[NCC] Fwd: By-Law changes

[Ronald Harps]

Hi all,

Just got this response from ARRL Great Lakes director, Dale, WA8EFK related to my concerns about the upcoming ARRL BOD meeting in January. I would urge others to contact him and make your opinions known.

Hope to see everyone at K8AZ on Jan. 20.

73,
Ron, K8NZ



-----Original Message-----
From: Dale Williams <dale.wms1 at frontier.com>
To: Ronald Harps <nzharps at aol.com>
Sent: Wed, Dec 27, 2017 1:24 pm
Subject: Re: By-Law changes


    Thanks for your e-mail, Ron
    
    I have seen it reported that there is a proposal that one Director    plans to submit requesting that the ARRL Board grant voting    privileges to the President and Vice Presidents of the League.   All    of these officers were former member-elected Board members, having    served as Directors immediately prior to their being elected by    their fellow Board members to hold the executive offices.  At that    point, they lost their voting privileges.  The Director submitting    the proposal feels it in unfair to these officers, after having    served for several terms as Board members, that they should loose    those voting privileges, especially in view of their long-term    experiences as serving the ARRL.
    
    While I can see the point of offering these officers voting    privileges, my opinion differs, however.   Our current By-laws have    served us well over many years, as have those who have held the    officer positions at ARRL.  Those holding the position of offices,    both now and in the past, clearly understood the consequences of    their positions and that they would loose their ability to vote,    while still retaining the ability to speak and thereby influence the    vote by their accepted experience and wisdom.   I personally favor    retaining the current policy and making no accommodations to allow    the Board-elected officers the right to vote.
    
    The Board of Directors did make some changes to the By-Laws based    upon very strong recommendations by our Connecticut attorneys.      These changes were necessary to bring us into full compliance with    Connecticut laws.  At their recommendation, we also imposed a Code    of Conduct upon the Board, based upon guidelines supplied to us by    nationally recognized not-for-profit organizations.   A key    requirement of the C of C, was for the protection of ARRL Employees    and the policy that is imposed upon the Board members to not    interfere with their daily duties.  Other factors involve insuring    employee privacy in personnel matters that may come up at Board    meetings.   At no time do these changes impose anything upon ARRL    Board members from continuing to express their personal opinions    about League matters.  It does quite logically call for unity after    a Board decision has been made, so that a Board member does not    openly disparage the collective vote of the 14 other Board members.
    
    It is my feeling that some of the verbiage of the Code is unclear    relative to the ability of the Board member to continue to be open    about his/her opinions.   I favor the Board taking a renewed look at    the Code in conjunction with our attorney's recommendations to make    this portion more clearly understood by the membership.  Perhaps    this will be done at the January Board meeting.
    
    Again, Ron, my thanks for expressing your concerns so clearly and    concisely.
    
    73,
        
         
    Dale Williams  WA8EFK
    Director
      Great Lakes Division
      ARRL
      
      734-529-3232
    
    
On 12/27/2017 1:07 PM, Ronald Harps      wrote:
    
    
        
Dale,
        

        
        
As a long time ARRL member (50+ years and more than            40 years as a Life Member), I urge you to oppose the            proposed by-law changes that will be voted on in January.
        

        
        
In my view, the League is a representative democracy            (we the members vote for directors and the BOD sets policy).            Adding additional members of the BOD who are not in any way            directly connected to the voting membership goes against            that ideal. Additionally, by being able to "get rid of"            members for no apparent reason smacks of a totalitarian            organization that is only concerned with it's own self            preservation.
        

        
        
I think many members hold this view.
        

        
        
73,
        
Ron Harps, K8NZ
        
1997 Willow Glen Ln
        
Columbus, OH 43229
        

        
        
440-477-0142