Check them out! We’ll be voting on these at our AGM on June 13th!

Article 3.00 - Membership Qualifications

Current Bylaw	Proposed Changes
The following shall be Members of the Association: a - The Applications for incorporation; b - Any person or persons who may be appointed Members by a resolution passed by the Board of Directors or by the Members at a properly constituted Special or Annual General Meeting	Replace with: There shall be the following types of Members of the Association: a - Donor members; b- Staff members; c- Volunteer members; d - Client members. Eligibility for the above types of membership shall be as follows: Donor members: any person who has made a personally significant financial contribution to the Association within the preceding 12 months. Staff members: any person currently employed by the Association. Volunteer members: any person who nominates themselves as a volunteer member after making a personally significant volunteer contribution to the Association during the preceding 12 months, and whose nomination is confirmed by the permanent staff member who they worked with most closely. Such memberships are valid for the current fiscal year. Client members: any person who nominates themselves as a client member after having one or more personally significant client experiences during the preceding 12 months, and whose nomination is confirmed by the permanent staff member most connected to their client experience. Such memberships are valid for the current fiscal year.
Rationale: Currently, the only way to be a Member of Head & Hands is by making a personally significant financial contribution. This aims to reinforce the importance of taking collective responsibility for Head & Hands’ financial health, but does so at the cost of excluding important voices from our democratic process. We hope to develop additional means of involving all members in supporting the organization financially, while reducing barriers to participation in membership discussions and decision-making. In terms of tracking membership duration: it’s easy to pull a list of all donors for a given 12-month period from our database, and we will hold an annual client/volunteer ‘membership drive’ to encourage self-nominations for this membership type one month or more before each AGM.

Article 4.00 - Membership contribution

Current Bylaw	Proposed Changes
The annual fee is to be determined by the Board of Directors and confirmed by the Members at a General Meeting, which fee is compulsory for all Members and must be paid within 60 days of joining the Association or by December 31, of each year as the case may be.	Strike this article
Rationale: Maintaining a universal membership fee is inconsistent with our new system of multiple membership classes.

Article 6.00 - Renewal and Termination

Current Bylaw	Proposed Changes
The membership of each Member of the Association shall be automatically renewed from year to year unless and until: a - The Member notifies the Secretary or the Board in writing before the end of the year that he or she is terminating his or her membership; b - The Member has not within 60 days of its becoming due, paid an annual membership contribution for that year; c - The membership of the Member has been terminated by notice of a resolution to that effect passed by the Board of Directors for any act or conduct which the Directors in their absolute discretion, deem to be detrimental to the best interests of the Association.	Rename to: “Termination” Reword: All individuals satisfying one of the requirements set forth in Article III shall be considered a Member of the Association, unless: a- The Member notifies the Secretary or the Board in writing before the end of the year that he or she is terminating his or her membership; b- Their membership has been terminated by notice of a resolution to that effect passed by the Board of Directors for any act or conduct which the Directors in their absolute discretion, deem to be detrimental to the best interests of the Association;
Rationale: Membership is now defined according to time-sensitive conditions. Any further bylaw around renewal would be redundant.

Article 8.02 - Meetings

Current Bylaw	Proposed Changes
Every Annual General Meeting shall be called by a written notice mailed or otherwise delivered at least twenty-eight (28) days in advance to each Member at the address inscribed for him or her on the membership list, or at least five (5) days in advance for Special General Meetings; however, meetings of Members, both Annual and Special, may be held without previous notice if all of the Members be present or if all of the Members sign a written waiver of notice of the time, place, and purpose of such meeting.	Strike: “written notice mailed or otherwise delivered at least twenty-eight (28) days in advance to each Member at the address inscribed for him or her on the membership list” Replace with: “public notice posted at least twenty-eight (28) days in advance”
Rationale: Sending personal mail to all members will become unfeasible in terms of time and cost as we dramatically expand our membership. Other channels – such as posters, flyers, our website, social media, and e-newsletters – should be enough to reach everyone.

Article 9.08 - Composition of the Board of Directors

Current Bylaw	Proposed Changes
When a Director resigns or is removed, the remainder of the Board may elect from the Members a person to fill the vacancy until the expiration of the term.	Add: “A call for applications must be publicly posted at least twenty-eight (28) days in advance of such an election.”
Rationale: Require a broad call-out for interim Board elections, to make the process more transparent and democratic.

Tags: AGM, bylaws