Constitution

Bermuda Fry-Angle Aquarium Society (hereafter referred to as the Society).

To further the hobby of Tropical Fish Keeping in Bermuda by;

Establishing a group of dedicated hobbyists so that they may share information and experiences with other hobbyists, for the benefit of the hobby and hobbyists.

Encouraging a structured hobby so as to familiarise hobbyists in Bermuda with the various aspects of the hobby, thereby encouraging diversity.

Encouraging the breeding of tropical fish in Bermuda, so as to make certain fish more readily available to local hobbyists.

Membership of the Society is open to any resident of Bermuda who has an interest in tropical fish, under the terms and conditions of the by-laws.

The Executive Committee shall comprise of the following positions;

PRESIDENT

He shall be responsible for ensuring that the Society is conducted in a proper manner and in accordance with the Society's Constitution and By-Laws.

It is his responsibility to ensure that the Society is operated in a manner which is interesting and informative for it's members. He will therefore direct the nature and format of the regular meetings.

He will chair all meetings of the Society.

VICE-PRESIDENT

He shall act as President in the event of the President's failure or inability to conduct his duties.

He must keep actively involved with the running of the Society.

RECORDING SECRETARY

He shall keep records of minutes of all meetings of the Society.

CORRESPONDING SECRETARY

He will write letters and conduct correspondence for the Society,  as directed.

TREASURER

He shall receive and disburse Society funds as directed..

He shall keep complete records of all financial transactions.

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS

Will be held in March each year. It will include Annual Reports from the President, and the Treasurer.

The election of the Executive Committee will take place at the Annual General Meeting.

EMERGENCY GENERAL MEETING

An Emergency General Meeting may be requested by any member of the Society. That member should notify the Executive Committee of his reason for requesting the meeting and the Executive will then be responsible for calling the E.G.M..

REGULAR MEETING

The President is responsible for determining the date, time and location of regular Society meetings.

Members may make requests to the President concerning possible dates and locations for meetings but the final decision remains with the President.

An amendment to the Constitution may only be made through a General Meeting of the Society (A.G.M. or E.G.M.)

The member proposing such an amendment must supply the Executive with details of the proposed amendment in writing. The Executive will then call the necessary meeting.

By-Laws may be amended at any meeting of the Society, provided that proper notice has been given of the proposed change.

The members of the Executive Committee shall be entitled to sign documents on behalf of the Society.

The official emblem/logo of the Society consists of two cartoon fish, one with a pacifier and the other with a baby’s bottle, on a blue triangular background.

No person, members or otherwise, may use the Society's name or emblem without express permission.

In the event of the Society being disbanded or ceasing to operate, all monies and/or assets must be maintained in a safe manner by the President, or another member of the Executive Committee, for a period of 3 years.

If, after that 3-year period, there is no immediate prospect of the re-forming of the Society, the assets of the Society shall be donated to a suitable charity.

The Society shall operate within the Islands of Bermuda.

The Constitution will become effective as of 1st April, 1992.

MEMBERS

Any person wishing to become a member of the Society may apply at any time by completing the application form and paying the membership fee.

If any existing members have any objections to a person being accepted as a member, they should make those objections known to the President. The President will discuss any objections with the Executive Committee. If the objections are found to be valid, the Society may decline the application. The Society would not be compelled to disclose the nature of the objection.

MEMBERSHIP CLASSES

As of the A.G.M. March 1996, there will now only be one class of membership.

MEMBERSHIP FEES

Membership fees are due on 1st April each year. Existing members lose all privileges of membership until such time as the membership fee is paid.

The Annual Membership Fees is $20 (amended March 1996).

The Society retains the right to expel members from the Society or to remove them from an elected position on the Executive Committee, under the following conditions.

Should an existing member fail to pay the membership fee when due, he will only be allowed to attend two further meetings. After those two meetings he will no longer be considered a member, unless he makes an acceptable explanation to the Executive Committee as to why the membership fee has not been forthcoming.

Should an existing member conduct himself in such a manner as to bring the Society into disrepute (or be likely to do so), or so as to disrupt the business or meetings of the Society, he may have his membership terminated at and E.G.M. or A.G.M. by a majority vote. Should membership be terminated in such a manner, no membership fees will be returned.

Should any member holding an elected position (other than the Executive Committee) fail to conduct the duties of their position, they may be removed by the Executive Committee.

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS

The President should give at least four weeks notice of the A.G.M. Notification of such a meeting shall be made either at a regular meeting (to members present) or by mailing the information to each member. It shall be sufficient for the President, or other member of the Executive, to have attempted to contact each member, regardless of whether every member was in fact contacted.

When electing members to the Executive Committee or Elected Positions, a secret ballot will be employed whenever there is more than one nominee for a position.

A member may nominate himself for a position or may be nominated by another member. If a member is nominated by someone else, he must indicate whether he accepts or declines the nomination.

If a member is prepared to stand for any elected position, but is unable to attend the A.G.M. he must give notice in writing stating which position he is prepared to stand for.

If a member wishes to vote at an A.G.M. but is unable to attend, he may vote by proxy. He must authorise another specific member to vote on his behalf and that authorisation must be in writing. Any member voting by proxy will be considered as an attending member for the purpose of determining whether a quorum is reached.

Should there be insufficient nominees for the elected positions, a member my nominate himself to fill two positions, i.e. Secretary/Treasurer.

EMERGENCY GENERAL MEETINGS

If an Emergency General Meeting is requested, the Executive Committee must give at least two weeks notice, in the same manner used to notify members of an A.G.M.

At the time of the notification members should be informed of the reason for the E.G.M.

REGULAR MEETINGS

The President will normally announce the date, time and location of the next meeting before closing business at the previous meeting. If this is done, the President will not be required to contact any absent members to notify them of the next meeting.

If a member misses a meeting, the onus is on him to contact the President or Secretary to obtain details of the next meeting.

However, should the President not be in a position to announce the following meeting during the previous meeting, he will be responsible for ensuring that the information is passed to as many members as possible.

A.G.M and E.G.M.'s

A quorum shall be 50% of the membership, or ten members, whichever is the lesser. However, should a meeting be held at which a quorum was not reached, a follow-up meeting may be held with two-weeks notice, at which no quorum will be required.

REGULAR MEETINGS

There is no quorum required at regular meetings, as the Executive Committee is authorised to make decisions at this level.

A secret ballot will be used during elections of members to the Executive Committee whenever there are two more nominees.

Any member may call for a secret ballot whenever a vote is to be taken, but if such a request is not made, the vote will normally be done by a show of hands.

Proxy votes will only be accepted at A.G.M.'s and E.G.M.'s. They must be in writing and they must nominate the member who will vote on their behalf

A member cannot vote at an A.G.M. or E.G.M. unless he has been a member for at least three months. All members may vote on the business at regular meetings.

The President has the casting vote at all meetings.

The fiscal year will run from 1st April to 31st March.

The Executive Committee is authorised to make decisions concerning regular business of the Society but it will endeavour to bring most matters before members at regular meetings in order to obtain their input and, if necessary, put it to a vote.

Should the Executive Committee find it necessary to make a decision on a matter without consulting the membership, they should notify the members of that decision at the next regular meeting.

The Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer are responsible to the President.

The President will have access to minutes and records kept by the Secretary or Treasurer. Those records will periodically be made available at regular meetings but should any member wish to examine any of the records kept by the Executive Committee he may do so by making such a request through the President. The Executive Committee member responsible for such records should produce them within one week.

At various times during the year the Society may need to establish sub-committees to deal with various aspects of Society business. Each sub-committee will have a member designated as it's chairman. The subcommittee chairman will be responsible for ensuring that it carries out it's various tasks and he will report back to the Executive Committee on a regular basis.

The Executive Committee is entitled to sign on behalf of the Society as regards to banking procedures. Two signatures will always be required for any withdrawals from the bank.

The Treasurer will be permitted to maintain a cash float of up to $50 for the purpose of meeting miscellaneous expenses.

During the planning of shows and other major events, the Executive Committee may need to operate with a cash float that would be considerably larger. The Executive Committee (at least two members) is entitled to authorise expenditure on items not exceeding $200 without referring to the general membership. Any expenditure greater than $200 should receive prior approval from the general membership at a regular meeting.

No member will cause the Society to become indebted without first securing authority from the general membership at a regular meeting.

No member may borrow monies belonging to the Society for any purpose whatsoever.

Members may raise any disputes or disagreements at a regular meeting or they may choose to bring the matter to the attention of the Executive Committee.

The Executive Committee will make a decision on any grievances. Any such decision will not prejudice the right to proceed for expulsion under Article 2 of the By-Laws.

Non-members may attend one meeting per year as a non-paying guest. Non-members may not bid on the auctions.

Hobbyists visiting from overseas will be welcome to attend regular meetings during their stay.

Any equipment which is owned by the Society will be stored as directed by the President.

When items are loaned out to members they are loaned on the condition that the items are returned after a period of four days, in good clean condition. Failure to comply with these conditions may render the member unable to borrow the equipment again.

If a member wishes to reserve use of an item of equipment for a specific period, he may do so by contacting the President.

The President shall ensure that the record of the Society's history is updated with any noteworthy details, as they occur.

The Society is a corporate member of the Bermuda Zoological Society.

When reading the Constitution or By-Laws, singular may be considered plural and plural may be considered singular. Masculine may be considered feminine.

The Executive Committee shall be responsible for interpreting the Constitution and By-Laws.

Effective from 1st April, 1992.

All members of the Society are required to be members of the Bermuda Zoological Society.

The Society will produce a newsletter named "Fish Tales". The Society membership will elect an Editorial Team each year at the A.G.M.

The Editorial Team will be responsible for ensuring that the newsletter is published on time, within the periods as directed by the membership. It will have control over the contents of the newsletter.

Should any member of the elected Editorial Team fail to conduct his duties in a satisfactory manner, he may be removed from office by the Executive Committee.

Article 20 – NEWSLETTER (Added on 17.3.04)

In addition to the Executive Committee and the Editorial team, the following elected positions will also be filled at the A.G.M.

Librarian
Responsible for maintaining the society’s library. The librarian will keep records of all loans and returns.

Breeders Award Programme (BAP) Chairman
Responsible for the administration of the society’s BAP, including maintaining records of registered spawns, confirmation of successful spawns, submission of relevant articles, and accumulated BAP points.

Membership Coordinator
Responsible for interacting with new or prospective members at the monthly meeting, and ensuring that they are made to feel welcome.

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