Approved March 25, 2006, at the Green Party of San Benito County
General Meeting.
1. Name
The name of this organization shall be Green Party of San Benito
County (GPSBC).
2. Purpose and Values
2.1 The mission of the Green Party of San Benito County is to
promote the Ten Key Values of the Green Party of the United States:
Ecological Wisdom
Social Justice
Grassroots Democracy
Nonviolence
Community-based Economics
Decentralization
Feminism
Respect for Diversity
Personal and Global Responsibility
Future Focus
2.2 The GPSBC will promote these values through legislative,
electoral, educational, advocacy and community outreach work to affect local,
state, national and global issues.
2.3 The GPSBC agrees to accept and abide by the bylaws of the
Green Party of California.
3. Membership
3.1 Membership in Green Party of San Benito County is open to
anyone regardless of race, gender, religion, creed, national origin, sexual
orientation, appearance, or physical ability.
3.2 Membership in the GPSBC is open to voters registered as Green
Party members in San Benito County.
4. Decision-making process
4.1 In all decisions, the Green Party of San Benito County will
strive to achieve consensus. [See Addendum entitled Rules of Procedure for the
Green Assembly of San Benito County.]
Failing consensus, decisions shall require a vote of at least two-thirds
of the voting members present at a general or County Council meeting.
4.2 New members shall become active members, thereby acquiring the
right to participate in the consensus decision-making process or vote on local
chapter issues.
4.3 General meetings shall be held quarterly throughout the
calendar year. County Council
shall meet monthly between general meetings.
4.4 Members who do not attend at least one GPSBC general meeting
in a six-month period become inactive, and must follow the process outlined in
Section 4.2 to become active again.
4.5 Active membership of an individual in GPSBC can be revoked for
failure to abide by the Ten Key Values, for seriously misrepresenting the
positions of the GPSBC or for disrupting the work of GPSBC. An individual must
be informed of the potential revocation of membership at least three weeks
prior to the vote and have a chance to speak in his or her defense at the
meeting when the vote is held.
4.6 Proposals shall be acted upon at a general meeting. Where
practical, proposals shall be presented at a meeting preceding the meeting
where action is taken on the proposal or presented to the County
Chapter/Council for dissemination to the county membership prior to such
action.
5. Structure
5.1
Green Party of San Benito County active members shall select a County Council
of 3 people to manage the group's business between General Meetings, to draft
the agenda for the General Meetings, and to handle routine administrative
tasks. GPSBC shall strive for gender and ethnic balance in selecting its County
Council. The County Council shall nominate members to fill specialized roles
such as spokespeople, new member contact, treasurer, secretary, etc. The
nominations shall be brought to the next General Meeting for approval. County
Council members shall serve for two years. County Council members may be
recalled for good cause by the membership.
5.1.a The initial County Council shall be elected at the first
general meeting.
5.1.b Subsequent County Council elections shall coincide with even
year primaries.
5.1.c In the event a County Council member resigns or is recalled,
the nomination and election of a replacement shall take place at the monthly
meeting immediately following the resignation.
5.1.c.1 If the following meeting is a County Council meeting, the
County Council may elect a replacement who may serve until affirmed by the next
General Meeting. If affirmed by the General Meeting, this council member serves
the balance of the term of the person s/he replaces.
5.1.c.2 If the following meeting is a General Meeting, or if the
general membership rejects the County Council's previously elected choice for a
replacement at the General Meeting, the general membership may nominate and
elect a replacement, who will serve the balance of the term of the person s/he
replaces.
5.2 The GPSBC active members shall select representatives to the
plenaries held by the Green Party of California for a one-year term.
Representatives may be recalled for good cause by the membership.
5.3 The GPSBC can establish other working committees as the need
arises.
5.4 Facilitators at each meeting will rotate among members.
5.5 Financial expenditures or commitments greater than $100 must
be approved by the membership.
6. Officers
6.1 Treasurer
1. Duties and Responsibilities
a) Receive, disburse, maintain and
account for the funds of the Party in accordance with the direction of the
Green Assembly.
b) Prepare and submit copies of monthly,
quarterly and annual financial reports, as appropriate, at each meeting of the
GP Green Assembly.
c) Review all bank accounts and financial
records as specified by the Green Assembly.
d) Act as an ex-officio member of any
working group with responsibility for Green Party finances.
e) Participate in preparation of a draft
budget for consideration by the Green Assembly.
f) File income and expense reports as
required by law.
g) Utilize common bookkeeping practices
and generally accepted accounting principles in managing and reporting
finances.
6.2 Secretary
1. Duties and Responsibilities
a) Maintain current rosters of active
volunteers for each Working Group, Neighborhood Group and Caucus.
b) Maintain current list of names of
those who, according to the County Elections Department are registered with the
Green Party.
c) Record and maintain in an orderly
fashion a collection of meeting minutes, resolutions, meeting agenda packets,
newsletters and other material generated by the organization.
6. Candidates/Endorsements/Coalitions
6.1 The Green Party of San Benito County members will be
responsible for selecting and/or endorsing candidates for local political
office and will be responsible for forwarding those nominations for
ratification to the state nominating convention. Candidates selected must be
registered Green in the state of California, embrace the Ten Key Values as a
basis for their political decision-making, and meet all state legal requirements.
6.2 The GPSBC may endorse initiatives, referenda, campaigns and
coalitions in keeping with our 10 Key Values and state platform. An endorsement
of an issue or coalition requiring the commitment of GPSBC resources (money,
people, time, etc.) must clearly state the requirements and where the resource
will come from.
7. Bylaw Amendments
7.1 A copy of the proposed bylaw amendment shall be given to
active members at least one month prior to the meeting in which the amendment
is to be considered. A written copy of the adopted bylawsÑwith any current
amendmentsÑwill be maintained by the County Council.
7.2 Any amendment will become effective on the first of the month
following ratification.
8. Locals
8.1 Any five or more members of the GPSBC residing in the same
area may create a Green Party Local by submitting the following to the County
Council:
a. Statement of the name and purpose of the organization;
b. Description of the area to be included in the Local
c. A list of names of the members
d. The name, address, phone and other contact information of the
person serving as the liaison to the County Council.
e. Bylaws for the Local, which must be approved by the County
Council
8.2 The local shall continue to be recognized by the GPSBC as long
as it maintains regular communications with the County Council, adheres to
Green values and meets the requirements of the GPSBC and their own bylaws. The
Local shall provide the County Council with meeting agendas and meeting minutes
on an ongoing basis.
8.3 If the County Council does not receive documentation outlined
in Section 8.2, or does not receive contact from the Local's liaison to the
County Council on a regular basis, the County Council may rule that the Local
is no longer in good standing with the GPSBC.
8.4 The Local may not make public statements on behalf of the
GPSBC without written permission from the County Council.