In accordance with the State of New Hampshire's R.S.A. 667:22 and the power of organization granted herein, the following By-Laws shall govern the conduct of the NASHUA REPUBLICAN CITY COMMITTEE.
ARTICLE I. NAME AND PURPOSE
Section 1. The OFFICIAL NAME of this committee shall be the NASHUA REPUBLICAN CITY COMMITTEE OF NASHUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE referred to in the following paragraphs as the NRCC.
Section 2. The PURPOSE of the NRCC is:
(a) To support the principles and objectives of the Republican Party.
(b) To provide a local forum for members of the Republican Party in Nashua area to express their ideas and voice their concerns to the state and national Republican committees; and
(c) To facilitate the support and involvement of local Republican activists in the campaigns of the Republican candidates running on Nashua ballots in partisan state and national elections and secure the election of Republican nominees in said elections.
(d) To support Republican backed questions on Nashua ballots in local, state and national elections.
Section 3. The NRCC shall be familiar with all election laws and shall provide services as may properly be expected of it in a fair and impartial manner to Republican candidates requesting them.
ARTICLE II. MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. MEMBERSHIP ELIGIBILITY
(a) Full Membership in the NRCC is open to any person registered to vote as a Republican in the City of Nashua, New Hampshire with an interest in party development and in the election of Republican Candidates appearing on partisan election ballots within any Nashua ward,
(b) Full membership rights, including voting privileges, shall be conferred on said persons upon payment of annual dues, except as provided in Article II, Sections 1(b) and 1 (d), and Article IV, Section 5.
(c) Associate membership in the NRCC is open to any registered Republicans otherwise complying with the requirements for membership, but not registered to vote in the City of Nashua, notwithstanding other provisions in these By-laws, associate members shall have the rights of full members with the exception of voting in elections for and serving as members of the New Hampshire State Committee representing Nashua, and Nashua City committee officers who, if elected would be ex officio members of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee or New Hampshire Republican State Executive Committee.
(d) Adjunct membership in the NRCC is open to any undeclared voter registered to vote in the City of Nashua or unregistered natural person domiciled in the City of Nashua, New Hampshire who shall satisfy the Chairman in consultation with the Executive Board of said voter’s adherence to Republican principles and shall otherwise qualify for membership in the Nashua Republican City Committee; adjunct membership shall not entitle the adjunct member to the right to vote on any motions, resolutions, amendments to these By-laws or election of officers, nor shall Adjunct members serve as Officers or members of the NRCC executive committee; Adjunct members shall otherwise be afforded the benefits of membership.
Section 2. ANNUAL DUES
(a) Annual Dues for membership shall be $10.00 for an individual and $15.00 for a married couple
(b) Annual dues for the current calendar year are payable according to the following schedule: for persons holding an NRCC membership from the previous calendar year, upon the first membership meeting of the current calendar year; or for persons joining for the first time during a given calendar year, or rejoining after a hiatus in membership, upon declaration of their intent to join or rejoin.
(c) For the purpose of these By-laws, a "member in good standing" shall be defined for a given calendar year as a member who has paid his/her dues for said calendar year according to the schedule established in Article II, Section 2(d), )
* Annual dues shall be waived for recipients of NRCC's Elphy award.
ARTICLE III. OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES
Section 1. ELECTED OFFICERS (a) The CHAIR of the NRCC shall preside at all meetings of the NRCC membership and Executive Committee meetings, shall appoint chairpersons of all standing Committees, Event Committees and any other ad hoc committees deemed appropriate by the Chair. The Chair shall automatically be a member of the Nashua Delegation to the Republican State Committee and shall serve as chair of the Nashua delegation at New Hampshire Republican State Committee meetings; and be a member of all standing and ad hoc committees established by the Chair, Except as provided in Article III, Section 2(e).
(b) The VICE CHAIR of the NRCC shall perform all duties of the Chair in the event that the chair is absent or unable to perform such duties. The Vice Chair shall supervise the Voter History project and shall be responsible for all NRCC property.
(c) The SECRETARY of the NRCC shall maintain an accurate record of all membership meetings and Executive Committee meetings and shall submit said record in writing to the chair within 10 days of said meeting and present same at the next membership or Executive Committee meeting, whichever is applicable. The secretary shall be responsible for all correspondence of the NRCC and Executive Committee and preserve all papers thereof. The Secretary shall be responsible for notifying members of the NRCC of all meetings and events.
(d)The TREASURER of the NRCC shall receive all incoming funds shall deposit said funds in a Nashua bank approved by a majority of the Executive Committee and, subject to Article IV, Section 11, shall pay all duly approved bills from the treasury and obtain and retain vouchers verifying said payments. The Treasurer shall maintain an account of all monies received and disbursed, present a financial report at each monthly membership meeting and submit a written report at each Executive Committee meeting at least once each calendar quarter.
(e)The Chair and Vice Chair of the NRCC shall remain neutral in any Nashua primary campaign which involves a candidate on a Nashua ward ballot.
Section 2. COMMITTEES
(a) The EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE shall be comprised of the NRCC Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Committee Chair, Communication & Publicity Committee Chair and the Campaign Committee Chair. The Executive Committee shall be responsible for the overall guidance and policy of the NRCC and shall develop a one-year or two-year Plan of Action to include meeting dates and places, fundraising, political events and any other agenda deemed necessary for the functioning and development of the NRCC. This plan shall be presented to the full membership for discussion and approval within 60 days of the General Election.
(b)The MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE shall coordinate the recruitment of new NRCC members, verify the eligibility of same, maintain attendance records, verify and declare voting privilege status of members, issue membership cards to qualified members and execute any other duties deemed necessary or appropriate by the NRCC Chair. The Membership Committee Chair shall be appointed by the NRCC Chair.
(c)The COMMUNICATION & PUBLICITY COMMITTEE shall be responsible for providing news releases to the local media and the Republican State Committee of NRCC meetings and sponsored events. The Communication & Publicity Committee shall publish a newsletter at least three times annually and shall submit a draft of same for approval to the NRCC Chair prior to publication. The Communication & Publicity Committee Chairs shall be appointed by the NRCC Chair.
(d) The CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE shall actively recruit registered Republicans to seek public office, and shall assemble volunteers to assist Republican nominees seeking public office where said public office represents all or part of the City of Nashua. The NRCC may participate in primary elections when a Republican is running unopposed. The Campaign Committee Chair Shall be appointed by the NRCC Chair.
(e) Each WARD COMMITTEE shall consist of those NRCC members residing within a given ward in the City of Nashua and shall elect a ward chair, vice chair and clerk. Each ward chair shall supervise the maintenance of the voter history list within his/her ward. The ward committees shall assist the standing committees as needed.
ARTICLE IV. PROCEDURES
Section 1:
(a) ELECTIONS of the NRCC Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary and Treasurer shall be held at the Biennial Meeting of the NRCC. The date for the Biennial Meeting shall be established by the NRCC Chair subject to approval by a majority of the Executive Committee, but shall not be later than 45 days subsequent to New Hampshire's General Election. Notice of said meeting shall be mailed to all voting members of the NRCC no later than 30 days prior to said meetings.
(Candidates for elected office shall be voting members in good standing for a period of not less than 12 months prior to the Biennial election of the NRCC. Interested candidates shall submit their names to the NRCC Secretary at least 12 days prior to the meeting not counting the day before and the day of the meeting to allow time to prepare the ballot.
(b) If there are 2 or more candidates for any office, the election for that office shall be by secret ballot. Said ballot shall be prepared in advance and shall show each office and the names of the candidates for each office in alphabetical order. The same size and typeface shall be used for each name. No nominations shall be made from the floor and no write-ins shall be accepted, except that nominations from the floor shall be in order if there is no declared candidate for said office and said nominee from the floor is present at the Biennial Meeting and accepts said nomination.
(c) To be elected, a candidate for an NRCC Office must receive a majority of the ballots cast. In the event that there are more than 2 candidates for a given office and no candidate receives a majority, a runoff election shall be held between the 2 candidates receiving the highest numbers of votes. In the event of a tie vote in the runoff, the winner shall be determined by a lottery conducted by the NRCC Chair. Said runoff election shall be held on the same day of the Biennial Meeting.
(d)Any special election to fill a vacancy resulting from the resignation, removal or incapacitation of the NRCC Chair pursuant to Article IV, Section 3(b) shall be subject to the provisions of Article IV, Sections 1(b), 1(c) and 1(d), with the following exceptions:
1. Interested candidates shall submit their names to the NRCC Secretary a minimum of 7 days prior to the meeting not counting the day before and the day of the meeting.
2. If no names are submitted pursuant to Article IV, Section 1(e), nominations from the floor may be accepted.
3. Notice of said special election shall be mailed to all NRCC members in good standing not later than 15 days in advance of the designated special Election Day.
(f) Effective dates of services shall be as follows:
1. For officers elected at NRCC's Biennial Meeting, January 1 of the year following said meeting;
2. For appointed Executive Committee members, upon appointment by the NRCC Chair; and
3. For an NRCC Chair elected in a special election pursuant to Article IV, Section 1(f), immediately following said special election, and terminating at the end of the unexpired term of the vacated position, unless otherwise terminated by resignation, removal or incapacitation.
Section 2. Ward committees shall caucus at the third monthly meeting of the NRCC following the Biennial Meeting and shall nominate from the floor candidates for ward chair, vice chair and clerk. To be elected, a candidate must receive a majority vote of the caucus.
Section 3. VACANCIES
(a) ALL VACANCIES, except that of NRCC Chair, shall be filled as follows:
1. The NRCC Chair shall nominate a replacement candidate for each vacancy, which shall be approved by at least two-thirds of the Executive Committee and placed before the membership for confirmation at the next scheduled membership meeting.
2. If a candidate so nominated by the NRCC Chair fails to receive confirmation by a majority vote of the voting members present at said NRCC membership meeting, nomination may be made from the floor and subject to subsequent confirmation.
(b) In the event of a vacancy of the NRCC Chair position, the NRCC Vice Chair shall immediately become Acting NRCC Chair and shall hold a special election of the full NRCC membership to fill said vacancy not later than the second regularly scheduled meeting of the NRCC after said vacancy occurs. Said special election shall be subject to the provision of Article IV, Section 1(e).
Section 4. MEETINGS
(a) MEETINGS of the NRCC shall be held on the second Thursday of each month. No fewer than 8 meetings shall be held in any calendar year. Time and location of said meeting shall be determined by the Executive Committee. Notification shall be issued by the NRCC Secretary at least 10 days prior to said meetings, or, where applicable, in accordance with Article IV, Sections 1 (a), 1(e) and 6(C).
(b)MEETINGS of the Executive Committee shall be held at least once every calendar quarter.
Section 5. ELIGIBILITY FOR VOTING
(a) Persons eligible to vote on matters proposed at NRCC meetings, including NRCC elections, shall:
1. Have been members in continuous good standing for a period beginning at least 90 days prior to the date of said election; and
2. Shall have attended at least 3 full membership meetings during the 12 month period prior to the date of said election.
Section 6. QUORUM
(a) For the purposes of these By-Laws, a QUORUM is defined as greater than 50 percent of the members eligible to vote in accordance with Article IV, Section 5.
(b) The conduct of any business of the NRCC at a membership meeting, including the election of officers, shall require a quorum as defined in Article IV, Section 6(a), except as provided in Article IV, Section 6(c) and Article V, Section 1.
(c) In the absence of a defined quorum, the NRCC Chair, Vice Chair in the event of the Chair's absence, may declare a quorum provided that all NRCC members in good standing have been properly notified in writing as to the time and place of said meeting. Said notification shall be mailed at least 10 days prior to the date of the scheduled meeting, except as provided in Article IV, Section 1(a).
Section 7. ALL EVENTS held by the NRCC should be included in the Plan of Action developed pursuant to Article III Section 2(a) and submitted to the NRCC membership by the Executive Committee. Each NRCC event shall have an event chair appointed by the NRCC Chair. Each event chair shall form an event committee and keep the NRCC Chair and Executive committee informed of the event committee's progress. The details of the planned event are subject to the final approval of the Executive Committee.
Section 8. RESIGNATION from NRCC membership or from any NRCC office or committee chairmanship shall be submitted in writing to the Executive committee. Resignation from any standing committee or ward committee shall be submitted in writing to both the Executive Committee and the appropriate committee chair.
Section 9. REMOVAL of any elected officer or committee chair shall be in accordance with the following:
(a) Any elected officer, including the NRCC Chair, may be removed by presenting to the Executive Committee a petition containing duly validated signatures of a two-thirds majority or greater of the paid members of the NRCC meeting the voting eligibility criteria of Article IV, Section 5.
(b) Any appointed standing, ad hoc or ward committee chair may be removed by the NRCC Chair.
Section 10. ALL NRCC property and material required for the conduct of NRCC business, including but not limited to financial records, bills, receipts, meeting notes, post office box or office keys, briefcases and portable files that are in the possession of any outgoing NRCC officer, Executive Committee member or ward officer shall be transferred to his/her successor, or the incoming NRCC Chair or Vice Chair for eventual transfer to the appropriate officer or committee chair, within 10 days of election or, if applicable, upon resignation or removal from office.
Section 11. Except for major events pre-approved by the Executive Committee, expenditures of the NRCC shall be subject to committee approval in accordance with the following:
(a) All budgetary expenditures exceeding $50 shall be subject to approval at a level determined by the amount of the expenditure as follows:
1. Expenditures exceeding $50 but less than $200, by the NRCC Chair;
2. Expenditures of at least $200 but less than $500, by the Executive Committees; and
3. Expenditures of $500 or more, as determined by a majority of votes cast by the full voting membership.
(b) All decisions pertaining to budgetary expenditures shall be made such that the NRCC treasury maintains a net positive balance at all times. However, recognizing that the core mission of the NRCC is to secure the election of Republican candidates in partisan elections, the NRCC shall be obligated to direct the funds in its treasury towards achieving this goal in a prudent and responsible manner, with the fiscal objective of retaining a balance of not less than $2000 at the end of the Biennium.
Section 12. The NRCC Treasurer shall submit an annual report on the NRCC's finances to the membership at the first membership meeting of the calendar year. If the incoming Treasurer is newly elected, this shall be a shared responsibility between the outgoing and incoming Treasurer.
Section 13. Conduct of all meetings of the NRCC and the Executive Committee shall be governed by Robert's Rules of Order, Revised.
ARTICLE V. AMENDMENT PROCEDURE AND EFFECTIVE DATE
Section 1. These By-Laws may be amended by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the NRCC members present and meeting the eligibility criteria of Article IV, Section 5, at any properly noticed full membership meeting of the NRCC.
(a)The NRCC Chair shall promptly review amendment(s) proposed by any eligible member for consistency with the purpose of the NRCC, failing which the proposal shall be returned to the originator. The NRCC Secretary shall notify all eligible members at least 10 days prior to the scheduled meeting by postal mail and/or by electronic mail concerning the proposed amendment(s) and the time and place of the meeting.
(b) No proposal for an amendment to the By-laws shall be considered by the membership, the subject matter of which, or the substantially similar subject matter, has, within 24 months, been the subject of a proposed change to the By-laws, which failed to be adopted by a two-third vote of the members present.
Section 2. These By-Laws shall become effective April 11, 2013.