admission:  An applicant becomes a regular member upon acceptance of the application, payment of dues, and confirmation by the Membership Committee that he or she meets all eligibility requirements.  Membership shall be denied any applicant who fails to satisfy the eligibility requirements.

 

  1. Revocation:  The Board of Directors may revoke the membership of any person for non-payment of dues, violations of the NIGP Code of Ethics or for other just cause.  A person considered for membership revocation, except for non-payment of dues, shall be provided written notice of the proposed action by the Board of Directors and be given the opportunity to show cause as to why the membership should not be revoked.

 

Article IV – Officers and Directors

 

1.   The following shall constitute the officers and directors of the association who combined shall be known as the Board of Directors.

 

      Officers:

            President

            First Vice President

            Second Vice President

            Treasurer

            Secretary

            Board of Directors

 

2.   President:  The President shall exercise general supervision over the affairs of the Provisional Chapter, preside over all meetings of the Provisional Chapter, be a member ex-officio of all committees and perform all duties incident to the Office of the President.  The President shall be responsible for authorizing the expenditure or commitment of Association funds.  Any expenditures in excess of $500 or 20% of the current treasury balance, whichever is greater, shall require the approval of the Board of Directors.

 

3.   First Vice President:  The First Vice President shall perform such duties as are assigned by the President.

 

4.   Second Vice President:  The Second Vice-President shall perform such duties as are assigned by the President.

 

 

5.   Treasurer: The Treasurer shall be responsible for the accounting of the funds of the Provisional Chapter, shall maintain a complete record of receipts and disbursement, and at each meeting shall render a true and complete report relative to the affairs of the office.  The Treasurer shall be responsible for collecting membership dues and reporting to the Secretary any delinquent so the Secretary can notify the delinquent members.

 

6.   Secretary: The Secretary shall maintain record of the proceeding of all meetings of the Board of Directors and of the Provisional Chapter, mail all dues notices and other notices covering meetings and the affairs of the association, and perform such other duties as may be assigned by the President of the Board of Directors.

 

7.   Board of Directors: The governing body of this Provisional Chapter will be the Board of Directors, chaired by the President, consisting of the immediate past President, the President, First and Second Vice Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer and four members-at-large.  The Board of Directors shall control and manage the affairs and finances of the Association, and shall have authority to take such actions as will serve the best interests of the Association and its’ members.  The Board of Directors shall have no authority to expend or commit funds, or otherwise cause indebtedness of the Association to an amount in excess of the cash resources of the Association, unless such expenditures, commitment or indebtedness is approved in advance by a two-thirds vote of the membership at a regular meeting.

 

By-Laws

Article I – Election of Officers and Directors

 

  1. Vacancies of Officer and Director positions shall be elected at the November regular meeting from a slate of candidates presented by the Nominating Committee and any eligible and consenting members nominated from the floor.  A single majority vote of those regular members in attendance will be required for a candidate to win election

 

  1. Initially the following shall be elected:

 

President

First Vice President

Second Vice President

Treasurer

Secretary

Director (4)

 

Initially, one Director shall be elected for a three-year term, one for a two-year term and two for a one-year term.  At subsequent annual elections directors shall be elected for a three-year term.

 

At the end of the term of office, all officers except the President shall assume the next higher office.  Therefore, only the Secretary and those Director positions expiring shall be elected at the annual meeting.

 

3.         No member of the Provisional Chapter shall be considered for any office or Directorship unless he or she has been a member in good standing for at least one year immediately preceding the election and is a member of NIGP.

 

Article II – Term of Office

 

1.         Te term of office of all officers and Directors shall commence on January 1 of each year.

 

2.         The term of office of the Officers shall be for a period of one year.

 

3.         The term of office of the Directors shall be for three years except for those initially elected for staggered terms in accordance with Article I of the By-Laws.

 

Article III – Vacancies

 

1.         Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired term of an Officer or Director by a special election at a regular meeting following the occurrence of the vacancy, in accordance with the procedures of Article I, Section I of the By-Laws, except that the Vice President shall assume the duties of President in the event the office of President becomes vacant.

 

2.         The Nominating Committee shall immediately convene upon notice of which shall be provided to the membership prior to the special election.

 

Article IV – Dues

 

1.         Dues will be assessed to members on an individual basis.  Amount of the dues to be set by majority vote of the members present upon recommendation of the Board of Directors at a regular meeting.

 

2.         Dues for regular members will be for a yearly period commencing on January 1 and ending on December 31 of each year.

 

3.         Dues shall be payable in advance, upon receipt of invoice.

 

4.         Membership in the Association of a person whose payment of dues is 90 days in arrears may be revoked by the Board of Directors upon written notice, effective on the date of the notice.  Membership may be reinstated upon payment of delinquent dues.

 

Article V – Funds

 

1.         A bank account for the Chapter shall be maintained with three signatures registered, to include the President, Treasurer and Secretary, any two of which shall be required on all checks.

 

Article VI – Meetings

 

1.         The Chapter shall meet, at its discretion, no less than once every three months and shall include an Annual Meeting.  The dates and locations are to be determined by the membership.  The President may call a special meeting at any time.

 

Article VII – Committees

 

1.         Standing Committees

 

            The following standing committees and a Chairman for each shall be appointed by the incoming President not later than 30 days after he/she assumes office:

 

                        Nominating

                        Membership

                        Professional Development

                        Program

                        Recognition/Public Affairs

 

            Membership on the standing committees shall consist of a minimum of two individuals, at least one of whom is a regular member in good standing.  The chairman of each standing committee shall attend all Board of Directors meetings but shall not vote unless the Chairman is also a member of the Board of Directors.

 

2.         The President may appoint such other committees as deemed appropriate.

 

3.         Duties and Responsibilities of the Standing Committee are:

 

a.         Nominating.  The nominating committee shall consider and evaluate recommendations from the membership regarding potential candidates for Officer or Director and shall submit a slate of eligible nominees to the President in adequate time to be circulated to the membership but not later than 30 days prior to the meeting at which the annual elections shall be held.  The Nominating Committee shall convene at such time as necessary to develop a slate of eligible candidates to fill positions of Officers or Directors occasioned by vacancies.

 

b.         Membership:  The Membership Committee shall actively pursue increasing the membership of the Provisional Chapter.  It shall review all applications for membership, determine and advise the Board of Directors concerning eligibility of applicants for membership.  Letter of welcome to new members will be issued and signed by the President.

 

c.         Professional Development:  The Professional Development Committee shall be responsible for planning, developing and implementing programs, which further the knowledge, expertise and professionalism of the membership; and which enhance the public’s perception of the Chapter.

 

d.         Program: The Program Committee shall be responsible for planning and arranging programs for the Provisional Chapter’s regular meetings, including determining topics of interest to the membership and arranging for speakers.

 

e.         Recognition/Public Affairs:  The Recognition Committee shall be responsible for notifying the membership of awards, honors, promotions, and other newsworthy accomplishments of members of the Provisional Chapter and shall further be responsible for notifying the membership of hospitalization, deaths or other items of concern regarding members.

 

Article VIII – Procedures

 

1.         Quorum:  A quorum at a Board of Directors meeting shall consist of a simple majority of the Board members.

 

2.         A quorum at any regular meeting shall consist of a minimum of 20 percent of the regular members of the Provisional Chapter.

 

3.         Robert’s Rule of Order shall govern all meetings of this Provisional Chapter.

 

Article IX – Chapter Disolution

 

1.         In the event that the Provisional Chapter dissolves and after satisfaction of outstanding debts, any remaining funds and accounts receivable, upon collection, shall be disposed of in the following manner:

 

a.         Shall be remitted to National Headquarters of the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing, Inc. or;

 

b.         Donated to any similar charitable, tax exempt organization designated by a simple majority vote of the membership present at the fund meeting.

 

 

Amendments

 

The Constitution and By-Laws may be amended in the following way at the option of the majority of the membership.

 

            (1)        At any regular meeting by a two-thirds majority of the members present.