Article I. Name
Section 1. The name of the chapter shall be Southern New Hampshire Democratic Socialists of America, hereafter referred to as “SNH DSA.” SNH DSA shall be a not-for-profit corporation.
Article II. Purpose
Section 1. The purpose of SNH DSA shall be to promote and advance economic and cultural changes which shift society towards a democratic socialist model, in which the means of production are socially owned and controlled and the abolition of the class system.
Section 2. SNH DSA shall participate in activities such as, but not limited to, campaigns, membership drives, protests, social engagements, and work community assistance following the models of mutual aid.
Article III. Membership
Section 1. Membership in SNH DSA is available to DSA members whose dues are paid in full and reside or work in or near Rockingham, Strafford, Hillsborough, Merrimack, or Cheshire counties. SNH DSA members may not belong to another DSA chapter, with the exception of DSA organizing committees and YDSA chapters.
Section 2. An SNH DSA member shall be considered to be “in good standing” if their dues are paid in full to the current date to the national DSA organization and if they fulfill the residency requirements specified in section 1.
Section 3. DSA dues must be paid to the national office for membership in SNH DSA. Individuals may not be members of SNH DSA without being members of national DSA.
Section 4. All members of SNH DSA are expected to adhere to the Code of Conduct from the DSA national organization at all times.
Section 5a. Members may be expelled from SNH DSA if they are found to be in substantial disagreement with the principles of democratic socialism, or if they are found to be engaging in undemocratic or disruptive behavior, or found to be consistently operating in bad faith within SNH DSA.
Section 5b. For this expulsion process to begin, a SNH DSA member must bring written charges to the SNH DSA HGO, who will follow the procedures listed per DSA National Resolution 33. If the HGO determines the allegations valid, the HGO will notify the Steering Committee. The investigation shall take no longer than two weeks, and the member in question shall be allowed to receive a copy of the written charges, and allowed to present their case to the steering committee at an ad-hoc meeting at the conclusion of the investigation.
Section 5c. At the end of the investigative period the members of the steering committee may vote to expel the member by a ⅔ vote.
Section 5d. Any expelled SNH DSA member may appeal their expulsion to the National Political Committee of DSA.
Section 6. Members may resign from SNH DSA at any time.
Section 7. SNH DSA shall establish a system of voluntary pledges for its membership. Pledges shall only be solicited after the creation, presentation and adoption of an annual chapter budget. The payment of an SNH DSA donation or pledge may not be a requirement for voting in SNH DSA or holding office within the chapter.
Article IV. Meetings
Section 1. SNH DSA shall hold at minimum one (1) general meeting every month which shall be open to all SNH DSA members. Additional meetings shall be held either with approval of the membership at a prior meeting, or called by the steering committee on an emergency basis. The SNH DSA steering committee will circulate an agenda in advance of every general meeting, as well as for every emergency meeting called by the steering committee.
Section 2. SNH DSA shall hold one (1) Annual meeting per year. The date of the annual meeting must occur on or before March 31st of any given year. The business of the annual meeting shall include as part of its programming the election of SNH DSA steering committee officers and the approval of an annual budget.
Section 3. SNH DSA working committees shall hold at minimum 1 meeting every month which shall be open to all SNH DSA members. The business of these meetings shall be in furtherance of committee objectives and initiatives. If a committee misses two meetings, the committee’s chair responsibilities will be assumed by the SNH DSA Chairperson.
Article V. Officers and Elections
Section 1. SNH DSA members shall elect three (3) chapter officers, following Article 4, Section 2 of these bylaws. These officers shall consist of one chair, one (1) secretary, and one (1) treasurer. The Steering Committee shall be considered a committee of equals with no individual member having final say over chapter decisions. These members shall make up the steering committee of SNH DSA which shall consist of three (3) SNH DSA members in good standing, elected at the Annual meeting, with a term that expires at the beginning of the next Annual meeting. Nominations for chapter officers shall be received by the outgoing steering committee no sooner than four (4) weeks and no later than two (2) weeks before an annual meeting. Members shall either be nominated for chapter officer position by an SNH DSA member in good standing, or by themselves if they are an SNH DSA member in good standing. Upon receipt of a nomination request the outgoing steering committee must solicit the chapter membership for at least one (1) other member in good standing to endorse the nomination, after which the candidate shall be added to the ballot at the following annual meeting.
Section 2. All SNH DSA officers shall adhere to the conflict of interest policy outlined in the national DSA Code of Conduct Section C, Item 3.
Section 3. Elections for chapter secretary, treasurer and chairperson shall be conducted via instant-runoff voting.
Section 4. The responsibilities of the chairperson shall be: a) to preside over steering committee meetings, b) chair working committees where chairperson vacancies exist or when the committee becomes defunct pursuant to Article IV Section 3, c) coordinating over the day-to-day work and operation of SNH DSA branches and committees, d) acts as primary, though not exclusive, spokesperson on behalf of the chapter to maintain relationships with other organizations in a capacity compliant with the democratic processes of the Southern New Hampshire DSA
Section 5. The responsibilities of the secretary shall be: a) answering all correspondence and queries made within the membership of SNH DSA, b) maintaining an up-to-date membership list for SNH DSA, c) temporarily assuming the responsibilities of the chairperson if they are unable to do so, d) maintaining communication with the DSA national organization, e) maintaining custody of all meeting minutes and chapter records (including membership lists) and providing records to their successor, f) announcements of general meetings and posting the agenda and minutes thereof. The Secretary shall establish a repository of chapter documents and make them available pursuant to best practices of operational security.
Section 6. The responsibilities of the treasurer shall be: a) maintaining the funds and financial records of SNH DSA, b) depositing all funds collected by SNH DSA into the chapter bank account, c) maintaining SNH DSA’s fiscal policy and presenting amendments to the fiscal policy to SNH DSA general membership, d) preparing an annual budget and financial report to SNH DSA to be presented at an annual meeting with assistance of the standing fundraising committee, e) maintaining the system of voluntary pledges as outlined in Article III section 7, including record keeping and promotion of the system, f) establishing a trustee of the funds.
Section 7. In the event of a vacancy of SNH DSA officers, the remaining members of the SNH DSA Steering committee shall appoint an SNH DSA member in good standing to fill the vacant position for the remainder of the steering committee term. Appointments shall require a unanimity of the remaining steering committee members; if such consensus cannot be reached, or ⅔ of the steering committee are vacant, an emergency general meeting will be called and the appointment put to a vote requiring ⅔ majority of SNH DSA members in good standing present at the meeting.
Section 8. SNH DSA officers may resign their position at any time by submitting written notice to the chapter membership. Resignations shall be considered in effect from the time of their submission.
Section 9. Any SNH DSA officer may be recalled for malfeasance or nonfeasance of their duties or responsibilities as an officer. In order to recall an officer a SNH DSA member in good standing must submit a petition bearing the signatures of 5% of chapter members in good standing to the SNH DSA steering committee, which will set the date of an SNH DSA meeting to deliberate on the removal request. The accused officer shall be given two (2) weeks written notice of their removal in advance of the aforementioned meeting, which shall include the specific reasons made for the officer’s removal. At the meeting the accused officer shall be allowed to defend themselves. A removal vote shall take place at that meeting via a ⅔ majority vote of SNH DSA members in good standing present at the meeting.
Article VI. Standing Committees
Section 1. The fundraising committee shall consist of the SNH DSA treasurer, serving as ex-officio presiding officer, as well as SNH DSA members and the trustee of funds. The fundraising committee shall be responsible for assisting the treasurer in their preparation of the annual budget and financial record-keeping, proposing amendments to the SNH DSA fiscal policy. The fundraising committee shall also nominate one (1) member, who is not the treasurer to serve as trustee of the funds who will be allowed access to the SNH DSA bank account in the event that the treasurer is unable to do so. The nomination of the trustee of the funds shall be approved by the steering committee via majority vote. The members of the committee will assist the treasurer in the preparation of tax filing.
Section 2. The membership committee shall consist of the SNH DSA secretary serving as ex-officio presiding officer, as well as SNH DSA members. The membership committee will be responsible for engaging and growing the membership of SNH DSA through activities such as, but not limited to, phonebanks, textbanks, tabling, and assisting the Secretary in their maintenance of the SNH DSA membership list. The membership committee shall establish a new member onboarding process to acclimate new SNH DSA members to the chapter. The membership committee chair will coordinate with the chairperson to direct SNH DSA members to needed initiatives and assist with promotion of chapter activities.
Section 3. The communications committee shall consist of the chairperson serving as ex-officio presiding officer, as well as SNH DSA members. The communications committee shall be responsible for the writing and dissemination of a regular chapter bulletin to be delivered at minimum over email, the maintenance of our SNH DSA Action Network activity, assisting the chairperson in their responsibilities handling SNH DSA social media, as well as managing communications, inquiries, as well as fostering and growing relationships with local media, press, and comrade organizations.
Section 4. Other committees not enumerated here may be formed by majority vote of the steering committee. Such committees shall be chaired by SNH DSA members in good standing appointed by the Steering Committee via majority vote. Committees formed in this way must conduct monthly meetings as detailed in Article 4 Section 3. The committee chair is responsible for outlining goals and projects for their committee, submitted to and approved by the Steering Committee.
Section 5. In the event of malfeasance or nonfeasance of committee members, SNH DSA committee members may have their appointments revoked by a ⅔ majority vote of the steering committee. The steering committee must provide a written reasoning for any such committee member removal to the chapter when their decision is announced. Removed committee members may also be allowed to present their case to the chapter at the first general meeting following their removal, and may overturn the steering committee’s decision by a majority vote of general membership.
Section 6: The steering committee being the ex-officio presiding officers over the respective committees (chairperson for communications committee, secretary for membership committee, and treasurer for fundraising committee) shall have the authority to delegate the position of committee chair for their respective committee to a member in good standing provided the following conditions are met: A) that the work of the committee can be reasonably expected to continue as normal, and B) that the ex-officio presiding officer is able to provide adequate oversight to the committee and step in when necessary.”
Article VII. Rules
Section 1. Any action taken by an officer or member of the Local Chapter in contravention of these Bylaws is null and void.
Section 2. SNH DSA may be dissolved by a ⅔ majority vote of membership at the Annual meeting. In the event of dissolution all chapter assets are returned to the Democratic Socialists of America.
Section 3. Proposed revisions or amendments to these bylaws must be made by written resolution, endorsed by two (2) SNH DSA members in good standing, and submitted to the steering committee two (2) weeks in advance of a general or annual meeting. Once received the steering committee must provide the general membership at least one week of written notice of the endorsed revisions or amendments. The revision or amendment must be approved by a ⅔ majority vote of the general membership in good standing present at any general or annual meeting.