Preamble
We, radio amateurs, wishing to promote for ourselves the pleasures and benefits of the association of persons commonly interested in amateur radio DXing and / or Contesting constitute ourselves the Eastern Iowa DX Association (referred to hereafter as the “EIDXA” or “the club”) and enact this constitution as our governing law. It shall be our purpose to promote cooperation, exchange of information, DX contesting, improved operator proficiency, and fraternalism so as to advance DXing and contesting within the amateur radio community.
Article I Membership
Persons interested in DXing and / or Contesting shall be eligible for membership. Membership application shall be made by written petition and election to membership shall be made as provided by the bylaws.
Article II Officers
There shall be four (4) elected offices of the club consisting of President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. Officers shall be full members of the EIDXA. The President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall constitute the Executive Committee. The officers of this club shall be elected as directed in the bylaws. The term of office for each officer shall be as directed in the bylaws. Officer vacancies occurring between elections shall be filled by special elections at the first regular meeting following the occurrence of the vacancy. Officers may be removed from office by a ¾ vote of all Full members, present or represented by written proxy, at any regular meeting.
Article III Meetings
The bylaws shall provide for regular and special meetings.
Article IV Dues
The club, by majority vote of the Full and Associate members present at any regular meeting, may levy upon the membership such dues or assessments as shall be deemed necessary for the business of the club.
Article V Amendments
A. This constitution may be amended by the following Procedure:
- The text of any proposed amendments to the constitution and an explanation of why the change is proposed shall be provided in writing to the members of the club with the notice of the next regular meeting of the EIDXA. This text and meeting notice shall be distributed to the members as required in the bylaws.
- A 2/3 vote of all Full members, present or represented by written proxy, is required at the next regular meeting of the EIDXA to adopt that amendment.
B. The bylaws of the club may be amended by a simple majority of the Full members of the EIDXA attending any regular meeting.
Article VI Rules
Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern all the proceedings.
EASTERN IOWA DX ASSOCIATION BYLAWS
January 25, 2017
I. CLUB YEAR:
The club year for the EIDXA shall run from October 1 through September 30 of the following year.
II. MEETINGS:
Regular meetings shall be held quarterly, normally in the months of January, April, July, and October at a time and place ordered by the President. The Executive Committee may call special meetings. A petition signed by at least 10% of the Full members requesting a special meeting will require the President to call a special meeting, to meet within 6 weeks of receipt of the petition. The membership of the EIDXA shall be notified of all regular and special meetings at least one month in advance of the meeting via the EIDXA list server.
III. MEMBERSHIP:
A. Membership Classes:
The following is a list of the classes of membership in the EIDXA and required criteria for attaining each class of membership.
1. Associate Member:
a. A candidate for Associate membership must hold a valid amateur radio license; and
b. A candidate for Associate membership must hold Full or Life membership in the American Radio Relay League; and
c. A candidate for Associate membership must have an interest in DXing or Contesting; and
d. A candidate for Associate membership must never have been disqualified from DXCC membership; and
e. A candidate for Associate membership must have a permanent residence within 175 miles of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and
f. Associate members are encouraged to upgrade to Full membership in the EIDXA.
2. Full Member:
a. A candidate for Full membership must meet all of the requirements for Associate membership; and
b. A candidate for Full membership must provide proof of confirmation of at least 100 DXCC entities with their application for membership. An applicant’s claim of DXCC membership will be confirmed by the membership committee using the ARRL Web page DXCC Listings. An Applicant without DXCC must provide QSL cards and / or Logbook of the World listing from at least 100 different entities, as defined in the current ARRL DXCC Entities List.
c. An EIDXA membership certificate shall be created by the club Secretary and awarded by the club President to the new member at the next regular club meeting following induction into EIDXA.
3. Inactive Member:
a. An inactive member must be or have been a Full or Associate member in good standing;
b. When a Full or Associate member’s permanent address is established outside of the 175 mile requirement, the member automatically becomes an inactive member for the remainder of the club year;
c. Inactive membership status may be maintained indefinitely by payment of the regular annual dues as described in the bylaws;
d. Inactive membership status allows all EIDXA privileges except that the Inactive member may not vote or participate in contests for club aggregate scoring, The Inactive member will receive notice of all club meetings and the club newsletter and will be eligible for club promotions;
e. Associate or Full members within 175 miles of Cedar Rapids, Iowa may be considered for transfer to Inactive membership under special circumstances. Request for transfer to Inactive membership must be made in writing to the EIDXA Secretary;
f. An Inactive member may request reinstatement to their previously held class of membership to the EIDXA Secretary, provided the Inactive member again meets the requirements for that class of membership. A written petition is not required.
4. Honorary Member:
a. Honorary membership may be awarded to any individual in recognition for special service to the EIDXA, Contesting and / or the DX community as a whole;
b. A 2/3 vote of the Full members present at a regular meeting of the EIDXA is required to confer Honorary membership;
c. An Honorary member receives a membership certificate and may use the club logo or club name to be identified as a club member; and
d. An Honorary member holds all privileges of a Full member, but is not required to pay dues.
B. Application for Membership:
a. Petition for membership in the EIDXA shall be by written application on an approved form provided by the club. Incomplete applications will not be accepted.
b. The completed membership application must be submitted to the EIDXA Secretary.
c. The Secretary will forward the application to the Membership Committee after confirming the application is complete.
d. After review and consideration of the application, the Membership Committee shall present the application to the club at the following regular meeting of the EIDXA with its recommendation. Dues will be payable when the applicant is voted into membership, and will be one quarter (1/4) of the yearly dues for each remaining quarter of the club year.
C. Approval of Membership:
After properly submitting an application for membership, a candidate for Associate or Full membership in the EIDXA shall be granted that class of membership by 2/3 vote of the Full membership in attendance at the next regular meeting.
D. Upgrading from Associate to Full Membership:
To upgrade to Full membership, an Associate member must provide proof of eligibility for Full membership to the membership committee prior to any regular meeting. If the membership committee is satisfied with member’s proof of eligibility, the President shall direct the Secretary to upgrade the member’s record on the club membership roll to Full member. Additionally, the President shall cause the minutes of the next regular meeting of the club to show the upgraded membership status of the member.
E. Removal from Membership Rolls:
An Inactive, Associate or Full member who ceases to hold a valid amateur radio license at any time in the club year or who ceases to hold Full or Life membership in the American Radio Relay League at any time in the club year or who is disqualified from DXCC membership or who fails to pay the annual dues of the club by the start of the third regular meeting of the club year is automatically removed from the club rolls. The member will be notified by the Secretary of their removal.
A person removed from the club rolls will be reinstated to their previously held class of membership if the conditions which resulted in their removal is corrected.
F. Voting:
Votes on membership applications, club officer election / removal, and amendments to the constitution or bylaws may only be made by Full or Honorary members present. Full, Honorary and Associate members present may vote on all other issues.
IV. DUES:
Any regular annual assessment of each member may be made in accordance with Article IV of the EIDXA constitution for the purpose of providing operating funds for current expenses. The EIDXA Treasurer shall inform all members in a newsletter item that the dues are payable at the first regular meeting of the club year. The Treasurer shall notify any member not paying their dues by the end of the second meeting that they will be removed from the club rolls at the next meeting if the dues remain unpaid.
V. OFFICERS:
a. Election of Officers:
Officers shall be elected at the first regular meeting of the club year. Any office becoming vacant shall be filled by election at the next regular meeting.
b. Term of Office:
The term of office for each officer shall run from the end of the first regular meeting of the current club year to the end of the first regular meeting of the following club year.
c. Concurrent Positions:
1. An elected officer may occupy a second appointed position.
2. An elected officer may not occupy two elected positions.
3. A member may occupy two appointed positions.
d. Duties of Officers:
1. President:
The President shall schedule and preside at all meetings of this club and conduct same according to the rules adopted.
The President shall enforce due observance of this constitution and the bylaws, shall decide all questions of order, shall sign official documents adopted by the club, and shall perform all other customary duties pertaining to the office of President.
2. Vice President:
The Vice President shall assume all of the duties of the President in the absence of the President.
3. Secretary:
The Secretary shall keep a record of the proceedings of all meetings, keep a roll of the members including a continuous record of the status of membership of all members, carry on all correspondence, receive all written petitions for membership, retain a copy of all approved membership applications, and maintain the constitution and bylaws.
The Secretary shall assume all of the duties of the President in the absence of both the President and Vice President. When acting as President at any meeting, the Secretary shall appoint another Full member to act as Secretary. When the term of the Secretary is concluded, the Secretary shall turn over all records and items belonging to the club to the Secretary-elect.
4. Treasurer:
The Treasurer shall receive and receipt for all monies paid to the club, keep an accurate account of all monies received and extended, and pay all bills authorized by the club or the Executive Committee.
e. Executive Committee:
The Executive Committee shall consist of the President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
The Executive Committee may authorize expenditures of club funds of $100 or less per expenditure. Approval of a majority of the membership at a regular or special meeting, or by an email vote, is required for all expenditures above that level.
VI. APPOINTMENTS AND COMMITTEES:
All EIDXA committee members shall be appointed by the President. Appointed committee members shall serve within their respective committee until they request to vacate their committee position or are asked to relinquish their committee position by the club President.
1. Membership Committee:
The Membership Committee shall receive all applications for Associate and Full members from the Secretary immediately following the regular meeting where that application was presented. The Membership Committee shall consider and review each application to insure that the applicant meets the requirements for the class of membership applied for. The Membership Committee will then present each application to the club at the following regular meeting with its recommendation.
The Membership Committee shall consist of no more than three (3) Full members.
2. Audit Committee:
Between the second and third regular meetings of the club year the Audit Committee shall audit the financial records of the club and provide a written report to the club at the third regular meeting.
The Audit Committee annual report shall be archived by the club Secretary.
The Audit Committee shall consist of no more than three (3) Full members.
3. DXpedition Funding Committee:
a. The DXpedition Funding Committee shall consist of three (3) Full members. One member will be the Treasurer. At least one member will be on the DXCC Honor Roll.
b. Committee will review upcoming DXpeditions and requests received asking for funds. The committee shall make recommendations for funding DXpeditions with club money raised from dues, personal gifts, and pass-the-hat contributions. They will present recommendations to the membership at regular meetings. They will also present their analysis showing how they arrived at their recommendations.
c. The committee will obtain membership approval for the recommendation process. The process will include, but not limited to, consideration of: Entity need, such as the DX Magazine Most Wanted Survey: length of DXpedition: number of operators; planned band / modes; use of LoTW.
d. All or part of the recommendation may be matched by funds from the Tom Hise DXpedition Fund as stipulated in section VIII of the bylaws.
e. The committee, via the President, will provide Jan Hise with periodic reports of DXpedition funding support.
4. Newsletter Editor-in-Chief:
The Newsletter Editor-in-Chief shall be appointed by the club President.
The newsletter shall be posted to the EIDXA.ORG website no less than two (2) weeks prior to each regular meeting. The newsletter shall serve as formal notification of the forthcoming meeting.
The Newsletter Editor-in-Chief shall be responsible for gathering news and other information from club members and the DX and / or contesting world in general for incorporation into the quarterly newsletter.
The Newsletter Editor-in-Chief shall be responsible for the generation of the newsletter and forwarding to the EIDXA Web Site Committee for posting.
5. Repeater Committee:
The Repeater Committee shall be responsible for all aspects of maintaining and operating the NØDX club repeater.
Those responsibilities shall include, but not be limited to, technical operation in compliance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Rules and Regulations, FCC licensing, frequency coordination, and monitoring over-the-air operation of users to assure compliance with FCC Rules and Regulations.
The Repeater Committee shall consist of no more than two (2) Full or Associate members.
6. Email Reflector Committee:
The Email Reflector Committee shall be responsible for maintaining the EIDXA Reflector mailing list database to ensure Full, Associate and Honorary members receive club related emails and post emails for club-wide distribution.
The EIDXA Reflector Committee shall consist of no more than two (2) Full or Associate members.
7. Website Committee:
The Website Committee shall be responsible for maintaining the EIDXA.ORG website.
VII. CONTEST SCORES:
All Full members, Associate members, and Honorary members living within 175 miles of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, are encouraged to submit their contest scores for EIDXA credit.
VIII. TOM HISE DX FUND:
Created in memory of Tom Hise, NCØO, with a generous gift from Jan Hise. This fund will be used solely to support DXpeditions.
Up to $1000 from this fund may be used per club year to support DXpeditions identified worthy by the EIDXA DXpedition Funding Committee and approved by majority vote at any regular club meeting.
Donations shall be initiated from the EIDXA treasury general fund and matched with funds from the Tom Hise fund at a rate not to exceed 200%.
Funds shall not be withdrawn solely from the Tom Hise fund in support of any DXpedition.
A majority vote for the total amount to be donated per DXpedition from the combined funds at any regular club meeting shall cause the Treasurer to make the agreed upon donation to the said DXpedition within two (2) weeks following the affirmative vote.