Bylaws
Oklahoma County Medical
Society Alliance Bylaws
Article I - Name
This organization shall be called "The Oklahoma County Medical Society Alliance."
Article II - Purpose
The purpose of this organization shall be:
1. To cooperate with and extend the aims of the Oklahoma County Medical Society in its program for the advancement of medical and health education.
2. To cultivate and promote mutual understanding and friendly relations among physicians' families.
3. To encourage participation of volunteers in activities that meet health needs and to support health-related charitable endeavors.
Article III - Membership
Membership in the Oklahoma County Medical Society Alliance (OCMSA) shall be composed of:
A. Regular Members;
B. Chapter Members;
C. Emeritus Members
D. Sustainer Members
E. Physician Members
F. Divorced Spouses
Medical Student and Resident Physician Spouses have their own bylaws and their membership is listed separately; not part of the OCMSA membership totals. (September 2006).
Section 1. Categories of Membership:
(A) A Regular Member shall be one of the following (provided that person has not remarried outside the profession):
1. The spouse, widow or widower of an active member of the Oklahoma County Medical Society (OCMS).
2. The spouse, widow or widower of a Life Member of OCMS.
3. The spouse of a physician who is eligible for membership in OCMS.
(B) A Chapter Member shall be a Regular Member belonging to a Chapter Alliance established by the following provisions:
1. A minimum of 25 Regular Members is required for the establishment of a Chapter Medical Alliance.
2. Petition for establishment of a Chapter Medical Alliance must be approved by the OCMSA.
3. Each Chapter Alliance may adopt its own bylaws and plans of operation provided they are not in conflict with the bylaws or objectives of the OCMSA.
4. Dues of Chapter Members shall be the same as for other Regular Members.
5. A yearly rebate, determined annually, per Regular Member, shall be made by the Treasurer of the County Alliance to the Treasurer of each designated Chapter to use in the development and implementation of its projects.
(C) An Emeritus Member shall be one who held Regular Member status for five years but who desires to become inactive due to one of the following conditions (provided that person has not remarried outside the profession):
1. Death of a spouse;
2. Retirement of a spouse;
3. Chronic illness or disability.
(D) A Sustainer Member must qualify as an Emeritus Member. See (C) above.
Those members, who qualify for Emeritus Membership status and also want to participate in the OCMS Alliance special interest groups, can do so by paying only county dues.
(E) Physicians, who are eligible for membership in the Oklahoma County Medical Society, may be members of OCMSA.
(F) A divorced spouse may continue their membership in OCMSA if they are an active member at the time of the divorce and may continue their membership until they remarry.
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Section 2. Rights and Privileges of Membership.
(A) Only Regular Members (full dues paying) shall be eligible to vote, hold office or be committee chairpersons.
(B) Chapter Members (full dues paying) shall be eligible to vote, hold office, or be committee chairpersons of the OCMSA or of the Chapter Alliance.
(C) A Resident Physician Spouse (RPS) may attend OCMS Alliance meetings.
(D) A Medical Student Spouse (MSS) may attend OCMS Alliance meetings.
(E) An Emeritus Member may attend meetings and serve on committees.
1. Emeritus Membership shall be represented by a member on the Board.
2. An Emeritus Member shall not be required to pay dues,
3. An Emeritus Member is eligible to become a Regular Member by paying full dues or a Sustainer Member by paying county dues.
(F)A Sustainer Member is an Emeritus Member who pays county dues only. The Sustainer may participate in special interest groups and receive mailings.
(G) A physician member are full dues paying members and shall be eligible to vote, hold office or be committee chairpersons.
H. A divorced spouse may serve on committees, vote, and shall be required to pay dues.
Article IV – Meetings
Section 1. The regular meetings of this Alliance shall by monthly, with the exception of a summer break.
Section 2. The last regular meeting of the fiscal year shall be designated as the Annual Meeting, at which time the duly elected officers for the ensuing year shall be installed.
Section 3: Votes may be taken between board meetings via email or other electronic
means provided the vote cannot wait until the next scheduled Board meeting. A record of
the votes shall be kept by the President and the Board shall ratify the motion made by
email at the next board meeting so they may be recorded in the minutes.
Article V - Finances
Section 1. The fiscal year shall begin June 1 and close with the following May 31.
Section 2. Dues of all members shall be set each year at the meeting prior to the Annual Meeting.
Section 3. All members except those in the Emeritus and Sustainer category must pay state and National dues.
Section 4. There shall be no solicitation for donations outside the medical profession unless specifically approved by the Board of Directors.
Section 5. A budget shall be prepared by the Finance Committee for the ensuing year from estimates and reports submitted by officers and committee chairpersons whose work entails expenditures. The budget shall be submitted to the Board of Directors for approval and presented to the Alliance for adoption at the September meeting.
Section 6. The Finance Committee shall be responsible for recommending the portion of dues per chapter member to be rebated to each Chapter Alliance. The amount per member for the next fiscal year shall be determined at the regular meeting prior to the Annual Meeting.
Section 7. All accounts of the Oklahoma County Medical Society Alliance shall be audited every three years by an independent auditor. A member of the Alliance may serve as auditor if she/he has had no involvement with the books to be audited. The board of directors may ask for an audit at any time.
Article VI - Officers
Section 1. The officers of the Alliance shall be President, President-Elect, Vice President/Membership, Vice President/Ways and Means, Recording Secretary, Treasurer, Planning and Development Chairman, Vice President/Membership-Elect, Vice President/Ways and Means-Elect, Treasurer-Elect, and Planning and Development Chairman-Elect.
Section 2. The Executive Committee shall be comprised of the President, President- Elect, Vice President/Membership, Vice President/Ways and Means, Recording Secretary, Treasurer, Treasurer-Elect, and Planning and Development Chairman.
Section 3. The term of the officers shall begin at the close of the last meeting of the year in which they have been elected.
Section 4. The Executive Committee will meet upon call by the President.
Section 5. A vacancy occurring in an office shall be filled by the Nominating Committee for the unexpired term, except for the office of President, which shall be assumed by the President-Elect. If the term to be served is less than nine months, the President-Elect shall serve the additional year as President for which she/he was elected. If there is a vacancy in the offices of both President and President-Elect, the Vice President/Membership shall act as President until the next Annual Meeting. In the event of a vacancy in the office of President-Elect, the Nominating Committee shall submit a candidate to the Board of Directors to receive its recommendation, which will be voted on at the next meeting of the membership.
Section 6. Duties of the officers shall be such as usually devolve upon such officers and are in accordance with the Parliamentary Authority, Roberts Rules of Order, Revised.
(A) The President shall appoint with the approval of the Executive Committee the chairpersons of all Standing and Special Committees. Each Chairperson shall select the committee (with the exception of the Nominating Committee), subject to the approval of the President.
(B) The President shall ask the County Medical Society to appoint a committee of three of its members as an Advisory Committee to the Alliance.
(C) If the President is unable to chair a meeting, the chair shall be determined by the order of the officers as stated in Article VI, Section 1.
Article VII - Board of Directors
Section 1. The officers and chairpersons of the Standing Committees shall constitute the Board of Directors.
Section 2. An officer from each Chapter Alliance shall serve as a voting member of the Board of Directors.
Article VIII - Committees
Section 1. This Alliance shall have such Standing and Special Committees as deemed necessary by the Board of Directors or as ordered by the Alliance.
(A) All Standing Committees shall be designated by the Board of Directors.
(B) Each Standing Committee shall file a final report prior to the Annual Meeting.
Section 2. The Nominating Committee shall consist of twelve members: the Chairperson, who will be the Past President; the President, the President-Elect, four members from the preceding Board; four members from the general membership; and one holdover member elected from the previous year’s Nominating Committee. The members of this committee shall be elected from a single slate of candidates recommended by the Nominating Committee to the Board of Directors no later than the February Board Meeting, to be voted on by the membership no later than the regular meeting prior to the Annual Meeting. Additional nominations may be made from the floor providing the nominee has consented to serve.
(A) The Nominating Committee shall meet for the first time by November 15 in order to begin selecting the slate of officers for the following Alliance year. Additional meetings, as needed, shall be called by the Chairman until the slate is completed.
(B) The Alliance Nominating File shall be the responsibility of the Nominating Chairman.
(C) The Nominating Committee shall recommend a slate of officers to the Board of Directors no later than the February Board meeting, to be voted on by the membership no later than the March regular meeting. Additional nominations may be made from the floor provided the said nominee has consented to serve.
(D) The duties of the Nominating Committee shall include slating Executive Board positions and the Nominating Committee. Vacancies that occur in unexpired terms of the Executive Committee shall be filled by the Nominating Committee, except for the office of President, which shall be filled by the President-Elect (see Article VI, Section 5).
Section 3. The Grants Review Committee shall review grant applications from nonprofit organizations and make recommendations to the Board of Directors and to the general membership for the distribution of funds raised by the Alliance in the ensuing year.
Article IX - Amendments
These Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds affirmative vote of members present at any general meeting. The Bylaws Chairman shall have the authority to make technical and typographical, non-substantive changes to the bylaws.
Article X - Dissolution of Assets
Upon dissolution of this organization, after paying or adequately providing for the debts and obligations of this organization, the remaining assets shall be distributed to the charitable organizations/foundations currently supported by the Medical Alliance.
Presented and Adopted:
General Meeting, March 23, 1960
Amended:
General Meeting, March 14, 2001
Last amended:
General Meeting: April 22, 2009
