Chapter VII: Meetings
Section 1. Meetings of the Membership of NYSAM
There shall be an Annual Business Meeting (coupled with the Annual Scientific and Treatment Meetings) and quarterly general membership meetings of NYSAM. The time and place of such meetings shall be decided by the Board of Directors. A written notice for these meetings shall be sent to all members by email and posted on the NYSAM website. All notices shall be sent not less than 30 (thirty) days prior to each meeting.
The Annual Meeting and the quarterly general membership meetings shall be chaired by the President or President-Elect of NYSAM and shall be for the purpose of disseminating information to the membership and soliciting feedback from the members, promoting membership engagement, and conducting any other necessary business.
A special meeting of the members for any purpose may be called at any time by the President, by a majority of the Board of Directors, or by 10 (ten) percent of the active members of NYSAM. Notice of a special meeting shall be made in the same manner as for the other meetings, except that the notice shall be emailed and posted no later than 15 (fifteen) days prior to such special meeting. The notice of any special meeting shall specify, in addition to the time and place, the general nature of the business to be transacted. Members may attend virtually or in person, when applicable. To conduct business that requires a vote, a majority of BOD officers must be present.
The presence (in person or virtually) of the least 5 (five) percent of all active members shall constitute a quorum at any meeting for the transaction of the business for which the meeting was called, except for the installation of Officers at the Annual Meeting. In the absence of a quorum, no business may be transacted at any meeting. However, any meeting of NYSAM, whether a quorum exists, may be adjourned from time to time by the vote of a majority of the members present (in person or virtually) and voting. If a meeting is adjourned, the members will be advised of the rescheduled meeting with a 30-day notice.
Proxy voting is expressly prohibited.
A complete list of the members entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting, BOD meetings, and all general membership meetings shall be prepared by the Secretary and filed with the NYSAM administrative support team and shall be available to all members upon request. The Secretary shall have the list present at all membership meetings for inspection by any member upon request.
Section 2. Parliamentary Procedure
All deliberations of NYSAM, its Board of Directors, and its Committees shall be governed by Parliamentary procedures as guided by the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order.
The President shall choose a BOD parliamentarian to oversee procedure at meetings. This shall be the Secretary or a designee by the President. The designee, if not the Secretary, is a non-voting member of the BOD.