Old Bylaws

EXISTING BY-LAWS

THE INDIA ASSOCIATION OF GREATER TULSA

ARTICLE I

NAME OF THE ORGANIZATION AND ITS PURPOSE

1.1 The India Association of Greater Tulsa ("Association") is established to promote strong and close communication, solidarity, unity and understanding, among people of Indian origin, of all ages, living in the Greater Tulsa area, and to instill a better understanding of Indian culture in the local communities. The Association will work to advance the cause of people of Indian origin with appropriate interactions with individuals and organizations.

1.2 The Association is a non-profit organization and its operation shall meet regulatory requirements applicable to such organizations.

1.3 The Association is a secular organization.

ARTICLE II

ELIGIBILITY FOR MEMBERSHIP TO THIS ORGANIZATION

2.1 Any person with roots in India and/or interest in Indian culture is eligible to become a member and participate in Association activities.

2.2 Membership dues

In order to meet financial needs of the Association an annual membership fee, determined by the Executive Committee, shall be charged to members on a family unit basis. Upon payment of annual membership fee the members will become active members of the Association.

2.3 Full time independent college students will pay 50 of the regular family membership fee to become members.

2.4 Annual membership fee will be due at or before the time of Diwali Celebration.

2.5 For a family/individual joining the Association for the first time, the fee will be due at the time of joining the organization.

2.6 A Youth Committee of children of active members, aged between fourteen and eighteen, shall function under the umbrella of the India Association. The Executive Committee will appoint and determine its duties. This committee shall, in general, not exceed sixteen members, except at the discretion of the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE III

MEMBERSHIP: DUTIES AND PRIVILEGES

3.1 All persons admitted as members of the Association shall reside in the Greater Tulsa area and adjacent communities.

3.2 Persons living outside the above-mentioned areas shall be considered associate members. Associate members shall: a) enjoy all the privileges of membership except the right to hold office and the right to vote, within the Association and b) will pay the same fees as members.

3.3 All the active and associate members shall receive a free copy of the Membership Directory each year.

3.4 Any active member may call a general body meeting provided he/she has the written support of l/3rds of all the active members. The request shall be submitted, in writing, to the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall have 45 days to act on the said request.

ARTICLE IV

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AND ITS DUTIES

4.1 Definition An "Executive Committee" shall organize the activities of the Association. The executive committee shall consist of eleven voting members: president, vice president, secretary, joint secretary, and treasurer, joint treasurer, events coordinator and four other members. In addition to the voting members there will also be FOUR non-voting members on the committee, who will be chosen by the Executive Committee.

4.2 The President shall:

a) Function as head of the Executive Committee

b) Preside over executive committee and, general body meetings of the Association

c) Lead the Association with conviction and fairness to promote the well being of its members

d) Serve as an ex-officio member of all committees created for effective functioning of the Association.

e) Serve as a liaison with the Embassy and Consulates of India in the U.S.A., working with them to keep lines of communication with India open for members of the Association

f) Communicate with local and national leaders to keep them informed about the concerns of the people of Indian origin living in the greater Tulsa area.

a. All decisions concerning India Association; taken by the President, shall only be taken after consultation with the Executive Committee AND after obtaining a majority vote of the Executive Committee.

c. 4.3 Vice President

The vice president shall work closely with the president assisting him/her in planning and execution of Association activities, functioning of various committees and step in, as and when needed, to function on behalf of the president

f. If for any reason, the president vacates his/her position, the vice president shall function as president for the balance of the term. The "election" provisions under Article IV shall not apply in this situation. In any similar, unforeseen, circumstance the designated chain of command will serve as President for (he remainder of that term.

h. 4.4 Secretary

j. The secretary shall be responsible for:

a) Keeping records of the Association activities

b) Informing the Executive Committee members about meetings

c) Informing the members about dates, times and agendas of general body meetings

d) Keeping and distributing, as appropriate, minutes of all meetings

e) Preparing and submitting an annual report of Association active

a. 4.5 Joint Secretary

c. The responsibilities of the joint secretary shall be to assist the secretary in various tasks as requested by the Secretary.

e. 4.6 Treasurer

g. The treasurer will be responsible for keeping records of financial matters. He/she shall:

a) Keep records of monies received and expenditures incurred

b) Present a quarterly financial report to the Executive Committee

c) Present an annual financial report to the general body meeting at the annual general body meeting.

d) Deposit Association funds in a plan decided by the Executive Committee.

Any check exceeding $ 500.00 shall be countersigned by both the President and the Treasurer.

4.7 Joint Treasurer

The responsibilities of the joint treasurer shall be to assist the treasurer in various tasks as requested by the Treasurer.

4.8 Events Coordinator

The Events Coordinator is responsible for arranging the Association events. The event coordinator shall prepare draft plans for arranging cultural programs and other events and submit them to the Executive Committee for discussion and approval

4.9 Joint Events Coordinators:

There shall be four joint even coordinators, each responsible, with the Events Coordinator, to arrange one on the four main functions, namely Republic Day, Holi, Independence Day, and Diwali.

4.10 If an Executive Committee member misses more than 50% of the Committee Meetings, he/she will automatically be eliminated from the Committee next year.

ARTICLE V

ELECTION PROCEDURES

5.1 Election of Executive Committee members shall be done by the members of India Association, who have paid their membership fee for the current year.a deadline predetermined by the Election Committee.

5.2 An Election Committee shall be appointed, by the Executive Committee, from members not seeking office. All active (not associate) members will be allowed to send nominations, for the Executive Committee positions, before a deadline predetermined by the Election Committee.

5.3 If only one nomination is received for each post the nominee will be considered elected.

5.4 If more than one nomination is received for any post, an election will be held by secret ballot, one hour before the Diwali function. This will be conducted by the Election Committee. Winners will be announced toward the end of the Diwali function.

5.5 Persons nominated for the position of President and Vice-President should have served on the Executive Committee for at least two and one terms, respectively, as voting members. The President and Vice-president can serve only for a maximum of two consecutive terms. They may serve again, in the above posts, after a gap of at least six years.

5.6 Executive Committee members other than the President and the Vice-president can be re-elected to serve up to a maximum of four consecutive terms, as long as they are willing to volunteer for Association activities. Subsequent to four consecutive terms, they may serve again in the above posts, after a gap of at least two years.

5. 7 The election shall be conducted by secret ballot

ARTICLE VI

VALIDITY & AMENDMENTS OP BY-LAWS

6.1 These by-laws shall be deemed valid and binding to all members of the Association after they are passed by a two-thirds majority of the General Body at its annual meeting. The annual General Body meeting of the Association will coincide with the Republic Day function.

6.2 Amendments to these by-laws may be proposed by any member, other than an associate member, provided he/she has (he written support of one-thirds of the members of record. The amendment should be submitted in writing to the Executive Committee.

6.3 The Executive Committee shall first discuss any proposed amendment to the by-laws and suggest modifications, if it deems fit.

6.4 After considering the proposed amendment, within four weeks from the date of its receipt, the Executive Committee shall authorize the President to can a general body meeting to discuss/modify/adopt the proposed amendment. Such amendments shall deemed to have passed and adopted if two-third's of the members present, vote in favor.

6.5 A copy of the by-laws shall be included in the Association directory.

ARTICLE VII

FINANCIAL PROCEDURES

7.1 Funds shall be received through membership dues, private donations and such fund raising methods that are legally authorized for non-profit organizations under the US Internal Revenue Code and State and Local laws.

7.2 Funds shall be held in a commercial bank or other public financial institutions in an interest bearing account. Funds shall not be invested in a speculative investment.

7.3 Funds shall be spent exclusively at the direction and approval of the Executive committee.

7.4 Funds shall be used exclusively for fulfilling the goals of the Association as defined in the Article I.

7.5 No member of the Executive Committee or any Association member, appointed by the Executive Committee to perform any task assigned by the committee, shall promise or cause the Association to spend any amount of money, in fulfillment of the assigned task, without approval from the Executive Committee.

7.6 No monies from the Association funds can be spent for donations to charities to individuals or organizations, without the majority consent of the Executive Committee members.

7.7 All expenses that may be incurred for functions and activities organized by the Association, shall be done with the majority consent of the Executive Committee.

We the undersigned have read understood and approved the above by-laws of India Association of Greater Tulsa.

India Association of Greater Tulsa (IAGT) aims to promote strong and close communication, solidarity, unity and understanding among people of Indian origin or those who have an interest in India, living in the Greater Tulsa area. It seeks to instill a better understanding of Indian culture in the local communities and work to advance the cause of its members. The purpose of IAGT is to engage in any lawful acts or activities to: 1) altruistically promote communication and unity among people of Indian origin as well as those who have an interest in India; 2) nurture the local community’s understanding of the language, culture and customs of people of Indian origin; and 3) provide cultural, educational, social and charitable community services.

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Old Bylaws