Health Sciences Library Association of Louisiana

HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARY ASSOCIATION OF LOUISIANA BYLAWS

ARTICLE I. Name and Boundaries

Section 1. Name

The name of this association shall be Health Sciences Library Association of Louisiana, hereinafter known as the Association. The Association may also be known by the acronym HSLAL.

Section 2. Boundaries

The boundaries of this Association shall be the state of Louisiana.

ARTICLE II. Purpose

The purpose of the Association is to encourage and promote cooperation and communication among the librarians and library managers of health science institutions in the state of Louisiana. To this end, the Association is dedicated to the support of and the furtherance of programs which enhance the objectives of health sciences librarianship.

ARTICLE III. Membership

Membership in the Association is open to all persons interested in health sciences librarianship. 

Section 1. Regular members

Applicants shall become regular members and be entitled to all of the rights and privileges thereof upon receipt of their dues by the Treasurer.

Section 2. Student members

Student members shall be persons who are enrolled in an American Library Association (ALA) accredited library school master’s program. Student membership is limited to 3 consecutive years. Applicants shall become student members and be entitled to all of the rights and privileges thereof upon receipt of their proof of enrollment and dues by the Treasurer. 

Section 3. Rights and Privileges

A. Voting members of this Association shall consist of all members.

B. All and only regular members may be appointed to committees.

C. Officers of the Association must be regular members working in a library related position in the state of Louisiana and must have been a member of the Association for a minimum of 2 years.

Section 4. Dues

The fiscal year of the Association shall be the calendar-year.  The dues of the Association shall be assessed annually. The Executive Committee shall propose changes in dues.  Notification of any proposed change in dues structure must be distributed to members no less than 30 days prior to the Fall Meeting.  The proposed change will be put to a preliminary ballot at the Fall Meeting.  If approved by a majority vote of members attending the Fall Meeting, the proposed change must then be voted on by the membership via a distributed ballot.  If then confirmed by a majority vote of the membership, the dues change will become effective in the next calendar year.

ARTICLE IV. Officers

Section 1. Officers and Terms of Office

A. The elective officers of the Association shall be President, Vice President/President-Elect, Immediate Past President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

B. The term of office of the President shall be 1 year as Vice President/President-Elect, 1 year as President, and 1 year as Immediate Past President. No one may serve more than 1 successive term in the office of the President.

C. The term of office of the Secretary shall be 1 year. An individual may not serve more than 1 successive term as Secretary.

D. The term of office of the Treasurer shall be 2 years. An individual may not serve more than 1 successive term as Treasurer.

E. Elected officers shall take office at the close of the Fall Meeting or following their election and serve, unless they resign, die, become incapacitated, or are removed, until the close of the Fall Meeting at the end of their terms of office or until their successors are elected and assume their duties.

Section 2. Duties

A. The duties of the President shall be to:

1. Preside at meetings of the Association, both planned and called;
2. Be an ex-officio member of all committees of the Association except the Nominating Committee;
3. Represent the Association at meetings of other professional organizations; and
4. Perform all other duties prescribed by these Bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Association.

B. The duties of the Vice President/President-Elect shall be to:

1. Assume duties of President in his/her absence;
2. Serve as Chair of the Program Committee;
3. Appoint incoming committee chairs and members, and announce them at the Fall Meeting;
4. Appoint a Parliamentarian, a Newsletter Editor, and any other positions deemed necessary. These appointments will serve a term concurrent with that officer’s presidential term;
5. Represent the Association at meetings of other professional organizations; and
6. Perform all other duties prescribed by these Bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Association.

C. Immediate Past President. The duties of the Immediate Past President shall be to:

1. Chair the Nominating Committee and help select at least 2 nominees for offices with vacancies;
2. Review and revise the Procedure Manual;
3. Represent the Association at meetings of other professional organizations; and
4. Perform all other duties prescribed by these Bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Association.

D. The duties of the Secretary shall be to:

1. Be responsible for incoming and outgoing correspondence;
2. Prepare minutes of all meetings and distribute such to the membership in an expeditious manner;
3. Represent the Association at meetings of other professional organizations; and
4. Perform all other duties prescribed by these Bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Association.

E. The duties of the Treasurer shall be to:

1. Receive and account for all monies due to, received, held, and disbursed by the Association;
2. Receive dues payments and make assessments;
3. Keep the official record of current membership;
4. Represent the Association at meetings of other professional organizations; and
5. Perform all other duties prescribed by these Bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Association.

Section 3. Nominations and Elections

A. The Nominating Committee shall prepare annually a slate of at least 2 nominees for each elective officer whose term expires that year.

B. Ballots shall be distributed to the membership no later than 30 days prior to the Fall Meeting. The deadline for receiving votes shall be 3 weeks after ballots are distributed. Votes received after the deadline shall be disqualified and/or destroyed.

C. The nominee receiving a majority of the votes cast shall be elected. In cases where there are more than 2 candidates, a plurality shall elect. If a tie occurs for any office, selection by the Nominating Committee from among the tied candidates shall be by lot.

Section 4. Vacancies

A. A vacancy arising in the office of President shall be filled by the Vice President/President-Elect, who shall cease to be Vice President/President-Elect, shall serve out the unexpired term of the President, and shall continue as President for the full succeeding term to which he or she was elected.
 
B. A vacancy arising in any other elected office shall be filled by the Executive Committee.

C. No appointee may succeed an office unless duly elected.

ARTICLE V. Meetings

Section 1. Meetings

Meetings of the Association are usually held twice a year. One meeting is always held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the South Central Chapter of the Medical Library Association (SCC/MLA). A second meeting is usually held in the spring. Other meetings may be called as needed either by the Executive Committee or by the President acting at the request of any member who presents a petition signed by 10 current members. No meeting shall be held without notification to the membership of no less than 30 days prior to the planned date of the meeting.

Section 2. Quorum

One-fourth (¼) membership shall constitute a quorum of this Association.

ARTICLE VI. Executive Committee

The Executive Committee of the Association shall be composed of the 5 elected officers: President, Vice President/President-Elect, Immediate Past President, Secretary, and Treasurer. The Newsletter Editor shall be an ex-officio member. The duties of the Executive Committee shall be to:

1. Supervise the affairs of the Association between its scheduled meetings;
2. Determine the dates of meetings;
3. Make recommendations to the Association; and,
4. Adopt the Association’s budget.

ARTICLE VII. Committees

Section 1. Standing Committees

All standing committees shall be composed of at least 3 members. Members shall serve staggered rotations of 2 years.

A. Program Committee. The Vice President/President-Elect shall chair this committee. The duties of the Program Committee shall be to:

1. Propose the date and site of the Spring Meeting to the Executive Committee for approval;
2. Plan a program to be presented as part of the Spring Meeting; and,
3. Work with the Continuing Education Committee to present appropriate professional development or continuing education opportunities as are needed.

B. Continuing Education Committee. The duties of the Continuing Education Committee shall be to:

1. Select appropriate Continuing Education opportunities to be presented in conjunction with the Spring Meeting or other meetings;
2. Coordinate the Continuing Education class with the Program Committee; and,
3. Work with the Executive Committee in securing any necessary financial support.

C. Membership Committee. The duties of the Membership Committee shall be to actively promote membership in the Association. The Treasurer is an ex-officio member of the Membership committee.

D. Nominating Committee. The Immediate Past President shall chair this committee. The duties of the Nominating Committee shall be to:

1. Prepare, annually, a slate of at least 2 nominees for each of the offices of the Association with vacancies;
2. Secure written acknowledgment of a willingness to serve if elected from each nominee;
3. Conduct the election as specified in ARTICLE IV. Section 3; and,
4. Maintain accurate records of the voting process and recording of votes.

E. Newsletter Committee. The Newsletter Editor shall chair this committee. The duties of the Newsletter Committee shall be to solicit and publish news and other informational articles of interest to the membership.  The term of the Editor/Chair may be more than one year. The Newsletter Editor shall be an ex-officio member of the Executive Committee.

F. Web Page Committee. The Web Page Editor shall chair this committee. The duties of the Web Page Committee shall be to acquire information about HSLAL and its members for inclusion on the web page and to provide online access for members to documents pertaining to HSLAL and its affiliations. The term of the Editor/Chair may be more than one year.

Section 2. Other Committees

Other committees of the Association may be appointed by the Executive Committee on an ad-hoc basis as deemed necessary for conduct of Association business. The length of service on special committees is at the discretion of the members of the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE VIII. Dissolution
 
In the event of dissolution of this Association, all liabilities and obligations shall be paid or adequate provision made for payment. Any assets not so disposed shall be disposed of by consensus of the Executive Committee of the Association to one or more organizations that at the time qualify under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.  No funds shall benefit any individual member of the Association. If no consensus is met, remaining assets shall be distributed to the South Central Chapter of the Medical Library Association, Inc. within six months as long as the South Central Chapter of the Medical Library Association, Inc. shall qualify as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Association charters shall be returned to SCC/MLA Headquarters.

ARTICLE IX. Parliamentary Authority

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order shall govern this Association in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any special rules of order the Association may adopt.

ARTICLE X. Amendment of Bylaws

Amendments to the Bylaws of the Association are made at the suggestion of a special ad-hoc Bylaws Committee, appointed by the Executive Committee when changes in the Bylaws are deemed necessary. These bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote, provided that the amendment has been distributed to the membership at least 30days prior to the meeting at which the proposed changes will be discussed. The proposed amendments will be put to a preliminary ballot at that meeting. If approved by a majority vote of members attending the meeting, the proposed amendments must be confirmed by a majority vote in a distributed ballot of the HSLAL membership.

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