The Perth Bushwalkers Club Constitution
is called the "Rules of Perth Bushwalkers Club (Inc)" and is registered
with the Department of Consumer and Employment Protection. It contains the
statutory requirements for the Club's constitution and can only be changed
in accordance with the process set out within it.
1. NAME OF CLUB
The name of the club shall be the "Perth
Bushwalkers Club (Inc)", hereinafter referred to as the Club.
2. DEFINITIONS
For the purposes of these Rules:
(a) A General Meeting is defined as either
an Annual General Meeting, held in accordance with Rule 10 of these Rules,
or an Extraordinary General Meeting, held in accordance with Rule 11 of
these Rules.
(b) Where notice in writing is required by these Rules, notice shall be
deemed to be given as from the date of mailing.
(c) A Member is a member of the Club whose application has been accepted
in accordance with Rule 6(a) of these rules.
(d) An Eligible Member at a General Meeting is a Member who has attended
at least one Club activity in the previous 12 months, and whose membership
was current on the day prior to the commencement of the meeting.
(e) The Committee shall be a group of Members as defined in Rule 9 of these
Rules.
(f) The Executive Officers of the Club are the President, Secretary and
Treasurer of the Club.
3. OBJECTS
The objects of the Club shall be:
(a) To organise bushwalks and related
activities.
(b) To encourage the development of skills relevant to bushwalking.
(c) To promote an awareness of and an empathy for the Western Australian
bushwalking environment and to promote its conservation.
4. POWER
The Club has the power to do all such
things as are necessary, incidental to or conducive to the attainment of
the objects of the Club.
5. INCOME AND PROPERTY
(a) The income and property of the Club
shall be applied solely towards the promotion of the Objects of the Club.
(b) No portion of the income or property shall be paid, transferred or distributed
directly or indirectly to the members of the Club except for reimbursement
of expenses incurred on behalf of the Club.
6. MEMBERSHIP
(a) (i) To become a Member of the Club,
a person shall submit an application on a form approved by the Committee,
together with membership fees due.
(ii) The Committee shall either accept or reject an application without
being required to give reasons.
(iii) If an application is rejected, all membership fees accompanying the
application shall be refunded.
(b) A Member shall cease to be a member if the Member: (i) Fails to pay
any moneys due;
(ii) Is suspended or expelled;
(iii) Resigns by giving written notice to an Executive Officer of the Club.
7. LIFE MEMBERSHIP
(a) A Member may be elected as a Life
Member at an Annual General Meeting in recognition of outstanding contributions
made to the Club and to bushwalking in Western Australia.
(b) Only the Committee shall nominate a Member as a Life Member, and may
nominate no more than one Club Member each year for Life Membership.
(c) A person nominated for Life Membership must be informed of their nomination
before the Annual General Meeting, and has the right to refuse the nomination.
(d) Life Members shall have the same rights, privileges and responsibilities
as other Members except that they shall not be reqired to renew their membership
or pay membership fees.
(e) Life Members may resign their Life Membership at any time.
8. SUBSCRIPTIONS
(a) Fees and the duration(s) of membership
shall be determined by the Committee. Such determinations shall be valid
for a period of at least a Club financial year.
(b) Membership fees are non refundable except in accordance with Rule 6(a)(iii).
9. COMMITTEE
(a) The management of the Club shall be
the responsibility of the Committee.
(b) Committee members shall be elected in accordance with Rule 10(c)(v)
of these Rules or appointed in accordance with Rule 9(g) of these Rules.
(c) The Committee shall consist of no more than 15 and no less than 8 members
of the Club.
(d) The Committee shall consist of a President, Secretary and Treasurer
and other Committee members as determined at the Annual General Meeting.
(e) No member shall serve more than three consecutive terms as an Executive
Officer, nor more than four consecutive terms as a Committee Member, which
shall also include terms as an Executive Officer.
(f) All Committee positions must be declared vacant at the Annual General
Meeting.
(g) Should any vacancy occur in the Committee, other than in the normal
course of elections, the Committee may fill such a vacancy from the members
of the Club, and such member shall hold office for the unexpired portion
of their predecessor's term.
(h) The Committee shall meet a minimum of four times per year to conduct
the business of the Club.
(i) Any three members of the Committee together shall have the power to
call a meeting of the Committee.
(j) At least 7 days notice of Committee meetings shall be given to all members
of the Committee.
(k) The quorum for Committee meetings shall be 51% of the Committee.
(l) At every Committee meeting, a motion put to the vote shall be decided
by a numerical majority of the Committee members present.
(m) The chairperson at all Committee meetings may have a casting vote in
addition to a deliberate vote.
(n) The Committee shall have the power to form subcommittees and shall define
their terms of reference. Such subcommittees may be disbanded by the Committee.
(o) All Committee decisions and actions are valid unless made fraudulently
or in bad faith.
10. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
(a) The Annual General Meeting shall be
commenced within 60 days of the end of the Club financial year.
(b) The quorum shall consist of at least 20% of the Eligible Members.
(c) The business of the Annual General Meeting and the order of that business
shall be:
(i) Confirmation of the Minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting and
matters arising.
(ii) The President's Report.
(iii) Submission of an audited balance sheet for the previous Club financial
year.
(iv) Any other reports.
(v) Election of the Committee.
(vi) The appointment of an Auditor.
(vii) Notices of Motion.
(viii)General business.
(d) Adjournment of the Annual General Meeting:
(i) If a quorum is not present within 45 minutes of the scheduled starting
time, the Annual General Meeting will be adjourned to a date within 30 days
of the original meeting.
(ii) Notice of the resumption of that Annual General Meeting shall be given
by any practical means to all members not less than 7 days prior to the
resumption.
(iii) If a quorum is not present within 45 minutes of the scheduled resumption
time of that Annual General Meeting, those Eligible Members present shall
be deemed to constitute a quorum.
11. EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING
(a) An Extraordinary General Meeting may
be called in one of the following ways:
(i) By resolution of the Committee
(ii) By petition in writing signed by at least 10% of the members of the
Club, and stating the business of the proposed meeting. An Extraordinary
General Meeting called pursuant to a petition shall be held within 30 days
following receipt of the petition by an Executive Officer of the Club
(iii) At the request of the President
(iv) By resolution at an Annual General Meeting or an Extraordinary General
Meeting.
(b) The quorum shall consist of at least 20% of the Eligible Members.
(c) If a quorum is not present within 45 minutes of the scheduled starting
time, the Extraordinary General Meeting shall lapse.
12. CHAIRING GENERAL MEETINGS
(a) The President shall preside at any
General Meeting unless the Meeting resolves to elect another Eligible Member
to the chair.
(b) The Chairperson of any General Meeting may have a casting vote as well
as a deliberate vote.
(c) At all General Meetings, the Chairperson's decision on points of order
shall be final.
13. VOTING AT GENERAL MEETINGS
(a) Only Eligible Members may vote at
a General Meeting.
(b) At every General Meeting, a motion put to the vote shall be decided
by a numerical majority of the Eligible Members present.
(c) At all General Meetings, each Eligible Member shall be entitled to one
vote. Postal and proxy votes shall not be accepted.
14. NOTICE OF GENERAL MEETING
(a) At least 14 days written notice shall
be given of any General Meeting to all members unless stated otherwise in
these Rules. Such notice shall state the business of the meeting.
(b) The non receipt by any member of any notice required by these Rules
shall not invalidate or affect any proceedings at such a meeting.
15. MINUTES OF MEETINGS
Minutes shall be kept of all General Meetings
and Committee Meetings, and copies shall be provided to any Member following
a request by that Member.
16. SUSPENSION OR EXPULSION
(a) The Committee may call a meeting to
consider suspension or expulsion of any Member of the Club whose conduct
is, in the opinion of the Committee, prejudicial to the interests of the
Club. Any action shall be decided by a majority vote of the Committee Members
present.
(b) The Member whom it is proposed to suspend or expel may attend this meeting
for the purpose of being heard.
(c) (i) Any Member who is suspended or expelled shall be notified in writing
of the decision by the Committee within seven days.
(ii) There shall be a right of appeal against a decision to suspend or expel
a Member.
(iii)Any request for an appeal must be in writing to an Executive Officer
within 14 days of notification of the decision.
(iv) An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be called within 30 days of
receipt of the written request.
(v) The Extraordinary General Meeting shall hear the Member's appeal and
may confirm, vary or reverse the Committee decision.
17. FINANCE
(a) The Club financial year shall be from
the 1st April to the 31st March.
(b) The Committee shall cause true accounts to be kept of the monies received
and expended.
(c) An audited balance sheet for the previous financial year, consisting
of a summary of the assets and liabilities of the Club and a statement of
profit and loss, shall be submitted to each Annual General Meeting.
(d) The accounts shall be audited by the Auditor who shall make a report
on the accounts.
(e) Monies of the Club shall be paid into the account or accounts of the
Club at such banks or other financial institutions as the Committee may
from time to time direct.
(f) Monies shall only be drawn from Club accounts by cheque.
(g) A minimum of two Committee Members are required to sign each cheque.
All Committee Members are empowered to become signatories.
(h) All cheques exceeding $500 must be approved by the Committee and the
decision recorded in the minutes.
(i) The accounts shall be open to inspection by any Member upon giving reasonable
notice to the Treasurer.
18. AUDITOR
The Auditor shall be appointed by resolution
at the Annual General Meeting to audit the accounts and shall not be a member
of the Committee.
19. COMMON SEAL
(a) The Club shall have a Common Seal
(b) The Common Seal shall not be used without the express authority of the
Committee and every use of that Common Seal shall be recorded in the minutes
of a Committee meeting.
(c) The Common Seal shall be affixed by an Executive Officer of the Club
in the presence of two other members of the Committee, both of whom shall
ascribe their names as witnesses.
(d) The Common Seal shall be kept in the control of the President.
20. DISSOLUTION
(a) The Club may at any time, with the
consent of 75% of the Eligible Members present at an Extraordinary General
Meeting called for the purpose, be dissolved.
(b) If upon the dissolution or winding up of the Club there remains, after
the satisfaction of all its debts and liabilities, any property whatsoever,
the same shall not be paid to, transferred, or distributed amongst the members
of the Club. It shall be given to some incorporated association having objects
similar wholly or in part to the objects of the Club or to a charitable
organisation as decided at the above Meeting.
21. INSPECTION OF RULES
These rules shall be open to inspection
by any member of the Club.
22. ALTERATION OF RULES
(a) No alteration, addition or amendment
to these Rules shall be made unless by a special resolution passed by 75%
of the Eligible Members at a General Meeting.
(b) Notice of any proposed addition, alteration, or amendment shall be delivered
in writing to an Executive Officer at least thirty days prior to the appropriate
General Meeting and shall be included in the notice of business of that
meeting.
(c) Alterations will take effect in accordance with Rule 17 of the Associations
Incorporation Act 1987.
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