The Board of Democrats Abroad Canada has approved the following proposed Bylaw Amendments to be decided by the membership. Most of the proposed amendments are a change of one word in order to have the Canada Bylaws to be in sync with the recently passed Article 15, and the DPCA Charter.

ELECTION INFORMATION

The electronic ballots will be emailed to members on March 16th. Submit your completed ballot by 11:59PM EDT March 30th. To vote you must have joined Democrats Abroad by 11:59PM EDT March 3, 2019, you must be a member of DACA, a US citizen of voting age and a resident of Canada.

PROPOSED BYLAWS AMENDMENTS

· Articles 4.1, 6.2, 6.4, and 18.3 each need one word adjusted; “gender” to “sex” to synchronize with terminology in recently passed Article 15

· Article 12 [IT Manager] needs to be renamed Article 11 and moved above ‘Other Voting Members of the Board’ following DA Canada members 2018 approval to amend Article 4 Officers to include the IT Manager

· Article 11 [Members at Large] needs to be renamed Article 12

· Article 19.6 [Terms and Removal from Membership or Office] needs to be amended to include violation of the DPCA Code of Conduct

· Article 20 [Vacancies] needs to be amended to confer the full rights of the appointed office until the next AGM

The proposed changes are in bold under each Proposed Article

Current Article 4.1 [Officers]: 1st paragraph needs to be amended

4.1 The Officers of the Organization shall be the Country Chair, Executive Vice Chair, two (2) additional Vice Chairs, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Secretary, Counsel and IT Manager. The Executive Vice Chair shall be opposite in gender to the Country Chair. These Officers constitute the Executive Committee of DACA, which shall meet at least quarterly.

Proposed Article 4.1 [Officers]

4.1 The Officers of the Organization shall be the Country Chair, Executive Vice Chair, two (2) additional Vice Chairs, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Secretary, Counsel and IT Manager. The Executive Vice Chair shall be opposite in sex to the Country Chair. These Officers constitute the Executive Committee of DACA, which shall meet at least quarterly.

Current Article 6.2 [Executive Vice Chair]

6.2 The Executive Vice Chair shall be a member who is of the opposite gender to the Chair, as per the bylaws of Democrats Abroad and the rules of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

Proposed Article 6.2 Executive Vice Chair

6.2 The Executive Vice Chair shall be a member who is of the opposite sex to the Chair, as per the bylaws of Democrats Abroad and the rules of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

Current Article 6.4 [Additional Vice Chairs]

6.4 The two additional Vice Chairs shall be elected without consideration of gender. Responsibilities shall be decided among the Officers, but should allow for division of such responsibilities so that the many organizational and policy-making roles are equitably and productively arranged.

Proposed Article 6.4 [Additional Vice Chairs]

6.4 The two additional Vice Chairs shall be elected without consideration of sex. Responsibilities shall be decided among the Officers, but should allow for division of such responsibilities so that the many organizational and policy-making roles are equitably and productively arranged.

Current ARTICLE 12 [IT Manager]

12.1 The IT Manager performs as liaison to manage the domain name, institutional email addresses, and security access to the database and bulk emailing system. With the IT Committee, the IT Manager is responsible for the Board list serve, DACA website postings, wiki updates, and development and support of all types of electronic forms. The IT Manager manages the DACA social media sub-committee and other team members to offer technical solutions, training, and best practices to leaders across DACA.

Proposed to Rename Article 12 to Article 11 and move above “Other Voting Members of the Board”, below “Counsel”

Proposed Article 11 [IT Manager]

11.1 The IT Manager performs as liaison to manage the domain name, institutional email addresses, and security access to the database and bulk emailing system. With the IT Committee, the IT Manager is responsible for the Board list serve, DACA website postings, wiki updates, and development and support of all types of electronic forms. The IT Manager manages the DACA social media sub-committee and other team members to offer technical solutions, training, and best practices to leaders across DACA.

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Current ARTICLE 11 [Members at Large]

11.1 The three (3) Members at Large represent the broader membership and bring to the Organization special gifts and talents, which complement those of the other elected officials on the Board. Members at Large shall be elected at the AGM in accordance with 19.1 below.

Proposed to Rename Article 11 to Article 12 [Members at Large]

12.1 The three (3) Members at Large represent the broader membership and bring to the Organization special gifts and talents, which complement those of the other elected officials on the Board. Members at Large shall be elected at the AGM in accordance with 19.1 below.

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Current Article 18.3 [Chapters] Chapter Officers should be elected biennially in odd-numbered years at an AGM of the Chapter held prior to the national (DACA) AGM. The Chapter election should include at minimum a Chapter Chair. Though it is not required, it is recommended that each chapter have a Vice-chair, a Secretary, a Treasurer and a Membership Secretary.

If a Chapter has a Vice Chair or a Co-chair in addition to a Chair, they shall be opposite in gender in accordance with the policy of the Democratic Party. Each chapter shall appoint a Nominations and Election Committee Officer, not running for elected office, to conduct chapter elections.

Proposed Article 18.3 [Chapters] Chapter Officers should be elected biennially in odd-numbered years at an AGM of the Chapter held prior to the national (DACA) AGM. The Chapter election should include at minimum a Chapter Chair. Though it is not required, it is recommended that each chapter have a Vice-chair, a Secretary, a Treasurer and a Membership Secretary.

If a Chapter has a Vice Chair or a Co-chair in addition to a Chair, they shall be opposite in sex in accordance with the policy of the Democratic Party. Each chapter shall appoint a Nominations and Election Committee Officer, not running for elected office, to conduct chapter elections.

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Current Article 19.6 [Terms and Removal from Membership or Office]

19.6 Some examples of conduct detrimental to DACA follow: (i) speaking against the host country while purporting to speak on behalf of DACA or DA and (ii) soliciting funds or in-kind services from non-Americans. Volunteering without monetary value by non-Americans is generally acceptable.

Proposed Article 19.6 [Terms and Removal from Membership or Office]

19.6 Some examples of conduct detrimental to DACA follow: (i) speaking against the host country while purporting to speak on behalf of DACA or DA and , or (ii) soliciting funds or in-kind services from non-Americans, or (iii) violating the DPCA Code of Conduct. Volunteering without monetary value by non-Americans is generally acceptable.

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Current Article 20 [Vacancies]

20.1 The Country Chair shall appoint a member on a temporary basis to fill a vacancy among elected members of the Board. The appointee shall serve until the next regular AGM where members shall elect the position.

Proposed Article 20 [Vacancies]

20.1 The Country Chair shall appoint a member on a temporary basis to fill a vacancy among elected members of the Board. The appointee shall serve with the full privileges of their office until the next regular AGM where members shall elect the position.