202D MI BN UNIT READINESS GROUP

FORT GORDON, GA  30905

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS

ARTICLE I

NAME

The name of this unofficial activity shall be the 202d MI Bn Unit Readiness Group (referred to herein as URG.)

ARTICLE II

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the URG shall be to promote esprit de corps, to enhance unit morale and readiness, and to provide monetary means to discharge certain social obligations.

ARTICLE III

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Section 1.  The 202d URG is established as an informal fund under the provisions of DA PAM 608-47 and its supplements, and exists on the military installation at the discretion and written consent of the Battalion Commander.  Such consent shall be contingent upon the following requirements and conditions as may be appropriate:

A.  That programs and activities conducted do not prejudice or discredit the military service or other agencies of the United States Government.

B.  That activities will not be conducted in the name of the installation or any organization of the Army establishment.

C. That neither the Army nor a nonappropriated fund and its supplements shall not assert any claim to the assets of the fund; nor shall the Army or any nonappropriated fund incur any obligations on behalf of or assume any obligation of the fund.

D.  That the URG will not engage in activities that are in conflict with authorized activities.

E.  That the nature and authorized function of the URG together with provisions for proper disposition of residual assets and liabilities upon dissolution will be established in the Constitution and Bylaws.

F.  That the URG is self-sustaining and receives no support assistance or facilities from the Army or from defined nonappropriated funds and its supplements except as provided in AR 215-1 and AR 420-80.

G.  That the Battalion Commander has authority to enforce compliance by the URG with conditions enumerated herein, to inquire into its activities and to withdraw his consent for its existence on this installation if deemed necessary in the interest of the government.

H.  The URG is and shall be a financially self-sustaining nongovernmental organization and constituted, established and operated by individuals acting exclusively outside the scope of any official capacity as officers' employees, or agents of the government.  The URG is not established not operated pursuant to authority vested in the Army or any official thereof.

Section 2.  The URG will carry no insurance.  Individual members shall incur no liability collectively, but commanders shall raise funds to cover liability in proportion to their size.

ARTICLE IV

MEMBERS

Section 1.  The URG exists and operates on behalf of all the soldiers and families of the 202d MI Bn.  Therefore, all battalion soldiers and families are automatically considered members and are represented by the URG Steering Committee.

Section 2.  The URG fully supports the government's policy on equal opportunity and will not tolerate membership discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin, or religion.

ARTICLE V

OFFICERS AND GOVERNING BODY

Section 1.  The establishment, administration, operation and dissolution of the URG is under the general supervision of the Steering Committee as approved by the Battalion Commander.

Section 2.  The Steering Committee will be comprised of the following Officers and designated members.

A.  The Officers shall consist of the President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, and Treasurer.  The President shall always be the Battalion Commander.  The Vice President, Recording Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected by the Steering Committee.

B.  The designated members will consist of:

 1.  Three battalion spouse representatives as selected by the Battalion Commander.

 2.  Up to three (3) Company representatives as selected by the Fort Gordon Company Commanders.  The names of the representatives will be submitted in writing to the Recording Secretary.

 3.  The Battalion XO, Battalion CSM, and Fort Gordon Company Commanders will serve as military representatives to the committee.

Section 3.  The officers and designated members shall serve as voting members of the Steering Committee.

Section 4.  Members of the Steering Committee are required to read the Constitution and Bylaws.  Copies will also be made available to all members of the battalion upon request.

ARTICLE VI

ADMINISTRATION

Section 1.  The URG shall be administered in accordance with this approved Constitution and Bylaws and other applicable directives under supervision of the URG Steering Committee.

Section 2.  The URG Steering Committee shall carry out the purpose and objectives of the URG in accordance with this approved Constitution and established policies and shall make and enforce such Bylaws as are necessary for its efficient operation.

ARTICLE VII

MEETINGS and QUORUMS

Section 1.  The URG Steering Committee shall hold a general meeting at least quarterly.

Section 2.  It will be necessary to have a quorum to conduct any order of business at a Steering Committee meeting.

Section 3.  It will be necessary to have a quorum to approve motions before the Steering Committee.  A quorum shall be defined as at least two thirds present of the URG Steering Committee.  The majority vote of the quorum shall govern.

Section 4.  Any member of the Steering Committee may request  special meeting be held.

ARTICLE VIII

FINANCES

Section 1.  The revenue necessary to pursue the objective described in Article II shall be derived from revenue producing activities entered into by the URG when required, approved, and conducted under the guidance and supervision of the URG Steering Committee.  All revenue-producing activities shall have prior approval of the Battalion Commander.

Section 2.  The treasurer's books shall be subject to audit by a Certified Public Accountant, Licensed Public Accountant, or Public Accountant in accordance with existing regulations.

Section 3.  In no event shall the United States Government be held liable, in fact, or in spirit, for any indebtedness incurred by the members of the committee.

Section 4.  The URG may maintain an unlimited maximum balance in the URG fund.  Any dollar limitation is at the discretion of the URG President.  Any balance over the specified limit can be allocated for expenditure IAW Article II of this Constitution or divided up between the Fort Gordon companies based upon soldier strength and deposited into the URG accounts of the companies.  The Bn URG Steering Committee will determine the allocation of excess funds.

Section 5.  The URG Steering Committee may authorize any expenditure of funds in any amount, but must leave a minimum balance of $100.00 remaining in the fund.

Section 6.  The URG Steering Committee shall expressly approve all expenditures over $50.00 essential for the operation of the URG and shall ensure that all disbursements are within the purpose for which this fund was established and restricted by Section 5 of this article.  Expenditures under $50.00 may be disbursed at the discretion of the Bn URG President or Vice President, with the concurrence of the other.  Notice will be provided to the Recording Secretary and Treasurer for recording.

ARTICLE IX

PROPERTY

The property of this fund shall consist of such articles as may properly come into its possession.  The property shall be accounted for by the Treasurer or in accordance with sound business practices using AR 215-1 as a guide.

ARTICLE X

RECORDS

Section 1.  The Recording Secretary will maintain an historical file consisting of the following permanent records:

A.  Original constitution with all current revisions.

B.  Original Bylaws with all current revisions.

C.  Records of approval of the Constitution and Bylaws and all amendments thereto.

D.  List of current members.

Section 2.  All records of this fund, excluding permanent files and the uncompleted checkbook, will cut off at the end of the calendar year, held at least three (3) years after which time they may be destroyed.  The checkbook will be placed with related records when it is completed, using the applicable provisions of AR 25-400 series as a guide.

ARTICLE XI

ADOPTION AND AMENDMENTS

Section 1.  This Constitution and Bylaws shall become effective upon adoption in a duly constituted meeting of the Steering Committee and a majority vote of the quorum present and upon approval of the Battalion Commander or his representative and with the concurrence of a JAG representative.

Section 2.  All amendments to this Constitution and Bylaws are subject to the following conditions:

A.  That a member desiring to propose an amendment shall present the proposed amendment in writing with his/her signature to the URG Steering Committee.  The URG Steering Committee shall consider the amendment at its next meeting.

B.  That amendments must be approved by a duly constituted vote of the URG Steering Committee per Article VII, Section 3, in a duly constituted regular or special meeting.

C.  That amendments are subject to final approval by the Battalion Commander.

Section 3.  This Constitution shall supersede all previous constitutions and amendments except that it shall not affect officers elected nor specific agreements and contracts entered into under the terms of the previous constitution until such terms of agreement or contracts shall have reached their expiration dates.

ARTICLE XII

PROCEDURES UPON DISSOLUTION

Upon dissolution by an affirmation vote of a quorum of the URG Steering Committee, without provision to meet again in the future, the funds and all residual assets and properties (after payment of all liabilities) shall be divided up between the Fort Gordon Companies based upon soldier strength and deposited into the URG fund for each company.

This Constitution was approved by the URG Steering Committee at a regular meeting held on _________________________.  In witness thereof the following officers affix their signature:

Signature of President  ____________________________________

Signature of Secretary  ____________________________________

BYLAWS

ARTICLE I

PURPOSE

The purpose of these Bylaws is to establish procedures for the operation of the URG and the URG Steering Committee.

ARTICLE II

DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Section 1.  The duties of the officers shall be those implied by respective titles, those prescribed by the Constitution and those specified by these Bylaws.  An officer having held office for one full term shall be eligible to hold the same office for the following term.

Section 2.  President  The President shall preside at the meetings of the URG Steering Committee and shall be a member (ex-officio) of all committees.  All disbursements (checks) in excess of $400.00 shall be co-signed by the President or Acting President.  He shall appoint all standing and special committee chairmen, unless stated otherwise in the Bylaws.

Section 3.  Vice President - The Vice President shall assist the President and perform the duties of the President in his absence.  He shall perform any other duties that the President may assign.  Should the office of President be vacated, he shall assume the duties of that office.  The URG Steering Committee shall then appoint a successor to this office as prescribed by Section 6 of this Article.

Section 4.  Recording Secretary - The Recording Secretary shall:

A.  Keep a record of all meetings of the URG Steering Committee and their proceedings.  He will submit a rough draft of these minutes to the President for approval.  Committee meeting minutes will include the names of all members with a designation of their presence or absence at each session.  He shall ensure the minutes of the committee meetings are made available through Battalion distribution for the general information of all Battalion members.

B.  Be responsible for the administration of any telephonic votes as per Article IV of these Bylaws and for properly entering such action and its results in an addendum to the minutes to be read at the next scheduled committee meeting.

C.  Be responsible for maintaining the permanent file as stated in Article X, Section 1, of the Constitution.

D.  Deliver to his successor all records and files of the URG and the Steering Committee.

E.  In the absence of the President and Vice President from the Steering Committee meeting, call the meeting to order and preside until the election of a temporary chairman is made by the URG Steering Committee.

Section 5.  Treasurer -  The Treasurer shall: 

A.  Keep an itemized account of all receipts, disbursements, and all supporting vouchers and records.

B.  Collect all accounts receivable, such as any funds accrued by various committees.

C.  Disburse the funds as may be directed by the Steering Committee.

D.  Present a financial report to the Steering Committee each called meeting.  The records of account shall be open to inspection by all members of the Battalion.

E.  Use general provisions of ARs 215-1, 215-2, and 215-5 or a similar appropriate record keeping system such as a combination journal/ledger as a guide in maintaining the accounting records.

F.  Sign all contract obligations and disbursements authorized by the Steering Committee.  All disbursements shall require two signatures, the Treasurer and one other Officer.  The President or Acting President must sign any disbursement over $400.00.

G.  Maintain a separate ledger for any company funds held within the URG account with the following provisions:

     1.  The companies may withdraw their funds at any time without approval of the URG Steering Committee.

     2.  The companies will not earn any interest on the funds placed in the URG account.

Section 6.  With the exception of the office of President, whose succession is assured, the Steering Committee shall, with a majority vote of a quorum during any duly constituted meeting, fill vacancies occurring in any of the offices.

ARTICLE III

STANDING AND SPECIAL COMMITTEES

Section 1.  Standing and special committees may be created, changed, or abolished at the discretion of the President with the approval of the Steering Committee.

Section 2.  Committee chairmen shall appoint their own committee members.  Each standing committee chairman shall be present or be represented at every general URG Steering Committee meeting or any meeting so designated by the President.  Committee chairmen will make a monthly report in writing to the URG Steering Committee.

ARTICLE IV

TELEPHONIC VOTE PROCEDURES

The President will have the authority to request a vote by telephone in the event that:

     a.  A quorum was not present at a Steering Committee meeting.

     b.  An immediate decision of such urgency is required as to preclude a called meeting per Article VII, Section 1, of the Constitution.

A quorum of the Steering Committee must be rendered to reach a decision.  The telephonic vote is the responsibility of the Recording Secretary and is to be administered by the Recording Secretary or a designated representative.  Each voting member must be informed that this is a voting procedure and must be read the motion under consideration in its complete form.  The polling should be conducted with dispatch.  All telephonic votes are to be reflected in the minutes as stipulated in Article II, Section 4B1 of the Bylaws of the Constitution.  The minutes shall include the exact wording of the motion, the names of those voting members who could not be contacted and an exact accounting of the vote results.

ARTICLE V

RULES

Section 1.  Questions of interpretation of any article in this Constitution and Bylaws will be resolved in accordance with the objectives of the URG.

Section 2.  Parliamentary procedures not specified in the Constitution and Bylaws will follow Roberts Rules of Order.

These Bylaws were approved by the URG Steering Committee at a regular meeting held on _____________.  In witness thereof the following officers affix their signature:

President  _____________________________________

Recording Secretary  _____________________________