Muslim Caucus
BYLAWS
AS APPROVED JULY 11, 2021
The name of this organization shall be the Muslim Caucus.
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ARTICLE I – Purpose
Section 1. The purpose of the Muslim Caucus is to actively engage with the community and legislators in support of progressive legislation that promotes programs and policies to assist working families and the poor.
Section 2. To establish coalitions with other progressive, community-oriented organizations to elect Democratic candidates and further the cause of a true democracy- by and for the people.
Section 3. To increase active participation within the Democratic Party with a focus on diversity, inclusiveness and expanding the electorate.
Section 4. To train members to assume active volunteer roles in GOTV, canvassing, voter registration and other mechanisms used to elect local Democratic candidates as well as both statewide and nationwide Democratic candidates.
Section 5. To work with legislators in writing and sponsoring progressive bills and then lobbying in support of passage.
Section 6. To provide a voice for the disenfranchised and marginalized people of our community.
ARTICLE II – Membership
Section 1. Membership is open to any Democrat registered in Nevada with a demonstrated willingness to actively participate. Membership shall be decided solely on the basis of the volunteer work an individual has done in the community, without regard to ethnicity, gender, age, economic condition, or physical ability. All members shall serve on one of the committees. Serving in any local, state, or national elected office, or actively working on a campaign for office as either a candidate or campaign worker, shall be considered active participation in Muslim Caucus.
Section 2. Fifteen percent (15%) of the paid membership shall constitute a quorum for a general membership meeting where a quorum is required for voting.
ARTICLE III – Dues
Section 1. The Caucus dues shall be ten dollars, due annually in January, and shall be paid to the Caucus Treasurer. All members who are current in their dues shall be designated as ‘voting members’.
Section 2. The Caucus Board shall create a policy to address hardship waivers.
ARTICLE IV – Administration
Section 1. The Muslim Caucus shall be governed by an Executive Committee to be elected by the membership and to consist of the following: Chair, First Vice Chair, Second Vice Chair, President, Treasurer, Secretary and Outreach. The Chair shall preside over the Executive Committee meetings.
Section 2. The Executive Committee shall have general supervision of the business of the Caucus, shall establish the policies of the Caucus, and shall act in the interim between meetings.
Section 3. The Executive Committee shall meet monthly prior to the membership meeting. Five (5) members of the Executive Caucus Board shall constitute a quorum at regular Executive Caucus Board meetings. Special meetings of the Caucus Board shall be at the call of the Chair or upon written request
of three members of the Caucus Board. Five (5) members of the Executive Caucus Board shall constitute a quorum at a special meeting.
Section 4. General meetings shall occur monthly at a date and time TBD. Notice of all future meetings dates, times, and locations will be made available at least Two (2) weeks before the scheduled meeting.
Section 5. A member of the Executive Committee will serve on all of the established committees. Administrative Committees are Community Outreach and Membership. A special Bylaws committee will convene annually to review the Muslim Caucus bylaws prior to submission of the recharter packet to the State Democratic Party. Issues Committees are as determined by the membership at the annual meeting. Additional Committees may be created by the Executive Board.
Section 6. There shall be a Committee for each issue related goal and/or policy as approved by the membership. Each committee will research and understand all aspects of that issue including relevant policies and legislation. Each committee will elect a chair who will be responsible for scheduling committee meetings, setting agendas and making monthly reports at each general membership meeting.
Section 7. In any case where these Bylaws, or any action(s) or proposed action(s) of the Caucus are inconsistent with any bylaws, rules, or other policies of the NDSP, and NDSP’s bylaws, rules, or other policies shall control. Any action taken or purported to be taken by the Caucus, or in the name of the Caucus, which violates or conflicts with NDSP bylaws, rules, or other policies shall be null and void without effect of any kind.
ARTICLE V — Duties of Officers
Section 1. CAUCUS BOARD CHAIR: Shall preside at all meetings of the Caucus, prepares the agenda for general meetings and Caucus Board meetings, represents the membership when attending Community meetings and events, oversees and supports all committees, actively engages with other organizations to form coalitions where beneficial to meeting Caucus goals.
Section 2. CAUCUS VICE CHAIR: Shall coordinate calls to action for each general meeting, arranges for guest speakers and/or panels. Attends NVDEM Leadership Council meetings. Preside at all meetings of the Caucus and perform such duties as assigned to the Chair, in his absence.
Section 3. SECRETARY: Shall manage social media and all communications for the Caucus including maintaining the membership list, managing member communications and writing official Caucus correspondence under the direction of the Caucus Executive Board and/or the Chair. Shall keep minutes of the meetings of the Caucus and the Caucus Executive Board, file and preserve reports and perform such other duties as assigned by the Caucus Board. Upon request the Secretary shall present new members with the latest revision of the Caucus Bylaws.
Section 4. TREASURER: Shall collect all dues and receive all monies belonging to the Caucus, record all financial transactions of the Caucus, give a monthly financial report at the membership meeting, and make an annual report at the annual meeting.
Section 5. OUTREACH: Shall create opportunities for membership growth to include planning of special events, producing websites and/or other community engagement and educational materials.
Section 6. ADVOCACY: Shall identify and research legislative priorities and alliances with possible sponsors. Monitor NELIS and legislative sessions, follow draft bill requests and organize lobbying efforts. Attend legislative interim subcommittee meetings.
ARTICLE VI – Finances
Section 1. No special assessments shall be made. All expenditures over Two Hundred Dollars ($200) must be approved by a vote of the Caucus Board.
Section 2. All funds collected in the name of the Muslim Caucus shall be turned in to the Treasurer and shall be deposited to the bank account of the Caucus.
Section 3. Two signatures are required on all checks issued over Three Hundred Dollars ($300). One must be either the Treasurer or Chair; the second signature may be one other Caucus Board member.
Section 4. A petty cash account for activities of the Caucus in the amount of One Hundred Dollars ($100) is to be established and used at the discretion of the Treasurer. Petty cash receipts are to be included in the monthly Treasurer’s report.
ARTICLE VII – Nominations and Elections
Section 1. The Nominations Committee shall consist of three to five members, to be elected at the September membership meeting. The Nominations Committee shall elect its own Chair and shall report its nominations at the October membership meeting.
Section 2. Nominations from the floor shall be permitted at the October meeting, after which nominations will be declared closed. Individuals may self-nominate if they so choose. A member may be a nominee for only one Caucus office.
Section 3. An Elections Committee shall be appointed by the Chair at the October meeting and shall prepare the ballots to be cast by those present at the regular membership meeting in November.
Section 4. At the November meeting, the Elections Committee will oversee the voting process by signed ballot. The voting process is defined as the distribution of ballots to eligible voters, collection and counting of ballots and announcement of results. An eligible voter is defined as a dues-paid member for 1 year in good standing as of the close of the October general meeting.
Section 5. Any member shall be eligible to run for office who has been a paid member of the Caucus for six months preceding the date of the election, except a candidate for Chair who must have been a paid member for one year. No member holding office in another Democratic Caucus shall be eligible to hold office in the Muslim Caucus unless approved by two-thirds (2/3) of the Caucus Board.
Section 6. At the November meeting, the membership shall designate committees to advocate for legislative policies and/or community actions during the following year. These committees may be continued from year to year as long as they remain active.
ARTICLE VIII – Terms of Office and Vacancies
Section 1. All Officers and Caucus Board Members shall serve for a two-year term beginning January 1 of the year following their election in November. The Chair shall not hold office for more than two consecutive terms unless no other member is willing to serve.
Section 2. The resignation of any Officer or Caucus Board Member shall be directed to the Chair and shall be acted upon by the Caucus Board.
Section 3. Any Officer who misses three consecutive Caucus Board meetings or three consecutive caucus meetings without good cause, shall automatically forfeit office, but can retain caucus membership. In addition, an Officer may be removed by the Caucus Board for malfeasance. A new Officer to fill the vacancy will be appointed by the Executive Caucus Board.
Section 4. After written notice and hearing thereon, any Officer may appeal removal from office to the Caucus membership at the next regular meeting. The members, by majority vote of those present, shall affirm or deny the appeal. Any Officer subject to removal shall be notified in writing.
Section 5. At the end of the term of office of any Officer, that Officer shall turn over all documents, records, items, and assets belonging to the Caucus to the incoming Officer(s). Further, in the case of dissolution of the Caucus, the Officers shall turn over all documents, records, and items belonging to
the Caucus to the Secretary of the Nevada State Democratic Party.
Section 6. In the event that any office other than that of Chair or Second Vice Chair becomes vacant, the Caucus Board shall fill the same for the unexpired term. In the event of a vacancy in the office of Chair, the First Vice-Chair shall succeed to the office of Chair and the Executive Caucus Board shall appoint a First Vice-Chair. In the event of a vacancy in the office of Second Vice Chair, the Executive Caucus Board shall appoint a new Second Vice Chair.
Section 7. Initial Terms. An initial Caucus board, selected from among the founders of the Muslim Caucus, shall serve from the founding of the organization until replaced by election as follows: Chair, Second Vice-Chair, and Secretary in the January following the founding of the Caucus, First Vice-Chair and Treasurer in the second January following the founding of the Caucus. Serving during the initial term does not count toward term-limits for any office.
ARTICLE IX – Parliamentary Authority
Section 1. Roberts Rules of Order shall be the rules adopted to govern the Caucus, its Executive Caucus Board and its committees, except where Roberts Rules conflict with the provisions of these Bylaws.
ARTICLE X – Amendments
Section 1. A proposed amendment to these Bylaws shall be submitted in writing to the Executive Caucus Board for review and recommendation. The proposed amendment and recommendation shall be presented at a general membership meeting.
Section 2. The proposed amendment shall be emailed to each caucus member at least ten days prior to the next general meeting. A majority vote of those present at this meeting is required to pass the amendment.
Section 3. Caucus Bylaw amendments must receive approval from NSDP Rules and Bylaws Committee prior to going into effect.
Muslim Caucus Bylaws v. 2 7.7.21